Digital Commerce 360: Key B2B e-commerce trends for 2022

The new standard in B2B sales

The B2B shift to e-commerce channels is underway. Research shows that many companies are spending a significant amount through online channels.

In 2021, online sales of B2B e-commerce websites, portals, and marketplaces in the United States increased by 17.8% to $1.63 trillion from $1.39 trillion in 2020. The growth rate of B2B e-commerce in 2021 was 1.17 times the growth rate of sales of all manufacturing and distributors in the United States, which increased from $11.36 trillion in 2020 to $13.09 trillion in 2021, a year-on-year increase of 15.2%.

According to a survey of e-commerce behaviors by industry analysts, B2B e-commerce sales are accelerating in 2021 because more buyers and sellers now view digital commerce as a more efficient way to research and purchase business goods and services.

There is growing evidence that B2B buyers are shifting their enterprise purchases to online channels, according to a fall 2021 McKinsey survey of 750 executives. The survey found that B2B customers now frequently use 10 or more channels to interact with suppliers, up from just five in 2016. Buyers are more willing than ever to purchase through remote or online sales channels, with 35% willing to spend $500,000 or more on a single transaction (up from 27% in February 2021). 77% of B2B buyers are willing to spend $50,000 or more.

The evolution of e-procurement channels and their impact on B2B transaction automation

Last year, e-procurement was one of the fastest-growing digital commerce sales channels, with sales of nearly $935 billion, according to Digital Commerce360. The data also shows that e-procurement will account for a larger share of all B2B sales in 2021, at 7.1%, compared to 6% in 2019 and 7% in 2020. Sales through the e-procurement channel are expected to reach $1 trillion this year.

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