In B2B sales, where time is money and every decision matters, having an outstanding shopping cart is essential to success. It is the heart of your B2B store, the place where your customers make their final choices.

But what makes B2B eCommerce shopping carts different from their B2C counterparts? And what must-have features can take your store to the next level? 

Below, we explain all this—and how a unified commerce platform can centralize all essential B2B shopping cart features and create a stellar customer experience for your clients.

Short on time? Here are the key takeaways

• B2B shopping carts need to handle the unique needs of business clients, such as juggling multiple decision-makers and complex buying processes.
  
• B2B shopping carts need the flexibility to handle everything from volume-based pricing to special rates for your most valued clients.
  
• Workflow validation in a B2B cart ensures smooth approval processes for large orders, with key players signing off on each purchase.
  
• Integrating your B2B shopping cart with your other business systems, such as your enterprise resource planning (ERP) platform, keeps your inventory in check and your supply chain humming.
  
• A unified commerce approach means your customers get the same seamless shopping experience whether they are on their desktop or on the go.

What is a B2B shopping cart?

A B2B shopping cart is not just a tool for holding items before a customer checks out. It is a powerful solution designed to tackle the unique challenges of business-to-business transactions. 

Unlike its simpler B2C counterpart, a B2B eCommerce shopping cart often needs to handle multi-step approvals, intricate pricing models, and smooth integration with various business systems.

Let’s break it down below.

B2C vs. B2B shopping carts: How B2B shopping carts go the extra mile

A B2C cart typically caters to a single person making personal purchases, while a B2B cart often supports multiple users within an organization, each with distinct roles and permissions. 

Imagine a construction company where a project manager selects items, a procurement officer fine-tunes the order, and a finance executive gives the final sign-off—a B2B cart needs to orchestrate this entire dance.

Additionally, B2B shopping carts can handle intricate pricing models. Unlike B2C carts, which have straightforward fixed prices, B2B carts must juggle volume-based pricing and contract-specific rates and even generate quotes on the fly. This is especially important in industries such as wholesale fashion, where bulk orders and season-specific pricing are the norm.

Plus, B2B carts often connect with other business systems. They might interface with a company's enterprise resource planning (ERP) for inventory updates, sync with a B2B PIM (product information management) system for the latest product details, or even tap into a customer relationship management (CRM) system for customer-specific insights. This interconnectedness streamlines the buying process and helps businesses keep a tight rein on their supply chain.

Look no further than the automotive industry for an example. A car parts manufacturer might rely on a shopping cart system that lets dealerships place huge, complex orders with multiple approval stages. This cart would need to handle bulk pricing, display real-time inventory levels, and seamlessly integrate with the manufacturer’s production planning system—a far cry from the capabilities of a typical B2C cart.

10 features your B2B online shopping cart must include

To truly satisfy your clients and drive sales, your B2B shopping cart software needs to be packed with tools designed specifically for B2B transactions. Look for the following must-have features when scoping out your options:

1. Multi-user functionality

In the B2B world, buying decisions are rarely made alone. Your shopping cart should embrace this collaborative spirit with:

• Multiple accounts, letting companies create multiple accounts so everyone involved in the buying process can easily jump in.
  
• Different permission levels, so administrators can assign specific actions to users— such as the ability to add items to a cart, approve orders, or set budget limits.
  
• Cart sharing, allowing team members to save and share carts so everyone can review and refine the order before it is finalized. No more endless email chains!

By making team collaboration easy, you will create a shopping experience that is efficient, transparent, and tailored to the way your clients actually do business.

2. Flexible pricing models

B2B pricing is not one-size-fits-all. Your cart should be adaptable enough to handle:

• Bulk discounts, offering volume-based pricing with automatic discounts for larger-quantity purchases.
  
• Personalized pricing, catering to individual clients with customer-specific price lists.
  
• Contractual agreements, supporting contract pricing for long-term partnerships.
  
• Custom quotes, generating real-time quotes for unique or complex orders.

3. Custom catalogs and personalization

Each B2B client is a VIP, and your shopping cart should treat them as such with features such as:

• Tailored catalogs, creating customer-specific B2B eCommerce catalogs with relevant product offerings.
  
• Smart recommendations, suggesting products based on customers’ past purchases.
  
• Custom codes, displaying custom stock keeping units (SKUs) or part numbers for easy identification.

For instance, imagine a large industrial equipment supplier crafting a custom catalog for a construction company—showcasing only the heavy machinery and tools they need, along with their special prices and preferred payment options. This level of personalization not only enhances the shopping experience but also makes reordering a snap.

