B2B Marketplace for
Buyers & Vendors
What is a B2B Marketplace?
An online B2B marketplace is a place where buyers and sellers engage in digital commerce. Just like popular B2C destinations (think Amazon, eBay, and Etsy), manufacturers, suppliers, wholesalers, and retailers connect with business buyers on B2B marketplaces.
They go by different names, such as multi-vendor stores, digital exchanges, purchasing portals, and vortals (virtual portals). There are also many types: global, which offer all types of products; vertical, which offer products of the same type; horizontal, which offer different products but with similar characteristics; and hybrid, where merchants offer their own products and allow third-party sellers.
Marketplaces offer many advantages for merchants, vendors, and customers. Merchants typically take a commission from vendors that sell products on the marketplace, which can be a fixed amount or calculated as a percentage depending on how every deal is structured. Vendors gain visibility and recognition which, as buyer demand grows, results in more sales. Customers have a greater choice of quality products, more consistent service, and more reliable order fulfillment.
Benefits of a Multi-Vendor B2B Marketplace
- Merchants
- Vendors
- Buyers
Scalability for merchants
For merchants, creating a B2B marketplace is not any different than launching a B2B eCommerce website. A scalable business model with a distinct value proposition, a B2B marketplace attracts a variety of B2B or D2C brands without the need to invest into physical stores and supply management infrastructure.
Open-source B2B marketplace software allows merchants to build lasting relationships with vendors. There’s no need to purchase inventory, so minimal investment is required. And, a SaaS solution cuts hosting and maintenance costs even further.
Faster time to market for vendors
B2B marketplace platforms make it easy for smaller vendors to go to market and save on their own eCommerce presence development costs.
Additionally, a marketplace provides access to a large pool of customers for vendors with limited marketing budgets. For bigger and established B2B brands marketplaces are great for testing new products and gauging demand. It is also an easy option to expand and sell to new customer segments and global markets without worrying about localization of their own websites.
Convenience and security for buyers
For buyers, a marketplace means more choice: it gathers multiple offers and prices from different vendors in a single place. The convenience of choosing the best product, price, and service attracts even more customers to the marketplace.
Additionally, buyers feel secure buying from one and the same website even though it might mean different vendors. In B2B space where you quite often do not find a lot of user-friendly eCommerce websites yet, turning to a marketplace that would bring all the industry-specific vendors in one place is a huge relief for B2B buyers.
Differences Between a B2B and B2C Marketplace
While inspired by their B2C counterpart, a B2B marketplace B2B eCommerce requires specific B2B and multi-vendor
features to resolve scenarios like:
Bulk ordering capabilities
Ability to edit purchase orders
Tiered, quantity discounts
Quote, RFP, and negotiation workflows
Custom pricing based on client
B2B payment types and terms
Build your B2B Marketplace and create stakeholder value
Make both your customers and the key stakeholders of your business happy
eCommerce Directors
Grow sales, expand into new markets, and build better relationships without investments in inventory or supply chains.
Sales Leaders
Use the marketplace to cross-sell and keep customers engaged while saving valuable rep time for larger deals.
Marketing Leaders
Get products quicker to your target audience, drive more accurate promotions, and increase conversions.
Why Choose OroCommerce for Your B2B Marketplace?
Manage Individual Buyer & Vendor Accounts
OroCommerce offers multi-vendor marketplace features for both B2B buyers and vendors. Protect individual buyer information like payment, shipping address, and order history. Maintain sensitive vendor information like product appearance, specifications, and prices.
Support Dynamic Pricing Capabilities
Showcase only the relevant prices to the correct buyer.
Create different customer pricing categories for wholesale prices, MSRP, bulk prices, or customer-specific prices.
Track Bid to Quote to Order
Manage the entire buying process for both buyers and sellers from start to finish. Easily modify orders to the desired payment, delivery, and fulfillment method.
Easy Navigation and User Experience
Enable buyers to quickly navigate through products, descriptions, photos, specifications, and quantities. Make it easier for the buyer to know what they are purchasing.
Why Choose OroCommerce for Your B2B Marketplace?
Manage Individual Buyer & Vendor Accounts
Manage Individual Buyer & Vendor Accounts
OroCommerce offers multi-vendor marketplace features for both B2B buyers and vendors. Protect individual buyer information like payment, shipping address, and order history. Maintain sensitive vendor information like product appearance, specifications, and prices.
Support Dynamic Pricing Capabilities
Support Dynamic Pricing Capabilities
Showcase only the relevant prices to the correct buyer.
Create different customer pricing categories for wholesale prices, MSRP, bulk prices, or customer-specific prices.
Track Bid to Quote to Order
Track Bid to Quote to Order
Manage the entire buying process for both buyers and sellers from start to finish. Easily modify orders to the desired payment, delivery, and fulfillment method.
Easy Navigation and User Experience
Easy Navigation and User Experience
Enable buyers to quickly navigate through products, descriptions, photos, specifications, and quantities. Make it easier for the buyer to know what they are purchasing.