[[{"@context":"http:\/\/schema.org","@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/2021\/02\/04\/best-examples-of-b2b-e-commerce-companies\/#Article","articleBody":"According to a popular joke, there are only two types of days in the pandemic: days when packages arrive, and days when they don\u2019t. The joke underscores the ever increasing percentage of consumer spend migrating to e-commerce, from groceries to clothing and well beyond.\nBut what about B2B buying? According to conventional wisdom, B2B sales are much more dependent on personal contact and in-person relationships \u2013 and therefore more resistant to the lure of online purchasing.\nAs it turns out, B2B buyers are increasingly willing to take their transactions online. Today we\u2019ll examine this trend and look at how companies are succeeding at making the shift, providing us with some of the best examples of B2B e-commerce.\n \nHow B2B industries tackled COVID challenges and won\n Find out how B2B industries like manufacturing and high tech transformed amid during the pandemic. Manufacturers had an important realization: Your buying experience should be simple, even if your products aren\u2019t. This is a valuable takeaway for every industry. \nAs buying behavior shifts, examples of B2B e-commerce emerge\nA recent survey of buyers in the UK found that 46% of B2B purchases are now being completed online. Not only that, but the number of B2B buyers who bought directly from salespeople has declined from 44% to 16%.\nIt\u2019s a dramatic shift, and one that underscores the need for B2B suppliers to quickly ramp up their e-commerce capabilities.\nIn fact, the same research revealed that \u201c43% of businesses still find buying online more complicated than buying offline.\u201d Not only that, but the same percentage of respondents said they had switched suppliers because their existing supplier lacked e-commerce capabilities.\n \nWhat is e-commerce? Definition, benefits, examples\n E-commerce is the online buying and seLearn all about the benefits of e-commerce and examples of the best e-commerce sites out there. \nIn other words, failing to ramp up B2B e-commerce capabilities means your competitors might just cherry-pick your best customers. But the flip side is opportunity: making the right investments in e-commerce is more than likely to pay off.\nOf course, given how new this space is, it may take time to figure out just what the \u201cright\u201d investments are. Depending on what a company sells, this may not be easy. But some companies are making the shift and seeing amazing results.\nCompanies setting the pace: 5 examples of B2B e-commerce \nSome B2B companies are effectively adapting their business models to meet the changing marketplace.\nAnixter\nProcter & Gamble\nPepsiCo\nGrainger\nAB InBev Mexico\nAnixter, a global provider of communications equipment and services, saw the pandemic as a chance to accelerate its transition to a B2B model based on digital commerce.\nBy giving buyers the freedom to engage via digital channels, Anixter has seen marked improvements in its relationships with its largest global customers, which has led to increased growth. Through digital channels, Anixter can provide an experience that best fits each customer. At the same time, e-commerce frees the sales team from administrative tasks so they can focus on selling and helping customers.\nProcter & Gamble is making big investments in e-commerce, which are paying off.\nThe company grew e-commerce sales 25% for its 2019 fiscal year, and e-commerce sales were expected to grow to 10% of its total sales in 2020. \nLike other traditionally B2B-focused companies, Procter & Gamble has intensified its direct-to-consumer focus during the pandemic. For example, it rolled out a significant digital campaign for its Native brand of natural deodorant.\nPepsiCo launched two D2C websites \u2013 Snacks.com and PantryShop.com \u2013 to tap into the market of working parents who are home full-time with their school-age children. \nWhat\u2019s particularly impressive is it only took them 30 days to ramp up and launch the new sites. \u201cOver the last few years, PepsiCo has been working to be a faster, stronger, better company, one that is laser focused on meeting consumer needs and winning in the marketplace. Investing in e-commerce and digital capabilities and talent has been \u2013 and will continue to be \u2013 a big part of that effort,\u201d\u00a0Gibu Thomas, Senior VP & Head of E-Commerce, said in announcing the launch.