In the previous edition of “IT Leaders Outlook on B2B E-Commerce ‘22/23,” it was revealed that a B2B e-commerce solution that is poorly aligned exposes IT departments to large risks and extra costs. This problem is so prevalent that 84% of IT leaders are unhappy with their current e-commerce solution.
However, the impact it has on IT departments is just the beginning. The results of an e-commerce solution that doesn’t have active IT buy-in can cause a business problem with IT liability. That’s the focus of the next edition titled, “The wave of business impact IT faces in B2B e-commerce.”
This report uses data gathered by Sapio Research from 1,111 IT leaders across the globe to understand the issues that they face daily within B2B organizations. The results were overwhelming when it comes to how IT leaders rate their experience with B2B e-commerce. While the standard may be a smooth, B2C-like experience, most don’t quite meet that mark yet.
See what your IT peers are saying
Check out the second edition of “IT Leaders Outlook on B2B E-Commerce” to get the full story on business impact.
How does this affect IT departments and the business at large?
A quarter of all IT ticket issues are the result of order errors.
2 in 3 IT leaders say their current e-commerce solution has harmed their relationship with the business.
A harmed business relationship may lead to even larger issues with IT being sidelined from further business decisions. This creates a negative feedback loop that requires IT leaders to speak up about their perspective to break free.
This report is designed to help IT leaders illustrate to business stakeholders exactly how their interests in getting the right solution align with business goals related to growth, retention and more.
Low web store adoption is a critical business pain point
One of the more interesting insights from the report focuses on the issue many B2B businesses see with low web store adoption.
We know from the 2022 B2B Buyer Report that the majority of B2B shopping has moved online. In fact, 75% of all products are purchased online. So, we know that customers of your organization want to buy online. If they aren’t adopting online buying, then it is time to look at your own web store functionality.
There are several reasons why customers may have an issue with your web store. The top issues are:
Outdated design (40%)
Underwhelming (UX) user experience (37%)
Lack of B2B features (37%)
The wave of business impact spreads…
As you can see, this is far from the smooth customer journey most of your customers have come to expect. It’s also an issue that doesn’t just cause risks and costs for IT departments, but the entire organization. And all these issues come back to IT’s role in solution alignment. These are the factors that should be top of mind as your organization searches for a better way to make sales online. They also happen to be the reason why you as the IT leader should have a prominent voice in the process from the very beginning.
This blog is only a short summary of what you can expect to find in the latest edition of “IT Leaders Outlook on B2B E-Commerce ‘22/23.” The full, unabridged report is now available for download here.
The story of IT leader opinions on B2B e-commerce
We surveyed over 1,000 IT leaders across the globe to create this exclusive research on what IT wants out of their web store. Get free access.
