How to evaluate B2B eCommerce software as an IT leader 

As an IT leader, you must ensure your company has the right systems in place. Of course that means finding solutions to align with your business needs, but they must also work together and be easy to use. Choosing the right CPQ that works seamlessly in your eCommerce strategy is a critical decision that can significantly impact your business success. And, with the growing complexity of B2B transactions, it’s essential to select a platform that not only meets your current needs but can also adapt as your business evolves.

In this blog, we'll explore:

• The key factors to consider when evaluating B2B ecommerce software 

• The critical eCommerce features you should look for 

• The essential questions to ask before making your final decision

Factors to consider in B2B eCommerce software 

B2B eCommerce software can serve many different functions across a business. We commonly see three main use cases for B2B eCommerce software:  

• Partner portals 

• Self-service customer-facing systems 

• Internal sales-focused systems

The way the system is deployed will influence some of the features needed. But there are a handful of core capabilities that are mandatory regardless of the use case.

1. Integration capabilities

Your eCommerce software must seamlessly integrate with your ERP, CRM, and payment gateways. To ensure all systems can work well together, focus on a solution that adopts an API-first strategy. Guaranteeing data flows smoothly will reduce manual errors and make the technology easier to use. Evaluating a platform's ability to support critical integrations is vital to your business.

2. CPQ (configure, price, quote) 

Integrating a CPQ solution with your eCommerce platform creates a significant advantage for businesses with complex product offerings or intricate price books. A CPQ system helps automate the configuration, pricing, and quoting process, ensuring customers receive accurate information and tailored solutions. This integration enhances the buying experience, reduces errors, and speeds up the sales cycle, making it an important factor in your evaluation. 

Learn more about the value of a CPQ coupled with an eCommerce solution in our blog, Maximizing your B2B eCommerce potential with a CPQ solution.

3. Scalability 

As your business grows, your eCommerce platform needs to keep pace. Scalability ensures that the software can handle increased traffic, transactions, and product offerings without compromising performance. Additionally, it's essential to consider the entire revenue lifecycle and how the solution can be built to support your business’s evolving needs over time. A scalable platform promotes long-term growth and prevents the need for costly migrations in the future.

4. Security and compliance 

Security and compliance are paramount in B2B eCommerce. The platform must adhere to industry-standard security protocols and compliance requirements in an environment where sensitive customer and business data is often exchanged. Look for features like data encryption, secure payment processing, and user access controls to safeguard your information.

5. Speed to value 

In the past, it may have taken two years or more to develop, build, and launch a custom eCommerce platform. But today’s business moves fast, so companies need a solution to deliver results quickly. Thanks to SaaS and cloud delivery, it’s possible to evaluate and deploy meaningful solutions in just a few months—and begin to realize value from omnichannel eCommerce almost immediately.

6. User experience and design 

A user-friendly interface is essential for both your internal teams and customers. It simplifies managing the platform and analyzing data for internal teams, leading to improved productivity. For customers, it offers an intuitive design that makes it easy to navigate, find information, and complete transactions, enhancing their overall experience. Prioritize software that provides a seamless user experience across all devices and touchpoints.

7. Agility

Change is the biggest constant in B2B commerce. So many companies start their digital commerce journey by focusing on a core set of use cases that will provide immediate business impact. From there, they can evolve and expand capabilities as dictated by performance metrics and changing customer demands. Today’s cloud-based SaaS solutions can quickly adapt and grow with your business—rather than starting from scratch.

8. Ease of doing business 

When evaluating eCommerce solutions, availability via marketplaces offers the advantage of increased procurement, savings on licensing fees, streamlined vendor onboarding, and more. B2B marketplaces like AWS Marketplace are attractive for ease of purchasing and enabling control and governance over software procurement. With 70% of cloud application spending happening outside IT's control, this visibility is crucial to reducing wasted time and money.  

For a more holistic view of the business processes a digital commerce solution impacts, check out our blog on the essential eCommerce capabilities for a seamless revenue strategy.

Seven must-have B2B eCommerce features

1. Self-service and guided buying: A B2B eCommerce platform should facilitate an efficient self-service experience, allowing customers or partners to navigate complex product and service offerings with guidance. This includes intuitive configuration, pricing, and ordering tools that assist users through building their cart and checking out.

    

2. Recommendations: Increase deal size by automatically offering additional products or services based on past purchased products or the item in the user’s cart.

    

3. A unified data model: Digital commerce solutions built with a unified data mode ensure that customer information is accurate and product/price data are the same across all channels. This allows the same rules, pricing, and product information used in direct sales to be shared through partner and customer self-service channels, lowering the risk of data inconsistency across rules, pricing, and catalog.

