Providing a superior self-service experience can differentiate your organization and create a competitive advantage in B2B eCommerce. But self-service alone is no longer enough. The future of B2B relationships depends on going beyond transactions to create digital experiences that build trust and foster loyalty.
From Self-Service to Being Serviced
Self-service capabilities remain critical. Buyers expect to research, configure, and order products online without roadblocks. Yet in B2B, where relationships drive long-term value, companies must evolve further. Deals that were once finalized on the golf course are now shaped online. That shift requires more than convenience; it requires delivering an experience where customers feel "being serviced."
Being serviced means providing value beyond the transaction. It is about guiding buyers with information, enabling smarter decisions, and offering digital services that feel proactive, not pushy.
Information and Relationships
Think of this evolution as two sides of the same equation:
- Information side: Content must be transformed into usable data, data into actionable insights, and insights into knowledge that empowers customers to succeed.
- Relationship side: Personalization and omni-channel consistency help buyers understand your products and services. Layering in digital campaigns, guided selling, and proactive engagement builds confidence and leads to stronger opportunities.
Self-service can drive ease of doing business, but pairing it with value-added services, support, calculators, cross-references, or personalized recommendations creates the foundation for trusted partnerships.
Self-Service Is Now Expected
In both B2C and B2B markets, buyers take self-service for granted. Researching products, checking specs, and placing orders online are basic expectations. To stand out, B2B companies must introduce innovative services that build trust in ways once reserved for in-person interactions. That means enhancing pre-sale, during-sale, and post-sale experiences in a way that complements human relationships rather than replacing them.
Gartner predicted that by 2018, 70% of eCommerce would shift from simple B2C or B2B models to experiences focused on the individual customer journey.
Personalization, knowledge building, and additional value-added online services together move customers from self-service to being serviced. Organizations that invest in this shift will gain a competitive advantage. Those that do not will lose ground to competitors who meet these new expectations.
What Comes Next
This article is the first in a four-part series exploring the "Being Serviced" B2B customer. Upcoming posts dive into how to apply this approach across pre-sale, sale, and post-sale phases.
Read part two: Pre-Sales Servicing of B2B Customers
Interested in exploring how to move your customers from self-service to being serviced? Let’s talk.