Many distributors have been forced to shift gears quickly and change the way they worked when the pandemic pushed buyers from making purchases in-person to predominantly online. The reality is that shopping has moved online in general, and traditional sales amongst all distribution companies and product lines are no exception to that. The buyer’s mindset is the driving force behind the change. According to Gartner’s research, B2B buyers spend only 17 % of their time meeting with suppliers and sales teams in-person when considering a purchase. In contrast, they spend 27% researching online to help make their buying decisions. 

These results indicate what has been steadily happening for years. People want quick insights when researching suppliers and believe shopping online is the most efficient way to shop. Distributors need to undergo an e-commerce transformation to keep up with the evolving landscape of today’s buyers. Products like SupplyMover can help position distributors as viable competitors in the vast online landscape by equipping teams with advanced AI solutions, and white-labeled e-commerce platforms that integrate directly into CRMs and ERPs to reduce time-consuming manual sales processes and ultimately increase sales by 38.7%. 

How does the adoption of emerging technology solutions reach online buyers? 

People are sticking to the ease of e-commerce marketplaces, and companies like Amazon reap the rewards after reporting a 44% sales growth in the first quarter of 2021 with steady, substantial growth throughout 2022. When facing larger competitors like this, it’s becoming increasingly more critical for distribution companies to keep up with the changing landscape of e-commerce.  

One way to penetrate previously complex populations like small and midsized businesses is by incorporating e-commerce solutions that use advanced technological tools like AI suggested selling to increase online sales and communication. AI technology can help streamline product content online by performing data mining, employing performance data, and improving online brand visibility.  

SupplyMover leverages artificial intelligence (AI) and sales enablement automations to not only help companies efficiently build their e-commerce platforms but help navigate the landscape of online sales with increases of 59.8% in new orders overall.  

SupplyMover’s AI data also has the ability to provide real-time pricing intelligence to position companies for optimal profit and show where customer pricing has been through their ordering history. Allowing not only an advancement in customer service but provides unique touch-points customers don’t normally see on platforms like Amazon. Additionally, having AI automation tools streamlines manual tasks, leaving distribution sales teams with more time to meet their buyers’ needs, specialized preferences, and track product regulations and inventory changes. 

Incorporating a comprehensive e-commerce platform into your marketplace strategy is pivotal to the success of distribution companies moving into 2023 and beyond. While the initial outlook on adopting technologies may seem like a daunting endeavor, the reality is that it will drastically reduce costs, eliminate time spent on menial tasks, allow for better customer service all while predicting customers’ needs and increasing profit margins. Most of all — the time is now for distribution companies to adapt to the changing habits of customers. 

Get SupplyMover  

SupplyMover offers all of this functionality and more. With a user-friendly, mobile-ready white-labeled e-commerce portal with dual order entry, comprehensive order histories, and multiple upselling and cross-selling opportunities powered by SupplyMover’s powerful AI toolset, you’ll have a powerful e-commerce storefront to share with your customers.   

Schedule a 15-minute discovery call  to learn more.