Chicago (PRWEB) March 08, 2016
Organization’s greatest digital commerce challenges in the next year will be customer acquisition, customer retention, and centralized customer data, according to the CloudCraze 2016 State of Digital Commerce Report. At least one-in-three IBM, SAP Hybris and Oracle users report an inability to obtain a holistic view of customers through their current commerce system.
CloudCraze, the enterprise commerce platform built natively on Salesforce, surveyed more than 340 marketing and IT professionals at B2B and B2C organizations. The survey found that mistakes are prevalent in B2B commerce, with 94 percent of B2B leaders reporting they experience ordering mistakes at least sometimes, and nearly half (48 percent) admitting ordering mistakes happen regularly, if not always.
According to the survey, respondents view CRM-based systems more favorably than back-office, on-premise ERP systems. Forty-three percent of respondents believe CRM systems have a higher level of usability and 48 percent believe CRM systems are more innovative than ERP systems.
“A front-office, customer-centric digital commerce system that sits on top of a company’s CRM technology eliminates siloed data and enables a higher level of flexibility and agility than ERP systems,” said Ray Grady, executive vice president of CloudCraze. “Partnering with legacy systems such as Oracle, IBM, or SAP Hybris often results in rigid platforms that lack the customer-first approach that brands require today.”
Custom ordering is also a challenge for companies today, especially for the B2B industry, and is likely a result of outdated ordering tactics. More than 40 percent of B2B brands take orders over the phone, while 20 percent still use fax for orders.
“For B2B organizations, order processing can be complicated and time consuming,” furthered Grady. “A cloud-based commerce system provides a customized approach to meet every company’s ordering needs, which increases order size and reduces processing time.”
On-Premise Digital Commerce Systems Hinder Supply Chain Success
Along with causing siloed data and inflexible platforms, on-premise ERP systems present unique challenges when it comes to the supply chain. Brands operating on cloud-based systems are much more likely to report their supply chains are very transparent and reactive versus those with on-premise systems.
This is particularly important for the manufacturing industry, as respondents in the industry consider this a major area of weakness despite the industry’s unique need for efficiency. Three-in-four manufacturers (75 percent) report their supply chains are only somewhat transparent, as opposed to 60 percent of total respondents.
The Importance of Advanced Mobile Capabilities
Mobile commerce is a must have for B2B and B2C brands alike. In fact, more than 80 percent of surveyed organizations offer at least some degree of mobile capabilities to customers through their existing commerce system.
“Mobile commerce platforms allow buyers to make decisions when it’s most convenient for them, their customers, distributors, and suppliers,” said Chris Dalton, CEO of CloudCraze. “It’s not enough to simply provide mobile access. B2B and B2C brands must take a mobile-first approach to commerce.”
To view the full results of the 2016 State of Digital Commerce report, visit http://www.cloudcraze.com/2016-state-of-digital-commerce/
About CloudCraze
CloudCraze delivers robust B2B and B2C eCommerce native on Salesforce. CloudCraze enables clients to deploy mobile storefronts quickly, generate online revenue in weeks, and easily scale for growth. In a single Salesforce instance, CloudCraze shares data and processes with existing Salesforce Sales, Service, Marketing, and Community Cloud deployments and it’s all easily managed through the point-and-click Salesforce interface. CloudCraze powers eCommerce for Coca-Cola, Avid, Barry-Callebaut, Ecolab, GE, L’Oreal, and Kellogg’s.
