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Designing the B2B Experience (MageTitans Austin 2016)

Brendan Falkowski
September 08, 2016

Designing the B2B Experience (MageTitans Austin 2016)

I spent the last four years advocating for responsive design as a scalable strategy to beat consumer’s expectations in a multi-device world. The B2C world shifted dramatically from designing for a screen to designing for users, which put tremendous pressure on B2B businesses to keep pace.

My last two years were focused on the B2B space and extending the considerations of RWD to customers that behave differently than a consumer but have the same critical eye.

This presentation details my thought process designing the user experience and services for the B2B customer and what it really takes to beat the curve.

More info: http://gravitydept.com/blog/magetitans-austin-2016

Conference: MageTitans Austin 2016
Speaker: Brendan Falkowski @ http://gravitydept.com
Location: Austin, Texas, USA
Date: September 8, 2016

Brendan Falkowski

September 08, 2016
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Transcript

  1. View Slide

  2. Brendan
    Falkowski
    @Falkowski

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  3. GravityDept.com

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  4. Frontend Consulting For
    GEMAIRE

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  5. gravitydept.com/to/acumen
    Acumen Theme
    Acumen 2 (demo ready…for real)
    Powers 1400+ stores
    Supported for 6+ years

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  6. I help companies solve business
    challenges with design.

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  7. Good design puts the business
    and customer on equal footing.

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  8. 2009 to 2013:
    B2C and RWD

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  9. View Slide

  10. View Slide

  11. View Slide

  12. What I learned
    designing for B2B

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  13. B2B Challenges

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  14. Site traffic
    Conversion rate
    Average order value
    1. Revenue Growth

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  15. Buying
    Selling
    Growth
    2. Complexity Management

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  16. Simplicity
    Visibility
    Personalization
    3. Customer Experience
    Management

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  17. B2B businesses have more
    complexity and move slower

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  18. B2B technology often feels
    dated compared to B2C

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  19. B2C escalation is forcing
    B2B to change rapidly

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  20. B2B buyer expectations are
    anchored by B2C experiences

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  21. Under 33%
    B2B sites that invested in
    multi-device support
    https://www.b2becommerceworld.com/2015/11/23/b2b-e-commerce-sites-have-lots-upgrading-do

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  22. 18%
    B2B companies with native
    mobile apps
    https://www.b2becommerceworld.com/2015/11/23/b2b-e-commerce-sites-have-lots-upgrading-do

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  23. 26%
    B2B companies with
    responsive websites
    https://www.b2becommerceworld.com/2015/11/23/b2b-e-commerce-sites-have-lots-upgrading-do

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  24. B2B businesses need to
    leapfrog a generation of
    technology

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  25. 56%
    B2B buyers prefer to be
    purchasing online by 2017
    http://magento.com/blog/best-practices/10-ways-boost-b2b-shopping-experience

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  26. 74%
    B2B buyers who research over
    half their purchases online
    https://www.internetretailer.com/2015/04/02/new-report-predicts-1-trillion-market-us-b2b-e-commerce

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  27. 30%
    B2B buyers who can actually
    complete purchases online
    https://www.internetretailer.com/2015/04/02/new-report-predicts-1-trillion-market-us-b2b-e-commerce

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  28. Shopping
    vs. Buying

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  29. Shopping
    noun: the action or activity of
    purchasing goods from stores

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  30. Consumers care about the
    store experience

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  31. Prices online are generally the
    same everywhere

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  32. When price/selection/quality
    are equal, services set you apart

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  33. View Slide

  34. Procurement

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  35. Constantly shopping around is
    expensive for businesses

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  36. Product specifications
    Quantity
    Price flexibility
    Need by date
    Supply location

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  37. Businesses prefer long-term
    relationships with suppliers

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  38. View Slide

  39. Revzilla builds trust through
    season after season of revised
    gear advice

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  40. I buy from Revzilla because
    their service is a reliable expert

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  41. A service is more valuable than
    your products

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  42. Manufacturers prefer to
    diversify their partnerships

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  43. Manufacturers selling direct
    online changes the landscape
    for distributors

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  44. Design services that are critical
    to your customer’s success

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  45. Stocking products and fulfilling
    orders isn’t enough anymore

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  46. Designing
    Services

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  47. Businesses need to be sold on
    the long-term relationship

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  48. One-off buyers can cost B2B
    sellers because their margins
    are low

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  49. Stable buying patterns come
    from building indispensable
    services

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  50. 1. Onboarding customers
    2. Onboarding employees
    3. Data advantage
    4. Wayfinding and search
    5. Personalization
    6. Real-time pricing and inventory
    7. Power user features
    8. Merchandising
    9. Omni-channel efficiency

