The Echidna Blog

Quoting is not the reason your products cannot be sold online. Unexamined quoting workflows are. Sort your order volume honestly, move the standard majority to self-service, give the negotiated remainder a visible digital workflow, and measure quote abandonment the way you measure cart abandonment.

B2B site search fails when it speaks catalog language instead of buyer language. The evidence is sitting in your search logs right now, and most of the fixes are content and configuration work, not a replatform.

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We rank nine real use cases by whether they are delivering ROI in production today, whether they are conditionally working depending on the substrate underneath, or whether they remain experimental for most enterprise teams. The framing matters. Investing in a use case in the wrong bucket is how AI budgets quietly disappear in year two.

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After working with enterprise B2B commerce teams for seventeen years, including most of the past three years deep in AI implementation work, a pattern is clear. The companies pulling ahead are not the ones investing the most in AI. They are the ones operating with the clearest framework for what AI is actually changing in commerce, and what it is not.

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AI commerce features rarely succeed or fail cleanly. They tend to deliver real value in narrow places and underperform in others, with the net result obscured by attribution challenges, attribution overlap with other initiatives, and metrics that were not set up at the start of the project to answer the question that finance is now asking.

The teams that hold up well in their year-two budget conversations are not the ones with the biggest results. They are the ones with the clearest measurement. Six metrics, in our experience working with enterprise B2B commerce organizations, cover the picture honestly. Together they tell finance whether the AI investment is paying back, where it is leaking, and what to fund next.

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A failed or underperforming integration does not just delay your go-live. It creates ongoing operational drag that undermines the business case for the entire commerce investment — for years. This guide gives enterprise teams a practical framework for evaluating integration partners: what to look for, what to ask, and what answers should give you pause.

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Enterprise eCommerce integration projects have a failure rate that the industry does not talk about enough. Failure as in the integration was built, went live, and then proceeded to quietly undermine the commerce experience it was supposed to power. These are not edge cases. They are the normal outcome of integrations that were designed without enough rigor, implemented without enough governance, or handed off to teams who lacked the context to maintain them.

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B2B eCommerce integration is not a technical afterthought. It is the connective tissue that determines whether your commerce platform works as a real business capability or as an expensive storefront with a broken backend.

The organizations that treat integration as a strategic investment — architecting it deliberately, governing it continuously, and partnering with specialists who understand the complexity — are the ones whose commerce channels actually deliver the ROI they were promised.

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Most B2B eCommerce projects launch. Few scale. The difference is strategy—defined before the platform is chosen and executed long after go-live.

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Most B2B eCommerce sites look fine and perform poorly. Here's what enterprise buyers need from a digital commerce experience—and where most designs fail.

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Boomi is how Echidna builds that foundation. Not as a simple data pipe — but as the central nervous system of the enterprise, transforming and cleaning data in transit, enabling parallel workstreams, and making it possible to modernize legacy systems without replacing them.

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Choosing the wrong platform costs millions and years. This guide walks through the evaluation criteria that actually matter for enterprise B2B organizations.

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Enterprise eCommerce integration projects have a failure rate that the industry does not talk about enough. Failure as in the integration was built, went live, and then proceeded to quietly undermine the commerce experience it was supposed to power. These are not edge cases. They are the normal outcome of integrations that were designed without enough rigor, implemented without enough governance, or handed off to teams who lacked the context to maintain them.

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Boomi is how Echidna builds that foundation. Not as a simple data pipe — but as the central nervous system of the enterprise, transforming and cleaning data in transit, enabling parallel workstreams, and making it possible to modernize legacy systems without replacing them.

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Let’s debunk a popular myth before we start: Continuous innovation is not a one-off event or just a buzzword. It’s not about having that one groundbreaking idea that skyrockets your business to success. True innovation is a continuous process. It’s about applying strategic, tactical, and operational strengths consistently to prepare for future shifts. In a world where technology evolves at breakneck speed, staying relevant requires more than a flash of brilliance. It demands a relentless, ongoing commitment to change.

In recent years, voice search technology has transformed the way people interact with their devices and access information. This innovation allows users to search the internet, control smart home devices, and perform various tasks simply by speaking commands. Voice assistants like Alexa, Siri, and Google Assistant have become integral parts of our daily lives, making voice search an essential aspect of modern SEO strategies.

Throughout 2022 and early 2023, there was an explosion of generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology that captivated business leaders, investors, and society as a whole with its impressive ability to create new and seemingly human-made text and images.

You know that providing a seamless, personalized experience to your customers is the key to success. With online purchases on the rise and the growing popularity of omnichannel retail, chatbots have become the go-to tool for businesses looking to improve customer service and increase sales.

