One of the most significant decisions you have to make before starting an eCommerce business is deciding which business model you are going to follow. Today, this decision might not be as easy as before due to the increasing number of eCommerce business models.
To choose the right business model, you have to take into consideration what your business has to offer, your products or services, your target audience, your capabilities, your resources…etc.
You are probably aware of the two most well-known eCommerce business models: Business-to-business (B2B) and Business-to-Consumer (B2C). However, it is time that you start familiarizing yourself with some of the new eCommerce business models, such as Buisness-to-Business-to-Consumer (B2B2C).
In this article, we will discuss what B2B2C eCommerce is, and how it works. We will also look at the best marketing tips to follow with this business model and present some inspiring examples of eCommerce brands adopting it.
Table of content:
As we mentioned in the introduction of this article, B2B2C eCommerce, which stands for Business-to-Business-to-Consumer eCommerce, is one of the new smart ideas brought to us by the digital selling age. As the name suggests, it is a business model that combines both B2B and B2C models.
Now to understand B2B2C eCommerce, think of it as a model where businesses reach their customers through a third party or an intermediary.
In B2B2C eCommerce, three parties are involved:
In B2B2C, the intermediary company sells a service to the primary brand and sells products to customers.
The best way to understand how B2B2C works is through an example:
Think of online retailers, such as Amazon. In this equation, Amazon is Business B or the intermediary company.
Amazon sells a service to primary brands, which represent Business A in the B2B2C equation. This service is represented in Amazon hosting these brands on its eCommerce store.
Amazon (Business B) then delivers the products of these brands (Business A) to customers who shop through its online marketplace.
Like any other business model, B2B2C has its pros and cons. You should study these advantages and disadvantages and weigh them very carefully to figure out whether such a business model is suitable for you or not.
- ProsThe B2B2C model for eCommerce can be a bit challenging for marketers; however, it offers so much room for creativity. Therefore, marketers should be smart in choosing the marketing strategies they follow to leverage all the opportunities for creativity that this business model offers. Here are some of the best marketing strategies that you can use for your B2B2C eCommerce business:
In B2B2C eCommerce, doing proper customer segmentation and understanding your customers can be a little tricky. This is because you are dealing with two sets of customers:
In case you are an eCommerce brand representing Business (A) in the equation,
In case you are a retailer representing Business (B) in the B2B2C equation, you are still targeting two sets of customers:
We are all aware of the crucial significance of customer segmentation for eCommerce businesses dealing with one set of customers. As an eCommerce business dealing with two sets of customers, this significance is doubled for you. Therefore, you should dedicate as many resources as you can to this.
Tips For You:
Converted.in can help you with that because it offers you a great marketing automation tool that will easily segment your customers for you without you going out of your way, wasting your time, or exerting any extra effort.
B2B2C eCommerce provides great opportunities for cross-selling, which involves convincing customers to purchase additional products that are relevant to the products they are about to purchase. It also provides opportunities for upselling, which involves persuading customers to purchase a more expensive version of the product they are about to purchase.
The party implementing this marketing strategy is mainly business B in the B2B2C equation.
For example, let’s imagine you are an eCommerce brand that sells sportswear, and you work with an online retailer that sells sportswear, sports equipment, and other products related to sports.
Cross-selling might happen when a customer buys a baseball bat, and then the online retailer suggests that he or she buy some sportswear from your brand that they can wear while playing baseball.
As for upselling, it might happen when a customer decides to purchase last year’s model of running shoes, and the online retailer suggests that he or she buys this year’s upgraded and more expensive model.
Discover the best upselling and cross-selling tactics to boost sales in eCommerce.
Providing an omnichannel experience is always important for eCommerce businesses regardless of the business model they’re following. However, in B2B2C eCommerce, omnichannel marketing is an indispensable prerequisite for success.
Primary eCommerce brands that represent business (A) in the B2B2C equation have to attach special importance to their omnichannel marketing efforts. To better illustrate, Business (A) must consider the online marketplace of Business (B) as one of its main channels. In other words, this online marketplace should be regarded as a channel that must be connected to and synchronized with all other channels, platforms, and devices.
As Business (A), you have to make sure that Business (B) is properly transmitting your brand’s message to the end users in the same way that your other channels do. This is the only way you can guarantee a seamless shopping experience.
Working within a B2B2C model for eCommerce provides you with a huge amount of customer data. Therefore, it would be a shame not to take advantage of this data in formulating your marketing strategies.
Tips For You:
Speaking of data, the marketing automation tool offered by Converted.in can help you gather all your data in one place like a hub, with a 360-degree customer view.
As an eCommerce brand (Business A), in addition to having your separate marketing campaigns, you can also benefit from the marketing campaigns of your partner (Business B).
For Example:
After understanding what B2B2C eCommerce is and how it works, it is time to look at some inspiring and successful examples of businesses following the B2B2C model.
Amazon should always be the first example that comes to your mind whenever you are thinking of an inspiring B2B2C eCommerce business because it is one of the most successful ones.
Amazon here represents Business (B) in the B2B2C equation. To demonstrate, it sells eCommerce hosting to several eCommerce brands and manufacturers representing Business (A). Then it delivers the products of these brands to the end user through its extraordinarily successful online marketplace.
Alibaba is another example of B2B2C eCommerce. It is a wholesale marketplace (Business B) that works with so many manufacturers (Business A), and where buyers (end users) purchase large quantities of products at the lowest prices.
Our third B2B2C eCommerce example is eBay. It is an American multinational e-commerce business that facilitates consumer-to-consumer and business-to-consumer sales through its website. It does that by being an intermediary between brands and end users and also between the end users and each other.
Final Thoughts:
To sum up, the B2B2C model for eCommerce is getting more attractive with time. However, as we discussed in this article, it requires thorough planning and careful implementation.
You might also need some help in facilitating the complicated process of engaging in such a business model and, as we mentioned earlier, Converted.in got you covered with its marketing automation tool. Book your Demo now.