All you need to know about the B2B2C ecommerce and SaaS platform

Have you ever ordered food from Zomato or the Swiggy app? If yes, then it means you have availed yourself of the service of B2B2C ecommerce. When we order the food through Zomato or Swiggy then, we avail ourselves of the product from a specific restaurant but delivery service from Zomato/ Swiggy.

Now, let’s understand B2B2C ecommerce?

B2B2C or business-to-business-to-consumer model is the blended shade of B2B and B2C business models. In other words, it is the balanced combination of the elements from the B2B ecommerce platform and the B2C ecommerce platform. As the name implies, in this business model, Company 1 sells its product or service in partnership with Company 2 to the end consumer.

In the B2B2C model, businesses approach consumers through both retail and wholesale platforms. Businesses enjoy a massive customer base inclusive of manufacturers, wholesalers, distributors, and retailers. There is no presence of middlemen. All this brings in added revenues to the business.

Advantages of B2B2C ecommerce

The joint benefit of businesses

In the B2B2C business model, when two businesses come together to serve a common purpose or common target audience, they are facilitated by each other’s pre-existing perks. This leads them to enjoy the bulk acquisition of a massive customer base. Considering the formidable cost of customer acquisition, this single benefit makes B2B2C ecommerce the choice of many.

Overcomes the logistics constraint

Often, companies cannot reach their customers and spread awareness about their brand directly. In such a case, the other company makes the brand known and available to the target audience. It is the trust of customers in Company B that they are ready to purchase the products of Company A, as supplied by Company B. For example; one might not be aware of all the brands available on Amazon, but because of their availability on Amazon, people make the purchase.

Reduces the cost of middlemen

B2B2C ecommerce came into existence when the line between B2B and B2C faded. Also, getting rid of middlemen was the prime intent of the ecommerce business. The Internet and its social media platform brought buyers and sellers on the same platform. As a result, the role of middlemen also lost its existence in this model and so did their cut in profit.

Disadvantages of B2B2C ecommerce

Demands extra marketing efforts

Double power is required to execute the market operations successfully while maintaining a balance between the business alliance and the end consumer. Both are to be targeted at the same time in a way that they are lured by what your brand offers.

Need to prove your demand in the market

Any business will join hands with you in the B2B2C model only when it is convinced about your product’s retail value to consumers. Therefore, you need to strategize your efforts in a way that the other business partner considers your product as worth recommending and as being valued by retail buyers.

B2C business might get bothered by the profits earned by B2B partner

In the B2B2C model, there are two business entities involved. The middle business entity might get adversely affected if it feels that its profits are being slashed by incorporating this model.

Challenges of B2B2C ecommerce

Data sharing

For the 360 degrees success of the B2B2C model, the participants of the model require complete integration of all the data. Data can be related to stock, customer record, inventory, marketing, pricing, etc. Failure in proper integration will cause a fragmented customer experience (CX).

Customer ownership

For a balanced drive of B2B2C vehicles, both the business entities should store balanced customer ownership and responsibility. Like, one entity can maintain all customer records and compensate the other one for driving sales.

Brand differentiation

In this B2B2C model, each business entity maintains differentiation regarding its brand. They count each other’s customer data as their own. For example, Zomato flexes its brand while delivering food to its restaurant partners. It also counts customers’ (and their data), driven by specific restaurants as theirs.

Promotion

Both the business entities involved need to contribute equally in promoting the product or service to the end consumer. As a result, the end-user is aware of both the brands which worked effortlessly in making the best product or service available to them. Often, the two business entities also benefit each other by promoting the other too.

Why is a SaaS ecommerce platform best for B2B2C ecommerce businesses?

In order to ensure flawless functioning of the B2B2C model, the products that travel via B2B partnership to the end-user must benefit all. And for this, there is a need for backend support. Support that abides by all the partnership compliance laws and also attracts the end users seamlessly. I titled this support here SaaS ecommerce support.

In the B2B2C SaaS model, there is a software company A which provides its SaaS products to the other Company B. Company B leverages this software product to benefit its customer base. Here, it is essential to understand that the value chain of a SaaS ecommerce platform in the B2B2C model begins and ends with the consumers.

Therefore, if you have a startup business and it is aimed at acquiring a large customer base, you may opt for SaaS services as curated by Quick eSelling B2B Platform. With its advanced technological solutions and upgrades, Quick eSelling has enriched its experience in the field. Also, with the Quick eSelling hosted ecommerce platform, you can have a free ecommerce website and app for your business.

Conclusion

The B2B2C ecommerce model helps to scale the customer acquisition efforts by leveraging multiple sales channels and partners for varied purposes. But running a successful B2B2C model is a challenging task. It has its own set of challenges, especially when it comes to negotiation over win-win partnership terms, data exchanges, plus figuring out customer ownership.

Therefore, this model might not be a free-size fit for all businesses, but yes, with its bouquet of perks, it is the best choice for many. It is appropriate for those who aim at expanding their customer base in the market, without investing big bucks on infrastructure and logistics.

This post is originally published here: https://www.quickeselling.com/what-is-b2b2c-ecommerce-and-how-can-it-leverage-from-saas-platform/