eprocurement Supplier Enablement

Until now we have focused on e-commerce techniques primarily concerned with retail, or B2C, types of e-commerce sites. Certainly many of the business perspectives that apply to B2C work for B2B as well. B2B sites should be well-designed, compelling, offer one-to-one marketing, frequently make good use of advertising, and should supply good customer service features - just like B2C.

B2B, however, often involves a different class of features and functions than B2C. Why? Most B2C purchases are classified as "discretionary." You might want that new pair of shoes, but you can live without them. Most B2B purchases are considered non-discretionary. B2B sites very often:

1. Support buying activity that MUST take place in the very near future
2. Involve larger transaction amounts, which require greater security
3. May offer negotiation and contract review facilities
4. Provide very detailed technical information about products and services

B2B sites are very complex. As a result, organizations that want to build B2B sites often do so by starting off with a packaged solution, a bundle of software that contains all or nearly all of the features/functions you need for B2B in an integrated fashion. Most packaged solutions for B2B tend to offer features that target buyers or sellers, specifically.
In the next lesson, you will learn how to determine customer fulfillment requirements.