Order Management Software:  What Should B2B Buyers Expect?

manage customer expectationsOrder management software has so much potential of being great, yet you seldom see companies go the extra mile to add features that truly help a customer. Not making it easier for customers only ruins the goal toward more growth and loyal customers in your business. It also hurts you in the long run since competition is more than likely growing more intense. Treating customers like a random number only leads to them leaving you for nearby competitors who are doing it better.

Expectations are higher for software overall in solving problems and making it easy to access information. In the age of the cloud, though, you can add a whole new layer to order software based on the universal accessibility. Plus, by giving control to the buyer to access their accounts helps speed up the order process and eliminates the need for your office to spend a lot of time answering simple questions about sales orders.

Here we answer what B2B buyers really want in order software that helps make information easy to understand and simple to access.

Inventory Visibility

A consumer study conducted earlier this year addressed features buyers want to see when they place an order. One of the top items was inventory visibility to make sure products are actually in stock. You've no doubt heard complaints from buyers if they ordered an item and found out, after their order shipped, something wasn't immediately available or needed back-ordering.

An efficient order management system gives customers access to real time inventory so they can see what is available at the time they place their order.  This also alleviates the need for sales reps or the back office answering calls about inventory questions from buyers.  This in turn will speed up the buying cycle. 

Customers are looking for software that makes it easy to access information on inventory so there isn't any second-guessing on orders. This saves you having to face the pressure of answering calls or emails with buyers wondering why their order hasn't gone through.

Better Ways to Search

How easy do you make it on your site for buyers to search for your products? It's been noted recently that many B2B buyers want B2C type features in their e-commerce ordering site. One of those is a more advanced search so they can find what they want in a hurry.

Buyers are on the go more than ever as they manage their own businesses. As such, they need to find information in seconds rather than minutes. When they use an intuitive search method, they can find what they need based on familiar keywords. If buyers bought from you before, the intuitive nature of the search leads them quickly to the same products, or something similar.

Software that lets customers find what they want through categorization and part number is key. Showing customers what they bought previously will only speed up the order process.  A clean user interface with pictures of the product will only strengthen a buyer’s perception of your company. 

Pricing Specific to the Customer

Price is only one small element in buyers making educated decisions on who they buy from. Nevertheless, it plays a big part in the ordering process so customers can stay within a budget. By giving customers more thorough access into their own personal accounts, they find products that suit their price range.  This ultimately prevents them overpaying for orders when having to stay within strict financial guidelines.

Giving customers access to their own pricing, again gives the power to the customer and alleviates the need for back office or sales rep involvement. 

Easy Usability and Readability on Mobile

With everything going mobile these days, it makes sense that the entire order process should be portable as well. Offering order management software with mobile in mind, so buyers have easy accessibility, is another way to get a jump ahead of the competition. The interface must be easy to read on all mobile screens so buyers can easily scroll to find what they are looking for.  Giving buyers easy access to order from anywhere and whenever they need ensures you never miss an order. 

The good news is Now Commerce has all these features and more.  Find out more about our order management software by visiting our website.

Now Commerce

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