The business market is evenly split on how long companies have been engaged in B2B ecommerce. But the companies that have implemented and now operate a B2B ecommerce platform also have been at it for at least six years, according to a survey of more than 100 B2B buyers from Digital Commerce 360 and sponsored by Tradecentric.

B2B ecommerce survey findings

The survey found that only 17% of respondents said they offered full end-to-end integration of commerce transactions. That includes procurement software and punchout catalogs as well as automation of purchase orders and invoices.

Some of the significant hurdles blocking connected commerce adoption include:

• IT departments worry about losing control of their company’s commerce technology, and sales reps are fearful of losing their jobs to automation.
• Senior management’s lack of understanding of the business benefits like more efficiency, better service, and more sales, and failing to grasp the risk of falling behind competitors who reap these benefits.
• The loss of new business from buyers at companies who are looking for suppliers offering expedient and accurate commerce transactions.

But the survey also uncovered trends showing that many companies are heading toward higher levels of B2B connected commerce:

• More than half of respondents said they provide advanced levels of B2B ecommerce, including personalized custom product catalogs and personalized buying experiences.
• Almost two-thirds of respondents said 21% or more of their customers were already requesting e-procurement system integrations.

The survey noted that newcomers to B2B ecommerce accounted for the smallest percentage of respondents. Only 10% participated in ecommerce for only one or two years, while 20% were in the ecommerce business for more than 10 years.

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