Trends and Current Strategies in Use of B2B E-commerce - Essay Example

The main purpose of any business establishment is to maximize its profits. Nowadays companies utilize business-to-business e-commerce for all kinds of profit-maximizing reasons, which includes, obtaining more competitive rates, satisfying their customers more efficiently, expanding, displaying their business-related ads or brochures, assisting in customer support, and most importantly managing their supply chains.

The main trend in B2B e-commerce that dominates the business market in this computer age is the use of a webpage, more specifically known as a company’s website. A true business entrepreneur would come up with a site that carries detailed information about the services that its company offers, enabling visits to buy products or services online. This is due to the reality that online buying, selling, and trading are extremely fast and convenient. Consumers, even giant business establishments, are inclined to make dealings in the most fitting mode. Thus, the easiest mode to enhance profits is through a company website.

This exchange of thoughts and sharing of contacts affect business giants such as Microsoft as well as a local business as small as an online Auto parts sale. It is true that when businessmen want to hire services or make a purchase, they are hardly ever concerned with the way the thing is presented. As happens in B2C marketing wrapping up rubbish in the shiny paper would also do good business. The business is concerned about the quality that they get at the least possible price. This is usually the driving force behind any order made or commodity bought. In such a scenario it becomes imperative that businesses target other companies to sell their product, as the orders placed are huge and unlike a customer buying it, would generate large and healthy revenues.

If it were not for B2B e-commerce, little local firms whose main profits arrive from e-commerce would have a small probability of endurance in today's corporate-dominated markets. These firms survive by offering good quality to business giants at lower prices which is again an example of B2B interaction. This means of trade allows these undersized companies to develop their business trade and customer base almost a hundred times.
An e-marketer’s business-to-business report summarizes the following very important points:

 Line56 Research has found that more than 81% of businesses are buying online directly from suppliers' websites, while 35% are purchasing via public exchanges
 41% of survey respondents to a study by AMR Research said that their company has plans to join a public exchange, while 16% are already participating in one
 Purchasing magazine has found that 78% of professional buyers in the US have done some online buying in 2001 (Leggie, Marketingtoday.com)
Another businessman shares his personal experience when he states “ After years of stagnant and sometimes slumping sales, our year 2000 sales were up nearly 100% from 1999 sales and up nearly 200% from 1998! And, the "FACT" is the e-commerce information provided in this course has helped us generate a Return-on-Investment of over 11,040% (on the price of the course) speaks more than any other endorsement I can give.” (Coble, importexporthelp.com)

From the above-discussed things we can easily derive that business-to-business interaction is far more vital than B2C and that it is no doubt E-commerce that has enabled business establishments to correspond over oceans digitally. Read More