B2B order management is a complex—but crucial—aspect of running a successful business. If you’re doing it wrong, you could be losing customers and money.
In this blog post, we’ll examine the components of good B2B order management and how to ensure that your business is fulfilling orders in the best possible way. Keep reading for tips to make your B2B eCommerce platform more efficient and customer-friendly!
Automate Order Processing
If you want to make the most of your B2B order management system and improve the efficiency of your business, then it’s time to consider automating some processes. Your organization can automate several repetitive tasks, including order fulfillment, warehouse routing, shipping updates, and inventory updates. Automation will help you get orders shipped sooner while reducing errors that may occur when manually taking orders.
Automating manual tasks can relieve you of a lot of time-consuming effort, but the benefits don’t stop there. Your buyers will also benefit from greater order accuracy and updates.
Automation is especially helpful for B2B companies that sell to businesses in other countries. Automated systems can help you easily deal with foreign currencies and different payment methods.
Get Scaleable Order Management Software
You’ll want to be sure that you choose order management software that can scale with your company as it grows. Look for a solution that lets you increase the number of users, add new features, and integrate more sales channels. Choose a system that has built-in redundancy and back-up so there’s no data loss in case of a crash or power outage.
Enhance Customer Relationships
When a customer contacts your company, you want to make it easy for them to communicate with you. Provide multiple ways to contact you, including email and phone support. Also, consider social media channels.
If the customer has questions about an order they just placed or their account status, make sure your website is easy to navigate so they can find information quickly. You may also want to include an online portal where customers can view their order history and status besides purchasing additional items from your company’s product catalogs.
Finally, improve the payment experience by making checkout as seamless as possible for potential buyers on their phones. This should include:
- How much each item cost
- Estimated shipping costs
- Updated tracking information
- Confirmation emails containing all of this data so there are no surprises later down the line
By enhancing customer relationships, you will create advocates for your company who can speak positively about their experiences with others.
Centralize All Order Information to Employees
Your company has probably already done a lot to make it easy for customers to order your products. But what about improving the experience of everyone who works at and with your business?
If you are working on multiple platforms and projects, your team is wasting time bouncing between different applications and documents. By centralizing all information and order data, you will make it easier for employees to manage and find what they need. You’ll soon notice that they respond to orders faster and with fewer mistakes.
Prioritize Product Data Quality
Customers need accurate and up-to-date product information in order to make informed decisions about their purchases. The more streamlined your customer experience, the better—and that’s where product data quality comes in.
In today’s world, clients have an attention span of about 8 seconds. As such, if you don’t have high-quality product data readily available, you could lose out on sales opportunities. Potential buyers won’t trust that what you’re selling will meet their needs (or even work).
Implement strategies to guarantee that your data’s quality is rich because an unpleasant experience will sap people’s motivation. And 88% of those same customers won’t come back for more from you.
Improve Fulfillment Processes
If you’re selling a product that is bulky and therefore difficult to transport, moving your warehousing closer to your key clients could cause much faster service. If you can reduce the time it takes for your goods to reach their final destination, this can have a positive impact on customer retention and satisfaction.
Try to get a good understanding of all the top fulfillment options, including third-party logistics. Always seek a balance of cost and quality, and make sure your chosen solution offers consistent results at reasonable prices.
Manage Everything on One Platform
Consider a wholesale ordering platform that allows you to manage everything from one place. There are plenty of software solutions out there, but the best ones will integrate with other platforms (e.g., QuickBooks). This can save you a lot of time and money in the long run.
Make Sure There’s a Mobile App
A strong mobile component can be a game-changer for many reasons. First, it keeps you connected to your customers even when you’re offline. Both you and your customers can easily check inventory, place orders, track shipments—and much more.
Second, mobile apps make it easier for customers to do business with you. They can browse your products on their own time and place orders whenever it’s convenient for them.
Meet Your Customer’s High Expectations
Developing a good B2B order management strategy and ensuring that your business is fulfilling orders in the best possible way can be a challenge. But it’s a challenge that you have to meet if you want to stay ahead in today’s business world.
Customers now expect more choice, transparency, and convenience than ever before. How do you give it to them? Contact the experts at Order Taker, and we’ll get you started with a wholesale mobile ordering app and web store today.