Digital products and services have become an integral part of our daily lives. For example, the changes we are seeing are huge compared to just a few years ago. Today, we order groceries online, buy concert tickets on smart watches, and pay with smart phones. In the industry, this digital transformation did not initially progress as fast as the private sector. However, at the same time, in the B2B field, digital transformation is proceeding at full speed. Nowadays, customers increasingly expect the simplicity, flexibility, and usability of online tools and services — what they know from private use — and the same is true in the professional world. Therefore, online platforms and services are no longer a phenomenon in the consumer world, but have become an important part of the B2B field. This time they came.
This is why we at BTC Europe have been working on digital solutions very early to promote new business opportunities and provide our customers with the services and support they are looking for. One of the solutions is the BTC web store, which is a customer-oriented digital sales platform we are currently launching. It combines customized products and services with user-friendly design. Thanks to the complete system integration, customers can benefit from real-time information and a seamless user experience. More than 300 customers have started the trial, and the opinions and feedback we have received are very positive and promising. We are firmly committed to following this digital path because it provides new opportunities to support the growth of our customers and clearly puts customers at the center of our activities.
"Improve efficiency
And speed of action"
Timo von bargon
Corporate Leader, Chemberry
1) We have not only seen applications that improve chemical composition transparency for end consumers, but also new digital platforms seeking to better serve customers in the chemical industry. These customers have the same expectations for B2B products and services as they have for the platforms they use in their private lives (whether it is Amazon or Alibaba).
What is crucial to the success of e-commerce and other digital chemical business models is that these companies are not only providing a brand new platform, they must also ensure that they operate under the covers-from supply chain, production to logistics and also improve efficiency and speed . This is the only way for e-commerce and other digital businesses to really take off in this complex industry.
2) This is why we at Chemberry, from Clariant Chemicals, are working hard to understand the real needs of chemical suppliers and buyers. First, we believe that the early stages of the customer journey are critical, so we built a search and recommendation engine to intelligently guide customers to find the right chemicals. But in order to achieve end-to-end products, we need to find partners to help us solve the later stages of the value chain. To this end, we are actively looking for strategic partners and are willing to work with us to shape a new and improved digital customer journey in the chemical industry.
The world that created the Internet bubble 20 years ago has now transformed into a world that requires an online presence to succeed, just like today's chemical companies. Since then, the number of Internet users has grown substantially, dial-up Internet has provided room for broadband technology, and mobile devices that are more powerful than the entire computer 20 years ago have appeared. Today's e-commerce technology is more efficient and lower cost than ever before. Industry professionals should not worry about failure 20 years ago, but should turn their attention to today's success stories. For example, in China, the use of chemical business platforms has become widespread. In 2017, the chemical B2B market revenue exceeded 200 billion yuan (approximately US$30 billion), and we have also seen strong growth in the number of successful platforms in other parts of the world. In the field of chemical distribution, e-commerce platforms are more successful today than they were 20 years ago, and will be more successful in the future.
