Wholesale Online: Interview with Rob Mannion

In a recent interview with Rob Mannion, CEO and Founder of b2b.store, we discussed Lumina Intelligence’s Wholesale Online Report, which explores how the wholesale sector’s eCommerce usage is rapidly changing, and how companies are now facing the challenge of capturing and maintaining the attention of their customers amidst rising cost-of-living pressures. To achieve this, communication is vital, and businesses are exploring innovative ways to engage their customers.

The Wholesale Online Report has highlighted how the sector’s eCommerce usage is changing. What’s the biggest thing you’re seeing from a tech standpoint?

There’s an ever-growing need for wholesalers to capture the attention of their customers and keep them engaged. With greater promiscuity due to the cost-of-living pressures individuals and businesses are currently facing, customer exclusivity is rare and it’s important for wholesalers to make sure their business is always at front of mind.

That means communication is key and why we’ve seen a lot of interest in the use of WhatsApp Business API. The technology is highly adaptable and can be used in several different ways, whether it’s sending promotions and updates in a channel with such high engagement, redirecting customers to their eCommerce channels, or offering one-tap ordering from a message.

WhatsApp Business API features a lot in the report. Do you see adoption growing among wholesalers?

Definitely, and I think it’ll extend further around B2B too – its potential influence is huge. A lot of people will say that using WhatsApp to send out updates to customer groups is nothing new, but the vast majority of wholesalers that do are using the free versions that are aimed at consumers or small businesses.

The problem with those free versions is that they’re limited and while they’re great as a messaging service, they’re not fit-for-purpose for a larger business. On the free versions, groups are open so everyone can access and reply to messages and those groups are capped, whereas the API version is a lot more secure – creating a series of one-to-one conversations at scale by sending only one message.

Greater personalisation means messages can be segmented by region or customer group, or can be adapted to offer one-tap ordering or credit control management functions, so there’s huge potential for wholesalers to put WhatsApp at the centre of their business. As a result, I can only see adoption increasing more.

What tech solutions are out there to help with cost pressures?

WhatsApp Business API is a great starting point because as an effective communication channel, it can replace the need to spend on print brochures and distribution. But the solution that makes the clearest cost saving straight off the bat is open banking, and it’s a method more and more businesses in the sector are exploring. With card-transaction and cash-handling fees on the rise in recent years, it can cost wholesalers a lot of money just to receive payment – therefore further squeezing already tight margins. Open banking fees are a lot lower so is an immediate cost saving, which is difficult to find anywhere in the current climate.

‘Open’ eCommerce sites are also expected to be big in 2023. Where do you see this trend going?

This could quickly become more than a trend for B2B eCommerce platforms. Whereas traditionally wholesalers are cautious about the idea of opening up their sites to non-customers, it might be that by not driving more traffic to their eCommerce, wholesalers are limiting themselves by keeping everything gated.

Lumina’s research shows that retailers and foodservice operators are using eCommerce websites to check out new products, but another big benefit of being open is that wholesalers’ sites will rank on Google. Both of these are great acquisition tools to attract more customers.

What is the best approach for wholesalers and suppliers wanting success in the sector?

Find a way to embrace as many different approaches as possible. We’ve always spoken about getting the eCommerce basics right – having an easy-to-use, accessible platform with clear categories and good search tools etc – and while that’s still important, the environment has moved on so much, there are now many more layers on top of that. Open banking is a no-brainer for wholesalers wanting to cut costs, while WhatsApp Business API is another tool that can make a big difference – driving efficiency and creating a new revenue stream. The beauty of these solutions is that cost is scalable to usage and size, so works for wholesalers of all sizes.

Suppliers should explore wholesalers’ WhatsApp channels to see how they can use them to promote their products to customers too. There’s a lot of potential for suppliers to better promote new products and range, and with the ability to split test adverts and images, there are tools available to refine approaches and deliver best possible results too.

Gain a comprehensive understanding of how retailers and operators interact with wholesaler web apps, enabling businesses to identify areas for improvement in the user interface, navigation, and overall design of their site or app with Lumina Intelligence’s Wholesale Online report 2023.