The 3 Big Trends Driving B2B Commerce in 2024

B2B commerce is changing, and traditional approaches are fast becoming obsolete.

From our vantage point in working with enterprises, we see two fundamental factors driving this change.

The first one, unsurprisingly, is Generative AI (GenAI). Since ChatGPT took the world by storm, subsequent developments in the GenAI space are fast transforming automation in operational and backend processes. Earlier challenges in streamlining customer support and optimizing supply chains are now less of a problem, as GenAI solutions enhance backend capabilities and deliver value.

The second big shift we see is in how platforms have become all-powerful and comprehensive ecosystems. Leading eCommerce platforms now offer integrated B2B solutions, and simplify primary needs like complex CPQ workflows, dynamic pricing, and advanced customer segmentation.

So what does it take to stay competitive and drive growth, in 2024?

Here are some trends and insights on how B2B commerce is changing.

What are the trends driving B2B commerce in 2024?

There are 3 major trends at play.

Trend 1: A Shift to Cloud-Native & Composable Commerce

Let’s face it— sticking with aging and rigid platforms just doesn’t cut it anymore. B2B businesses need the flexibility (both at the front-end and back-end) to adapt and grow. This is where cloud-native and composable solutions come into play.

A cloud-native (also called microservices) architecture gives businesses the power to scale up without worrying about system slowdowns or bottlenecks during peak times.

Here’s how a cloud-native architecture helps:

• Elastic Scaling: Automatically scales resources up or down based on demand. This is crucial for handling traffic spikes without the need for manual intervention or over-provisioning.
• Global Reach: Allows eCommerce platforms to serve international customers in a streamlined manner, reducing latency and improving user experience.
• Microservices Architecture: Services are independently deployable, allowing faster development cycles, easier updates, and the ability to use the best tool for each task.
• Access to New Technologies: AI solutions, machine learning workflows, advanced analytics, and IoT solutions can be easily integrated to enhance functionality and customer experience.
• Seamless Integration: Facilitates easy integration with third-party services and APIs, allowing B2B businesses to expand their capabilities without extensive development effort.

Gartner predicts that by 2025, over 95% of new digital initiatives will be built on cloud-native platforms, up from less than 40% in 2021.

But cloud-native is just one piece of the puzzle—the other is composable commerce.

Composable commerce allows businesses to take a modular approach to their design and user experience that addresses critical B2B pain points like managing large product catalogs, handling complex pricing models, and integrating multiple sales channels.

This is particularly important in an omnichannel environment, where there is potential value to be unlocked:

• Omnichannel Sales: Retail and offline centers can be easily integrated into a cloud-native architecture. With a unified backend, service representatives can facilitate transactions, place orders, manage returns, and handle exchanges without redirecting customers to a separate eCommerce site.
• Unified Customer Profiles: This approach also enables a unified view of customer profiles across all touchpoints for personalized service and consistent interactions. This maintains continuity in customer relationships and improves service efficiency.
• Self-Service Reordering: A decoupled architecture supports the creation of self-service reordering portals, where customers can reorder products with a single click, track order statuses, and access relevant documentation, reducing the burden on sales teams.
• Customer-Specific Portals: Personalized reordering portals can be quickly deployed for individual clients, tailored to their specific needs and preferences. These portals provide a customized experience that strengthens client relationships and encourages repeat business.
• Embedded Payment Links: One of the key advantages of this architecture is the ability to integrate payment options directly into various customer touchpoints, such as emails, chat interfaces, and service interactions.

Companies adopting composable commerce report a 17% increase in conversion rates and a 10% dip in cart abandonment.

The improved adaptability allows B2B businesses to respond swiftly to market changes, add new features faster, and maintain a customer-centric approach across all touchpoints.

Trend 2: The Growing Role of AI in Personalization

AI is the new buzzword in every segment, and B2B commerce is also adapting to this paradigm shift.

In the US, 56% of B2B firms are exploring AI solutions, with 25% having successfully implemented them.

