Core Capabilities: Non-Negotiable Features

Every B2B distribution platform must include these fundamental capabilities. These are table-stakes features—without them, you’ll face operational challenges from day one.

1. Advanced Order Management

Bulk Order Entry
Your platform must support rapid entry of large orders. Essential capabilities include:

• Quick order forms where customers can enter multiple SKUs and quantities on a single page
• Excel/CSV upload functionality for uploading entire order lists
• SKU search with auto-complete as customers type
• Barcode scanning for mobile ordering
• Order templates for frequently repeated purchases

Why it matters: A retail customer might order 5 items. Your wholesale customers order 50-200 items per transaction. Manual entry one-by-one is unacceptably slow.

Repeat Order Functionality
One-click reordering of previous purchases saves customers significant time:

• View complete order history with all line items
• Reorder entire previous orders with one click
• Add previous orders to cart for modification before checkout
• Create saved order templates for recurring purchases

Why it matters: Many B2B purchases are recurring. A customer ordering the same 75 items weekly shouldn’t have to rebuild their order each time.

Quote Request System
Enable customers to request custom pricing for bulk or special orders:

• Submit quote requests directly through the platform
• Specify quantities, delivery dates, and special requirements
• Sales team receives notifications and can respond with custom quotes
• Customers can accept quotes and convert to orders seamlessly

Why it matters: High-value or unusual orders often require custom pricing. Building this workflow into your platform eliminates email back-and-forth.

Backorder Management
Handle out-of-stock items gracefully:

• Allow customers to order out-of-stock items with expected availability dates
• Partial order fulfillment with automatic backorder creation for unavailable items
• Customer notifications when backordered items are back in stock
• Automatic processing of backorders when inventory arrives

Why it matters: Forcing customers to reorder when products return to stock creates friction and opens the door to competitors.

Order Approval Workflows
Configure whether orders require admin confirmation before processing:

• Set approval requirements based on customer, order value, or payment method
• Multi-level approval for orders exceeding thresholds
• Email notifications to approvers with order details
• Approval tracking and audit trails

Why it matters: Some distribution models require order validation, credit checks, or inventory allocation approval before committing to fulfillment.

2. Flexible Pricing Architecture

Customer-Specific Pricing
Different customers pay different prices based on volume, contracts, or relationships:

• Assign custom price lists to individual customers or customer groups
• Override catalog prices automatically for specific accounts
• Support contract pricing with effective dates and expiration
• Display correct pricing automatically when customers log in

Why it matters: Volume discounts and negotiated pricing are fundamental to B2B. Every customer seeing the same price breaks your business model.

Tiered Volume Pricing
Prices that decrease as order quantities increase:

• Define multiple price tiers for products (1-99 units: $10, 100-499: $9, 500+: $8)
• Show tier pricing clearly to encourage larger orders
• Automatically apply correct tier based on cart quantity
• Support different tier structures for different customer groups

Why it matters: Encouraging larger orders increases efficiency and average order value.

Customer Group Pricing
Assign customers to groups that determine their pricing automatically:

• Create pricing groups for different customer types (VIP, standard, new customer)
• Apply group-specific discounts across categories or the entire catalog
• Combine group pricing with volume tiers and customer-specific overrides
• Manage thousands of customers efficiently without manual price assignment

Why it matters: Managing individual pricing for hundreds or thousands of customers is impossible manually. Automated group pricing scales.

Promotion Engine
Run targeted deals and promotional campaigns:

• BOGO (Buy One Get One) offers without coupon codes
• Percentage or fixed-amount discounts on products, categories, or brands
• Free shipping thresholds (“Free shipping on orders over $500”)
• Date-based automatic activation and expiration
• Stack or restrict promotion combinations
• Apply promotions to specific customer groups only

Why it matters: Promotions drive urgency and increase order frequency, but they must be manageable without overwhelming your team.

3. Intelligent Inventory Management

Real-Time Inventory Sync
Inventory levels must stay accurate across all systems:

• Bidirectional sync between your ecommerce platform and ERP
• Real-time updates when inventory changes in either system
• Prevent overselling by reserving inventory when added to carts
• Support for multiple warehouses with location-specific availability

Why it matters: Selling products you don’t have destroys customer trust and creates fulfillment nightmares.

Automated Stock Management
Intelligent handling of inventory availability:

• Automatically remove out-of-stock items from customer carts with notification
• Show inventory availability (in stock, low stock, out of stock) on product pages
• Set product visibility rules based on stock levels
• Configure buffer stock to prevent overselling

Why it matters: Manual inventory management doesn’t scale and leads to constant customer service issues.

