Choosing B2B eCommerce software to help bring your business into the digital age can be daunting. There are multitudes of platforms out there claiming to be the best, so seeing the wood for the trees can be extremely difficult, particularly for businesses that have not yet attempted to transition from regular commerce to eCommerce.
Fortunately, this article will show you seven of the best B2B eCommerce software packages currently available in 2022. Ready to be enlightened? Great, so let’s dig in!
B2B Versus B2B eCommerce Software – Are They Interchangeable?
Like B2C customers, those in B2B increasingly expect an excellent online experience. For example, both want to find the products and essential information they need quickly and effortlessly, regardless of the time of day (or night), without talking directly to sales staff. And the only way to achieve that is to use robust eCommerce software to help automate business processes and integrate them into a user-friendly online portal.
Unfortunately, that is where the similarities end, as in most other respects, B2C customers are wildly different from their B2B counterparts. For example, the buying habits of B2C customers are more casual than B2B, while B2B product pricing tends to be much more complicated. That means the eCommerce software used to automate a B2C business is seldom suited to a B2B application.
Our Suggested B2B eCommerce Platforms
Unfortunately, eCommerce has been more of a ‘thing’ in B2C over the years than B2B. Therefore, there are plenty of software vendors selling B2C eCommerce software, but not so many offer B2B solutions. It’s not all bad news, though, and we’ve picked out seven of the best B2B eCommerce software solutions currently available, saving you the time and effort of researching them.
1. OroCommerce
OroCommerce is a respected name in B2B eCommerce software, having been producing solutions aimed primarily at medium to large companies since 2012.
OroCommerce uses the Symfony PHP framework and is fully open-source and developer-friendly. As such, it has plenty of scope for deep customization, and you can tailor it to precisely match your business needs both now and in the future. Furthermore, Oro ensures that the software is continually updated and in sync with prevailing market demands and trends.
OroCommerce is feature-rich, so expect to find flexible workflows, multiple pricing lists, inventory and user management, and plenty more. Furthermore, the software integrates easily with numerous third-party apps, including Oros’ multi-channel customer relationship management tool, OroCRM.
2. Shopify Plus
Shopify is probably better known for its B2C eCommerce platform, which has been around since 2006 and currently powers 3.76 million websites worldwide. However, Shopify Plus is also available, which takes all the features that make Shopify so great and adds everything you need to use it in B2B.
Shopify Plus is a fully hosted turnkey solution. That means it includes all you need to get your B2B eCommerce presence off the ground quickly and easily: web hosting, software installation, updates, SSL certificates, etc.
3. Adobe Commerce
Adobe Commerce began life as B2C eCommerce software called Magento. However, it has since morphed to encompass B2B. Moreover, it is now owned by Adobe which continues to invest heavily in the development of all its products, including this one.
The core of Adobe Commerce is the original tried-and-tested B2C software. However, to make it suitable for B2B applications, a range of extensions and add-ons are now available, making it highly versatile and flexible. The software has good possibilities for customization, while its modular design allows it to grow with your business easily.
The only real downside of Adobe Commerce is that choosing lots of options will significantly increase the overall cost of the software. That is something that smaller businesses on tight budgets need to be careful of.
3. Salesforce B2B Commerce Cloud
Developed originally as B2C eCommerce software, the Salesforce Commerce Cloud product range grew significantly following the company’s acquisition of CloudCraze in 2018 and the introduction of Salesforce B2B Commerce Cloud.
Salesforce B2B Commerce Cloud contains all the eCommerce and CRM tools you are ever likely to need. In particular, it can manage complex pricing and discount structures. Moreover, the software is suitable for use across various industries.
With Salesforce B2B Commerce Cloud, you can offer your clients an excellent online experience. Moreover, you can give them the functionality they need while automating many of your internal processes. The result? Quality leads develop into close business relationships both now and in the future.
4. nopCommerce
nopCommerce is ideal for small businesses with no spare cash to invest in eCommerce software as it is free. Yes, you read that correctly – it’s free!
Being open source, nopCommerce is a B2B eCommerce software solution with virtually unlimited potential for adaptation and customization. Moreover, it is highly secure, so all data is kept safe and secure. Additionally, the platform can handle multiple stores, vendors, and currencies, and offers multilanguage support, adaptive storefronts, and plenty more.
nopCommerce is very user-friendly, being simple to set up and operate. Moreover, extra features are available via a range of extensions and themes.
5. BigCommerce B2B Edition
One of the unique selling points of BigCommerce B2B Edition is its ease of use. This is because it includes a selection of integral themes that enable you to build your online store in the shortest possible time and with the minimum expertise.
Another unique feature of BigCommerce B2B Edition is it is one of the few eCommerce software solutions that allow you to sell both B2B and B2C. Moreover, it can integrate with many existing systems, giving opportunities to automate internal processes and thereby reduce running costs.
6. Optimizely
Optimizely is the result of a sequence of acquisitions and rebrands of Episerver, a developer of CMS (content management system) solutions.
While the Optimizely range of eCommerce software solutions targets mostly enterprise-grade B2C businesses, the good news is that it is configurable for B2B, also. As such, you get everything necessary to create a strong, automated B2B eCommerce presence, such as list management, inventory and order management, customer-specific pricing, online quotations, etc. Furthermore, for extra functionality and flexibility, additional modules are available to enhance the capabilities of the Optimizely software further.
Wrapping Up
The significant differences between B2B and B2C customers mean that eCommerce software used by one can seldom be applied to the other. Fortunately, several excellent B2B eCommerce software solutions are now available to help you automate your business and offer your customers a superior online purchasing experience.
Please take a look at the platforms we have suggested. In many cases, free trials or demonstrations are available, so try them out and discover how they can help your business keep up in this fast-paced digital age.
