B2B website design – what to consider for a successful website

A B2B website is one of the most valuable tools for marketing within B2B organisations. With curated B2B website design, your website can rank highly on search engines, increase traffic, generate more sales and become a resource of support for its targeted businesses. 

B2B websites need a different marketing approach compared to B2C websites, they need bespoke functionality, different content and alternative user interfaces. A B2B website needs to make business sense for audiences, it should focus on how your product or service can help their industry and assist with their organisational processes. 

At ProfileTree, we know how to design B2B websites that sell products/services and engage meaningfully with other businesses. We position your brand’s website as a place for quality merchandise and useful industry information.

Get in touch with us today to hear more about our modern web design services for creating quality B2B websites. 

When considering B2B web design you should consider the following: 

• What is a B2B website?
• What is a B2C website?
• What is the difference between B2B website design and B2C website design?
  • Call to action
  • Content
  • Tone
• What are B2B web design services?
  • SEO practises
  • User interface
  • Functionality 
• Best B2B website designs
  • Sage
  • Bamboo HR
  • MX Wholesale
• B2B web design agency 
• B2B website design agency in U.K. and Ireland 

What is a B2B website? 

A B2B (business to business) website is a type of e-commerce website where businesses sell their products/services to other businesses. An example of this could be a waste disposal company that sells their machinery to other businesses that need it, i.e.) a tyre shredder machine for a mechanic’s business. 

What is a B2C website? 

A B2C (business to customer) website is a type of e-commerce website where businesses sell their products/services to customers directly. An example of this could be an online jewellery store that sells jewellery pieces to the general public. 

What is the difference between B2B website design and B2C website design?

There is a big difference in how you market to other businesses and how you market to general customers. Each group has different needs and different purchasing processes’, resulting in a need to have a specialised B2B website or B2C website design. 

Some of the main differences between B2B web design and B2C web design includes:

Call to action

As a general rule of thumb, all ecommerce websites should include some form of a ‘call to action’ in order to encourage visitors to complete a purchase. Within B2C websites, a ‘call to action’ tends to be in the form of flashy discounts that are ending soon. B2C websites focus on impulse purchasing and encourage a quicker purchasing process. 

With B2B websites the ‘call to action’ is formatted a little differently, due to the purchasing process being exceptionally longer than that of a general customer. Within businesses, it’s usually more than one person agreeing to the expense. Business purchases have to be rationally thought out, budgeted and approved, this in turn affects the visitors whole purchasing process for products/services. 

Within B2B organisations there is also sometimes a need for a communication exchange  between the two businesses to take place. This exchange establishes purchasing goals, quantity, price and support, etc. A ‘call to action’ within B2B websites may encourage the visitor to get in contact with a sales rep, usually through a contact form or booking in for a consultation. 

A ‘call to action’ within B2B websites is much more subtle and measured compared to B2C websites. B2B websites perform, for lack of a better term, ‘handholding’, meaning that they guide their visitors throughout the whole purchasing process, providing lots of information, content and tailored support. 

Content

Usually a business purchase will have to be approved by a senior authority within the company and they will want to know detailed information, including features, price points, reviews, etc. B2B web design acknowledges that the purchasing process is much more calculated for businesses and as such, the website’s content needs to support that type of decision making. 

When creating content for B2B websites, it’s also worth investing in high resolution images and videos that set you aside from competition and highlight the features of your product/service. Content should also answer all of the queries businesses may have surrounding your product/service, ensuring the visitor is well informed. 

B2B customers should view your website content and feel confident that your product/service will provide them with a return on investment and improve their organisation’s processes.

Examples of B2B website content includes: 

• Reviews and testimonials.
• Tutorials and instructions.
• Case studies.
• Responses to FAQ’S – frequently asked questions.
• Industry articles and blogs.
• High quality images and videos of products.
• Before and after results (if applicable).

A B2B website design agency will advise you on which pieces of content would be best suited for your website. A full service agency, like us at ProfileTree, will also create the content for you and show you how to create content in the future.

Get in touch with us today to discuss our content creation services. 

Tone 

Another big difference between B2B website and B2C website design is the tone used. B2C websites tend to include a lot of emotive language and descriptive words, e.g.) stylish, trendy, in season, etc. The tone attempts to personally connect with the audience and encourage an emotional investment from the website visitor. 

Within B2B websites, the tone is much more direct, informative and factual, using more actioning words and phrases, e.g). improving performance or increasing efficiency. The tone provides a coherent argument for purchasing the product/service and makes business sense to the visitor. 