Back-in-Stock Notifications
Alert customers when previously unavailable products return:

• Allow customers to subscribe to product availability alerts
• Automatic email notifications when inventory is replenished
• Drive immediate sales from pent-up demand
• Track which products have the most demand when out of stock

Why it matters: Customers who couldn’t get a product won’t remember to check back. Automated notifications recapture those sales.

Advanced Product Filtering
Help customers find products quickly in large catalogs:

• Filter by attributes (size, color, strength, material, brand, category)
• Multi-faceted filtering (apply multiple filters simultaneously)
• Dynamic filter options based on available inventory
• Save and share filtered product lists

Why it matters: Distributors often carry thousands or tens of thousands of SKUs. Without powerful search and filtering, finding products becomes frustrating.

Product Categorization & Organization
Logical product structure that makes sense for your business:

• Multi-level category hierarchies
• Products can appear in multiple categories
• Automatic categorization based on product attributes
• Custom sorting within categories (by popularity, margin, alphabetical, custom)

Why it matters: Product organization directly impacts how quickly customers can find what they need and complete orders.

4. Customer Portal & Self-Service

Secure Customer Accounts
Every B2B customer needs a password-protected account:

• Customer-specific pricing, products, and promotions visible only when logged in
• Order history and status tracking
• Invoice and payment history
• Saved payment methods and shipping addresses
• Account settings and preferences

Why it matters: B2B relationships require private, personalized experiences that aren’t appropriate to show publicly.

Multi-User Account Management
Support multiple users per customer organization:

• Individual logins for different employees at the same company
• Role-based permissions (some users can only view, others can order, others can approve)
• Centralized account management and billing
• Activity logs showing who placed which orders

Why it matters: Large customers have multiple people involved in ordering. Each needs appropriate access without sharing passwords.

Order Tracking & History
Complete visibility into order status:

• Real-time order status updates (received, processing, shipped, delivered)
• Shipment tracking numbers with carrier integration
• Downloadable invoices and packing slips
• Searchable order history with filtering and date ranges
• Detailed line-item views of past orders

Why it matters: “Where’s my order?” should be answerable by customers without calling your team.

Document Center
Centralized access to important business documents:

• Product catalogs and spec sheets
• Certificates of insurance or compliance documents
• Contracts and terms agreements
• Marketing materials and brand assets
• Customizable per customer or customer group

Why it matters: Customers frequently need reference materials. Centralizing them reduces support inquiries and improves customer experience.

5. Seamless ERP Integration

Bidirectional Data Sync
Your ecommerce platform and ERP must communicate seamlessly:

• Orders: Automatically flow from ecommerce to ERP for fulfillment
• Inventory: Real-time sync ensures accurate availability
• Customers: Customer data stays consistent across systems
• Pricing: Price changes in ERP reflect immediately on ecommerce
• Products: Product information updates synchronize automatically

Why it matters: Manual data entry between systems is error-prone, time-consuming, and doesn’t scale. Integration is non-negotiable.

Flexible Integration Options
Not all ERPs integrate the same way:

• Pre-built connectors for major ERP systems (SAP, NetSuite, Dynamics, Sage, etc.)
• RESTful API for custom integrations
• Webhook support for event-driven updates
• Middleware compatibility (Jitterbit, Dell Boomi, MuleSoft, etc.)
• File-based import/export as a fallback

Why it matters: If the platform can’t integrate with your specific ERP, it’s not a viable option regardless of other features.

Data Mapping & Transformation
Handle differences in how systems structure data:

• Map fields between systems (SKU in one system = Item Number in another)
• Transform data formats (date formats, currency, units of measure)
• Business logic for conditional mappings
• Error handling and logging for troubleshooting

Why it matters: Systems rarely structure data identically. Flexible mapping ensures smooth data exchange.

Advanced Features: Competitive Differentiators

Beyond core capabilities, these advanced features separate good platforms from great ones. Evaluate which matter most for your specific business model.

Payment Flexibility

Multiple Payment Methods
Support how your customers actually want to pay:

• Credit/debit card processing
• ACH bank transfers for large orders
• Net terms (invoice payment after delivery)
• Cash on delivery
• Purchase orders
• Multiple payment methods in a single transaction (partial credit card, partial net terms)

Why it matters: Forcing customers into inconvenient payment methods creates friction and lost sales.

