How B2B portals help you promote your business

B2B portals act as a bridge between buyers and sellers, importers and exporters

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Writuparna Kakati | 31 Mar, 2008
With globalization, international trade has become increasingly popular. Along with improved foreign relations, innovative technologies, especially the Internet, have drastically changed the manner in which different business operates. Communication has become a child's play and transportation easier than ever before. From bulk machinery to tiniest gadgets, any imaginable product manufactured anywhere can be sent or received today most efficiently. Parallel to these advancements in technology, online marketing techniques are continuously being developed paving way for business entrepreneurs new horizons to explore.

With this boom in e-commerce and Internet marketing, online Business-to-Business (B2B) portals and marketplaces are becoming much more prevalent. These B2B portals act as a bridge between buyers and sellers, importers and exporters, and offer them a common platform availing a bundle of some most useful services. No matter whether you are an exporter or importer, manufacturer or service provider, these online portals offer readymade lists of exporter and importers to help you quickly locate the exact item or company you are looking for.

Unlike in B2C (Business to Consumers) marketing, B2B operations involve exchange of products, services, or information between businesses rather than business and end users. Based on the understanding of what businesses buy/sell and how they buy/sell, B2B Portals offer message boards where users can view buy & sell trade leads and post their own leads to generate maximum business inquiries. Trade leads are often preferred over conventional contact methods and they can be acquired from the the convenience of home and as per one's own schedule.

Although B2B business models are sometimes categorized as Brokering Sites, Information Sites, Specialized Industry Portals, it seems that models for B2B business is still evolving. In these days, most of the B2B portals available on the net fall into more than one of the aforesaid categories. They also offer extensive information about Foreign Trade Policy, Union Budgets, Trade Fairs, Newsletters and Business News, etc. Along with these utilities, what is most striking about B2B portals is that they minimize the expense required for advertising and marketing of a brand. For small and medium business, B2B is therefore the ultimate cost effective way open up an entire new world of trade opportunities at the international level.