The wholesale industry is becoming increasingly digitised at a rapid pace. We are now at the point where wholesalers need an omnichannel platform, otherwise they risk alienating customers and losing ground to their competitors.
Three key areas which are benefiting wholesalers are process digitisation, automation and AI.
Andy Pratt, Business Development Manager at Oporteo, tells Wholesale Manager what are the biggest emerging I.T. trends for wholesalers.
Do you think there will be a trend towards wholesalers creating their own ecommerce store?
A lot of Wholesalers have dipped their toes in the ecommerce world. Usually using generic platforms that are relatively cheap, offer limited B2B functionality and, to some degree, operate outside their other sales channels. These platforms are great to help businesses get going and to test whether the channel works for them. However, we are seeing wholesalers realise the limitations of these platforms and they are now looking for solutions that offer far more.
Overall, digitisation across the wholesale industry continues at a breakneck speed as businesses strive to overcome industry challenges. Wholesalers need to cover all bases, from ecommerce stores, mobile commerce capabilities, click and collect and other direct-to-consumer channels. In addition to having other online functionality, such as customer self-service solutions. Furthermore, with networking sites such as Facebook and Instagram developing their in-app commerce solutions, it will be interesting to see if social commerce also becomes a popular channel with B2B customers.
To offer a truly integrated approach to a digital and physical world wholesalers need an omnichannel platform that enables their customers to take advantage of all sales channels be they physical or digital, not just an ecommerce store running alongside the business. Wholesalers without omnichannel capabilities risk alienating their customers and falling behind their competitors.
What are the biggest emerging trends in the area of I.T. for wholesalers?
As always with technology there are a multitude of new and exciting products and services that can take your business ‘to the next level’. There are some key areas where we are beginning to see real traction and business benefits. These can be broken down into three key areas, process digitisation, automation, and AI (Artificial Intelligence).
Each of these areas cover many facets in a business, but taking a helicopter view, they can be summed up as the digitisation of processes and the removal of as much manual and paper-based processes in the business as possible. Automation, especially in the warehouse, is about increasing productivity and reducing costs through the implementation of automated devices and technologies that complement, or remove, manually intensive processes. Finally, AI is about leveraging computing power to help complex business decision processes such as demand forecasting, purchasing and labour management.
What percentage of wholesale customers are now ordering from their wholesalers online and via apps?
Our latest analysis of ecommerce in food and drink wholesale shows that revenue from online sales was up 16% between January 2022 – May 2022 when compared to pre-pandemic levels in 2019. Demonstrating that wholesale customers are embracing ecommerce and are actively ordering from suppliers online.
Overall, May 2022 was a record-breaking month for ecommerce sales as it saw the highest ever revenue for a single month. This is a 147% increase when compared to January 2016.
In terms of order volumes, between January 2022 – May 2022, the average order volume was up 36% when compared to the same period in 2019. If June to December 2022 tracks the same as the corresponding period in 2019, it will be a record-breaking year in terms of online revenue and order volume.
What do wholesalers need to do to maximise online sales?
There has been an explosion of new channels, devices, and applications in recent years. Wholesalers are now operating in a multi-touchpoint, omnichannel, hyper-competitive market. All of which give customers more control of their buying experience. However, more touchpoints mean more complexity. As a result, delivering a superior end-to-end customer experience is critical for success.
Businesses that provide a tightly integrated experience across all channels, from start to finish, have been shown to enjoy higher customer satisfaction, improved sales, and customer retention. It’s even been recorded that those businesses that focus on an integrated omnichannel approach and exceptional customer experience can achieve significant revenue growth whilst reducing operational costs significantly.
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