Part 4 of the Executive Briefing Series for Manufacturing & Distribution Leaders
So far in this series, we’ve talked about the why behind B2B eCommerce and the real benefits it delivers to your finances, operations, and sales teams.
But let’s pause here, because for many organizations… progress stalls, and it usually has nothing to do with software or integrations.
Most B2B eCommerce efforts don’t fail because of bad platforms. They fail because the organization isn’t ready to support the change.
If your site has launched, but adoption is slow…
If your team is skeptical…
If customers still call instead of clicking…
Chances are, the barriers are internal. And fixable.
Let’s explore the 5 most common roadblocks and how leadership can remove them.
1. Lack of Executive Alignment
When eCommerce is treated as a “project” instead of a channel, it gets trapped between departments:
- IT owns the tech
- Marketing owns the visuals
- Sales doesn’t buy in
- Ops has no roadmap integration
This siloed approach leads to finger-pointing, delayed decisions, and fragmented execution.
What to do:
Make eCommerce a core leadership priority. Assign it a strategic owner, fund it properly, and report on it like any other revenue stream.
2. Product and Pricing Data Isn’t Ready
Even the best platform can’t fix bad data. If your product content is outdated, inconsistent, or incomplete, customers won’t trust what they see. If pricing isn’t accurate for each account, they’ll pick up the phone instead.
What to do:
Invest in product enrichment, clear pricing logic, and tight ERP integration. Think of your site like a branch it should be stocked, labeled, and accurate.
3. No Clear Ownership
One of the most common failure points? Nobody owns performance.
The platform launches… and drifts.
Nobody’s responsible for adoption.
No one is empowered to evolve it.
What to do:
Appoint a digital leader or at minimum, create a cross-functional eCommerce steering group. Give them a mandate. Give them metrics. And give them authority.
4. Sales Resistance
Let’s be honest, many sales teams see eCommerce as competition. If they fear it will reduce commissions, steal accounts, or make their role obsolete, they won’t support it, and without rep support, customer adoption suffers.
What to do:
Reframe the platform as a tool that helps reps scale, not disappear.
Reward reps for digital success. Involve them in onboarding. Give them credit for digital orders. Period.
5. Underinvestment in Enablement
Launching the site is the starting line, not the finish line. Without training, support, and ongoing iteration, most eCommerce platforms stagnate.
What to do:
Treat eCommerce like a living channel. Build workflows for continuous improvement.
Train your internal teams just like you would a new location rollout.
The Real Challenge: Culture
Behind all of these issues is something deeper: Culture. If your company culture resists digital, no system can succeed.
If your people say:
- “That’s not my job”
- “We’ve always done it this way”
- “It’ll never work for us”
Then even the best platform will struggle.
What to do:
Make digital part of your leadership language.
Celebrate small wins.
Tie success to your company’s bigger purpose: serving customers faster, better, smarter.
Executive Takeaway
B2B eCommerce transformation isn’t about tech. It’s about leadership alignment, operational readiness, and cultural momentum.
If you’re stuck, start here:
- Do you have a clear “why”?
- Is someone truly accountable?
- Are you investing in enablement, not just launch?
- Are your people bought in or burned out?
Up Next: How to Lead the Transformation
In our final article, we’ll give you a simple but powerful playbook for leading eCommerce transformation from the top, whether you’re a CEO, CFO, or executive sponsor.
Spoiler: It’s not about building it yourself. It’s about owning the outcome.
