Love B2B eCommerce
This guide is part of our Love B2B eCommerce hub - you can find more articles like this one, case studies, and in-depth videos to support your wholesale growth right here! Schedule a personalised, 1:1 consultation with our expert team, and we’ll guide you through every step of your wholesale journey!
The modern B2B buyer looks nothing like they did a decade ago. Today’s wholesale customers are typically younger, more digitally savvy, and expect the same seamless experience they’ve come to expect from B2C platforms - before, during, and after the sale.
According to Forrester, nearly half of all B2B purchases now happen via self-service channels, like vendor websites and online marketplaces. These buyers want instant access, personalised journeys, and minimal friction. Any barrier to a smooth buying experience can become a reason to walk away.
So what does that mean for businesses using SparkLayer?
Getting your B2B eCommerce platform up and running is just the beginning. The real value lies in how well your customers adopt it. Whether you're onboarding hundreds of wholesale clients or working closely with a handful of enterprise buyers, driving adoption is essential for long-term success.
In this guide, we’ll walk you through six practical ways to optimise B2B customer adoption post-SparkLayer installation, helping you drive engagement, improve retention, and set your customers up for success.
1. Engage your customers with a launch campaign.
First impressions really do matter. A strong launch campaign plan sets the tone for your new B2B eCommerce experience and plays a critical role in driving early B2B customer adoption.
Clear, timely messaging helps your customers understand the benefits of your new online B2B ordering platform. They set the tone for the rollout, ensuring your customers understand the platform’s benefits, how it works, the timeline, and how it will simplify their ordering experience.
Effective launch communications build excitement, minimise resistance to change, and empower customers with the knowledge they need to use the platform confidently from day one.
Watch our webinar with Rave Coffee to discover how they boosted their B2B customer adoption after moving to SparkLayer.
Follow-up marketing emails can be a powerful way to reinforce value and highlight key features, like faster ordering, 24/7 self-access, and real-time order tracking. Including customer testimonials or use cases is a great way to build trust and accelerate adoption.
2. Offer B2B customer onboarding support.
Onboarding is an ongoing process that helps customers understand and embrace your new B2B eCommerce platform. Providing structured onboarding support, whether it’s live training sessions, simple how-to guides, or personalised onboarding emails, ensures customers feel guided, not left behind.
For larger enterprise accounts, consider offering a white-glove approach: account managers, tailored training, or even on-site support.
Make it easy to get started with direct links to your portal, clear sign-up instructions, and even incentives for placing their first online order. Follow-up communications showcasing successful migrations or customer wins can help build momentum and increase confidence.
Strong onboarding is one of the most important drivers of customer adoption in B2B eCommerce - it transforms hesitation into habit.
3. Provide self-service migration resources.
One common challenge with adopting new technology is the (anticipated) learning curve. To ease the transition, you can build out a library of short tutorial videos or step-by-step guides for common tasks (e.g., how to create an order, view past orders, and reorder with ease).
Create an FAQ webpage or PDF for your customers to access 24/7 during their initial onboarding and beyond. These resources will empower your customers to navigate the platform independently, boosting confidence and encouraging regular online ordering.
By offering hands-on assistance, clear documentation, and dedicated support, you can efficiently prepare your customers to fully leverage the new system and confidently scale their operations.
4. Reconnect with less-engaged customers.
It’s always great seeing your customers using your new eCommerce platform - but what about those who haven’t yet engaged?
If you have the resources, reach out to your customers to discover any confusing (or missing) features. Consider sending personalised emails or scheduling 1:1 calls to address any barriers preventing them from getting started.
It’s important to understand that some of your customers will prefer more traditional ordering methods (like face-to-face sales, emailing product lists, or phoning in bulk orders) - this could be due to a lack of internal resources, hesitation or uncertainty, or not understanding how an online platform applies to their business specifically.
Speaking to these customers will give you great insight into how to engage them, ensure customer satisfaction, and understand their concerns. Ensuring they feel heard and understand that they aren’t being left behind is crucial for customer adoption in B2B eCommerce.
If possible, you can continue to offer more traditional methods of wholesale ordering while onboarding them. This level of familiarity is likely to improve the overall experience of migrating to your new platform, and they’ll quickly see that they can maintain some aspects of their previous methods while upgrading to a more streamlined process!
5. Regularly review analytics and feedback.
Customer adoption doesn’t stop after launch. It’s an ongoing process that requires monitoring, measuring, and improving based on what the data tells you.
Even after customers start using the platform, continue gathering feedback to uncover new ways to improve their wholesale ordering experience.
Use your analytics tools to track key metrics, such as login rates, order volumes, abandoned carts, or repeat purchases. These indicators will show how your B2B customers are interacting with your platform and where they might be getting stuck.
Follow up with regular surveys or quick check-ins to gather qualitative insights. The combination of data and real-world feedback will help you spot patterns, fix issues, and drive deeper B2B eCommerce customer adoption over time.
Use these analytics to identify opportunities for improvement. For example, if conversion rates are low, consider running a campaign that re-engages users who’ve created accounts but haven’t yet ordered.
Of course, some of this will be anecdotal, too (like common topics or questions on sales or support calls), which is why monthly customer surveys can be invaluable. Use a reporting tool like SparkLayer Analytics to map out and track what really matters!
6. Work with an expert agency
Sometimes, the best way to accelerate B2B customer adoption is to bring in outside help. SparkLayer partners with leading eCommerce agencies around the world, experts who know how to design, build, and optimise online experiences that customers want to use.
These agencies bring valuable experience in crafting tailored implementation strategies, ensuring your eCommerce website is user-friendly and aligned with your customers' needs.
From streamlining workflows to providing ongoing support, their expertise can help remove adoption barriers, making it easier for your customers to embrace and maximise the platform’s benefits.
The result? Faster onboarding, higher satisfaction, and a more engaged B2B customer base!
Ready to boost B2B customer adoption?
Launching SparkLayer is just the beginning. With the right strategies in place, from onboarding support to ongoing optimisation, you can drive meaningful B2B eCommerce customer adoption, build stronger relationships, and grow revenue through a more engaged wholesale customer base!
Explore more of our Love B2B eCommerce hub here - sign up for instant access to new videos, case studies, and book a bespoke 1:1 call with our team of wholesale experts!