B2B Online is quickly becoming one of my favorite industry conferences of the year. Walking around and getting to know new faces, you really do get the sense that people are excited to be there and genuinely want to learn from one another.
This year, I not only attended the conference, but served as the chairperson of the first day of speaking sessions. The theme around Future Proofing Your Organization with Ecommerce resulted in a lot of great conversations with folks I got to meet throughout the event. Here are some of my key takeaways from the conference overall, and what they mean for your B2B business.
Innovation Is (Still) the Key to Success
Day 1 kicked off with Derek Gominger, COO of Global eCommerce at Lenovo, delivering a keynote on the “State of B2B: Future Proofing Via Innovation to Transform.”
One of my favorite parts of his session was his reframing of 1:1 personalization (something we’re all about here at Constructor) as “Segment of One”. Segments have been an industry-standard practice for a number of years now. Sometimes, it can seem like practitioners view segmentation and personalization as separate practices, and while the tactics to approach both are different, I thought Derek’s reframing was a great way to connect how the two concepts are deeply related.
Additionally, Derek shared what he believes to be key areas for B2B manufacturers, distributors, and suppliers to focus on as they innovate. They are:
- Being open to new ideas and technologies.
- Empowering your workforce through proper training and development.
- Cultivating robust partnerships with suppliers and collaborators.
Get Good at Anticipating Customer Needs…
We all know that B2B buyer expectations are rapidly evolving, transitioning towards an increased number of digital touch points. And with that comes customers who demand solutions that can keep up with the times.
During a presentation titled “Navigating B2B Commerce Innovation to Prevent Disruption,” Zaelab‘s CEO Evan Klein painted a vivid picture: the majority of B2B buyers are millennials and Gen Z, and the future lies in guided selling, not just site searches. Guided selling solutions, such as AI Shopping Assistants, are designed not just to help customers find products, but to help them solve problems and answer questions.
They can also understand search patterns and anticipate future product needs. (Are the products a buyer is purchasing today going to be a good fit for future purchases? Are they a good fit for previous purchases?)
… And Then Adapting to Them
To me, PCNA (a promotional products supplier) was a great example of a B2B organization who attended the conference that anticipated what the customer was thinking and then adapted their ecommerce experience accordingly — via user experience (UX).
During a keynote session co-hosted alongside Tom Flierl, Chief Commercial Officer at Znode, PCNA’s Director of Digital Experience & Strategy Brennen Volbeda shared that they customized their search bar so that quantity and price range are asked for upfront. (These were the two most common filters their customers were using.)
Additionally, Brennan discussed how they upgraded the look and feel of their inventory page when they noticed customers visited it 3X on average before checking out to make sure the SKU they want is in stock.
PCNA even launched a new “Givee Select” feature, which allows a person receiving a promotional gift to select the product they want from a list rather than receiving something pre-chosen by a vendor. So, rather than printing 100 mugs that would very likely end up trashed or donated, each person can choose exactly what they want, which increases givee satisfaction and promotes sustainability.
Focus on the Human Element
B2B Online Chicago panelists also shared that true bottom-line revenue hinges on bridging the gap between Marketing, IT, and Sales, in addition to nurturing relationships that will yield long-term results.
They argued that finding ways to intimately and empathetically influence real relationships should be the cornerstone of your business’ success. Because even in our digital-first era where many interactions are influenced by websites or mobile platforms, they all eventually cascade down the funnel towards sales representatives or customer support.
Embrace AI
One final observation from the conference is that many attendees started to show some fatigue around the topic of AI.
AI, and specifically Generative AI (GenAI), continues to be a buzzword in ecommerce, with several B2B Online Chicago sessions focusing on it. Topics ranged from “Using AI: Creating Content That Appeals to Different Stages of Buyer’s Journey ” to “The Three GenAI Questions Your Business Must Answer,” “Thriving in the Era of AI/ML: Strategies for future-proofing, Converging and Redefining Success in B2B,” and more.
While it’s easy to see how the number of sessions on AI could make the topic feel overwhelming, many of the speakers shared great, actionable advice on how to take small steps toward adoption and future-proofing.
During a specific keynote panel titled “ Harnessing AI, The Top Areas To Effectively Implement Change & Increase Efficiencies (And Drive Revenue),” several industry leaders spoke about the power of AI and their specific AI use cases within their organizations.
Andy Goodfellow, CTO of Zoro, shared that AI allows his company — with a complex catalog of over 13 million SKUs — to return more personalized results for broad search results like “gloves,” which would traditionally return 50,000 products. Zoro also uses AI for their internal knowledge base, moving from a librarian model to an advisor model.
Marta Dalton, VP Marketing at PetSafe Brands, encouraged people to think of AI as an equalizer, helping bolster people in new career areas and helping smaller companies compete. For her team, AI sparks creativity, allowing them to enhance language for product data and other content.
And for those who still feel overwhelmed by preparing their workforces for AI, Sebastian Verhaar, CEO of Sana Commerce, recommended that companies start small with an outcomes-based approach. As a vendor, the last thing you want to do is add complexity, and instead should aim to make the transition as simple as possible.
One tactic he suggested was to use AI to analyze sales calls — a low-lift way to garner data-driven insights, identify trends, and help with qualifying leads. He also validated Goodfellow’s use case by emphasizing how difficult it is for field sales reps to be experts at millions of SKUs. AI can help them get up to speed quickly and tell the right story about an industry or product type.
As B2B Online Chicago wrapped up last week, one thing stood out: B2B organizations are in no way lacking in innovation. Overall, the speakers and attendees I spoke with were excited to share their progress on their digital transformation journeys, and I’m excited to hear about what they accomplish next year and beyond.