Digital Sales Processes for BayWa AG – How to Build a Complex E-Commerce Landscape [Success Story]

BayWa AG is the largest agricultural trader in Germany and a major international player in agricultural and renewable energy business. The group has more than 200 sales locations in Germany and Austria. Besides a wide range of products, customers especially appreciate the competent and personal consulting services at these locations. However, BayWa is also one of the exemplary companies in terms of digitisation strategy.

Particularly during the Corona crisis, it became clear that the importance of the agricultural industry – even online – should not be underestimated. Between March and June this year, BayWa’s total order volume more than tripled in comparison to the months before. The Agriculture and Agricultural Equipment business unit recorded the largest increase. In particular existing customers, who had previously placed orders exclusively by phone, made use of the online ordering options in the BayWa portal for the first time during the Corona crisis.

Modern E-Commerce Landscapes in B2C and B2B

BayWa is driving forward the expansion of digital processes on different levels. Regardless of whether it is B2B or B2C: BayWa sees every business customer as an end consumer, who has long since digitised his private life and also uses his smartphone for professional challenges.

The group’s online shops therefore focus on high-quality product consulting and offer all companies the possibility to create individual offers.

The online purchasing process is very convenient and particularly optimised for mobile devices that are used in rural areas. Moreover, the service channels, marketing and sales structures as well as internal processes of BayWa AG are increasingly being digitised. Further success stories provide information on this.

Modern E-Commerce Landscape: High-Quality Product Consulting Online

Since 2016, dotSource has been providing comprehensive support to BayWa AG in terms of its digitisation strategy. Amongst other things, an e-commerce cross-channel platform based on SAP Commerce was established for the BayWa Building Materials business unit.

Furthermore, dotSource developed the shop for agricultural products and equipment in 2019. Together with the energy segment, the business fields of the group have been visually united into a uniform e-commerce landscape.

While B2B commerce was considered practically impossible to digitise only a few years ago, this is changing rapidly – not least thanks to BayWa’s successful B2B2C e-commerce landscape. Not only has the company succeeded in making a sophisticated variant logic accessible within two e-shops, but also in conveying information and prices of a wide variety of products and services in a customer-oriented, detailed and personalised manner.

The cooperation between BayWa and dotSource now also goes far beyond e-commerce services, and interesting projects in the field of marketing automation software and e-procurement have been initiated.