3 Industrial E-commerce Leaders

Industrial e-commerce is growing exponentially. Consider the discussion on these three e-commerce leaders in this case study.

Note: AmazonSupply began redirecting to Amazon Business on May 13, 2015. (Additional details are presented in the case study resource below.)

Amazon Business

This website contains additional information to assist in the case study assignment. It is recommended you interact with the website to help you better address the assignment’s critical elements:

Amazon Business officially launched in April 2012 and has evolved from its beta version, which was known as AmazonSupply. During that time, it has gone from an initial catalog of 500,000 items to 2.2 million items, offering everything from power tools to industrial cleaning supplies.

For more details about what changes Amazon made as it morphed from AmazonSupply to Amazon Business, see the link to the optional case study in the Additional Support section.

Will AmazonSupply Change B-to-B Ecommerce?

There is great fear that AmazonSupply has the potential to devastate some traditional catalog and multichannel B2B (business-to-business) suppliers. This article explores some of those concerns as Amazon began its first efforts into the B2B e-commerce market. Think about the historical context of the B2B ecommerce market. Has Amazon’s evolution to Amazon Business played out the way people expected?

AmazonSupply: Threat or Partner?

You can see the fear mentioned in the resource above continue to manifest itself as AmazonSupply further develops its platform. This article discusses suggested strategies from the perspective of electrical distributors who compete in this e-commerce space as they attempt to react to this new competition. The article also addresses some of AmazonSupply’s strengths as well as some if its challenges as it continues to evolve and explore the increasingly competitive environment of the B2B marketplace. Now that AmazonSupply has reinvented itself as Amazon Business, do you think that electrical parts suppliers (as an example of a B2B e-marketplace) have increased opportunity for partnership, or is the threat becoming unmanageable?

Fastenal

This website contains additional information to assist in the case study assignment. It is recommended you interact with the website to help you better address the assignment’s critical elements:

Fastenal started off in 1969 as a local fastener shop and is now an international industrial distribution business that does $3.7 billion in net sales a year. Today, it includes nearly 2,700 stores in 20 nations. 

Good B2B Site Design Begins and Ends With the User

B2B sites that sell primarily to businesses or individual buyers can employ features and functions that mirror top online retailing sites, but it is all about giving users the tools they need for quick and painless purchasing. Two speakers at the Internet Retailer Conference and Exhibition (IRCE) 2014 in Chicago told attendees that successful design for a B2B e-commerce site begins with a process that identifies key business and technology objectives.

Grainger

This website highlights information on Grainger’s business acquisition and impact on the e-commerce business world. Apply this information as you address the critical elements in the case study assignment.

Like Fastenal, Grainger integrates physical storefronts with online sales. It has been in business since 1927 and has over 700 regional stores in the United States.

In 2013, Grainger posted $9.4 billion in revenues with $3 billion in e-commerce sales—an area the company has been aggressively growing in since it launched Grainger.com in 1995. 

Grainger was one of the first big B2B e-commerce sites in the United States. Most hail the site as one of the best (if not the best) B2B e-commerce sites out there.

Best eCommerce Websites: Grainger Gets It Done for B2B Retail

Facilities management equipment supplier Grainger has invested heavily in its e-commerce platform. Grainger’s website traffic is gigantic, and its online product range has recently crossed the one-million items mark. While it is indeed one of the big companies out there, how it is approaching e-commerce is valuable for any business to watch and emulate. Read more about its strategies in this comprehensive analysis.

Additional Support (Optional)

Amazon’s B2B Site Evolving, Growing Rapidly

This case study resource documents Amazon Business’s growth and features.

Critical Elements

Proficient (100%)

Needs Improvement (55%)

Not Evident (0%)

Value

Unique E-business Strategy

Clearly identifies a unique business strategy of chosen company that enabled company to evolve from an idea to a successful business model

Identifies business strategies of chosen company but does not define a unique strategy that enabled the company to evolve from an idea to a successful business model

Does not identify business strategy of chosen company

40

Each Site Has Been Uniquely Designed

Explains in rich and significant detail how each site is uniquely designed to acquire new customers and to encourage repeat buyers 

Explains how each site is uniquely designed to acquire new customers and to encourage repeat buyers, but explanation lacks clarity or is not supported

Does not explain how each site is uniquely designed to acquire new customers and to encourage repeat buyers

25

Most Effective

Describes which company is the most successful

Describes which company is the most successful, but explanation lacks clarity or is not supported

Does not identify any e-business attributes

25

Proper Use of Writing

Mechanics and Grammar

Paper is free of errors in organization and grammar with applicable sources cited

Paper contains errors of organization and grammar, but errors are limited enough so that paper can be understood; applicable sources are cited

Paper contains errors of organization and grammar making the content difficult to understand

10

Total

100%