Who doesn’t wish to connect with the best supplier in the world? Our thinking process is quite similar. We all desire to have anything that is the best of all. Though if something is already best, we would prefer to look for even better. Human psychology has increased competition in every industry. However, B2B buyers are famous for having the same mindset when it comes to choosing a supplier.
The research published by Accenture reports that 82% of B2B buyers switched their suppliers at least once in 24 months.
The figure is high. It signifies that these buyers are fond of achieving appropriate products and services and not the common ones. Hence, switching suppliers is not a big deal for any buyer.
It is now high time for the suppliers listed over the online B2B platform and beyond to think about the connected experiences and become one of the favorites to the buyers.
This requires awareness about the reasons behind buyers’ decisions. So, here are some points that you should be looking at to control these preferences before it is too late.
Why B2B Buyers Prefer New Suppliers?
1. Changes in experiences
One of the leading reasons behind the changing preferences is experience. Before getting into the crisis, existing suppliers providing the buyers with the best experiences. It includes all the necessary factors that they wished to acquire in the services.
Quoting the famous saying; it is said that time is never the same for everyone. This clearly gives an idea about the services that the existing suppliers are providing to the buyers.
Several B2B buyers have complained about the flawed experiences, which are definitely not worth paying the money for. It has compromised the satisfaction and customer relationship to a great extent.
2. Out of stock
Many suppliers don’t stock up the items as per the needs. In such cases, the buyers have to switch their preferences and connect with a new business immediately.
Since existing suppliers often meet with this issue, it is common that the buyers have to look for new suppliers to meet their needs. The out of stock factor results in a poor impression. The suppliers often not restock the items due to several reasons.
According to research, 39% of buyers switch to new suppliers because the existing ones are often out of stock.
Now, this makes the sense.
If you find nothing in the store, you will definitely leave the space and try out a new brand. The same is the case with suppliers, and they have to lose the customers in less time.
3. Poor online services
Every brand, manufacturer, and supplier has embraced digital technology. This is the core need of the business today, and one cannot simply perform the best in the fierce industry.
The problem occurs when a business fails in providing online services to the customers. It has happened in recent times, and we can see how buyers have switched businesses in no time.
30% of buyers believe that online ordering with existing suppliers is poor. This caused them to look for new suppliers who efficiently cater to digital needs.
This is not a fun fact but a logical one because online ordering gives a better experience and optimized shopping to the buyers than the physical one. If the suppliers are not walking along with the revolution, it is already not giving proper service to the prospects.
In this way, such as suppliers, manufacturers, and brands give up on the customers, and they lose the game.
4. Pick up and no delivery
The delivery system has become a common trend these days. Since we are stepping into a new year, we cannot compromise on any brand or business that doesn’t offer delivery.
Again, delivery is one of the reasons why the buyers have to prefer new suppliers over the existing ones. You cannot believe that it is one of the functions or services that makes buying experiences comfortable and convenient.
45% of buyers give up on the existing suppliers because they don’t offer delivery at all. It means that pick up or other options are available. This causes great trouble, and thus, the buyers have to consider other suppliers.
So, if you are losing a buyer and have no clue about the sudden decline, you might check out your delivery service. It can be a reason why other suppliers are performing really great than your business.
5. Extensive product range
Last but not least, you might not be offering enough products to the buyers that have caused them to leave the platform.
The interesting part of the business is that one has to keep more products coming in. It is a vital step in letting the buyers believe in your services and will not leave your platform at any cost.
However, existing suppliers have to lose buyers because they are not performing well in terms of the product range. It causes big trouble and increases competition more than ever.
The research says that 31% of buyers decline the relationship with existing suppliers due to limited product range. If they find a versatile product range, they never wait for the right time to get connected. Instead, they make that time the right one and simply get into it.
So, this is one of the reasons that you might be facing some issues in catching up with the existing buyers.
Key Takeaways
With the changing time, every business has to walk along with the changes. It doesn’t mean that these changes are for one industry and that other businesses should not look at it. This post has highlighted some common reasons that were explored in a couple of years. It proves that existing suppliers need a bigger transformation strategy to retain the buyers and keep their businesses going. If they really want to survive in the toughest competition, they have to gulp down the risks and then start over.
