The B2B Buying Process: How It’s Changed and Steps (2025)

The business-to-business (B2B) industry has moved online, and the typical decision-making process for business customers is shifting from trade show attendance to independent online research.

Successful B2B companies are those that handle both simultaneously, easing pain points throughout the buying process and reaffirming to customers that they’re making the right decision.

The problem? For businesses, buying decisions aren’t taken lightly. Several stakeholders form the B2B buying group, and a purchase needs to provide a clear return on investment before they give the seal of approval.

This guide shares how to handle those complexities as potential customers progress through the B2B buying process.

What is the B2B buying process?

The B2B buying process is how businesses purchase products or services from other companies. Unlike consumer shopping, it involves multiple decision-makers and careful evaluation.

A company typically takes the following steps during the process:

1. Recognize a specific business need.
2. Research possible solutions to address the need.
3. Define specific criteria the solution must meet.
4. Evaluate potential vendors against requirements.
5. Verifythat suppliers can deliver what they promise.
6. Get agreement from all internal stakeholders.
7. Finalize deal terms with the chosen supplier.
8. Deploy the purchased solution.
9. Assess the effectiveness of the solution.

B2B purchases take longer and involve more people than consumer purchases because there's typically more money and risk involved.

How the B2B buying process is changing

Business buyers now shop online instead of just at trade shows or through salespeople. They use digital tools and AI to research options before talking to sales teams. According to TrustRadius, 100% of buyers now want to self-serve all or part of the buying journey.

This shift has led to the rise of B2B customer portals, which are dedicated online platforms where business customers can place orders, manage accounts, track shipments, and access custom pricing without a sales team’s intervention. According to Gartner, 83% of B2B buyers prefer to self-serve their own orders online through these types of platforms.

B2B buyers are also getting younger. Forrester predicts that 70% of B2B buyers are projected to be millennials by the end of 2025. These younger buyers use review websites, social media, and AI tools to gather information and compare products. 

A McKinsey survey in 2024 found that 85% of business leaders using gen AI are "very excited" about how it improves efficiency, growth, and customer experience. Sales and marketing departments had the biggest increase in AI use between 2023 and 2024, marking a big change in how business sales begin.

Trust matters more than ever in buying decisions. TrustRadius reports that 86% of enterprise buyers start with brands they already know, and 71% buy their first choice from that list. 

B2B companies with clear prices, real customer reviews, and self-service buying options do best with today's digital buyers.

Who is involved in the B2B purchase process?

According to Gartner, the average B2B buying decision involves 6 to 10 people, each of whom is armed with more than four pieces of information they’ve independently gathered as part of their own decision-making process.

The average B2B sales process still includes these five roles:

1. Initiator: An initiator kicks off the buying process. They’re the person who recognizes a problem and begins to explore a solution.
2. Influencers: Initiators can enlist the help of influencers to sway buyers and decision-makers to make the purchase. Influencers can be internal, such as heads of a department, or external, such as LinkedIn influencers.
3. B2B decision-maker: The decision-maker gives the go-ahead for an organization to make a purchase. This is typically a business’s owner or CEO, head of accounting, or business development manager.
4. Buyer: The buyer is the person responsible for meeting order minimums, negotiating wholesale price discounts, and making the purchase. If you’re selling to big-box retailers, for example, the store’s buying or merchandising manager would likely be the buyer.
5. End user: The end user is the person who will be using the new product on a regular basis. If a company is buying new office chairs, for example, office workers would be the end users. (Sometimes, the same individual acts as both the end user and the initiator—like if office workers complained of back problems to their manager.)

B2B selling has become an increasingly important revenue stream for The Conran Shop. Using Shopify’s extensive range of dedicated B2B solutions, the team built and launched a bespoke B2B site in September 2024 specifically to begin working with trade customers, initially in the UK. 

The solution was designed to enable wholesale customers to purchase directly through the website, and empower the sales team to work with those customers to find the right products for their environment.

We used to be cautious about going to the business to suggest new solutions. Thanks to Shopify we’re much more empowered to bring in new innovations to help us grow.

What does the B2B buying process look like?

The vast majority of B2B buying decisions can be broken down into six stages—though buyers don’t necessarily follow the path in a linear fashion. They can hop between stages, reverse when they need extra time to make decisions, and skip over certain steps to revisit later.

1. Initiators recognize a problem

The first stage in the B2B buying process is when the initiator recognizes a problem. Also known as a pain point, it’s when something happens to trigger a buyer into thinking something could be done to alleviate the issue (or make their lives easier).

Let’s imagine a small boutique to picture this in action. The owner is struggling to drive foot traffic to the store because the inventory it stocks doesn’t excite local shoppers. A lack of footfall would be the first step in replenishing inventory. The retailer has recognized the problem, and their buying journey begins.

