2018 Blogs, Blog
B2B Industry – Go Online or Perish!
As per analysts’ forecasts, revenue generated by global B2B players from their online platforms is expected to reach US$6.7 trillion in sales worldwide by 2020. While more & more B2B players are going online, it needs to be noted that B2B models are more complex than B2C models, e.g.:
- Higher frequency of transactions per customer & order volumes
- Price fluctuations and longer-term contracts & business relationships
- Need for multiple user management, levels of approvals/workflows
Specific to the High-Tech distribution industry (comprising of distributors in IT, Telecom, Consumer Electronics, etc.), they are being disrupted with:
- Shrinking margins in traditional business models
- New entrants coming with online models
- Shift in Enterprise Buying Behavior from “Asset” (Capex) to “On-Demand Use” (Opex)
- Push from OEMs to re-model business – from “offline and volume” to “online and value”
These triggers are driving their need for:
- Wider set of offerings to cater across larger geographies
- Bundled offerings to re-orient from “transaction” to “lifecycle”, with higher margins
- Real time visibility with Analytics across the Supply Chain for better efficiencies
- “Self-Service” Portals for better user experience and information on-demand
- Managing renewals efficiently and timely
Our “RL Catalyst Cloud Marketplace” solution covers their business processes like:
- Partner/Reseller Registration, On-boarding, Credit limit, Order Placement & Billing
- End-Customer On-Boarding, Spend Limit Monitoring & Modifications
- Contracts, Order Fulfilment, Returns, Vendor Bill Reconciliation
- Catalogue & Content Management
- Pricing, Discounts, Promotions, Rewards & Loyalty Management
- User Roles Management, Reports & Dashboards
The value that our solution drives include Increased Revenues, Reduced Cost of Operations, Increased Efficiencies & Faster Time to Market. It also covers the need for “Day After Cloud” management with “RL Catalyst ArcNet Command Center” for providing integrated Cloud Care services, which makes it a differentiated solution for Distributors, CSPs, MSPs and Hosting Providers.
We further believe the context, applicability and value of this solution is also relevant for B2B Distributors in other industries with a multi-layer distribution model like Pharma, FMCG, CPG, Automotive, etc. – where Cloud-driven online business models are driving them towards Digital Transformation.
