In this e-book

01 | EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

A concise overview of market trends, challenges, and opportunities in modern B2B commerce.

02 | DIGITAL BUYER EXPECTATIONS

How the expectations of professional buyers have changed – from transparency to personalization to omnichannel.

03 | SELF-SERVICE EXPERIENCES

Why self-service is becoming a key differentiator and how it increases efficiency, customer satisfaction, and scalability.

04 | KPIS, GOVERNANCE, & CONTROL MODELS

The most important control variables, responsibilities, and governance approaches for successful B2B commerce initiatives.

05 | SUCCESS FACTORS IN MODERN B2B COMMERCE

The key building blocks for long-term success – from data quality to user experience to process automation.

06 | TECHNOLOGY ARCHITECTURES

Architecture principles such as APIs, microservices, and headless structures as the basis for scalability and future viability.

07 | B2B MARKETPLACES & ECOSYSTEMS

How companies are tapping into new revenue channels through platform models, marketplaces, and digital ecosystems.

08 | ROADMAP & BEST PRACTICES

A pragmatic implementation path with proven process models and lessons learned from real projects.

09 | CHECKLIST: REQUIREMENTS FOR MODERN B2B PLATFORMS

The essential functional, technological, and organizational criteria for future-proof commerce solutions.

10 | THE RIGHT PARTNER

What really matters when choosing an implementation and technology partner.

11 | THE FUTURE OF B2B COMMERCE: AUTONOMOUS SUPPLY CHAINS

A look into the future of autonomous, data-driven supply chains—and how commerce platforms make them possible.

01 |

Executive Summary

B2B commerce is at a historic turning point. Procurement models that were once characterized by personal relationships, fax orders, and ERP processes are now giving way to a digitally orchestrated shopping experience. Business customers expect the same ease, transparency, and speed as in their private lives—but combined with the complexity and depth of industrial procurement processes.

With the advent of composable architectures, AI-based processes, and seamlessly integrated data worlds, a completely new operating model is emerging. Companies that no longer view commerce as a shop, but as a value-added platform, gain strategic advantages: greater efficiency, more stable margins, better controllability, and a customer experience that creates loyalty.

This e-book shows how modern B2B platforms are tapping into these developments – technologically, organizationally, and in terms of business strategy.

02 |

Digital Buyer Expectations

Professional purchasing has undergone profound changes. Four developments shape the expectations of modern business customers:

1. Efficiency and transparency as a basic principle

Decision-makers want to access accurate information quickly—from prices and availability to delivery times. Time-consuming coordination should be replaced by intelligent systems.

2. A user experience that makes complexity manageable

While B2C processes are mostly linear, B2B procurement follows a multi-layered logic: role models, approval processes, configurations, and contract terms.

Modern platforms translate this complexity into intuitive processes.

3. Personalization through AI

Recommendations, prices, workflows, and content are increasingly generated dynamically—based on behavior, history, and contextual data. Digitalization thus becomes an accelerator for productivity.

4. Omnichannel as the expected standard

Whether it’s a platform, field service, service, or marketplace: interaction must take place in a consistent information space—without media breaks and without repetitions.

03 |

Self-service experiences

Self-service has evolved from a “nice-to-have” to a core expectation. Business customers want to be able to make decisions and take action—without waiting times, without dependence on support, and without complex queries.

Transparent order and delivery information

All orders and deliveries should be viewable in real time – including tracking, partial deliveries, approval status, and documentation.

Comprehensive service portals

• Invoices, order confirmations, certificates
• Complaint and repair processes
• Spare parts and accessories management
• Warranty documents and service histories

Automated repeat orders

Recurring orders are essential for many companies. Modern systems offer:

• Subscriptions
• Automatic demand detection
• Shopping lists for teams and locations

Hybrid consulting

Chatbots, live chat, co-browsing, and video consulting create a consulting experience that dynamically complements human expertise rather than replacing it.

04 |

KPIs, governance, and control models

Digital commerce platforms are increasingly being viewed as business-critical systems. Professional control is crucial for stability, scalability, and value creation.