The proof is in the pudding, as some of the biggest eCommerce platforms are getting creative with AI:

• Salesforce uses Einstein AI to adjust pricing strategies in real-time and forecast sales trends, ensuring competitive pricing and maximizing revenue.
• Adobe Commerce is leveraging Adobe Sensei to deliver AI-powered insights and automation, improved personalization, intelligent search, and predictive lead and account scoring.
• Shopify Magic streamlines content creation, while Sidekick provides intelligent and conversational support, and real-time assistance and insights to optimize store management.
• To simplify AI integration, Commercetools provides a Documentation Chat Assistant for accurate information, a Source Code Copilot for efficient code, and a Quick-start AI Cookbook for implementing AI solutions.

But this is just the start. While platforms compete to deliver out-of-the-box AI solutions that simplify eCommerce operations, there are greater trends in how AI can be leveraged in the backend.

In 2024, we’re likely to see increased adoption of AI/ML across specific B2B use-cases like:

• Account-Based Recommendations: Product and service recommendations based on specific business needs, procurement history, and industry trends.
• Custom Pricing Models: Dynamic pricing that factors multiple variables like the customer’s account history, order volume, and negotiated contracts.
• Inventory and Order Management: Forecasting demand accurately, optimizing stock levels, and automating reordering processes for timely fulfillment.
• Supply Chain Coordination: Predicting disruptions, optimizing logistics routes, and enhancing supplier collaboration for just-in-time manufacturing.
• Lead Scoring and Qualification: Prioritizing leads based on their potential value and likelihood to convert, and improving sales team efficiency.
• Targeted Marketing Campaigns: Advanced customer segmentation and crafting personalized marketing strategies for different business segments.
• Proactive Service and Maintenance: Predictive analytics to schedule maintenance or service calls before issues arise, minimizing downtime for client businesses.

Companies leveraging AI in sales have experienced up to a 50% boost in lead generation, a reduction in call time by as much as 70%, and up to a 60% decrease in costs, according to Forbes.

AI takes the guesswork out of most redundant and repetitive tasks, and the businesses that drive adoption sooner will be able to maximize the operational and cost efficiencies that it can deliver.

Trend 3: Data-Driven Decision Making

As B2B transactions become more complex and generate huge volumes of data from disparate and multiple channels, companies that harness this data can make smarter decisions, streamline operations, and improve customer experiences.

How can B2B businesses get started on their data journey?

A good start would involve warehousing and examining quantitative data (historical insights, order and customer data) and qualitative data (customer feedback, sales and marketing insights) that serves as a baseline for understanding the Ideal Customer Profile (ICP) at a deeper level.

From this baseline, these next steps can follow:

1. Predictive Analytics for Sales Forecasting

By integrating advanced analytics tools, you can analyze historical data, market trends, and economic indicators to predict future sales. This enables more accurate demand planning, inventory management, and strategic decision-making, ultimately leading to increased efficiency and reduced costs.

2. Customer Journey Mapping

Data analytics also allows businesses to map out detailed customer journeys, and in the process, identify key touchpoints and pain points. By understanding how customers interact with different channels and what influences their purchasing decisions, you can tailor your strategies to enhance the customer experience and drive higher conversion rates.

3. Supply Chain Optimization

Real-time data analytics can transform supply chain management by providing visibility into every stage of the process. A data-driven system can help you monitor inventory levels, track shipments, and predict potential disruptions, driving proactive management and minimizing downtime.

4. Personalized Recommendations

This one’s fairly straightforward, but hard to implement. Using AI and machine learning, you can offer personalized product recommendations based on a customer’s past purchases, browsing history, and preferences. This level of personalization enhances the customer experience and drives repeat business.

5. Marketing Attribution and ROI Analysis

Understanding the effectiveness of different marketing channels and campaigns is important for optimizing marketing spend. Data-driven marketing attribution models allow businesses to track and measure the ROI of their marketing efforts accurately. This insight helps you reallocate resources to the most effective channels, maximizing your marketing ROI.

In light of these emerging trends, it’s important to adapt and evolve your current strategies and systems to future-proof your business and enhance your operational scalability, flexibility, and agility.

The good news is - a well-designed accelerator can help you stay competitive in a rapidly changing market. And that’s what we’re building at Coderapper.

Our B2B accelerator OmniCloud helps OEMs and B2B businesses unify their backend and improve efficiencies, while building and streamlining business-critical solutions in a composable environment.

Curious to see how it works? Reach out to us, and let’s talk!