B2B e-commerce
Sale of goods or services between businesses via an online sales portal
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
B2B e-commerce, short for business-to-business electronic commerce, refers to the sale of goods or services between businesses (B2B) using an online sales platform. It helps improve the efficiency and effectiveness of a company's sales and purchasing operations. Instead of handling orders manually through sales representatives, telephone, or e-mail, companies now process orders digitally, which helps reduce administrative and operational costs.[1]
Market development and trends
Manufacturing companies obtain components or raw materials from other companies and then sell to a wholesaler, distributor, or retail customer. For example, an automobile manufacturer makes several B2B transactions such as buying tires, glass for windscreens, and rubber hoses for its vehicles.[2]
The B2B e-commerce market has been growing rapidly. In 2014, 63% of industrial supplies buyers made their purchases online. The US market was projected to grow from $780 billion in 2015 to $1.1 trillion by 2020,[3] but recent data suggests that it is even larger. In 2022, just over 10% of B2B product sales, totaling $1.676 trillion, were made through e-commerce websites. This growth trend is expected to continue strongly until at least 2026.[4]
In the United States, B2B e-commerce was expected to reach $1.8 trillion by 2023.[5] This growth is being driven by a number of factors, including the increasing adoption of cloud computing, the growth of mobile commerce, and the rising demand for end-to-end supply chain solutions.
The European Union's Enterprise policy aims to "enhance trust and confidence" in B2B electronic markets.[6] The European Commission commented on the "relatively low use of B2B e-markets" in 2004, especially among small and medium sized businesses (SMEs), which it thought might be "explained by the fact that buyers seem to benefit more from B2B e-markets than sellers", leading SMEs to suspect the market power of their larger business customers. Reverse online auctions were thought to pose particular difficulties for SMEs in this respect,[6]: 2 and more transparent legal safeguards against unfair commercial practices were put forward as one aspect of the Commission's proposed enhancement actions.[6]: 5