E-Commerce for your B2B Business – embarking small and medium businesses into the online B2B commerce

The International Trade Centre’s SME Trade Academy offers online courses to train entrepreneurs on B2B e-commerce

The International Trade Centre’s (ITC) e-commerce team released earlier this year a new e-learning course for entrepreneurs and small business owners wishing to embark on their B2B e-commerce journey. On 30 September 2019, the Arabic version of the course will be released; the first course released in this language by the ITC SME Trade Academy.

The course, composed of three lectures, provides an overview of benefits, challenges and good practices in B2B e-commerce. It takes the learner through the necessary steps a business should consider before embarking on B2B selling through online channels, from reviewing the advantages and disadvantages, to choosing the correct channel, preparing their business and promoting their goods online.

The English version of the B2B e-commerce course released in July of 2019 proved very successful, demonstrating the importance of the subject to businesses worldwide. Over 150 participants joined for the first session of the course. The enthusiasm for the topic is not surprising given the size of the market: UNCTAD estimated online B2B sales in 2017 were over $25 trillion and growing.

This e-learning course was developed from experience gained during the “Foundations of B2B e-commerce project” in Qatar. Over the course of the project, which ran from Oct 2018 to July 2019, a selection of local firms were trained on B2B e-commerce and assisted in preparing a structured online inventory of products that can be marketed to international buyers. The project organised a digital audit of the firms’ online presence, a review of their product positioning with respect to international markets and the opportunities to list on international marketplaces.

To conclude the project, the e-commerce team formulated for the Qatar Development Bank (QDB) a roadmap for improved access to e-commerce channels - identifying the support requirements for firms to enter, market themselves and achieve successful business opportunities through B2B e-commerce platforms.

The e-learning formed part of the extensive training carried out with the businesses and the Arabic version will enable the learning to increase the reach of the project work.
For the complete list of schedule sessions for this course in 2019/2020, see the table below

E-commerce Connect: Enabling trade through digital channels

E-commerce is fast becoming a significant channel for international trade and one that could open new possibilities for the economic growth of developing and least developed countries. Unfortunately, SMEs from these countries are often excluded from e-commerce due to the limited availability of international payments, logistics, appropriate technologies and ability to overcome legal and regulatory barriers. The International Trade Centre’s (ITC) e-commerce Connect programme provides pragmatic answers to these problems: By actively supporting SMEs on their digital journey through its training programme, research and facilitation of innovative solutions, collaborative structures, partnerships and digital tools and technologies.

For queries regarding the E-commerce Connect programme, please email: ecomconnect [at] intracen.org (ecomconnect[at]intracen[dot]org)

For queries regarding the ITC SME Trade Academy, please email e-learning [at] intracen.org (e-learning[at]intracen[dot]org)