Putting B2B Portal Carts to Work

If you have a B2B ordering portal only, with no catalog, are you excluded from getting higher-level functionality to improve user experience?

No way.

We recently customized a client’s cart to do just that. Every B2B market is different, and lack of a catalog shouldn’t keep manufacturers from getting the UX enhancements their customers need.

Here’s how we made life easier for this manufacturer’s customers.

We implemented Material Search in the cart

In Corevist Commerce, Material Search allows a customer to search for a material number against SAP in real time. It’s a huge time-saver, especially for experienced buyers who know what they’re looking for and want to get in, place an order, and get out.

Since it’s part of the browsing experience, Material Search usually shows up in the Corevist Commerce catalog. However, this client doesn’t have a catalog, and they needed Material Search functionality.

The solution? Material Search in the cart!

How it works

This feature is super easy to use. You simply add the item to the cart, close the window, and update the cart.

However, for some products, the manufacturer wanted to give their customers the power to change the unit of measure. We delivered on that, too.

We implemented Alternative Units of Measure in the cart

Some of the manufacturer’s products can be purchased by multiple units of measure (for example, “each” vs. “case”). The manufacturer wanted to provide this functionality within the cart.

We delivered user-selected units of measure, right within the cart. This allows the user to specify what unit of measure they want to use. It makes their lives easier and helps accommodate small orders as well as large orders.

Here’s what’s neat about this. Units of measure are tied to SKU. The user will never see an invalid unit of measure for the SKU they entered.

How it works

The user enters a material number or SKU and updates the cart. After the cart update has completed, the user gets unit of measure choices that are valid for that SKU.

In other words, only units of measure associated with that SKU in SAP are displayed.

Why these features matter

This manufacturer doesn’t need a catalog—their market simply doesn’t require it. They’re not interested in rich content, detailed product descriptions, or lots of product photos. Their buyers know what they want, and a simple B2B order entry portal works just fine.

However, an order entry portal without these features added unnecessary friction for the manufacturer’s customers. They needed catalog-style ease of use without the cost and complexity of a real catalog. These features improve customer UX, all within the existing B2B ordering portal. For the manufacturer and their customers, that’s great news.

Moving forward: FREE case study

Curious about SAP-integrated ordering and how it works in real life? Download this FREE case study on Blount International. You’ll learn how Blount found an easy-to-customize solution in Corevist Commerce that satisfied all stakeholders. The best part? Like every Corevist implementation, Blount’s B2B portal was up and running in 90 days.

Download the case study

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