Suppliers need to find ways to increase their brand awareness and revenue. One such way is to list their products on digital marketplaces for wholesale orders. This will increase their reach and has the potential to increase sales. Furthermore, these platforms usually have additional features that make them invaluable wholesale ordering software solutions. BlueCart is a great example of such a platform. Thanks to BlueCart’s Endless Aisle, suppliers can easily create catalogs and showcase their goods to thousands of businesses in the restaurant industry and other sectors. In the following paragraphs, we’ll shed some light on the different ways wholesalers can use digital marketplaces and how to make their products stand out from the rest. If that topic interests you, you might be curious to read our guide about order management and fulfillment.
Key takeaway: Suppliers can use various tools to make their wholesale catalogs stand out on digital marketplaces. That includes discounts, favorable terms for their clients, and other special offers and deals.
The Role of Digital Marketplaces in B2B Marketing
Online wholesale marketplaces have become an important part of the wholesale sector. They allow suppliers to upload their products into catalogs and sell online easily. As such, these platforms are great for suppliers who wish to expand their sales reach and invest in marketing. One of the benefits of digital marketplaces for wholesalers is that they are known among businesses that buy in bulk. For example, thousands of restaurant businesses across the US use BlueCart to order from wholesalers in the food and beverage industry. Therefore, these businesses are likely to source products or vendors on BlueCart’s Endless Aisle. This makes the platform an excellent solution for growing a foodservice distribution business.
Marketing Features of BlueCart’s Endless Aisle for Wholesalers
If you wish to make your wholesale catalog stand out from the rest, there are multiple tools that help you with that. BlueCart’s Endless Aisle showcases which products are of fair, good, or great value. This can be a powerful marketing tool to promote your products and services to new or existing customers. Other marketing features include price comparison with other suppliers and the opportunity to introduce discounts. Wholesalers who use BlueCart’s Endless Aisle can also make their services more appealing to customers by offering flexible delivery terms and low minimum order quantities. Offering free delivery above a certain order size is also an excellent way to attract clients.
Creating eCommerce catalogs with BlueCart is extremely easy. Furthermore, uploading all your products into catalogs for BlueCart’s Endless Aisle is also a seamless process. Thus, foodservice distributors can either use BlueCart to create catalogs for their customers or upload their goods to BlueCart’s Endless Aisle.
Other Features of BlueCart’s Endless Aisle
In addition to the different tools to make your wholesale catalog stand out, BlueCart’s platform can also help suppliers with other features. Here are some of them.
- BlueCart Pay can be used to easily issue invoices and receive payments from customers.
- BlueCart’s sales rep app is a seamless solution for on-field sales representatives. It allows them to quickly manage orders from customers.
- BlueCart’s delivery route management tool is integrated with Google Maps to offer real-time data on optimal delivery routes and accurate times.
- From messaging features and tools to track and manage wholesale orders to analytics functionalities and reports, there are various other things BlueCart has to offer for wholesalers.
Another factor that makes BlueCart’s Endless Aisle an excellent option for distributors is that the platform also has various features for wholesale buyers. BlueCart allows restaurants or other businesses in the food service niche market to track their orders, calculate profitability and restaurant profit margin, and manage recipes of menu items. Furthermore, the food inventory management and the predictive ordering features of BlueCart’s Endless Aisle make it one of the best pieces of restaurant technology.
Other Marketing Tools for Distributors
Although making your wholesale catalog stand out is important, there are other marketing techniques and tools distributors can use. Here are a few examples of how business owners in the wholesale sector can increase their sales.
- Use modern digital marketing techniques to increase your brand awareness, reach, and revenue.
- Focus on marketing channels that will give you high ROI. When it comes to B2B sales, these channels are email marketing, third-party marketplaces, direct sales, and very limited social media marketing (primarily on LinkedIn).
- Showcase your products and services at trade shows and exhibitions. Foodservice distributors can visit food-oriented events to meet many restaurant managers and other decision-makers in the hospitality sector.
- Increasing the value for your customers is another powerful marketing tool suppliers can use. That includes offering more flexible delivery options or good credit terms for loyal clients. Businesses that buy wholesale products often choose suppliers not merely by price but also by other factors.
Frequently Asked Questions about Marketing in Wholesale Catalogs
Whether you’re curious about the warehouse process flows or wish to know how to use restaurant data analytics to boost your foodservice business, BlueCart has resources on various topics. Check out the answers to some popular questions below.
How to Create a Wholesale Catalog?
There are various solutions that suppliers can use to create catalogs. However, some of them are time-consuming and only suitable for old-school printed catalogs. Nowadays, platforms like BlueCart allow distributors to easily create eCommerce catalogs. Not only is that more convenient for wholesalers, but it also makes it easier for buyers. In order to create a wholesale catalog, businesses need to arrange their products in different categories. It’s recommended to create multiple smaller catalogs, as that makes it easier for customers to browse products.
What Are the Trends in the Wholesale Sector?
Digitalization is a major trend in wholesale sales. Both suppliers and their customers aim to make the bulk ordering process smooth and efficient. Switching to digital alternatives like BlueCart’s Endless Aisle means distributors can automate certain processes and make their wholesale catalogs stand out.
Another trend in the B2B and wholesale sector is building resilience and diversification. Supply chain disruptions during the pandemic had a heavy impact on various industries.
As companies strive for efficiency, business models become more complex. Thus, the wholesale sector needs to adapt to omnichannel sales, flexible payment options, smart fulfillment, sustainability trends, and AI-powered tools.
Can Wholesalers List Products in Multiple Marketplaces and Catalogs?
Yes. In fact, participating in various distributor marketplaces has become an important part of the whole wholesale marketing strategy. Suppliers can also list their products in various catalogs. Some of them might be third-party catalogs that use the consignment model. Others might be white-label partnerships.
Negotiations play an important role in B2B sales. That’s why wholesalers might have catalogs with different product prices based on other conditions like minimum order quantities (what is MOQ) or flexible deliveries. Marketplaces also have different pricing models. Thus, if a wholesale marketplace charges a higher commission, it’s also expected that distributors will list higher prices in that particular marketplace.
BlueCart: The Place to Make Your Wholesale Catalog Stand Out
If you wish to increase your distribution company’s revenue while benefiting from various opportunities to automate business processes, using BlueCart is a must for you. Our platform helps wholesalers with solutions like delivery route optimization, invoicing and payment through BlueCart Pay, inventory management features, and other tools for wholesalers in the hospitality industry and other sectors. Schedule a demo today!
If you operate a food service business and wish to find suppliers, simply sign up for BlueCart as a buyer and witness how BlueCart’s Endless Aisle for restaurants can help your business!