Growing demand for e-commerce in B2B
The difference between how B2B and B2C companies do business is diminishing, and Tingstad recognized that customers increasingly expect the same simple shopping experience they are accustomed to when shopping as private individuals. Consequently, an increasing number of B2B online stores will be designed to look like e-commerce does in the B2C segment.
“We were interested in future-proofing our e-commerce in order to stay at the forefront of development for B2B e-commerce and to satisfy our customers’ growing demand to make their purchases from their computer or smartphone,” says Simon Molneryd.
With the realization that Tingstad needed a new solution, the next step was to contact various e-commerce professionals. Tingstad outlined its desire for a new e-commerce solution which could cope with its customers’ growing demands as well as be as easy to maneuver as e-commerce is for consumers. A number of proposals resulted.
“When we had gone through several different proposals, we decided that Litium was the best fit for us. It felt like Litium would be a good work partner. They are single-minded and have a good bundled product. And they are also affordable,” says Simon Molneryd.
“Right price from the start” strategy
In order to drive traffic to its e-commerce and to set itself apart from the competition, Tingstad has a “right price from the start” strategy in place. The strategy involves showing all of the prices in the online store, which is a relatively unusual move for a B2B company. The buyer usually has to log in to see prices otherwise.
“We are one of only a few B2B companies that show our prices without requiring the prospective buyer to log in. Our strategy is based on all businesses getting a good price from the start when they find us online,” says Simon Molneryd.
This is a clear indication of how the B2B market is increasingly moving towards the B2C market. People are accustomed to being able to see prices when looking for products. Why should they expect anything different when buying on behalf of a company?
Solution that accommodates all businesses, regardless of industry or sales
Tingstad’s e-commerce solution is future-proofed to ensure it can cope with workloads that arise due to new demands. Simon Molneryd says the secure, stable and smartphone-optimized online store has shown clear results, even though it has only been in operation for a year.
“We can already see concrete improvements — more visitors and more satisfied customers, regardless of their industry or the level of their sales. The site is designed for and used by Tingstad’s customers throughout the Nordic countries. We can also see how our new design and well-organized product range help our customers manage on their own to a much greater extent. This relieves the burden on our salespeople since there are greater opportunities to convert visitors right away on the site.”
Litium’s solution has helped Tingstad create a platform that works just as well for returning customers who use the website as an ordering tool, as for new, first-time buyers who find tingstad.se by searching the web. The process is smoother now for both Tingstad and for Tingstad’s customers.
Improvements continue
Despite several measurably positive results, Simon Molneryd says that Tingstad has only just begun its improvement and development work and that work on Tingstad’s e-commerce is far from finished.
“What we have achieved so far is very positive, and now we want to achieve even more. We have several good features in place that are in demand by both our customers and salespeople, and we are working very hard to make both minor and major improvements.”
