Society today prefers making their purchases online. This has given companies no option but to provide better online purchasing solutions. Both B2B and B2C companies must avail the latest product information to enhance customer experience. Complexities of online business are continually growing.
Sellers at all levels need to use the right technologies and strategies to remain in business. One of the most agile technologies adopted by sellers today is headless commerce. It is gaining strong ground and becoming the norm in today’s e-commerce sector.
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Changing strategy as customer behavior changes
The pace of technological changes is increasing daily. Buyer behavior is also changing almost at the same rate. Brands today are using different e-commerce platforms to meet customer needs. There is a greater need for brands to present themselves before customers in a different way.
Regardless of the challenges, brands can still adopt new interfaces without causing major disruptions to the systems. This is where headless e-commerce comes in to provide a solution. The simplest definition of headless eCommerce is the separation of the user interface from the business logic. The technology disconnects the front end of a business from its backend. This way, the business gets unlimited opportunities to innovate. Brands can create front-end interface applications that improve customer experience without disrupting the backend.
The front-end applications can be upgraded for compatibility with any device and then plugged with the back end through an API. This is a major change in the strategy being experienced in the e-commerce sector.
How headless e-commerce is making strides in a B2C B2C environment
B2C e-commerce is usually in many ways ahead of B2B e-commerce. This could be due to the advantage of numbers in B2C compared to B2B. To date, this has remained the norm which has been important in the penetration of headless commerce into the consumer market. The B2B, on the other hand, is thriving well in the cloud.
There is a large host of programs being exploited to create a data-centric B2B e-commerce environment. This same technology is now being applied in the B2C platforms and aims to make the consumer world as easy as the cloud world. By adding new interfaces, features, and functionality at the front-end, B2C e-commerce has tremendously grown. Businesses valued at millions of dollars a decade ago are today valued at billions of dollars thanks to headless e-commerce.
The B2B world has taken keen note of this B2C tremendous growth and success. They have turned to adopting headless commerce to take advantage of its benefits. Traditionally, the B2B market has always leveraged prices. Competition today is different, and prices alone can no longer sustain a B2B business. Headless commerce is helping them change from a price-based model to a consumption-based model.
Decoupling, a timely solution to both B2C and B2B e-commerce
It takes time to create new applications, test them, launch, and maintain them. Every time a new application or program is created, the entire system needs updating. This process is a disadvantage to the backend due to constant disruptions.
Application deployment becomes a tedious and expensive process that affects system effectiveness. If businesses want to win, they must change their approach to launching new programs. The new strategy currently used by companies is decoupling. Headless commerce makes it possible to decouple the back end from the front end.
The front end is the interface where customers interact with a company. When it’s decoupled from the business logic or back end, this means the back end has no head to make the system complete. This is the reason experts use the word headless commerce. To connect it to the backend, the company uses an API to allow seamless communication between the two ends.
How B2B B2C is benefiting from headless e-commerce
Decoupling is a major benefit for businesses at both levels. Take an example of B2B commerce, where a manufacturer is producing trucks. The cost of one new truck is high, and not many small businesses can afford it.
There could be ten or more small businesses in need of new trucks to offer cargo transport services. If the manufacturer opts to lease, every smaller business will afford to run its business. Both the manufacturer and the transport service provider will benefit.
In a headless commerce environment, the business logic or backend is separate from the end. This opens new opportunities for software developers to create all types of user interference applications. Some offer as SaaS, others sell, and still others provide open-source software. They all run on the front end without affecting the backend.
Headless e-commerce has created unlimited business opportunities for software developers. The company doesn’t have to own all the applications. They don’t have to sell either because users can pay as they use or buy if they can afford it.
Improved speed and performance
Traditionally, e-commerce runs on a server that is strictly tied to one front directly connected to a back end. Headless e-commerce breaks that norm and separates the two ends. With a separate front end, millions of requests can be made from hundreds of applications.
The requests can use different channels to reach the back end, which eliminates latency or downtime. Companies now process requests at exceedingly high speeds, and applications performance is far much better today.
More IoT devices can be connected
Customers no longer need a specific device to connect with a business backend. Newer applications have been created that can be used on any type of IoT device. It doesn’t matter if a customer is connecting from their smartphone, laptop, desktop, or any other device.
Headless e-commerce has made it possible for both B2B and B2C businesses to connect with customers easily. Each store designs its unique software, which has made the shopping journey experience better.
Saving on costs
The cost of running a traditional business is higher. The process of creating applications is tedious and expensive. With headless commerce, the time taken to create and test software is shorter. With so many front-end applications, a business increases its customer base fast. The business saves on costs but increases profits.
Conclusion
Headless e-commerce has changed the way business is done. At every level of e-commerce, the customer is the priority today. Large numbers of businesses today are using technology to improve customer service. They are creating better customer-centric products. They want both B2B and B2C buyers to find products online. Headless commerce is making it possible for the business world to provide fast, accurate, and reliable services to customers.
