Technology
Business

Avoid the Biggest Threat to the Supplier-Customer Relationship

Construction suppliers must ensure their ecommerce site meets the needs of today’s digital-savvy buyers.
By Tim Beyer
July 27, 2022
Topics
Technology
Business

The construction industry is white-hot. Cranes punctuate city skylines, the housing boom is in full swing, and last year’s massive U.S. government infrastructure bill earmarked $110 billion for roads, bridges and other major infrastructure projects. Add this to industry forecasts that predict the U.S. construction industry will top $1 trillion by 2026, and the amount of optimism in those who stand to benefit, including suppliers, is palatable.

While things are booming in the industry, this does not mean that every company will be a winner. For construction industry suppliers, now more than ever it is critical to meet the needs of customers. One way to accomplish this is for suppliers to ensure their e-commerce site meets the needs of today’s digital-savvy buyers.

B2B ONLINE BUYERS ARE FRUSTRATED

The pandemic disrupted business and forced the industry to adopt online channels. This drove an accelerated adoption of digital B2B buying and selling, with more than three-quarters of buyers and sellers preferring digital self-serve over face-to-face interactions.

Surges in orders, disruptions in supply chains, customer behavior changes, store closures and more have resulted in even the most traditional construction buyers turning to e-commerce sites. In 2021, three in four construction companies were forced to increase their investment in digital transformation because of COVID-19 disruptions.

But the fast mobilization of B2B online transactions has come with some consequences. Research shows that B2B suppliers are failing buyers, with over 50% of e-commerce sites not fully meeting the expectations of their customers. Merely having a solution does not exempt the industry from online buyer disappointment.

Much of buyer frustration is rooted in usability and inaccuracy. Seventy-five percent of buyers have little faith in the ability of their suppliers to provide full, accurate, and consistent information online and offline. Delivery and tracking challenges, payment terms confusion, overly complicated re-ordering and checkout processes, and the need for unnecessary returns are additional areas that buyers found especially exasperating.

In other words, the industry’s digitization efforts are lagging while its buyers and their preferences are not.

ONLINE RELATIONSHIPS MATTER

Even in the digital age, business relationships truly matter. While buyers prefer self-serve options, this does not eliminate the importance of relationships.

In fact, buyers overwhelmingly place the relationship between themselves and the supplier at the top of the list when asked what was most important to them in the B2B buying process. Forty-three percent of buyers ranked their supplier relationships among their top customer experience challenges, with 80% considering those relationships so important that they would buy from a supplier with whom they had a strong relationship even if it meant less favorable business terms.

Technology is a support and not a replacement for valuing customers. Suppliers that deliver a poor and frustrating online customer experience have a high risk of losing customers.

FOUR KEYS TO A STELLAR ONLINE BUYING EXPERIENCE

It is abundantly clear that B2B construction industry buyers are more demanding, more impatient and more convenience-driven than ever before. It is equally clear that suppliers are not delivering. In the rush to build web stores, too many suppliers are failing to prioritize the e-commerce customer experience.

Meeting the high expectations of today’s digitally sophisticated B2B customers, e-commerce sites need to deliver, at a minimum, the following key attributes to ensure a positive buying experience.

  • Display relevant information: An e-commerce platform must provide accurate, complete and real-time information, from product and parts to inventory levels and delivery tracking.
  • Offer optimized functionalities: Customers must be able to pay and check out but also track their orders, manage their returns, and pay invoices online quickly and easily.
  • Handle the complexities of B2B orders: A web store must have the right structure in place to process complex orders, including those based on complex pricing and discount structures.
  • Prevent order errors: Product information, pricing and inventory levels must be accurately displayed in the web store 24/7. And customers should have access to order history and account data in the web store to assist them in avoiding entry and selection errors.

For suppliers looking to raise their game, figuring out where buyers are experiencing trouble and remedying those troubles should be priority number one.

EVOLVE BEFORE IT’S TOO LATE

Right now, construction e-commerce may not be a vital means of survival for a business—but it will be. Threats are on the horizon. Digitization is taking over, making competition among suppliers tougher. B2B buyers, just like retail shoppers, want fast, efficient, 24/7 service without a hassle.

This puts the construction supplier industry at a crossroads: stick to the status quo and hope today’s traditional approach maintains its staying power or evolve with the times.

Sellers who intend to capture their share of the global construction and building materials market and win the race for customers should be prepared to make significant investments in their digital transformation efforts. Those who continue to ignore their buyers’ needs and fail to give them a convenient, reliable, and positive e-commerce customer experience are at a high risk of never crossing the finish line and putting their businesses at risk.

by Tim Beyer

Tim Beyer is global COO of technology scale-up Sana Commerce, and currently based in NYC as President and CEO of the Americas region: comprised of offices in NYC and Medellin (80 FTE).

Sana Commerce started as an extension of ISM eCompany (2007) but has since evolved to offer an innovative B2B e-commerce software solution. Sana has won various awards since—and is one of the fastest growing SaaS companies founded in the Netherlands (500+ FTE / +20M ARR / +17.5M Service Revenue).

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