Expanding payment options for B2B: Balance and BigCommerce partner up

Two years ago, BigCommerce made a significant move in the B2B market with the launch of BigCommerce B2B Edition. This solution was designed to enhance the sales experience for enterprise merchants by offering an advanced suite of B2B functionalities.

By partnering with BundleB2B, BigCommerce was able to provide merchants with powerful tools to manage their online operations and offer customers convenient self-service account capabilities.

The ultimate goal was to simplify transactions and create a more seamless purchasing experience. Now, as we fast forward to 2023, we see an increasing number of platforms following BigCommerce's lead and adopting similar strategies to cater to the growing B2B market. And it's no wonder why.

Ecommerce platforms have revolutionized businesses' ability to reach customers through their online channels. These platforms provide a foundation for building online stores, allowing businesses to add new features and functionality as needed with ease.

Now, B2B is finally receiving the attention and boost it needs from platforms, so that companies can set up a storefront without little effort or technical knowledge. The number of services and app platforms dedicated towards B2B ecommerce is quickly growing—and as a result the growth and success of these channels. So much so that, according to Digital Commerce's latest report, B2B ecommerce sites and apps have grown to $1.95 trillion, which represents a 19% increase from $1.64 trillion in 2021.

All of this creates an ideal environment for platforms to help businesses maximize the traction they've had so far and thrive even further online.

And now BigCommerce B2B merchants can use the platform to take advantage of this opportunity and maximize the impact of their ecommerce channels. The Balance team has released our BigCommerce integration to provide BigCommerce merchants with robust B2B payment capabilities for their store.

Why BigCommerce

BigCommerce was one of the first platforms to invest in the B2B commerce space and continues to differentiate itself by eliminating the barriers to entry for companies at every stage of growth.

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Codal, an award winning ecommerce agency and the 2021 BigCommerce Agency Partner of the Year, built the Balance app now available on BigCommerce.

“With BigCommerce, merchants can seamlessly integrate cutting-edge payment solutions like Balance, which help reduce the costs and complexities commonly associated with online B2B payments," says Keval Baxi, CEO of Codal.

"Our clients love this because it enables flexible payment options on their site, while simultaneously automating repetitive, time-consuming back-office tasks—resulting in simplified workflows for both customers and employees.”

Keep reading to learn exactly what to expect. 

A primer on B2B ecommerce integrations

In the world of B2B ecommerce, payments have been far from customized or personalized to the business buyer. While some companies, such as Faire, a B2B clothing marketplace, have built in-house B2B payment capabilities, the reality is that this is no small feat. 

Why? The basics of B2B ecommerce payments are not at all that basic. For example, merchants need to consider how they offer the following capabilities:

1. An online experience that is easy, flexible, fast, and transparent, similar to a B2C transaction.
2. An instant credit check that typically only requires a few data points and uses machine learning technology.
3. Financing options that cover up to hundreds of thousands of dollars per transaction using a real-time application. Customers can choose to pay with net terms that typically include 15, 30, 60, or 90 days.
4. The ability to pay invoices using various methods, such as credit card, debit card, ACH, wire transfer, or mailed check.
5. Quick payouts to sellers, while also managing the financing risk, servicing, and collections.
6. Back-office automation capabilities such as invoice reconciliation and AP automation.

With such complexity, it's no wonder that only 30% of businesses report their current solutions as highly or very effective in tackling B2B payment difficulties, while the rest (33%) indicated their solutions were either not effective or only slightly effective.

Now, thanks to strong technology providers, merchants don’t have to worry about how they take all of this on. At Balance, we believe in making it as easy as possible for merchants to integrate these capabilities into their business. 

Here’s more on our latest integration with BigCommerce:

Enabling a true all-in-one experience for BigCommerce B2B merchants

“All-in-one” can be seen as a buzzword. But here’s what it means to us. With payment processing, invoicing, and financing all under one hood, merchants can do everything from automating receivables to improving cash flow with instant vendor payouts.

More than just a front-end experience, our platform provides merchants with the back-end payment infrastructure for their BigCommerce B2B store. The result is that merchants can offer their buyers an unparalleled purchasing experience that doesn't compromise on scale, integration time, or bottom line growth. 

Plus, our customizable invoicing and checkout gives merchants control over the payment experience's look and feel. This is crucial in B2B transactions, where buyers may hesitate to share information with third parties. By implementing a user-friendly, B2C-style checkout process, merchants can increase conversion rates and order value.

Driving scale

In today's business environment, it's important to carefully consider development resources and investments in technology, especially in times of tight margins and rising labor costs. However, ignoring ecommerce and digitization is not an option. Ecommerce offers a cost-effective way to reach customers and increase cash flow, but it also comes with its own set of challenges, especially when it comes to payments. 

According to a PYMNTS report, the two most- cited hindrances businesses have in adopting digital B2B payments solutions are having a lack of human resources and tending to avoid risks. Fortunately, BigCommerce has been investing in its B2B offering for years, and its recent acquisitions of B2B Ninja and BundleB2B demonstrate its commitment to making the transition to B2B as easy as possible.

Our partnership with BigCommerce is another step forward in how accessible enabling new B2B features can be, without taking on additional costs or risk. It can be helpful to see payments as part of building a minimum viable product (MVP). Attracting early adopter customers is vital to validate quickly, iterate, improve, and ultimately grow. The less time and effort it takes to have a strong online storefront, payments included, the faster and more effectively businesses can maximize their revenue.

Unlock the power of financing

Jason Hein, principal B2B visionary at Bloomreach, recently told Digital Commerce 360 about the importance of “evaluating platforms that have the flexibility to adapt to customers' changing expectations.” So, you are already on that right track by choosing BigCommerce as a platform. But choosing the right platform is just the first step.

One of the best ways to personalize and adapt your ecommerce channel for your B2B customers is with the checkout and payment experience.

Below, you can see a 'B2B' checkout on a B2B wholesale website:

As you can see, the B2B payment methods that customers today expect, such as ACH, wire transfers, and of course, net terms, aren’t offered within the checkout. 

Unlike in the consumer world where credit cards and PayPal are sufficient, businesses need trade credit options. 

This partnership expands Balance's reach to four of the largest ecommerce platforms, making it the only B2B financing solution available on all of them. It allows BigCommerce B2B merchants to easily embed B2B financing directly within their ecommerce sites, enabling their customers with secure and convenient financing options in just a few hours. 

Above all, as the digitization of B2B trade gathers pace, ecosystem players need to help merchants prepare for the future. Offering merchants financing options that encourage their customers to move online is a major move forward in staying ahead of a rapidly evolving market.

Why this partnership? Why right now?

In today's ecommerce landscape, offering customers greater payment choice and convenience is essential. Customers expect a convenient and secure online purchasing experience, and those merchants who are able to provide it will have an advantage—from growing order value to maximizing online sales.

BigCommerce has always been dedicated to giving merchants access to the best technologies in the industry and Balance shares this commitment. Together, we're on a mission to help merchants sell more and grow faster.

With this integration, merchants can focus on other areas of their business, instead of worrying about previously time-consuming tasks like collecting payments and qualifying buyers.

Don't let payment and qualification processes hold you back. Get the most out of BigCommerce B2B Edition and connect with our team to learn how our integration can help you effectively elevate your B2B purchasing experience and drive success for your business.