Business-to-business buying is shifting from slow, relationship-based deals to rapid, self-service transactions empowered by consumer-grade digital tools, with embedded finance and AI fueling this disruption.
Business-to-business purchasing is shedding its reputation for slow, relationship-bound transactions and evolving into a more immediate, self-directed activity shaped by consumer-grade expectations. Procurement teams increasingly want to research, compare, configur...
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e and pay for goods and services online, with many processes now beginning and ending inside digital commerce platforms rather than in phone calls or protracted email exchanges.
The change is driven by a new cohort of buyers whose habits were formed on consumer apps that deliver rapid search, personalised suggestions and frictionless checkout. According to eMarketer, 68% of millennial B2B buyers prefer to conduct research using self-service tools rather than speaking to a salesperson, and 84% rate easy access to technical content as very important. LinkedIn commentary from industry practitioners concurs, with Joseph Solomon noting that a large majority of B2B purchasers would change suppliers for a superior online experience, underscoring the commercial stakes for vendors that fail to adapt.
Embedded finance and artificial intelligence are acting as accelerants for this shift. Mastercard markets embedded finance as a way to fold payments, financing and working-capital tools directly into platforms, allowing sellers and marketplaces to streamline transactions and offer flexible funding options. Industry reporting also highlights fintech and commerce partnerships that marry AI capabilities with embedded financial services: one analysis points to Shopify using AI-driven finance features to boost Merchant Solutions revenue by 37% in Q2 2025, while Klarna’s AI-enabled payment plans lifted its revenue by 20% in the same quarter.
Platform operators are already finding measurable returns. PYMNTS Intelligence data cited in industry reporting shows that 54% of B2B platforms recorded direct revenue gains after adding embedded finance features, rising to 67% among platforms with annual revenue above $1bn. Beyond topline effects, AI is proving effective at unblocking operational bottlenecks: a PYMNTS/Finexio study found AI targeting can predict supplier adoption of digital payment methods with around 90% accuracy, reducing manual effort and accelerating supplier enablement.
“The friction points tend to be in the operational environment,” Rene Stynen, senior vice president, EMEA, B2B Payments at Boost Payment Solutions, said, identifying onboarding complexity and extensive data collection as recurring hurdles. “There are expectations both on buyer sides and supplier sides for things to become a little bit more digital and automated,” he added.
For sales teams, the consequence is a repositioning of effort. Digital commerce increasingly functions as a storefront where buyers self-serve for routine purchases, while sales professionals concentrate on complex deals, strategic accounts and high-value negotiations. AI-driven recommendation engines and automated reorder suggestions help buyers navigate large catalogues and help suppliers grow basket size, creating new upsell and retention opportunities that do not rely on human intervention at every step.
Yet legacy systems, intricate pricing models and entrenched manual practices remain significant constraints. Reporting on small and medium-sized businesses shows many still rely on cash and checks: a PYMNTS/Mastercard collaboration found that 52% of payments by Gen Z-owned SMBs are made in cash, indicating uneven adoption of digital methods across segments. Operational change therefore requires not only technology but also supplier onboarding, data harmonisation and cultural shifts inside procurement and finance functions.
As adoption climbs, firms are experimenting with varied go-to-market and technology approaches. Research and practitioner resources recommend prioritising mobile-first experiences, rich technical content and seamless payment flows; a recent playbook emphasises that nearly eight in ten buyers actively use self-service portals. Embedding payments and working-capital options into purchasing flows can also help buyers and their suppliers manage cash cycles more effectively, a need flagged by finance leaders in a Visa/PYMNTS Growth Corporates index who reported using working-capital tools to pay suppliers more quickly and preserve agility.
“Modernization works best when you take out the biggest bottleneck, and the biggest bottleneck is the labor today,” Finexio CEO Ernest Rolfson said, highlighting manual entry and fragmented workflows as primary targets for automation.
The commercial imperative is clear: suppliers that deliver tailored, fast and transparent online experiences are more likely to win and retain buyers, while those that cling to manual quoting and fragmented order systems risk ceding business. For many organisations the road to a consumer-like B2B experience will require integrating embedded finance, deploying AI to reduce labour and complexity, and rethinking sales and operations so technology becomes the primary enabler of commerce rather than an afterthought.
Source: Noah Wire Services