2. Buyers begin to explore a solution

Once B2B buyers have identified a problem they need to solve, the next stage in the process is to explore a solution. At this point, initiators are unlikely to know the exact product or products that will solve their problem. The main objective throughout this stage of the buying process is to confirm that a solution is possible.

Using the same boutique example, the retailer doesn’t know which products will improve footfall, but the owner starts to explore what might solve the issue. 

Generative AI is changing how B2B buyers approach the research and discovery phase. Instead of only talking to salespeople or searching online, buyers now use AI tools to:

• Get summaries of product options
• Compare features
• Estimate return on investment

This often happens before they contact any suppliers.

As AI becomes more common in sales processes, it can:

• Quickly summarize complicated product information for buyers
• Create personalized suggestions based on industry, usage, or company size
• Find new ways to use products by analyzing competitors, customer feedback, or market trends

McKinsey thinks GenAI could create $800 billion to $1.2 trillion in extra productivity in sales and marketing, on top of what automation already provides.

3. A company builds their requirements

A buyer begins taking their buying decision more seriously once they start detailing the requirements of the purchase. They move from “We know this is a problem and have a rough idea of how to solve it,” to “We need XYZ in whatever we buy to solve it.”

If we continue with the same boutique example, the retailer might detail the following requirements when searching for inventory that will increase in-store foot traffic:

• It’s not a seasonal product; demand must stay consistent throughout the year.
• The type of product must be on an upward trend, according to Google Trends data.
• The product hashtag must have a minimum of 50,000 views on TikTok.
• The product must be small, lightweight, and available for shoppers to take home instantly.
• The product must fit within the remaining unused storage space in the stockroom.

4. Buyers evaluate potential suppliers

In this stage, buyers begin to evaluate suppliers that offer products or services that meet their criteria. 

But in 2025, trust, transparency, and brand recognition now play a more influential role than ever before. Buyers often enter the evaluation phase with a preferred supplier already in mind.

To even make the shortlist, your brand must be visible, recognizable, and perceived as trustworthy before the buyer begins formal research.

This is especially important now that B2B buyers consult fewer resources than in years past. They now rely more on:

• Their own prior experience with the product (52%)
• Free trials and demos (71%)
• Peer conversations (56%)
• Transparent pricing and real user reviews

Trust signals like clear product scoring, self-serve access to pricing, and authentic user reviews from relatable peers are now must-haves for winning trust. Now that 73% of buyers believe they regularly see fake reviews online, they scrutinize reviews for depth, quality, and relatability, especially from reviewers in similar industries or roles.

Sellers who fail to offer upfront pricing, realistic demos, or proof of ROI risk being excluded from consideration entirely. B2B brands should focus on building confidence early by:

• Highlighting product scores for specific use-cases
• Making demos and trials easily accessible
• Re-engaging former customers who’ve switched companies
• Encouraging peer-led conversations and referrals

What the data says 📊: Just 38% of vendors’ discretionary marketing spend goes toward brand awareness, while 53% goes to demand-generation. Yet 66% of buyers say they ultimately chose the “most trusted” or “safest” option, showing a clear disconnect between vendor strategy and buyer behavior.

5. The purchase is validated and approved

The one last hoop to jump through before completing a B2B purchase: securing buy-in from stakeholders, including decision-makers and buyers.

This is a relatively quick step for small businesses with fewer employees. However, as an organization expands, the duration of its purchase approval process tends to expand as well.

Instead of a single founder approving purchases, a larger boutique might need to involve the head of merchandising, the store manager, and the business development manager during the validation stage of any B2B purchase decision.

6. A product or service is purchased and evaluated

Once stakeholders give their approval, the B2B buying process comes to a close. The organization has the green light to purchase goods or services from its chosen supplier.

After a solution is put in place, buyers check if it's working well. They look at money saved, return on investment, and how many people are using the solution. They also get feedback from all departments to make sure the solution is fixing the problem.

If things are working as intended, organizations may make a stronger commitment. They might order more, renew contracts, or upgrade the service. If the solution isn't working well, the buying team might return to earlier steps (like research or testing) to look for new solutions or more help.

Factors in B2B buying

B2B purchases require more people to agree, better reasons to buy, and proof of ROI. This makes B2B buying more complicated than business-to-consumer (B2C) purchases..

Key factors in B2B buying include:

• Many decision-makers: B2B buying involves teams from different departments—finance, operations, IT, and others—each with their own goals. Getting everyone to agree requires clear communication across the company.
• Detailed deal-making: B2B deals often include talks about bulk pricing, technical setup, or specialized contracts. These talks are important and can greatly affect both companies' profits.
• Longer decision times: Because more money and risk are involved, B2B sales can last weeks or months. Buyers need thorough product information, calculations showing return on investment, and after-purchase support to justify spending.
• Building connections: Creating trust between seller and buyer is key to closing deals. Ongoing support and open communication keep the relationship strong, leading to more business later.
• Focus on benefits: While price matters, prospective customers care more about measurable returns, strategic fit, and business impact. Showing how your product solves business problems and delivers real results helps you stand out from competitors.