\n \nTop B2B e-commerce challenges and how to overcome them\n Here are the top B2B e-commerce challenges companies face when transforming their commerce model to meet the needs of today's B2B buyers. \nGrainger, a distributor of maintenance, repair, and operating products, is seeing exceptional results with its multi-faceted e-commerce strategy. The company was more than ready for the rapid shift of customers to digital channels last year, with a flagship website designed to make things easy for customers and its Zoro and MonotaRO online operations.\nAB InBev Mexico had to pivot quickly to e-commerce when beer sales to bars, restaurants, and event facilities dried up last during the pandemic. \nAccording to AdExchanger, the company helped a chain of convenience stores create e-commerce sites to take orders and set up delivery. AB InBev also said it plans to shift production to accommodate online demand with more large packs of beer.\nFor B2B companies to succeed in e-commerce requires more than a digital investment. Making the shift requires a different mindset as well as different processes and skill sets. In short, for B2B suppliers there\u2019s now a premium on agility. Those who can move quickly reap the benefits.\nStart-ups, mid-market, enterprise: Today, every B2B business needs e-commerce to grow. We can help. Learn more NOW.","author":{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/2021\/02\/04\/best-examples-of-b2b-e-commerce-companies\/#Article_Person","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/2021\/02\/04\/best-examples-of-b2b-e-commerce-companies\/#Article_Person_ImageObject","url":"https:\/\/23x6xj3o92m9361dbu2ij362-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/03\/Tanya-van-Soest-Headshot-150x150.jpg"},"name":"Tanya van Soest","sameAs":"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/tanyavansoest\/","url":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/contributor\/tanya-van-soest\/"},"dateModified":"2021-10-19T04:10:48+00:00","datePublished":"2021-02-04T06:16:06+00:00","description":"Some of the best examples of B2B e-commerce include well-known brands that have successfully adapted to the digital shift in buying behavior.","headline":"Best examples of B2B e-commerce: Companies winning the 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B2B.","@id":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/"},{"@type":["Article"],"@id":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/2021\/02\/04\/best-examples-of-b2b-e-commerce-companies\/#Article","@context":{"@vocab":"http:\/\/schema.org\/","kg":"http:\/\/g.co\/kg"},"url":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/2021\/02\/04\/best-examples-of-b2b-e-commerce-companies\/","publisher":[{"@id":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/"}],"author":[{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/2021\/02\/04\/best-examples-of-b2b-e-commerce-companies\/#Article_author_Person","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/2021\/02\/04\/best-examples-of-b2b-e-commerce-companies\/#Article_author_Person_image_ImageObject","url":"https:\/\/23x6xj3o92m9361dbu2ij362-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/03\/Tanya-van-Soest-Headshot-150x150.jpg"}],"sameAs":"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/tanyavansoest\/","url":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/contributor\/tanya-van-soest\/","name":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/contributor\/tanya-van-soest\/"}],"subjectOf":[{"@type":"FAQPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/2021\/02\/04\/best-examples-of-b2b-e-commerce-companies\/#Article_subjectOf_FAQPage","mainEntity":[{"@type":"Question","@id":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/2021\/02\/04\/best-examples-of-b2b-e-commerce-companies\/#subjectOf_FAQPage_mainEntity0","name":"As buying behavior shifts, examples of B2B e-commerce emerge","acceptedAnswer":[{"@type":"Answer","@id":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/2021\/02\/04\/best-examples-of-b2b-e-commerce-companies\/#subjectOf_FAQPage_mainEntity0_acceptedAnswer_Answer","text":"A recent survey of buyers in the UK found that 46% of B2B purchases<\/a> are now being completed online. Not only that, but the number of B2B buyers who bought directly from salespeople has declined from 44% to 16%.It\u2019s a dramatic shift, and one that underscores the need for B2B suppliers to quickly ramp up their e-commerce capabilities.<\/span><\/strong><\/span>In fact, the same research revealed that \u201c43% of businesses still find buying online more complicated than buying offline.\u201d Not only that, but the same percentage of respondents said they had switched suppliers because their existing supplier lacked e-commerce capabilities.Of course, given how new this space is, it may take time to figure out just what the \u201cright\u201d investments are. Depending on what a company sells, this may not be easy. But some companies are making the shift and seeing amazing results<\/a>.