DirectIndustry Transitions from an Online Exhibition to a B2B Marketplace

As companies continue expanding the online market by creating their own marketplace, the year 2020 might be the cut-off for those interested in entering the competition.

That’s what Vincent Gérard, CEO of the French company VirtualExpo Group which powers DirectIndustry, thinks. Today, the company is officially launching its new online marketplaces.

This interview was conducted by Camille Rustici, Editor-in-Chief of DirectIndustry e-Magazine, Célia Sampol, Editor-in-Chief of MedicalExpo e-Magazine and Erin Tallman, Editor-in-Chief of ArchiExpo e-Magazine —all three publications are powered by VirtualExpo Group.

Marseille (FRANCE), July 9, 2020—French company VirtualExpo Group officially launches its group of B2B marketplaces after having successfully completed a test phase which began last April.

The company has six online exhibition sites (ArchiExpo, DirectIndustry, MedicalExpo, NauticExpo, AgriExpo and AeroExpo) that attract millions of online buyers, manufacturers and distributors; one of which includes our publisher DirectIndustry, whose 20th anniversary also takes place this year. If so far it was possible to source thousands of products, it will now be possible to buy them online.

In our interview with CEO Vincent Gérard, we discuss why the group decided to enter the marketplace, what differentiates the company from competitors and what we can expect in the future.

Where did the idea to develop a marketplace come from?

Vincent Gerard: Transitioning into a marketplace was a natural evolution of our online exhibition sites. Early discussions about making the switch date back to 2015 or 2016. Through visitor surveys, we learned that our current visitors wanted to have the prices listed and the option to buy products online. We decided to become a marketplace to satisfy the needs of our visitors, and our main objective remains the same: to ensure our visitors are satisfied with our websites so they continue coming to us when they search for products. We could have continued a few more years without having created a marketplace but now is the time when companies are building models for B2B and we want to position ourselves as a leader.

The VirtualExpo marketplace is a quote-validation model. Can you detail the process?

Vincent Gerard: After sourcing a product on one of our websites, a buyer can request a personalized quote. The supplier receives the request through our interface where he can chat with the buyer, share files and submit the personalized quote. The buyer can challenge the quote, and if the two parties agree, the buyer can validate it online either by electronic signature or by paying via credit card or bank transfer. The option for online payment is not yet available, but it will be in the future.

How is the marketplace a revolution for the group?

Vincent Gerard: Before the marketplace, our job was like a physical tradeshow organizer: to connect buyers and suppliers. We had very little visibility on the rest of this connection. With the marketplace, we are now a player in the transactions. We become a trusted third party, so it’s a real revolution for us. Our new responsibilities include: following the discussions between buyer and seller, facilitating conversations if necessary, assessing the quality of suppliers, and therefore, directing buyers to the best suppliers. We have also developed a multi-lingual service to support buyers and suppliers at all stages of the transaction.

How can you compare a B2B marketplace from a B2C marketplace?

Vincent Gerard: The large B2C platforms such as Amazon really took off, showing a powerful capacity of growth, but B2B has always been behind—since the prices are often much higher. Today, no company has really developed a well-functioning concept for B2B because it’s not at all the same thing in terms of product typology. With our extensive experience in B2B, we have created a model that will satisfy our audience.

What is your biggest challenge?

Vincent Gerard: The biggest challenge is meeting the needs of professional buyers who are very different from B2C buyers. 80% of our online products intended for professionals are not standard or off-the-shelf products capable of being delivered within 24 hours. They often have many options, accessories and long sales cycles. It is therefore difficult to follow the transactions from the first exchange until the final validation of the quote. That’s what we have managed to do. Another challenge will be to work on the remaining 20% of the products that are off-the-shelf products that can potentially be purchased online. And we also have to increase the number of manufacturers that display the prices of their products.

Today, we offer different information on the majority of the products (catalogues, videos, technical data sheets, buying guides, specifics). The strong content that is generally missing in B2B is prices. Some sectors are already used to selling online. Furniture, for example, can be found on ArchiExpo; marine electronics and fittings on NauticExpo. For them, the transition from the online exhibition to the marketplace is natural. For other B2B sectors, this is often their first step into e-commerce. Our role is to train them to become e-merchants. We won’t force our clients to put a price on their products, but as we grow, we will show them how online purchasing increases when the price is listed.