The Holy Grail of B2B e-commerce is the digital marketplace. Think of a place where a variety of industry players of all sizes come together in a shared space, subscribing to a common set of rules.
Transactions are fluid, and the roles of buyer and seller are interchangeable.
Whether selling auto parts or buying frozen fish sticks, companies with six employees can, in theory, compete on an equal footing with big corporations. For business, it's a matter of the bottom line. The marketplace model lets a company create greater efficiencies in its supply-chain and purchasing processes, which translate into money saved. While all marketplaces are different, the required functionality of a robust exchange has some basic rules. First, there needs to be a discovery mechanism that lets sellers make themselves available to buyers, while helping buyers pinpoint relevant suppliers.