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Are you B2C or B2B? Are you sure?
July 11, 2006
Wendy Davis at MediaPost shared some interesting numbers earlier today (pulled from a JupiterResearch report) about how small businesses use the web for online shopping.
According to the report,
Sixty-two percent of those that make online purchases said familiarity with the vendor is among the most influential considerations; 46 percent said the same for online research and 39 percent said that advice of friends and business associates plays a major role. (Respondents were asked to choose up to three factors that influence online shopping.) E-mails and coupons were influential for just 21 percent of small businesses’ online purchases.
In the quote above, I've emphasized the key factors that drive employees to select an online vendor:
- Familiarity with the vendor. How strong is your web presence? Does your name consistently appear for searches within your niche?
- Online research. Do you own your online reputation?
- Advice of friends and business associates. What's your track record for keeping customers happy, and giving potential customers a reason to come back when they're more motivated (i.e., further along the purchase track?)
One of the report's major findings was that "almost eight in 10 small businesses, 79 percent, shop online regularly, compared to 65 percent of online consumers."
The end result is a blurring of the lines between B2B and B2C. In other words, while you can be pretty sure that an order of 8000 boxes of thumb tacks are a "business" purchase, there's also a pretty good chance that when Mark in Memphis orders a microwave oven, he might need it for the company break room. And maybe Mark's company is growing, so he might need an espresso machine soon.
What does this have to do with Search?
- Do your page descriptions and web copy (and thus, your search results) discuss corporate relationships? Corporate accounts? Bulk discounts? Despite the type of business you're in, are you friendly to both the big "B" and the big "C"?
- Does your PPC dayparting (changing bid strategy based on time of day) make (perhaps faulty) assumptions about who's coming to your site at 2 pm?
Search results mean very little if the user clicks over and doesn't find what she's looking for - either specific products, or even a subtle vibe. Ensuring that your site appeals to people when they're both on and off the clock, despite what you think you know about your vertical, is never a dumb move.
All posts by Erik Dafforn
posted by Erik Dafforn at July 11, 2006 11:17 PM
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