B2B Website Usability for Converting Users into Leads and Customers

B2B sites have a challenging job: They need to support business customers through long, complex buying processes, they need to generate leads for the sales team, and they need to be a resource for existing customers after purchase. Ensure that your business-to-business website stands out among the competitors. Know what customers need when trying to complete tasks, such as comparing products, sharing options with colleagues, building a shortlist, and signing up for information.

Featuring complex products and services, catering to a diverse audience, and accommodating long buying cycles does not mean your website must be difficult to use.

This 419-page report presents 188 user-experience design guidelines based on our user research. Discussions and 301 screenshot illustrations supplement our findings.

Topics covered

• Get in the heads of business customers: Understand what motivates them to do business on websites
• Optimize content to support each stage in a long, considered buying process
• Support collaborative purchasing processes and help your customers justify purchases to leadership
• Create better B2B mobile, tablet, and responsive sites
• Designing for diverse audiences
  • Personas: Putting faces to your business customers, special sectors
  • Understand how people’s experiences on general websites affect their expectations on B2B websites
  • Understand the needs of “users” and “choosers”, and how to speak to both key audiences.
• Checklist of 181 UX guidelines to convert more business leads into customers
  • Demonstrating how you solve your prospects’ problems
  • Making product and service pages compelling
  • Building comparison charts that win customers
  • Including the right technical specifications
  • Building a better About Us page
  • Creating lead-generation forms that encourage conversions
  • Displaying complex pricing scenarios
  • Using content strategy to showcase expertise and attract prospects
  • Best practices for images, multimedia, and videos
  • Contact: phone, chat, forms, and information on contact page
  • B2B shopping cart and checkout
  • Registration and online account management
  • Proof of business benefits: Case studies, white papers, and technical documents
  • Strong calls to action
  • Supporting and maintaining customers after the sale
  • Partner-specific custom websites
  • The online impact of offline marketing dollars
  • Considerations for international customers

What's New in the 3rd Edition?

The third edition contains updated research that produced new guidelines and 301 screenshot examples, an expanded mobile and tablet section, and all-new categories and organization.

Research Method

The information in this report is based on our user studies, including:

• Usability testing sessions (one-on-one)
• Focus-group sessions
• Site visits
• Longitudinal diary studies
• Heuristic design reviews

Representative business users tested 293 B2B websites. We conducted our research in three countries: the United States, the United Kingdom, and Singapore.