B2B marketplaces: the recipe for success

B2B marketplaces that connect professional buyers and sellers are now a booming business model, mainly because of an increasingly digital industry. According to a study by Mirakl, the volume of business between professionals in marketplaces will increase 38% worldwide by 2022. In comparison, e-commerce grew only by 6%. This trend shows no sign of slowing down. According to PYMNTS, by 2025:

• The B2B marketplace, or B2B ecommerce market, model has an estimated potential of €4,000 billion.
• 80% of B2B buyer and supplier transactions could be carried out online.

And with good reason, the B2B marketplace model has a lot to offer. With a flexible buying journey, a wide product catalogue and services, larger orders, but also smooth payment experiences, B2B marketplaces offer innovative features and an entire ecosystem of sellers. For sellers, the benefits are equally diverse, ranging from reduced costs and simplified stock management to increased sales, greater profit margins and improved profitability. To better understand this fast-expanding model, let's take a closer look at the different types of B2B marketplaces and the ingredients they need to succeed and to become one of the leading brands of their market.

What is a B2B marketplace?

As of today, five main categories of B2B (business to business selling) marketplaces have been identified, each with distinct characteristics that meet the needs of different professionals:

• The goods and services marketplace allows professionals to buy products or services from a variety of sellers with a wider and more diverse offering.
• Purchasing marketplace: refers to an online procurement platform (or e-procurement) that connects  B2B buyers and suppliers to get products quickly and easily from a large catalogue.
• The network marketplace: this makes networking and transactions between members of the same network easier by bringing together all their offerings on a single platform.
• The circular economy marketplace is very much in vogue; here, second-hand products can be resold or rented. It presents several advantages, including stock optimisation, recycling unused products, and contributing to a CSR approach.
• The digital transformation marketplace provides services, products and solutions linked to the digital transformation of businesses.

For a deeper understanding of how B2B marketplaces cater to diverse companies' needs and developments, read our article: B2B Marketplaces: Decryption and data about a booming business model.    

What are the ingredients for successful B2B marketplace sites?

To build a successful marketplace, you must implement a strategic approach based on several foundational pillars. The following five pillars are crucial to build a B2B marketplace that thrives.

Clearly state the promise(s) and create an attractive offer

Success starts with strategic thinking: what products or services does the B2B platform want to offer? What needs does it meet? This is the case with Panachats, a platform that optimises and makes purchasing easier for public institutions. This marketplace makes the purchasing process much more accessible, from sourcing larger orders to contract management. It provides a wide range of products, a user-friendly interface, clear information about the catalogue and supply chain processes, and a highly available support team.

Other platforms that focus on specific niches include GreenTraders, specialised in reconditioned products for businesses; Warmango, which targets construction industry professionals; Agriconomie, designed for farmers; and Chemondis, a marketplace for professionals looking for suppliers in the chemical industry.

Get inspired by B2C platforms for a great B2B ecommerce marketplace

Over the last few years, B2B marketplaces have observed a shift in buyer needs and are looking to replicate the positive experiences they’re witnessing with B2C e-commerce sites. Professionals are now wanting similar experiences in B2B:

• A seamless interface and a technically optimised platform
• Optimised catalogue management with easily searchable products
• Good quality content and product images from the merchants
• An intuitive and powerful search engine to provide the best product suggestions
• Clear information: stock availability, customer reviews, order confirmation, order tracking, logistics support, review requests, etc.
• Loyalty programmes

Drawing inspiration from B2C, marketplaces such as Mercateo (a procurement platform) and giants such as Cdiscount and Europages have underlined the need to build user loyalty through customer experience.

Adapting to B2B Specificities while complying with regulatory restrictions

B2B marketplaces,  like their B2C counterparts, are required to prioritise compliance with regulations such as PSD2, LCB-FT, and RGPD. However, in addition to these legal requirements, they must adapt to the specificities of B2B, particularly regarding payment conditions, order volumes, dynamic pricing, deferred payment, extended payment terms, credit insurance, international currency management, paid delivery, etc. They must be able to provide multiple payment options and functionalities that are adapted to their professional customers’ expectations and businesses' payment habits.

Use technology and digital innovations dedicated to a B2B online marketplace

Faced with growing demands from buyers and sellers and increasingly fierce competition, B2B marketplaces use technology and digital innovations to stand out. Artificial intelligence, for example, is particularly good at improving platform performance. It can be used to personalise user experience, automate specific processes, and analyse data to identify areas of improvement. The IoT can also be deployed to optimise stock management, logistics and supply chain, thereby improving marketplaces’ operational productivity.

Relying on trusted partners

Trusted partners can significantly influence the success of B2B marketplaces. Besides the companies operating the marketplace (also called marketplace operators), there are two key players essential for the project's success for buyers and merchants:

• The software publisher provides the marketplace’s infrastructure.
• The payment service provider (PSP) provides the payment solution.

Exceptional support: The key to an optimal payment experience

Payment is at the heart of any marketplace. This means you must carefully choose your partners to offer the best possible B2B payment solution.

Lemonway, a leading B2B marketplace solution in Europe

As a global accredited payment service provider, Lemonway's modular architecture means it’s involved with leading marketplace solution providers and supports many B2B marketplaces with their payment processes. At the same time, Lemonway provides maximum security for its users and ensures compliance with regulatory requirements.

If you’d like to receive advice from our experts to make sure your B2B platform is a success, please feel free to contact us. Our dedicated team is on hand to help you with your project and provide the expertise you need to succeed with B2B marketplace websites.