Construction Specialties has been at the forefront of providing specialty building products worldwide for more than seventy years. With a presence in twenty countries, they have obtained more than 40 registered product patents and produced ten distinct product lines. Their products can be found in or on some of the world's most famous buildings.

With eCommerce sales doubling in the past five years and markets expected to almost double again by 2026, companies are making sizable investments in their eCommerce capabilities.

In a time when every company is digital to some degree, your strategy is the differentiator. The stronger your strategy the easier it is to not only navigate rapid change and innovation, but as a result those companies also see higher conversion rates.

The automotive industry is at a crossroads. One way maintains the current status quo with little room for competitive edges and scalability, while the other path leads to reimagining its core operations and focusing on digital channels. While the latter path might seem intimidating at the moment, it is important to understand that the industry is moving towards digital selling as a business model for both B2B and B2C markets. Choosing to ignore buyer demands can hurt automotive brands in the long term.

We’re living in an accelerated world of eCommerce.

10 years growth in 3 months according to a recent study by Bank of America and Forrester Analytics. While it can be debated how this measured, we can all agree things have changed rapidly in digital.

We knew this year would require brands to work on the ongoing challenge of optimizing the customer experience. However, being able to embrace a customer-first approach through digital operations has turned instrumental for brands in 2020. As merchants work towards the post-coronavirus future, what does that look like?

Quoting is not the reason your products cannot be sold online. Unexamined quoting workflows are. Sort your order volume honestly, move the standard majority to self-service, give the negotiated remainder a visible digital workflow, and measure quote abandonment the way you measure cart abandonment.

B2B site search fails when it speaks catalog language instead of buyer language. The evidence is sitting in your search logs right now, and most of the fixes are content and configuration work, not a replatform.

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When a B2B buyer gets stuck on your site, they do not generally abandon the relationship. The site's conversion rate is technically unaffected, because the buyer never entered the funnel at all. Meanwhile a sales engineer spent part of their afternoon reading a spec sheet aloud. Your support volume is the usability report your analytics cannot produce. Here is how to read it.

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Most B2B eCommerce sites look fine and perform poorly. Here's what enterprise buyers need from a digital commerce experience—and where most designs fail.

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You don’t need another pep talk about “putting the customer first.” You need levers. The good news: modern UX testing tools are exactly that—levers that move revenue, reduce cost-to-serve, and de-risk big bets.

In today’s competitive online market, cutting the Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) of your eCommerce platform is critical for long-term profitability. Believe it or not, one of the most effective ways to do that isn’t about the technology—it's about user experience (UX). Here’s how enhancing UX can help you slash costs, boost conversions, and reduce hidden operational drag.

In today’s fast-paced digital landscape, mobile users demand seamless, intuitive experiences. A mobile UX audit is the key to uncovering friction points, optimizing usability, and boosting engagement. Whether you’re launching a new mobile app or optimizing an existing one, following best practices ensures your mobile experience meets user expectations and drives conversions.

Seamless system integration has become foundational for success in B2C and B2B eCommerce. As companies shift to digital-first strategies to remain competitive and responsive to client demands, integrating systems like ERP, CRM, and inventory management is no longer a luxury—it’s a necessity.

Once upon a time, the most advanced digital assistant many of us knew was Clippy—the quirky, ever-helpful paperclip in Microsoft Office. For all his flaws, Clippy was groundbreaking: the first mainstream, interactive UX assistant that tried to understand what users were doing and offered guidance (even if often unrequested). Though Clippy fell short in many ways, he introduced the idea of proactive assistance in a digital workspace—a concept that has since evolved dramatically.

The holiday shopping season is already in full swing—don’t panic! There’s still time to make quick, impactful adjustments to your eCommerce site that can help you handle the holiday rush like a pro. 🎁 With these last-minute tips, you can boost site speed, optimize your checkout process, and leverage social media to drive more traffic and sales. Let’s dive into the tweaks you can implement right away to get your site holiday-ready.

The industrial goods sector has seen a significant shift toward eCommerce in recent years, with businesses increasingly turning to online platforms to purchase tools, machinery, and raw materials. However, selling industrial goods online comes with unique challenges—ranging from large and complex product catalogs to diverse customer needs, such as procurement managers, engineers, and technicians seeking highly specific items. In this evolving landscape, AI personalization in industrial goods eCommerce is becoming a key driver for success, as buyers now expect tailored product recommendations, custom pricing, and seamless navigation through large inventories.

In the rapidly evolving world of automotive eCommerce, data-driven decision-making is no longer just an advantage—it's a necessity. With the rise of online vehicle shopping, managing customer expectations, inventory, and competitive pricing has become increasingly complex. Automotive eCommerce managers need more than just intuition to succeed in this environment; they require the power of data to make informed decisions that drive growth and enhance customer experiences.

Echidna Inc. is pleased to announce it has entered into a partnership with VTEX, the world’s first and only fully integrated commerce platform ready for the next age of digital innovation.

