Most chemicals distributors and manufacturers have been behind the curve in two key commercial areas: 

• eCommerce capabilities 
• Ability to increase prices 

But those negative trends are beginning to change, both by choice and by force. Wise companies have put concrete plans in place to bolster their online presence and adopt pricing tools that set them up for successful top- and bottom-line growth. Others are facing a harsh reality: either modernize your pricing strategy and diversify your routes to market ... or fall fast.  

We’ll examine these two change agents and share some best practices from chemicals industry leaders in this post. 

While traditionally the industry has been a late digital adopter, we now have hard evidence that eCommerce sales have been on a growth trajectory in recent years. As much of the global workforce has moved to remote work due to COVID-19, we expect the growth rate in 2021 to climb even higher. 

But, as Digital Commerce 360 points out: while $27.8 billion in online sales projected for 2020 is a healthy indicator, “with worldwide chemical industry sales of $4.1 trillion, however, there is plenty of room for the industry to grow online.” 

A certain level of eCommerce growth seems inevitable, so how does a traditional chemicals distributor or manufacturer ensure that growth is profitable? How can they retain and grow their customer base in the competitive world of B2B eCommerce? The answer: by delivering an exceptional customer-focused experience. 
 

In a recent survey of chemicals end customers, Deloitte discovered the following:  

• 94% of customers expect self-serve research online before purchasing 
• 85% will pay more for guaranteed superior service 
• 80% want assistance from line-of-business experts 
• 70% say their buying decisions are influenced by the seller’s personal treatment 

It’s clear that selling more online will not mean a reduced role for your sales team. Instead, those that will lead the online charge are the ones that place a premium on service, delivered by sales reps and intuitive digital tools.  

We’ve found that an often overlooked, but highly impactful, piece of the digital customer experience puzzle is rational, real-time pricing, accompanied by self-service intelligent automated negotiation. Buyers have options online and expect immediacy and accuracy in the quotes they receive, or they will quickly move on to your competition.