Online wholesale marketplaces are popular digital platforms
that connect wholesale buyers and sellers with each other.
Marketplaces are growing very fast, with sales rapidly
increasing on these platforms. Just in the past year, the collective sales on
the marketplaces increased by 130%.
This signifies the fact that online marketplaces are
influencing the B2B eCommerce landscape, and this dominance will continue to
increase in the coming years.
In this article, we'll understand the essential factors that
drive businesses to buy and sell on these marketplaces.
So, let's get started!
Features of B2B Marketplaces
Let's discuss the features and benefits of the B2B marketplaces, which appeal to the users.
Helping Sellers in Starting Online Businesses
The easiest way for wholesalers to start online businesses
is to sign up on wholesale marketplaces.
Because marketplaces are cost-effective and the best option
for sellers who can't afford enough expenses to start their own website.
Furthermore, the process of creating your store is very easy. Some marketplaces provide you with built-in templates which you can use to build a great storefront.
Providing More Promotional Opportunities
By selling through marketplaces, sellers get many
opportunities to promote their businesses as they can connect with their target
audience in different ways.
If you upload your products with high-definition images and
videos that explain them comprehensively, it increases your chances of
appearing higher in the search results.
Plus, writing great and detailed product descriptions also helps sellers convert more buyers.
Becoming The Best Option for Buyers
Marketplaces are the best options for buyers to find
relevant products from multiple sellers.
It provides buyers with various options to choose from and
make important decisions.
Buyers can contact the suppliers of these products, with many marketplaces offering them the option to request sellers for quotations.
Generating More Revenue for Sellers
Marketplaces are a goldmine for sellers who use these
platforms properly and capitalize on the given opportunity.
These are the easiest ways for sellers to start online
businesses. Sellers are easily searchable for buyers letting them negotiate
with numerous buyers and increase their sales.
In fact, online marketplaces help sellers to earn 38% more than those who use only websites to sell their products.
Excelling In Customer Experience
Many marketplaces deliver outstanding customer support to
the users in case they're facing any technical issues in usability or want to
know some information.
Automated chatbots powered with artificial intelligence are
common on these marketplaces, where customers can resolve most queries.
Customer support agents are available to respond to customers in case of complex queries via multiple channels such as calls and emails.
Gaining A Competitive Edge
Competition has become very fierce after the COVID-19
pandemic, which disrupted the way wholesale businesses used to run.
B2B eCommerce is on a fast track of growth.
Smart wholesalers understand the potential of online
presence for their businesses, and they're using online mediums, like marketplaces,
to run their businesses online.
However, since many of them are still stuck to their brick-and-mortar, it helps sellers to gain a competitive edge in a developing market and grow their businesses.
Big Online Marketplaces
The major marketplaces which currently influence the B2B eCommerce industry are:
SeeBiz
SeeBiz is an online
wholesale marketplace exclusively for U.S.-based sellers.
It's known for its unique, unprecedented features in B2B
eCommerce, such as facilitating wholesalers to connect with the wholesale
community through business networking and forming groups of buyers to assign
them unique prices.
Furthermore, SeeBiz helps sellers in starting their online
business on the marketplace such as:
- Designing a professional storefront for the sellers
- Uploading up to 50 products with in-depth product
descriptions
- Introducing their storefront and best-selling products
through dynamic videos
- Featuring the store on the marketplace homepage
Amazon Business
The world's most renowned online retail marketplace Amazon,
launched its B2B counterpart in 2015, called Amazon Business.
It has quickly become popular due to streamlining online
wholesale transactions. Amazon Business helps sellers by letting them:
- Assign customized prices visible only to business buyers
- Upload products with user guides, installation manuals,
CAD drawings, application guides, spec sheets, and more
- Accept requests for quotations from buyers
Made-in-China
Made-in-China is a Chinese wholesale marketplace that
facilitates cross-border eCommerce for Chinese wholesalers.
Having been around for over two decades, it's trusted by
sellers for selling Chinese manufactured products to global business buyers.
It helps sellers in growing their businesses by:
- Promoting through multiple channels, such as search
engines and trade shows
- Displaying the website in ten different languages to attract buyers from other parts of the world
Final Verdict
Wholesale marketplaces are the most accessible source of
conducting online businesses for wholesale sellers and buyers.
Their undeniable advantages have caused an influx of
interested parties, making them a force to be reckoned with.
These platforms will only continue to grow, ultimately
fueling B2B sales in the future.