4. Robust search and filtering

B2B buyers usually know exactly what they need when they visit an eCommerce store. Make their lives easier with:

• Advanced search, letting them filter by technical specifications and other relevant details.
  
• Code searching, enabling searches by SKU, part number, or your client's internal product codes.
  
• Quick reorders, offering a streamlined process for repeat purchases.

Expert tip: Keep an eye out for “product bundles” functionality to boost order value and help buyers remember those easy-to-forget items.

5. Workflow validation and approval processes

Large B2B orders often involve a team effort. Beyond multi-step approvals, your cart should keep things organized with:

• Budget alerts, setting spending limits and triggering notifications when predetermined thresholds are approached. For example, an alert might be sent when an order reaches 80% of the monthly budget.
  
• Customizable approvals, allowing customers to define spending amounts that require additional approval.
  
• Multiple shopping carts, enabling users to manage separate carts for different product categories or departments, streamlining the purchasing process for complex organizations.
  
• Seller-initiated cart additions, allowing operators or sellers to directly add products to franchisees' carts, facilitating guided purchasing for franchise systems.

This meticulous workflow validation ensures all necessary approvals are obtained before an order is finalized, helping customers stay within budget and reducing errors in the ordering process.

6. Integration capabilities

Your B2B shopping cart should seamlessly integrate with other essential business tools and B2B commerce suites, such as:

• ERP systems to connect for real-time inventory and order management.
  
• CRM platforms to sync customer data.
  
• Price list software to enable dynamic pricing updates.
  
• Accounting software to streamline invoicing and payments.

This integration ensures your data is consistent across your entire business ecosystem, giving you a complete overview of each customer's journey.
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7. Multiple payment options

B2B transactions often have unique payment needs. Your cart should cater to these by supporting:

• Purchase orders and invoicing to offer traditional B2B payment methods.
  
• Credit lines and net terms to accommodate established business practices.
  
• Multiple currencies to facilitate international transactions with ease.
  
• Various payment gateways to cater to different preferences for maximum convenience, including options increasingly popular in B2B transactions such as credit cards, PayPal, and Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) services.

By offering flexible payment options, you can boost cash flow and keep your customers happy.

8. Responsive design and mobile optimization

With so many B2B shoppers making purchases from their phones and tablets, your B2B online shopping cart must be accessible from anywhere, on any device. Make sure it is:

• Responsive, adapting seamlessly to different screen sizes, from desktops to smartphones.
  
• Touch-friendly, with easy navigation and interaction on mobile devices.
  
• Consistent, offering the same features and functionality across desktop and mobile platforms.

9. Detailed analytics and reporting

To make smart business moves, you need insights. Your shopping cart should provide comprehensive analytics, such as:

• Order history and buying patterns so you can understand your customers’ behavior.
  
• Abandoned cart analysis to uncover why potential sales fall through.
  
• Product performance to see which items are your bestsellers.
  
• Customer segmentation to group customers for targeted marketing.
  
• Integration with third-party analytics tools like Google Analytics for more comprehensive data analysis and visualization.

These valuable insights can help you fine-tune your product offerings, improve your marketing efforts, and elevate the overall customer experience.

Expert tip: Use your cart's analytics to pinpoint your most valuable customers and reward them with exclusive loyalty programs to boost retention and lifetime value.

10. Scalability and customization

Your shopping cart should be your partner in growth. Look for solutions that offer:

• High-volume handling to keep up as your business expands, capable of processing thousands of order lines efficiently.
• Easy updates to effortlessly add new products, categories, and features.
  
• The personalized touch to customize your cart to reflect your brand and industry needs.

A scalable and customizable cart ensures your eCommerce solution is always ready to adapt to changing market conditions and your business's unique requirements.

Expert tip: Supercharge your B2B shopping cart with a unified commerce approach and composable architecture. Unified commerce ensures a seamless shopping experience across all channels, while composable architecture means you can build a customized eCommerce solution using the best available components.

The bottom line

Whether you contend with uncertainty in the fashion industry, deal with the complexities of B2B construction, or navigate the twists and turns of automotive industry challenges, a well-crafted B2B shopping cart can be your secret weapon for smoother operations and a serious sales boost.

A seriously impressive B2B cart has multi-user functionality, flexible pricing, personalization features, a robust search function, workflow validation tools, and integration capabilities. It will also offer multiple payment options, have a responsive design, provide detailed analytics, and be scalable.

Combine these features with a unified, headless eCommerce platform (such as DJUST) and embrace composable commerce for B2B to build a flexible, future-proof eCommerce solution that drives growth and keeps your customers coming back for more.