B2B buyers purchasing raw materials 2022, by channel

Business-to-business (B2B) enterprises still rely on traditional business relationships or well-known suppliers when it comes to raw materials purchases. A worldwide survey from 2022 showed that 13 percent of B2B buyers opted for the supplier’s website, while 12 percent used the supplier’s mobile app. Sales representative, either in person or contact via phone or email, followed closely in the ranking. The channel ranking for general purchases showed similar results, with lower relevance of in-person relationships with sales representatives.

Investing in marketplaces

Marketplaces are going to be more popular in the future than they are now, with up to 33 percent of B2B buyers using them in five years' time. Sellers anticipate this development in purchase intentions, and they are already investing accordingly. In 2022, 40 percent of UK B2B companies planned investments in third-party marketplaces and 50 percent of Scandinavian companies intended to do the same.

The primacy of Amazon Business

Amazon Business topped the ranking of most popular B2B generalist marketplaces, with over one-third of B2B buyers using it worldwide. The B2B platform of e-commerce behemoth Amazon was widely used in the U.S., as nearly seven in ten B2B buyers reported having shopped on Amazon Business in India. South Africa followed in the ranking with 47 percent of answers.