Ever-growing business-to-business marketplaces, popularly known as B2B marketplaces, are changing the way business is done. These online marketplaces hold immense potential for both buyers and suppliers, thanks to their seamless transaction processes and global reach.

What is a B2B marketplace?

The B2B marketplace is an Internet-based online platform where buyers and sellers can communicate and transact business. The buyers here are not consumers, they are businesses, and they can be anyone: wholesalers, retailers, and other merchants in a specific industry. These marketplaces act as vertical search engines. Vertical search engines contain information about a specific industry or industries. For example, a B2B marketplace for fabrics will contain information only about fabric manufacturers, while a B2B marketplace for beads will include only beading manufacturers. There are certain larger marketplaces like indiamart.com that include manufacturers and suppliers from various industries. Therefore, a B2B marketplace means serious business and is different from B2C platforms that connect businesses with consumers.

Why a B2B marketplace?

A lot of research and surveys have been conducted on the search behavior of business and professional users. These studies say that when professionals use general-purpose search engines like Google and Yahoo, they don’t get specific information about their job-related queries. A search based on keywords can give various results in the form of scattered information contained in various websites, blogs, etc. not necessarily useful for commercial purposes.

In contrast, vertical searches in B2B marketplaces or B2B trade directories (specific B2B trade websites) provide the required business information needed by professionals. If we take the previous example of a fabric market, we can relate to other professionals, for example, a ribbon wholesaler. It will be much easier for him to search for tape suppliers in a narrow B2B fabric market. These specialized websites have at least two advantages over general search engines. First of all, they know exactly what the needs of their target community are and they have complete knowledge about their requirements. Second, they can make difficult assumptions based on their solid knowledge and make the search activity fruitful through expert organization of the product’s contents.

B2B market and its potential

The B2B market uses its potential for the benefit of buyers and sellers. It gives them instant access to a global audience.

Benefits for buyers:

• A B2B marketplace removes all geographic barriers and buyers gain access to a host of new suppliers.
• Access to easy and user-friendly online transaction processing reduces transaction costs and saves time.
• Buyers can compare products and services offered in a marketplace to make efficient purchasing decisions.
• Delivery tracking is also easier, aside from quality assurance by established B2B marketplaces that have their own brand equity.

Benefits for Providers:

• When a supplier does business locally, their market is limited. A B2B marketplace provides the opportunity to do business globally and explore new markets.
• Online sales processing minimizes the need for other human and material resources, significantly reducing overall costs.
• The listed products are combined with the seller’s e-catalog (supplier directory) and web store, helping to convert a potential buyer into a real buyer.
• In addition to product listings, B2B portals also include many other features such as discussion groups, the latest industry news, and other business-oriented information that companies can use to expand their business.

In fact, B2B marketplaces have proven to be one-stop business solutions for both buyers and suppliers.