Relevant commerce metrics

• Conversion in a B2B context
• Offer turnaround times
• Process costs per order
• Customer value over the lifecycle
• Repurchase rates and contract-related loyalty

Governance & process maturity

Data quality is becoming a competitive factor. Companies need clear responsibilities, defined data flows, and uniform structures across systems.

Monetization and efficiency potential

Digital platforms enable:

• Relief for sales through self-service
• Faster quotation processes
• Lower operating costs
• Higher utilization rate for existing contracts

Stakeholder management

Successful platforms combine sales, marketing, operations, and IT in a common model—with clear KPIs, roles, and decision-making paths.

05 |

Success factors in modern B2B commerce

Personalization & buyer enablement

Modern personalization goes far beyond displaying banners or categories. It is becoming the operating system of the purchasing process. Three levels determine today’s performance level:

Precise role and context personalization

The platform not only recognizes a user’s role (buyer, dispatcher, decision-maker, technician), but also interprets:

• Location-dependent availability
• Contract contexts
• Compliance restrictions
• Budget limits
• Approval rights
• Typical ordering patterns

This creates an “adaptive UI” that dynamically shows or hides functions depending on the user profile.

AI-based predictive guidance

Instead of classic filter logic, systems analyze real-time data:

• Which products are reordered in similar companies?
• What variant compatibility results from previous installations?
• Which configurations are technically permissible and economically viable?
• What material consumption can be predicted?

The platform is evolving into an assistant that actively accelerates decisions.

Buyer Enablement

Buyer Enablement means not only selling, but also facilitating procurement.

This includes

• Automatically generated shopping lists based on consumption data
• Demand recognition based on IoT signals
• Collaborative shopping rooms for teams
• Decision guides (“guided buying”)
• Real-time technical validation

The result

A complex product range becomes manageable. Procurement cycles are significantly shortened.

Pricing Excellence

B2B pricing is a highly dynamic set of rules. Modern systems master:

Multi-layer pricing

• Basic calculation
• Segment-based price lists
• Customer-specific contract terms
• Project-based prices
• Volume and turnover discounts
• Time-variable promotional prices
• AI-based discount optimization

Real-time pricing across all touchpoints

Prices must be identical everywhere: web, app, marketplace, field service, e-procurement.

This requires a central pricing orchestration layer.

Predictive discounting

Systems predict the optimal discount based on:

• Margin targets
• Competitive situation
• Payment performance
• Product availability
• Historical success rates

This creates a sales model that is consistent, controllable, and customer-centric.

Product Experience Management

PXM is becoming a strategic differentiator.

Key levers:

• Database-driven variant systems
• Version-secure technical documentation (DPP-ready)
• Industry-specific attribute logic (e.g., GS1, ECLASS, ETIM)
• Smart content rendering: content is displayed in a context-sensitive manner
• AR configurations for mechanical engineering/industry
• Automated onboarding for dealers and partners

This makes product information a precise basis for decision-making.

Process automation

CPQ 2.0

CPQ becomes part of the overall architecture and takes over:

• Technical validation
• Real-time price and discount calculation
• Automatic creation of quotation documents
• Approval logic for complex projects
• Variant compatibility based on historical data

Digital workflows

• Role-based
• Rule-based
• Data-driven
• Audit-proof

From determining requirements to invoicing, processes become consistent, fast, and auditable.

06 |

Technology architectures

Composable Commerce & MACH – State of the Art

Composable Commerce replaces the classic shop as a monolithic center. Modern architectures consist of:

• Commerce Engine as the head of the ordering model
• Price Engine for real-time calculation
• Catalog/PIM for data management
• Order Management System (OMS) for fulfillment logic
• Workflow Engine for approvals and processes
• Payment & Billing Engine for processing
• Search & Discovery Engine for intelligent navigation

These modules work loosely coupled via APIs, orchestrated via an experience layer (headless).

Advantages

• Shorter development cycles
• Faster rollouts
• Easy replacement of individual components
• High availability and scalability

MACH is therefore not a technology trend, but an operating model for digital platforms.

System integration

In B2B, integration is the key KPI.

