Meeting the Modern Buyer: How Distributors Can Leverage eCommerce to Exceed Evolving Customer Expectations

What worked yesterday in distribution won’t win tomorrow. Today’s customers expect the same speed, transparency, and convenience they experience on Amazon—and distributors who can’t deliver risk falling behind. So how do you meet these expectations and turn disruption into opportunity?

This blog draws on insights from a whitepaper developed in collaboration with PROS, Modern Distribution Management (MDM), ADI Global Distribution, and DigiKey. To download the full blog, click here.

The New Benchmark and Reset of B2B Expectations

Distributors today operate in increasingly complex ecosystems. Years of organic growth, mergers, and acquisitions have left many organizations juggling multiple ERPs, legacy quoting tools, and disconnected eCommerce platforms. As John Bruno, Vice President of Strategy at PROS, explains:

“Each system was added to solve a problem—improve quoting, manage contracts, support online sales—but without integration, they’ve created friction instead of flow.”

John Bruno Vice President of Strategy

This fragmentation is more than an internal challenge—it’s a competitive risk. Amazon has trained an entire generation of B2B buyers to expect instant visibility into pricing, availability, and order status. Even if Amazon isn’t your direct competitor, it has reset the baseline for what customers demand: speed, transparency, and consistency.

From Additive to Transformative: The State of B2B eCommerce

Not long ago, eCommerce was seen as an “add-on”. A digital storefront to complement traditional sales. Today, leading distributors view it as transformative, shaping every transaction whether online or offline. U.S. B2B eCommerce surpassed $2 trillion in 2023 and continues to grow at a CAGR of 11.11%.

The distributors winning in this new era treat eCommerce as a strategic influence channel, not a passive website. In our research with Modern Distribution Management (MDM), companies like ADI and DigiKey revealed common success factors: aligning people, processes, and technology, and building trust through consistency. These capabilities are now essential for thriving in a digital-first marketplace.

Building Harmony: Unifying Systems, Data, and Processes

Fragmented systems create friction for customers and employees alike. The goal is harmony—a single, synchronized ecosystem where every system reinforces the next. As John Carberry, Vice President of Global Strategic Pricing and Analytics at ADI, puts it:

“You can’t build a digital experience on fragmented data. When systems communicate seamlessly, everything else becomes easier.”

John Carberry Vice President of Global Strategic Pricing and Analytics

As Isaac Brady, Strategic Pricing Analyst at DigiKey explains:

“PROS allowed more complexity, faster implementation and easy adjustments to market conditions. DigiKey’s pricing would not be as good as it is now without it.”

Isaac Brady Strategic Pricing Analyst

AI-powered pricing platforms make this possible by connecting siloed systems, eliminating manual updates, and ensuring every price, quote, and promotion reflects real-time market and customer realities. This integration isn’t just operational, it’s strategic, enabling agility and consistency at scale.

Ready to dive deeper?

Download the full white paper, Meeting the Modern Buyer: How Distributors Can Leverage eCommerce to Exceed Evolving Customer Expectations, and learn how leading distributors are setting a new standard for B2B excellence with PROS.