What is the best B2B ecommerce platform?
With so many options to choose from, it can be an overwhelming experience to choose the right B2B ecommerce platform for your business.
With so many options to choose from, it can be an overwhelming experience to choose the right B2B ecommerce platform for your business. Whether you are challenged by price, usability or functionality, there are a host of reasons as to why you would choose a particular ecommerce solution.
To help you choose the right B2B ecommerce system for your needs, using Capterra, we’ve complied and compared some of the top B2B ecommerce providers (OroCommerce, Magento, BigCommerce, Shopify Plus) to assess what the best B2B ecommerce platform is.
OroCommerce
Designed for midsize and large enterprises, OroCommerce is a B2B ecommerce platform that helps organisations manage multiple pricing/shopping lists, catalogues, reports & more through customisable dashboards.
Features
- Reordering
- Inventory Control
- Promotions Management
- Communication Tools
- SEO Management
- Shipping Management
- Mobile Access
- Bulk Ordering
- Payment Options
- Reporting/Analytics
Pros
- Dedicated B2B ecommerce platform
- Flexible workflows
- Multiple pricing lists
- Integrations with 3rd party apps
- Low total cost of ownership thanks to out-of-the-box features
- OroCRM comes free with platform
Cons
- Limited extensions
- Not suitable for small businesses
Starting Price: varies per business requirements
Summary
OroCommerce is a fantastic B2B ecommerce platform, although not one particularly suited towards smaller businesses. The out-of-the-box functionality means that it’s very easy for enterprises to get their online store up and running with little difficulty, delivering a reduced time to achieving a return on investment.
As a new platform, it is in a process of continued improvement and development, which should see currently absent features potentially integrated down the line.
Magento
Magento is one of the most popular B2B ecommerce platforms on the market – adopted by an array of businesses ranging from local SMEs to global enterprises. Whilst offering a B2B solution, Magento is more geared towards supporting B2C organisations.
Features
- Reporting/Analytics
- Communication Tools
- Inventory Control
- Mobile Access
- Payment Options
- Promotions Management
- Bulk Ordering
- Reordering
- SEO Management
- Shipping Management
Pros
- Marketplace of extensions to choose from
- Updated platform with Magento 2
- Quick page load times
- Scalable platform
- Payment gateway integration
Cons
- More suitable to B2C ecommerce
- Requires extensive development time
- Intensive migration from Magento 1 to Magento 2
- Price – large investment for smaller businesses
Starting Price: $1,988.00/month
Summary
Magento has long been the platform of choice for B2B and B2C customers, due to the scalability and options for customisation. However, the starting price for the platform is a stumbling block. The time it takes to develop the platform significantly impacts the time to value for the platform, especially for businesses that are in the process of re-platforming from Magento 1 to Magento 2.
For B2C ecommerce models, Magento remains a fantastic platform, however, for those looking for a more dedicated B2B ecommerce platform, it could be time to look elsewhere.
BigCommerce
Bigcommerce is a flexible, software as a service ecommerce platform designed for retail. Bigcommerce offers businesses a quick solution for building an online store, with pre-built themes and functionality to start selling right out of the gate.
Features
- Bulk Ordering
- Payment Options
- Reordering
- Reporting/Analytics
- Shipping Management
- Communication Tools
- Inventory Control
- Mobile Access
- Promotions Management
- SEO Management
Pros
- Integrates with third party marketing apps
- Built in security
- Theme options available
- Straightforward interface
- All in one solution
Cons
- Fees scale with your sales
- Themes are too similar
- Limited in design options
- Geared towards B2C ecommerce
- VAT Moss rates
Starting Price: $29.95/month
Summary
Whilst offering solutions for B2B ecommerce, Bigcommerce thrives an ecommerce solution for low complexity ecommerce models. While pre-built themes is a major draw for a number of businesses, their customizability is limited, with many being very similar in nature.
For smaller businesses, the price is also a major bonus, however, you are punished for your success, with the cost of the platform growing with your order totals.
Shopify Plus
Shopify Plus is an ecommerce solution for enterprise level organisations that are looking for a step up from Shopify’s standard ecommerce platform; offering localised customer experiences for international sellers, custom automation flows and integration with Shopify’s apps and partners.
Features
- Bulk Ordering
- Payment Options
- Reordering
- Reporting/Analytics
- Inventory Control
- Promotions Management
- Communication Tools
- Shipping Management
- Mobile Access
- SEO Management
Pros
- International selling
- Easy to manage and maintain
- Scalable with key trading peaks
- Hosted platform
- Enterprise level solution
Cons
- Price
- Limited backend customisation
- Third party apps require for B2B ecommerce
Starting Price: $2,000.00/month
Summary
Shopify Plus is an ecommerce platform built for enterprise level requirements, but not enterprise level B2B ecommerce requirements. Like other platforms reviewed, the solutions offered by Shopify Plus are much more aligned to the needs of B2C ecommerce models; and, in this regard, it is a great solution.
For some businesses the price could be a setback, however, as a platform meant for enterprise-grade organisations, this shouldn’t be much of an issue.
What is the best B2B ecommerce platform?
What makes the best B2B ecommerce platform will vary for each individual organisation’s needs. For some, the international targeting and automation of Shopify Plus would make it the ideal solution, however, for others, the $2,000/month starting cost will not be feasible – making an ecommerce suite such as Bigcommerce a more desirable platform.
For enterprise businesses looking for a dedicated B2B ecommerce platform, designed specifically for the challenges faced by large-scale organisations, then you can look no further than OroCommerce, an out of the box B2B ecommerce platform which possesses a comprehensive set of features that fit any B2B commerce model.
How we can help
Generate UK has been successfully implementing and supporting ecommerce projects for clients for over 12 years.
There are multiple things to consider when it comes to developing your ecommerce site. As an experienced e-commerce website development agency, we will help navigate you around the complexities of B2B ecommerce – from filtering and product pages to integrations with 3rd party systems, payment gateways, and website security.
Get in touch with one of our B2B ecommerce consultants to have a chat about the best B2B ecommerce platform for your requirements.