Key integration axes:

• ERP (SAP, Dynamics, Infor, Oracle)
• PIM / DAM
• CRM (Salesforce, MS)
• Procurement systems (SAP Ariba, Jaggaer, Coupa)
• Logistics systems
• Pricing engines
• Data lake / DWH
• Device and IoT data

Event streaming (e.g., Kafka) enables information to be exchanged in real time—a basic requirement for dynamic price calculation, availability, and agentic commerce.

Security & Compliance

Requirements are increasing massively:

• Zero-trust architectures
• Encrypted event streams
• Role-based IAM
• Audit trails for all business-critical processes
• Audit-proof approval chains
• NIS2-compliant platform operator responsibility
• DPP requirements for product data

B2B commerce is evolving from an “online shop” to a regulated digital core system, comparable to ERP and CRM.

07 |

B2B marketplaces & ecosystems

The role of marketplaces is growing rapidly. They are not only sales channels, but strategic platforms for reach, efficiency, and partner integration.

1. Strategic options

• Own marketplace
• Participation in existing platforms
• Hybrid models

2. Technical requirements

• Standardized interfaces
• Automated catalog maintenance
• Flexible pricing and contract logic
• Governance for data quality

08 |

Roadmap & Best Practices

A field-proven process model

1. Assessment & Target Vision
2. Architecture & Technology Selection
3. Piloting & MVP
4. Scaling & Internationalization
5. Operation & Evolution of the Platform

Change Management

Digital commerce initiatives change roles, processes, and responsibilities. Success comes to those who communicate early and transparently, empower employees, and break down silos.

Lessons learned from projects

• Data quality determines platform quality
• Complex processes must first be understood, then digitized
• An MVP accelerates insights and minimizes costs
• Integration beats feature richness

09 |

Checklist: Requirements for modern B2B platforms

Functional must-haves

• Self-service in all relevant dimensions
• Intelligent search
• CPQ & quotation processes
• Personalized dashboards
• Automated ordering and approval processes

Technological standards

• Headless, API-first
• Cloud-native
• Real-time data streams

Compliance & security

• Clear role and rights structures
• Auditability
• Encryption & identity management

Operational requirements

• High availability
• Clean monitoring structures
• Consistent data flows across systems

10 |

The right partner

The success of a B2B commerce initiative depends not only on the system, but also significantly on the partner. The following factors are crucial:

• In-depth industry knowledge
• Extensive commerce and integration expertise
• Strength in data modeling and process design
• Excellent UX expertise
• Experience in regulatory environments

A partner who understands commerce as a business-critical ecosystem supports companies far beyond the implementation phase – from strategy to operation.

11 |

The future of B2B commerce: autonomous supply chains

The convergence of AI, IoT, event streaming, and composable commerce is giving rise to a new, autonomous form of value creation. The role of commerce is changing radically.

1. From shop to invisible infrastructure node

Commerce is disappearing from the surface. Transactions arise:

• from machines
• through ERP signals
• via marketplace ecosystems
• through AI agents
• through sensor technology and consumption data

The “shop” is no longer the center—it is just one interface among many.

2. Agentic commerce: the autonomous buyer

Agents take on tasks such as:

• Determining requirements
• Validating variants
• Preparing offers
• Comparing budgets
• Negotiating prices and discounts within defined rules
• Coordinating with compliance and workflows

They act proactively, explainably, and auditably.

3. Agentic payment: The autonomous financial process

Agents take over fully automatically:

• Invoice verification
• Price and contract validation
• Approvals taking into account budget, cash flow, and compliance
• Automatic triggering of payments
• Detection of fraudulent or anomalous behavior
• Optimization of cash discounts and payment terms

Payment becomes intelligent financial control.

4. Autonomous supply chains

The supply chain becomes a self-regulating system:

• IoT sensors report consumption and maintenance requirements
• AI determines optimal order quantities
• Commerce engines calculate availability and capacities
• OMS decides on fulfillment
• Finance agents optimize liquidity

This creates an automated, end-to-end supply chain that lowers costs, reduces risks, and stabilizes delivery capabilities.

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