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  51. Onboarding
    Customers

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  52. 44%
    B2B buyers say onboarding
    is too complex
    Oracle, “Taking the Wheel” B2B report

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  53. Customer acquisition is hard:
    1. Value is hidden
    2. Complex registration

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  54. They buy below minimum quantities
    Restricted by partner agreements
    Products require a license/authority to buy
    B2B sellers may block
    consumers completely because:

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  55. B2B sites may sell to consumers
    with different terms and pricing

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  56. Selling direct to consumers will
    frustrate B2B buyers who
    markup products

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  57. These challenges add
    complexity to B2B onboarding

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  58. New Customers

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  59. Tell customers everything they
    will need before they start
    registration

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  60. Avoid delays between
    registration and activation

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  61. Consider disabling order
    functionality pre-activation so
    new users can still explore

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  62. Automate contract creation if
    possible

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  63. Standardized terms enable a
    customer to start buying
    immediately

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  64. Existing
    Customers

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  65. Don’t assume existing
    customers will adopt new
    services

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  66. Build a pathway so existing
    customers can link their offline
    accounts together online

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  67. Be liberal when accepting
    account info for verification

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  68. Picky validation frustrates
    legitimate customers

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  69. The best way to onboard
    existing customers is making
    accounts for them

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  70. Sales reps should schedule time
    to promote and demonstrate
    online ordering’s benefits

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  71. Onboarding is an opportunity
    to redefine the sales
    relationship + get raw feedback

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  72. Onboarding
    Employees

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  73. https://www.b2becommerceworld.com/commentary/2016/03/07/building-b2b-e-commerce-site-get-your-employees-board
    If you don't get nearly all of your
    employees supporting your e-commerce
    initiative, it's not going to have legs.
    “ Michael Mayer
    Director, E-business Strategy & Commerce
    Crescent Electric Supply Co.

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  74. Didn’t know what we rolled out
    Didn’t know how it helped customers
    Couldn't support customers using it
    They didn't feel any ownership of the service
    To them, the eCommerce channel was a competitor
    Employees in the dark

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  75. Source

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  76. Educate early not after
    introducing eCommerce to
    customers

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  77. Create opportunities for
    employees to invest in
    ownership of the system

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  78. Record training to make
    onboarding new employees
    easier

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  79. Don’t be surprised or worried
    by channel shift

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  80. Sales attribution models need
    to reflect the changing weight
    of channels

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  81. Sales’ role will shift from
    quoting/ordering to being more
    proactive about customer needs

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  82. Not inviting salespeople inside
    eCommerce is setting them up
    for failure

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  83. Data Advantage

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  84. Omni-channel customers need
    service consistency to transact
    fluidly

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  85. PIM
    Product Information Management

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  86. Develop a process to intake,
    evaluate, and normalize
    product info from vendors

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  87. akeneo.com
    pimcore.org
    informatica.com
    cobby.io

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  88. Wayfinding and
    Search

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  89. Hierarchical navigation is less
    important for B2B buyers

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  90. Most B2B sessions start with
    search

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  91. B2B buyers often know the
    exact product needed before
    reaching your site

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  92. View Slide

  93. View Slide

  94. View Slide

  95. Query highlighting
    Search scopes
    Result types
    Search Enhancements
    http://baymard.com/blog/autocomplete-design

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  96. Search needs to behave
    consistently between websites
    and apps

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  97. homedepot.com
    search scopes
    suggested queries
    products
    categories
    brands

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  98. m.homedepot.com
    suggested queries
    categories
    brands

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  99. Home Depot iOS app
    suggested queries

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  100. Home Depot makes it harder to
    search for products on their
    mobile services

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  101. Their native apps actually have
    the weakest search

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  102. Multiple platforms and search
    implementations will
    disconnect customers

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  103. View Slide

  104. View Slide

  105. Personalization

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  106. Any offering that adapts to the
    customer is personalization

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  107. 1. Algorithmic merchandising
    2. Crowd sourced buying
    3. On demand production

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  108. Convert better relative to the user’s journey.
    Increase order value when suggested together.
    Higher margin or clearance priority that are equivalent.
    1. Algorithmic Merchandising

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  109. Shield the maker from inefficiencies of finding market fit
    2. Crowd Sourced Buying

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  110. View Slide

  111. 3. On Demand Production
    and Customization

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  112. View Slide

  113. Source

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  114. View Slide

  115. View Slide

  116. Source

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  117. Real-time Pricing
    and Inventory