At ProfileTree, we are experts in designing both B2B and B2C websites, or a combination of the two. Whatever your business needs, we will create a website to suit your organisational goals and increase your website’s performance.

For more tips and tricks on how to digitally market your B2B organisation, check out this blog.

What are B2B web design services?

A B2B web design agency will help you create a bespoke B2B website that performs well within the online market. B2B websites are a little more complicated to design than B2C websites, they require much more detail and complex functionality.

Some of the services that a B2B web design agency offers includes: 

SEO Practises

A B2B website design agency will embed SEO practises within your business’ website content. This process helps B2B companies understand different industries and their queries. B2B web design agencies will then use this information to create useful content that other businesses appreciate, increasing the long-term credibility associated with your brand. 

SEO practises help your business connect with other businesses, and it’s particularly useful for businesses who are seeking local partnerships for products and services. A B2B website design agency will use industry standard SEO practises to improve your websites search engine rankings and increase your websites organic traffic. 

User interface

The user interface includes everything within the website that visitors will see and interact with. A B2B web design agency will have a range of tools and expertise to create a suitable user interface that is engaging for B2B customers. 

Some of the usual, user interface features of a B2B website, includes: 

• Modern design
• Minimalist homepage appearance
• Minimal colour scheme
• High quality images and videos
• Informational videos 
• Detailed information in the appropriate website sections
• Testimonial excerpts 

A B2B web design agency will know how to format your website’s content in a visually appealing way for B2B customers. They improve the user interface to provide easy navigation and convenient browsing for website visitors.  

Functionality 

A really important aspect of B2B websites is that they need to function well. If the website’s coding is poorly constructed, this may lead to outdated web pages and improper navigation  paths. A website that is frustrating to use well loses visitors and falls down in search engine rankings.

A B2B website design agency will ensure that the website functions properly. At ProfileTree, we are also a full service agency with a team of expert web developers, we can handle a wide range of website functionality issues and ensure that your website provides an enjoyable experience for B2B customers. 

Best B2B website designs

Some of the best B2B website designs are the simplistic ones. Business customers are not seeking entertainment, they are seeking keyfacts, important information and convenient navigation. 

Some examples of good B2B website designs includes:

Sage

Sage is an online accounting firm that offers other businesses their accounting services. Their website has an incredibly impactful B2B web design that is engaging and easy to comprehend. 

Their B2B design uses little text, highlighting key information. They also use a small selection of colours for the colour scheme, including black, white and green, so as to not overload the visitor with demanding colours. 

The web design also organises information incredibly well. B2B customers are able to navigate the Sage website within their own industries. Helping B2B customers sort through content that’s irrelevant to them. 

Bamboo HR

Bamboo HR is an online software that businesses can use to manage their in-house HR practices. The B2B web design of Bamboo HR is very business centric, highlighting their unique selling point of elevating the employee experience. 

The B2B design uses engaging visuals of happy employees and encourages subtle calls to action of “Get a Demo” or “Try it free”. Bamboo HR also uses a dominant colour green, in a variety of different shades, for their website design. The B2B design communicates value for a wide range of B2B customers.  

MX Wholesale

MX wholesale is a wholesaler based within the U.K. They provide a wide range of retail products for traders to purchase and then sell within their stores. The B2B web design is very product focused, highlighting the range of brands available and placing lots of emphasis on product cost. 

The B2B web design categorises merchandise into specific categories, helping B2B customers sort through products and find what they need. It designs website content around their B2B customers main concern, the price and makes for a convenient process for B2B customers purchasing stock. 

B2B web design agency 

At ProfileTree, we know how to design and develop B2B websites that sell products/services and engage with other businesses. We position your B2B website as a place for quality merchandise and useful information. Get in touch with us today for creative, custom and professional B2B website design services. 

B2B website design agency in U.K. and Ireland 

ProfileTree is a website design and development agency based in Belfast. Our clients come from all over across Ireland and the U.K. and we take pride in our strong record of helping local, regional and national businesses compete online with incredibly designed websites. 

As a local business, we also address local concerns such as Brexit and the cost of living increase, and we help other businesses address those concerns to their B2B customers. We also help our B2B clients connect with other local businesses and develop profitable partnerships.

As a B2B company ourselves, we at ProfileTree understand what’s needed for B2B business to effectively compete within the online marketplace. Contact us today to get local web design expertise and to join our growing list of U.K. and Ireland clients.