    

4. API-first architecture: To ensure seamless integration with other systems, such as CRM, CPQ, and ERP, an API-first strategy is crucial. This approach, also called headless commerce, allows your eCommerce platform to communicate and function effectively within your broader technology ecosystem.

    

5. Personalized customer engagement: The ability to offer a branded storefront with personalized content, search capabilities, and dynamic pricing tailored to specific customers is critical. Personalization enhances the overall user experience and drives customer satisfaction.

    

6. Analytics and reporting: An eCommerce solution must have an integrated analytics suite that provides insights into customer behavior, sales trends, and operational efficiency. These insights help make data-driven decisions to optimize the buying experience. 

For a deeper dive into B2B eCommerce solution requirements, check out our article,The top B2B eCommerce solution requirements for the modern B2B use case.

Critical questions to ask before selecting a B2B eCommerce solution 

As you narrow down your choices for an eCommerce solution, asking these questions will help ensure the platform aligns with your current and future business needs.

1. Can the solution handle your current business needs?

• Does it ensure a seamless customer experience across all touchpoints? 

• Can customers move seamlessly between channels, such as requesting a quote online and completing the order with an account executive? 

• Does it enable customers to self-serve for tasks like updating account information and checking order status? 

• Will it provide all users, including inside sales and external customers, with a consistent view of account information, contract terms, and renewals? 

• Can it generate accurate invoices and allow customers to view and pay them online? 

• Does it empower your company to collaborate effectively with business partners and resellers?

   

2. Can the solution manage your product lineup and deal structure needs?

• For volume products: Does it support bulk ordering, reorders, preorders, volume incentives, multiple shipping options, and related promotions? 

• For subscription products: Can it handle account origination, plan upgrades, renewals, cancellations, and bundle offerings? 

• For configurable products: Does it provide tools for multiple configurations, guided selling, and order orchestration?

3. Can the solution evolve along with your products or business model?

• Is it adaptable to changes in your go-to-market strategy or customer segments? 

• Can it support transitions, such as moving from physical sales to subscription services or expanding domestic to international markets? 

• Will it accommodate shifts in customer focus, such as transitioning from enterprise to SMB customers?

Choosing the right B2B eCommerce software 

Evaluating B2B eCommerce software requires carefully considering your current needs and understanding your future growth. By focusing on scalability, customization, and integration, you can select a platform that meets your current requirements and supports your long-term business objectives.  

If you’re looking for a comprehensive solution that ticks all these boxes, Conga’s CPQ platform offers robust, flexible, and scalable features designed to meet the complex needs of B2B organizations. Built for enterprises looking for new channels to market, Conga Digital Commerce is an extension to our CPQ that empowers users to provide an omnichannel platform for customers and partners that utilizes a single data model plus a single configuration and pricing engine across all channels to market. With Conga, your business can sell anything, at any price, to anyone, through any channel.

• Support for complex configured products 

• Robust pricing capabilities 

• Integrated CLM and billing 

• Headless CPQ for faster time-to-value 

• API-first to support direct sales, partners, and customers 

• Intelligent upsell and cross-sell recommendations 

• Promotion and rebate management  

• Branded and personalized buying experience
• Rich approvals support

Whether you want to enable a partner portal or give customers a self-service option, Conga can provide the tools and support necessary to drive your business forward​. To learn more about our CPQ solution for eCommerce, check out this product data sheet.

The added value of purchasing through AWS Marketplace   

Conga CPQ is available on AWS Marketplace, a curated digital catalog for finding, buying, deploying, and managing third-party software. This makes it easier to consolidate billing and invoicing, fast-track vendor onboarding, and fulfill AWS cloud spend commitments via the Enterprise Discount Program (EDP) benefits.

• Using the AWS Marketplace reduces time spent searching for and selecting vendors by 66%. 

• Time spent performing invoicing tasks is reduced by 50% since all AWS Marketplace purchases are consolidated into your AWS bill.   

• AWS Marketplace also reports a 25% reduction in at-risk spending for its users.  

Combine the power of Conga CPQ with the streamlined procurement of AWS Marketplace to quickly grow, protect, and expand revenue.  

Check out Conga CPQ’s AWS Marketplace listing here!  

Further reading:

https://conga.com/resources/blog/ten-critical-digital-commerce-capabilities-keep-mind 

https://conga.com/resources/blog/maximizing-your-b2b-ecommerce-potential-cpq-solution  

https://conga.com/resources/blog/maximizing-aws-edp-spend