How to speed up the B2B purchase process

The B2B buying process is lengthy. Unlike business-to-consumer (B2C) transactions, where there’s only one person involved, it can take groups of six (or more) people months to make a decision.

Let’s take a look at four ways to speed up the B2B buying process so you can serve more buyers in less time—while still helping each one make a confident decision.

Allow self-serve through an ecommerce storefront

Businesses often enlist the help of sales reps to assist potential customers throughout their buying decision. However, according to Gartner, B2B buyers spend just 17% of their time in the purchase process meeting with potential suppliers. The bulk of their time is spent researching independently online.

Throughout this independent buying process, 90% of buyers expect a DTC-style customer experience from B2B vendors. That includes easy checkout, the ability to find and select products easily, and a clear returns policy.

Enlist the help of a B2B ecommerce platform like Shopify. Operate two storefronts—one password-protected for B2B, another for B2C—through the same back end. Business buyers can create their own profile to:

• View wholesale price lists
• Set custom payment terms
• Generate invoices for previous orders
• Invite other decision-makers to access the company profile

Australian camping and outdoor gear company DARCHE shows the power of a proper self-serve B2B ecommerce solution. Despite being in business since 1991 and developing Australia's first dome swag, DARCHE struggled with an inefficient online ordering system that deterred wholesale customers.

Before implementing a dedicated B2B platform, DARCHE processed most wholesale orders manually through phone calls, emails, or in-person visits. Their previous ecommerce solution couldn't deliver the customized experience needed for both their B2B and DTC customers.

After switching to Shopify Plus with dedicated B2B functionality, DARCHE created an online store with features specifically designed for wholesale customers:

• Company profiles
• Custom catalogs
• Personalized price lists
• Self-serve purchasing

The results were remarkable:

• 3x year-over-year increase in B2B sales anticipated in FY24
• 59% year-over-year rise in annual web traffic
• Exceeded 12 months' worth of sales in just 4 months

As Finn Christensen, DARCHE's digital marketing coordinator, explains: "Shopify has completely changed the way we do business. Previously, our B2B orders were mainly processed manually. Retailers would email or call to place orders, and our customer service team would assist them. Now, retailers feel comfortable placing orders online via the Shopify B2B function. This provides them with an easier, more seamless sales experience, and helps build trust with our brand. We're now a more modern business."

👉Read DARCHE’s story

Sell through B2B marketplaces

Business customers compare several options before choosing a supplier. Research shows that half of them get inspiration from B2B marketplaces like Amazon or Alibaba, beating out the traditional paper catalog and sales team interaction.

The marketplace sales process is faster, since buyers will already have an account. They can save products to an online wish list, compare product specifications, and benchmark price within a single website tab.

You’re also able to lean on the existing reputation and supply chain network of a marketplace, particularly if you’re also using its fulfillment services, to speed up B2B buying decisions. Buyers are confident that if they purchase through Amazon Business, for example, their order will arrive the following day (providing it’s eligible for Prime delivery).

Personalize B2B marketing campaigns

The DTC marketing industry moves fast. Customers have high expectations from the personalized experiences DTC brands deliver. The same is now true for B2B buyers.

Gartner found customers who received relevant and valuable information from suppliers throughout their decision-making process were 2.8 times more likely to experience a high degree of purchase ease. They were also three times more likely to place a larger order with less regret.

Buyer enablement focuses on what the B2B buyer needs to make a confident decision. To do this, understand their pain points—the problems they’re trying to solve.

The days of long-winded white papers and static PDFs are fading. B2B buyers expect shorter, more digestible content formats that they can engage with quickly, share easily, and use to justify decisions across internal teams.

According to the 2024 Content Preferences Benchmark Survey by Demand Gen Report:

• 67% of B2B buyers said short-form content was most valuable in their decision-making journey.
• 65% favored webinars and digital events, up from just 52% the year prior.
• 46% consumed more content via social media in 2024.

But 51% of buyers said content was too generic, and another 51% said it took too many steps to access.

Meanwhile, interactive content dropped in popularity to just 38% (down from 49% in 2023), signaling a need for clarity, not complexity.

This suggests that buyers want fast, skimmable, and shareable content that helps them make decisions without feeling overwhelmed or manipulated by salesy copy.

To meet this demand, B2B vendors should pivot to:

• Concise solution overviews and TL;DR one-pagers
• Infographics, mobile-optimized visuals, and summary videos
• Actionable insights or ROI data embedded directly in content
• Webinar recordings and quick explainer clips tailored to industry pain points

Additionally, 89% of buyers say they self-discover and download content without sales interaction, making it critical to optimize content for self-serve discovery across websites, social, and email.

