B2B Technology

Speaker Highlight: Univar’s Steve Martinez on progress in on-line gross sales

As vice chairman of digital options at chemical distributor Univar Options, Steve Martinez takes a lead position in serving to Univar’s ongoing enchancment of its sturdy presence in B2B ecommerce. Martinez, who mentioned tendencies in B2B ecommerce on the Aug. 12 on-line occasion hosted by Digital Commerce 360, “Quick-Monitoring B2B Ecommerce Gross sales and Enlargement,” shares extra of his insights right here on what it takes to reach digital commerce. Univar not too long ago reported a 58% enhance within the variety of orders positioned by means of UnivarSolutions.com.

Promoting chemical compounds on-line requires a shift in paradigm and new customer-centric approaches.

Steve Martinez

DC360: What’s driving B2B corporations like Univar Options to broaden on-line?  

Martinez: Buyer preferences, expectations, and necessities have modified on account of COVID-19.  The pandemic modified the way in which we work together with our clients to be extra digital by necessity.  A customer-centric focus has allowed us to determine alternatives to serve our clients extra successfully and win new enterprise by means of on-line channels.

DC360: What are your greatest inner or and exterior limitations? 

Martinez: The chemical business has usually been gradual to embrace ecommerce traditionally and due to the character of the merchandise which might be bought. Promoting chemical compounds on-line requires a shift in paradigm and new customer-centric approaches. We’ve needed to change how we take into consideration serving our clients for the net channel to give attention to comfort, velocity, and ease.

DC360: What are the chief good points you’re realizing? 

Martinez: Creating a simple expertise for our clients will increase stickiness and loyalty. We’ve not too long ago publicly reported 58% progress of orders in our UnivarSolutions.com digital channel.

DC360: What’s the most precious piece of recommendation you will have on learn how to launch on-line B2B gross sales or enhance them?

Martinez: Transfer rapidly to create worth for the client. An easy expertise creates buyer loyalty; give attention to creating options and processes that make it simpler for purchasers to decide on your corporation.

DC360: Relating to COVID-19, what’s the greatest adaption your organization has made?

Martinez: Acceleration! Our 3-year roadmap grew to become a 12-month roadmap. To speed up supply, we targeted on decreasing our scope and scaling our deployments to allow fast testing and supply. This strategy allowed us to be taught from our clients and adapt based mostly on market wants.

DC360: What present tendencies will the pandemic speed up?

Martinez: Fast deployment, customer-first pondering, and transparency.

DC360: What new concepts will turn into tendencies? 

Martinez: The web mannequin promotes data availability. Corporations that may present the appropriate data on the proper time and with out limitations will win.

DC360: What post-pandemic wants will turn into alternatives? 

Martinez: On-line won’t substitute the necessity for human interplay. Now greater than ever, clients will favor built-in experiences that perceive buyer wants by means of the shopping for journey and throughout touchpoints. B2B corporations might want to present clients that “we all know and perceive you, and we’re prepared to assist” in each interface with the client.

Join a complimentary subscription to Digital Commerce 360 B2B Information, revealed 4x/week, masking expertise and enterprise tendencies within the rising B2B ecommerce business. Contact editor Paul Demery at [email protected] and observe him on Twitter @pdemery.

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