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  118. Actionable self-service quotes
    mean your doors never close

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  119. 50%
    B2B buyers say personalization is a
    key reason they choose suppliers
    Oracle, “Taking the Wheel” B2B report

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  120. List / trade price
    Negotiated price
    Direct sales
    Quantity-based pricing
    Pricing tiers by annual sales volume
    Pricing

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  121. Warehouse management
    Freight or parcel delivery estimates
    Store / warehouse pickup
    Governmental licensing for hazardous materials
    Contractual restrictions to sell in territory
    Fulfillment

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  122. Legacy terms may need to be
    grandfathered or renegotiated
    online

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  123. Customers expect the same
    services and accommodations
    they receive offline

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  124. Digital services must be an
    order of magnitude better than
    calling a sales rep

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  125. B2C customers generally only
    care about inventory if an item
    is out of stock

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  126. There are too many variables
    with personalization not to
    calculate real-time quotes

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  127. Real-time processing is slow, so
    load personalized content
    asynchronously

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  128. Power User
    Features

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  129. “Add to Cart” is a bottleneck for
    high volume buyers

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  130. Enable re-buying of past orders
    Order History

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  131. Convert past orders to
    subscriptions

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  132. Quick Order

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  133. View Slide

  134. View Slide

  135. View Slide

  136. Wish lists can be supercharged
    for B2B buyers

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  137. View Slide

  138. View Slide

  139. View Slide

  140. View Slide

  141. View Slide

  142. View Slide

  143. Enable merging, splitting, and
    renaming lists

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  144. Listen for customer feedback

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  145. Merchandising

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  146. View Slide

  147. View Slide

  148. PIM systems turn connected
    data into merchandising
    advantages

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  149. Product History

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  150. View Slide

  151. View Slide

  152. B2B buyers appreciate tools
    that help them purchase
    smarter in the future

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  153. Omni-Channel
    Efficiency

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  154. Support teams need training
    and authority to resolve issues
    across channels

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  155. $4.7 B
    Home Depot online sales 2015
    https://www.internetretailer.com/2016/02/24/mobile-sparks-q4-sales-home-depot

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  156. 5.3%
    Home Depot online sales from
    total revenue
    https://www.internetretailer.com/2016/02/24/mobile-sparks-q4-sales-home-depot

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  157. https://www.internetretailer.com/2016/02/24/mobile-sparks-q4-sales-home-depot
    Over 40% of our online orders actually end
    up in the store in some way, shape or form.
    “ Kevin Hoffman
    President of Online Operations
    Home Depot

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  158. It’s your job to make channels
    seamless

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  159. Buyer
    Demographics

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  160. 56%
    B2B executives say some
    customers can only be served
    online
    https://www.internetretailer.com/2015/04/02/new-report-predicts-1-trillion-market-us-b2b-e-commerce

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  161. Consider who will leave and
    join the workforce in 5-10 years

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  162. Millennials are the first
    generation where internet use
    will become universal
    http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2016/02/22/key-takeaways-global-tech/

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  163. 72%
    US adults with smartphones
    http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2015/12/08/one-fifth-of-americans-report-going-online-almost-constantly/

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  164. 92%
    US millennials with smartphones
    http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2015/12/08/one-fifth-of-americans-report-going-online-almost-constantly/

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  165. 75%
    Millennials have purchased from
    phones
    http://insights.mobify.com/16-stats-to-convince-your-boss-to-invest-in-mobile-in-2016/

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  166. 36%
    18–29 year olds who report being
    online “almost constantly”
    http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2015/12/08/one-fifth-of-americans-report-going-online-almost-constantly/

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  167. Under 35
    Average age of B2B buyer
    Oracle, “Taking the Wheel” B2B report

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  168. 34%
    Millennials in US labor force
    http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2015/05/11/millennials-surpass-gen-xers-as-the-largest-generation-in-u-s-labor-force/

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  169. Millennials represent more of
    the labor force than Baby
    Boomers or Generation X
    http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2015/05/11/millennials-surpass-gen-xers-as-the-largest-generation-in-u-s-labor-force/

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  170. Technology will push out
    businesses that can’t adapt

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  171. 74%
    B2B buyers who prefer
    researching online vs. talking to
    sales reps
    Oracle, “Taking the Wheel” B2B report

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  172. Digital services will be a major
    factor when B2B buyers choose
    suppliers

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  173. Wrapping Up

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  174. Designing services adds value
    to your business
    + your customer’s business

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  175. Thank you

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  176. Gravity Department
    GravityDept
    gravitydept.com
    magefrontend.com
    Brendan Falkowski
    Falkowski

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