Stay top of mind post-purchase

The B2B buying process doesn’t conclude once a customer has placed their first B2B order. Strong relationships post-purchase influence a buyer’s likelihood of making repeat orders—and therefore, generating consistent revenue for your company.

“Due to the nature of the products they sell, B2B businesses often have a smaller pool of potential customers than B2C businesses. However, these customers are usually repeat buyers, since they tend to purchase the same or similar products on a regular basis. For an ecommerce business selling B2B, this repeat business can be a major source of revenue.”

—Brian Lim, Founder and CEO, INTO THE AM

Make customer support easily accessible to first-time buyers. Be proactive, rather than reactive, and share advice that makes it easier for retailers to resell your products—such as marketing campaigns, trends you’re noticing, or product display ideas.

Dook, for example, shares key selling points, display, and storage ideas in an email newsletter to B2B buyers after they place their first order.

Enable this on your B2B storefront with company profiles. Remind buyers of the items they purchased, and encourage them to invite colleagues to the company profile. 

Anyone in the organization can view past orders and purchase the same inventory again (provided they have the correct permission level), allowing them to validate and approve new purchases quickly.

Create custom experiences with headless commerce 

Headless commerce separates your store's front end (what customers see) from the back end (where your business operations happen). As a B2B organization, it lets you:

• Create specialized portals for different types of business customers
• Manage multiple customer segments with tailored catalogs and pricing
• Update your site without disrupting your core business systems

Some 80% of B2B sales will move online by the end of 2025. That’s why a headless architecture that lets you create seamless buying experiences is key.

Shopify provides both a stable commerce engine and flexible headless tools so you don’t have to piece everything together yourself:

1. Choose your front-end framework: Use Hydrogen, Shopify’s React-based Remix framework for building custom storefronts, or plug in your favorite front-end tech via Shopify’s robust APIs.
2. Use a unified back end: Tap into Shopify’s commerce fundamentals—secure checkout, inventory, product data, B2B pricing, multi-currency—via GraphQL or REST APIs. That means one source of truth for all orders and customer data.
3. Customize B2B experiences: With Shopify’s B2B features, you can create unique, password-protected storefronts for each big buyer or wholesale tier. Show them custom catalogs, negotiated prices, or net payment terms—no new code required.
4. Simplify hosting and deployment: Deploy your custom storefront on Oxygen—Shopify’s built-in hosting solution for headless experiences—or host on another platform of your choice. Either way, Shopify automatically scales to handle high-volume B2B traffic.
5. Integrate seamlessly: From ERP systems like NetSuite or SAP to marketing tools and CRMs, Shopify’s ecosystem is loaded with prebuilt connectors. Streamline B2B processes by syncing data in real time, eliminating double entry and manual errors.

B2B buying case studies

Dermalogica Canada

Dermalogica created a buying experience that allowed B2B customers to shop in a familiar way, similar to their personal shopping experiences. 

There was no need to onboard new customers. They simply used Dermalogica's online store to place B2B orders the same way they do for consumer purchases.

Dermalogica also fully customized their store's look and functionality to their exact specifications with just a single developer. API access and custom coding allowed them to add unique features like their loyalty-based pricing model easily.

The store's ease of use played a major role in increasing the frequency of repeat B2B orders by 300%, from 46.9 days to 10.7 days between purchases. B2B conversion rates spiked from 74.4% to 91.5%, and 75% of customers rated the buyer experience as a 4 out of 5 or higher.

👉 Read Dermalogica Canada’s story

Filtrous

Filtrous migrated from BigCommerce to B2B on Shopify to build a modern wholesale experience, launching their new storefront in just 63 days.

They implemented customer-specific catalogs, custom discounts, and flexible payment options to create a personalized experience for their B2B buyers.

The brand leveraged Shopify's self-service capabilities, allowing customers to manage their own accounts, place orders, and handle payments online without manual intervention.

These improvements led to impressive results: 

• Organic conversion rates increased by 27%.
• Customer service saved 10 hours of manual work weekly.
• Sales saved 2 hours per week through streamlined ordering processes.

👉 Read Filtrous’s story

Streamline the buying process for B2B customers

The B2B buying process might still be lengthy, but it’s not as convoluted as pre-pandemic decisions that required in-person meetups before committing to a B2B order.

Accept that business customers have several hoops to jump through before investing their organization’s resources into new products. Deliver personalized marketing campaigns that address and solve a buyer’s pain points, while still being mindful of customers’ preference to self-serve.

With B2B on Shopify, you’ll make it as easy as possible for them to do so. Have a single platform that allows buyers to create company profiles and invite stakeholders to contribute, without investing thousands into two separate online storefronts to differentiate B2B and B2C sales.