B2B marketplace is a type of market in which multiple vendors provide products or services to various business customers. In the B2B marketplace, it certainly becomes easier to find out the right supplier which in turn helps in improving the customer experience. Apart from that, with the help of the B2B marketplace, the transactions become simpler and more transparent. In B2B marketplace Platforms, buyers get the opportunity to gain choice, value, and greater efficiencies. At the same time, the seller gets the chance to grow revenue and gain access to a broader pool of buyers. Another great advantage of the B2B marketplace is that the buyers do not have the burden of marketing If the B2B marketplace can be implemented well then the procurement can be facilitated with reporting and data analysis.
How B2B Marketplace is different than other types of markets?
There are mainly four types of the marketplace which are mainly defined by the nature of its wares and services. The following are some well-known marketplace that B2B marketplace platform needs to compete with:
- Product-focused marketplace: This type of marketplace mainly concentrates on commodities such as office supplies, furniture, equipment, etc. But while you do business in the B2B platform you do not need to concentrate on these commodities rather it is found that companies like Amazon or Alibaba are known for their names in the market.
- Time and materials marketplace: This type of marketplace usually offers various types of services that include freight services, travel services, IT services, etc. SAP Fieldglass and Concur are two examples of this type of marketplace Apart from that, some specialty players for example Excess Materials Exchange fall in this category of the marketplace.
- Scope-of-work marketplace: The business that provides services like marketing, telecoms, utilities, rent and real estate, insurance, and professional services fall in this category. One example of the company that includes in this category is Globality and this company mainly focuses on digital service sourcing and Field Engineering (FE).
- Corporate spin-off marketplace: This is another category of a marketplace that mainly evolved from a formerly captive platform that develops its supply network and serves other companies as well. Some of the prominent examples of the companies that fall under this category are InnoCentive, Eli Lilly, etc.
Online B2B marketplace comes up with several benefits for any business since it provides greater transparency which you can hardly find in the above-mentioned marketplace. Apart from that, sellers also get clear visibility into the pricing structure of the market, its feature, and services. When a buyer gets price transparency it gives then greater awareness of supplier options which ultimately increases the competition among the suppliers. This is how the B2B marketplace platform provides a great opportunity for the large purchaser for replicating the scale advantages which they could have negotiated through spot purchases through various channels. Thus, with the online B2B marketplace platform the buyers can consolidate their vendor rosters. This is how the online B2B marketplace differs from other types of marketplaces.