Payment Terms Management
Automate credit and payment term administration:

• Assign payment terms by customer (Net 30, Net 60, etc.)
• Credit limit enforcement with automatic holds when exceeded
• Early payment discounts (2/10 Net 30)
• Automatic payment reminders for outstanding invoices
• Integration with accounting systems for receivables tracking

Why it matters: Manual credit management doesn’t scale and creates awkward customer conversations.

Advanced Personalization

Intelligent Product Recommendations
Suggest relevant products to increase order value:

• “Frequently bought together” based on purchase patterns
• “Customers who bought this also bought” suggestions
• Personalized recommendations based on customer’s order history
• Category-based upsells
• Complementary product suggestions during checkout

Why it matters: Unlike B2C impulse purchases, B2B recommendations that help customers remember needed items drive real value and increase order completeness.

Custom Product Visibility
Show different products to different customers:

• Hide products from specific customer groups
• Show exclusive products only to qualified customers
• Display different product assortments by customer type
• Region-specific product availability

Why it matters: Not all customers should see all products. Authorized dealers, regions, and customer types often have different product access.

Product Badges & Highlighting
Draw attention to important products:

• “New Arrival,” “Best Seller,” “Limited Stock,” “Clearance” badges
• Custom badges for specific customer groups
• Promotional highlighting
• “Recommended for You” personalization

Why it matters: Large catalogs need visual cues to guide customers to relevant, high-margin, or promotional products.

Operational Efficiency

Automated Workflows
Reduce manual tasks through automation:

• Email confirmations for orders, shipments, and backorders
• Low inventory alerts to purchasing teams
• Customer notifications for price changes or new products
• Automatic order routing based on rules (ship from nearest warehouse, allocate inventory, etc.)

Why it matters: Every manual task is an opportunity for error and a drain on productivity.

Activity Audit Logs
Complete tracking of all system activity:

• Who placed, modified, or cancelled orders
• Price changes and who made them
• Inventory adjustments and reasons
• User login activity
• System integrations and API calls

Why it matters: When issues arise, you need to understand what happened and when. Audit logs are critical for troubleshooting and compliance.

Advanced Reporting
Actionable insights to drive business decisions:

• Sales by customer, product, category, and time period
• Margin analysis and profitability reports
• Inventory turnover and aging
• Customer purchase patterns and trends
• Forecasting and demand planning data
• Customizable dashboards with key metrics

Why it matters: Data drives decisions. Your platform should provide insights, not just process transactions.

Mobile & Accessibility

Mobile-Responsive Design
Flawless experience on smartphones and tablets:

• Fully functional ordering on mobile devices
• Touch-optimized interface
• Fast loading on cellular connections
• Mobile-specific features (camera for barcode scanning)

Why it matters: Field sales reps and customers ordering on-the-go need a complete mobile experience, not a desktop site squeezed onto a phone.

Progressive Web App (PWA)
App-like experience without app store downloads:

• Add to home screen for easy access
• Offline functionality for browsing products
• Push notifications for order updates
• Fast, native-like performance

Why it matters: Native apps require downloads and updates. PWAs provide similar benefits with less friction.

Technical Considerations

Scalability

Your platform needs to grow with your business:

Order Volume: Can it handle your current order volume with room for 2-3x growth? Ask vendors about their largest customers’ transaction volumes.

Product Catalog: Does it support your current SKU count and future expansion? Some platforms slow down dramatically with tens of thousands of SKUs.

Customer Count: Can it manage your current customer base plus anticipated growth? Consider multi-user accounts, which multiply total users.

Traffic: Will it handle peak traffic periods (seasonal surges, promotional events)? Ask about infrastructure and uptime guarantees.

Performance & Reliability

Page Load Speed: B2B customers are professional buyers who value efficiency. Sites should load in under 2 seconds.

Uptime Guarantee: Look for 99.9%+ uptime SLAs. Every minute of downtime is lost revenue.

Disaster Recovery: How does the vendor handle data backup and recovery? What’s the worst-case scenario for data loss?

Security:

• PCI DSS compliance for payment processing
• SOC 2 Type II certification for data security
• Regular security audits and penetration testing
• Data encryption in transit and at rest
• DDoS protection

Customization Flexibility

Branding: Can you fully customize the look and feel to match your brand, or are you stuck with templates?

Custom Fields: Can you add custom product attributes, customer fields, and order data specific to your business?

Business Logic: Can you configure custom rules for pricing, promotions, order routing, and workflows without custom development?

API Access: Is there a robust API for building custom functionality or integrating unique requirements?

Ready to see how BrainBean B2B stacks up? Schedule a personalized demo to see our platform in action with your specific requirements.