Oracle Commerce Studies Reflect Profound Focus on Customer Experience Among B2B and B2C Organizations

B2B and B2C commerce professionals find integrated, omni-channel customer experiences increasingly valuable

KUALA LUMPUR, 20 May 2014 – According to new Oracle studies, B2B (Business-to-Business) and B2C (Business-to-Consumer) commerce professionals find integrated, omni-channel customer experiences increasingly valuable to their organizations, and are continuing to invest in technologies and digital content strategies to facilitate them.

The studies—one for B2B and one for B2C—surveyed e-commerce professionals in business and technology departments from around the world revealed that growing market share and enhancing customer experience are cited as top investment areas.

It also reflected that B2C organizations are more advanced at delivering customer-centric commerce. They are moving beyond acquisition and working hard to build loyalty and retention among their key customer segments.

B2C advancements have spurred similar goals on the B2B side—B2B companies are looking to graduate from online order taking to extending the existing relationships they have offline to the online channel. According to the survey, 77 percent of B2B respondents said that customer expectations have been raised due to B2C practices.

B2C Companies Personalize Experiences, Build Loyalty
In 2014, B2C Commerce is all about knowing the customer and building loyalty. Key performance indicators are changing to become increasingly customer-centric.
 Nearly half of respondents (49 percent) said customer retention is their most important metric for success, after revenue.

The majority of respondents (59 percent) said they are investing in rich digital content to enhance the overall customer experience, in addition to increasing purchase confidence, overcoming competitive sites, and helping with SEO efforts.

The omni-channel experience is critical to success, but difficult to manage and measure. Moreover, organizations appear to embrace omni-channel and its positive impact on their bottom line but struggle to connect the various customer touchpoints to provide improved experiences.

B2B Organizations Replicate B2C Customer Experience Strategies
Customer expectations are changing to match B2C retail experiences. B2C practices such as search engine marketing, personalization, social and mobile are increasingly being used to encourage repeat business and drive revenue.

Only 8 percent of respondents said customer loyalty and retention was their top area of focus in 2013, but 45 percent said it was going to be one of their top priorities in 2014. Also, 28 percent of respondents said they now consider customer loyalty as a key measure of success.

40 percent of respondents said that mobile is a key capability B2B buyers need, but only 2 percent said mobile is driving significant revenue.

Online channel revenue is expected to increase in 2014. The study found that 70 percent of businesses saw more than 10 percent growth in online revenue over the past 24 months, and 39 percent saw 20 percent or more of their revenue coming from online.

“Consumer expectations continue to change the way both B2B and B2C businesses sell online,” said John Andrews, Vice President of Product Management, Oracle. “In B2C there is a renewed focus on increasing loyalty as competition grows at a fever pitch. Meanwhile, B2B organizations are still under increasing pressure to adopt B2C commerce best practices. Developing customer-centric approaches and investing in omni-channel initiatives will be key to online revenue growth for both B2B and B2C organizations in 2014.”