Rapid e-commerce growth will force changes in the logistics sector
The Polish e-commerce market has been developing at a very dynamic pace during the pandemic; the value of B2B e-commerce turnover in Poland, covering both sales via e-shop or platform (the so-called web-based) and direct data exchange in electronic form (EDI), was estimated at approximately PLN 450 billion at the end of last year. The report "B2B E-commerce – Business on the Web" prepared for Santander Bank Polska by the Mobile Institute shows that during the pandemic, the value of B2B e-commerce grew by 30%, and forecasts for 2021 suggest a growth of even 40%. At this rate of development, by the end of this year, this market could reach a value of up to PLN 637 billion. Such rapid development of online trade will also force changes in the logistics sector.
– Delivery of goods ordered online is an increasingly important component of the entire purchasing process. Alongside price or product availability, it is the speed of delivery and its punctuality that are the most important factors for companies placing orders online. Growing expectations of B2B and B2C customers towards the e-commerce sector will mean, in the coming years, the necessity for the logistics industry to invest in digitalization, streamlining processes and systems – explains Małgorzata Nesterowicz, Director of the Services and Family Business Sector at Santander Bank Polska.
Logistics largely influences the positive assessment of e-commerce; about half of the surveyed B2B sellers consider delivery speed (54%) and punctuality (50%) to be the most important factors for their customers.
Therefore, among the functionalities in the area of delivery and logistics, B2B e-sellers most often offer their customers order status tracking (59% of them). The second most popular option is the ability to change the delivery address – offered by 40% of B2B e-sellers. Every third surveyed company offers the option of shipping directly from the manufacturer (so-called dropshipping), and every fifth offers express delivery.
The number of functionalities offered by e-sellers varies depending on the company's time of operation in the B2B e-commerce area and its experience related to the implementation of online trade. By far, the companies that have been operating in e-commerce the longest – over 5 years – have the most implemented logistics functionalities. Delivery tracking is offered to their recipients by 84% of companies in this segment, and the ability to change the delivery address by 54%. It is also worth noting that companies that perceive the implementation of e-commerce as a success offer significantly more functionalities than other entities.
In connection with the development of B2B e-commerce, delivery time is becoming increasingly important in the area of transport and logistics. Nearly every third company (29%) asked about trends in B2B e-commerce points to the increase in its importance. There is still a mismatch in this aspect between the offer of e-sellers and customer requirements. Only one in five sellers offers express delivery, while at the same time as many as 58% of online buyers in the B2B segment consider this function to be one of the most useful. Due to the ever-increasing customer expectations regarding the speed of the logistics process, a change in approach and a clear trend of automating logistics processes are visible, especially in newly emerging modern logistics centers dedicated to e-commerce service.
Another trend is the personalization of the offer. B2B online trade is characterized by large orders, generally repeatable, but at the same time requiring individualization. Already, among the surveyed sectors of the economy, the deepest personalization of the offer can be observed in transport and logistics. 43% of surveyed transport and logistics companies indicate that they personalize services to the level of an individual company, and another 14% to the level of specific departments or areas in the client's company. Such personalization requires system integration – already 28% of logistics service providers cooperate with clients on an EDI basis (electronic data exchange).
There is still a lot of business space in B2B e-commerce to be developed by logistics companies. However, this requires redefining their operations and approach to new customer expectations. One can still get the impression that the proposal of many transport companies does not yet stand out in a sufficient way and does not perceive the specificity of online trade. However, there are a few companies that are already starting to specialize in e-commerce service, but there are still not many of them. One example of solving this problem is the involvement of people who are experts in the field of e-commerce and are able to well define the needs of recipients and suppliers in this market. – believes Arkadiusz Kawa, Director of the Łukasiewicz – Institute of Logistics and Warehousing.
Personalization of services, and at the same time the need to ensure an efficient transport service process, forces an increasingly higher level of digitalization of logistics companies. Already, among the surveyed companies, those from the transport and logistics sector are the most advanced in this area. Only 28% of respondents from the TSL sector indicated that they had not implemented advanced digitalization solutions, while for all industries this percentage is 42%. The most popular implemented solutions are CRM systems (60%), content management systems CMS (40%), and BI systems using data analytics to support decision-making (36%).
One of the barriers for the developing e-commerce service sector may turn out to be the lack of employees on the domestic labor market. Although in many processes human labor is already being replaced by advanced machine algorithms, automation, and finally artificial intelligence, nevertheless, for the next few years, employees, and in particular drivers, will be necessary for the functioning of transport chains and ensuring the service of, among others, the e-commerce market. Unfortunately, all forecasts indicate that the long-felt shortage of drivers will deepen year by year. Thus, the availability of vehicles will decrease and there will be a serious increase in freight rates, increasing the costs incurred by e-sellers. Another challenge will be meeting the growing ecological pressure. Some Western clients of Polish logistics and transport companies are already paying close attention to the carbon footprint left by the production and delivery of their goods – notes Maciej Wroński, President of the Transport and Logistics Poland Employers' Association.
In the coming years, the increasing importance of ecological aspects should be expected. Currently, only 13% of those selling in B2B e-commerce offer their customers ecological delivery options. Ecology is much more important in the B2C segment, where as many as 76% of buyers pay attention to it during deliveries. Taking into account the interpenetration of trends between the B2B and B2C e-commerce markets, ecological aspects will gain importance for business clients, to which the offer of transport and logistics companies will have to adapt. Already, 23% of online buyers in the B2B segment expect ecological solutions in the area of deliveries, which results from the need to meet regulations or standards, but is also an important image element. Preferences in this regard can be met both by offering ecological packaging, abandoning paper documentation in favor of electronic, or using vehicles with low- or zero-emission drives.
The full report "B2B E-commerce – Business on the Web" prepared for Santander Bank Polska by the Mobile Institute under the patronage of the Transport and Logistics Poland Employers' Association and the Institute of Logistics and Warehousing is available at www.santanderecommerceb2b
Source: Santander Bank Polska S.A.