There are many reasons manufacturers come to Echidna looking to add or update their eCommerce capability. From limiting technology, product complexities, improving customer experience, or freeing up internal resources - the list can go on. No matter what the reason your organization is looking to implement eCommerce technology, choosing a platform built for the complexity and challenges unique to manufacturers is imperative for the ability to scale and find new opportunities.

eCommerce sales skyrocketed in 2020. In fact, the pandemic accelerated the shift toward eCommerce close to five years, according to a recent study by IBM.

Both B2B and B2C companies shifted gears to cater to COVID-19. Many were forced to find new ways to reach and serve their customers. This meant being flexible and rethinking on how to use technology to help the business deliver.

It is complex and ever-moving, but if you put the pieces together correctly your brand can reap the rewards. By starting with the idea of supporting their customers and internal business units, Construction Specialties is doing just that - and doubling product revenue - with the help of Oracle Commerce Cloud for B2B and Echidna.

Google has officially switched to mobile-first indexing for all websites. This means Google is first looking at your mobile site and using that to based on how it will rank your desktop site according to the information given.

While online shopping is trending up, that also means (unfortunately) cybercriminal activity is too. The multiple criminal groups referred to as Magecart has evolved and grown and hackers are becoming more sophisticated.

It happened. Magento 1’s end of life came and went. No, those who are still utilizing M1 didn’t crash and burn, but they are missing on a lot of goodies, security, and more provided by its sibling, Magento 2. Neither here nor there, if you decided to stay on Magento 1 for whatever reason you might be wondering your options going forward into 2020, and if Magento 1 support end of life is feasible.

With COVID-19, eCommerce has gone from gradually increasing to a runaway train shooting upwards. Lifestyles and purchasing patterns are rapidly changing and merchants are looking to align with their buyers just as fast. We continue with our commitment to helping all merchants during this time by providing content that you can actually use to be more productive and power up your online business. With an increase of merchants sitting on Magento 1  looking for guidance on how to quickly migrate from Magento 1.9 to 2.3, we are offering insight on how to migrate Magento 1.9 to the Magento 2 platform part of the Adobe Commerce Cloud.

Throughout the past several years we’ve written a lot of content for those of you researching Magento 2 migration. With Magento 1.9 officially ending support in June a lot of folks have been reaching out to Echidna with questions. First off, yes your site will still be up and running come June even if you have not migrated to Magento 2. But also yes, we highly recommend making the move (whether that be internally or with a certified Magento 2 partner) because the growth of your eCommerce operations largely depends on it. I know that the last statement might not be what you want to hear and to some, it might be up for debate. That’s what prompted us to update our Magento 2 Migration Guide and lay it all out there in terms of future growth, Magento 2 costs, timeline, and what happens next. So here we go.

Magento 2 migration is on the minds of many current Magento 1 companies, with questions swirling around timelines, costs, and all the what to expect and what if’s one can imagine. At Echidna, we have been working with our Magento 1 clients to navigate the waters of their own Magento 2 migrations with ease. The first thing to understand is it is a migration- not a point and click upgrade. Migrating from Magento 1 to Magento 2 involves changing database structures, themes and working with a new API. You will want to have the migration expertly managed to avoid data loss and downtime.

There has been no slowing down since Adobe announced its acquisition of Magento Commerce back in 2018. With Magento Commerce joining the Adobe Experience Cloud, they are now bringing the Imagine Conference community to join forces with the Adobe Summit at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas from March 29 through April 2. This co-location will allow Magento Commerce experts and pioneers the ability to expand their learning and networking opportunities, along with giving access to all Adobe Summit keynotes, events, and well over 400 sessions and labs. So what’s in store for those attending Magento Imagine 2020 @ Adobe Summit, and where can you find Echidna? Read on to find out.

Replatforming does not have to cost you your search traffic or your place in AI answers. The teams that come through clean treat SEO and AI visibility as first-class requirements of the migration, with an owner, a checklist, and a monitoring window, not as a task for launch week.

B2B site search fails when it speaks catalog language instead of buyer language. The evidence is sitting in your search logs right now, and most of the fixes are content and configuration work, not a replatform.

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If your brand sits in that sweet spot—north of $10M, south of $5B—social shouldn’t just be “posting and hoping.” In 2025, social is a performance channel, a customer research lab, a talent magnet, and for many categories, a storefront.

Let’s be honest: digital marketing budgets are under more scrutiny than ever.

When it comes to showing up in search, your site isn’t just competing for attention—it’s fighting for relevance. And in 2025, the rules of SEO are sharper, smarter, and more user-focused than ever. If you want better rankings, more organic traffic, and a website that actually converts, it starts with a solid on-page SEO audit.

Unlock Better PPC ROI with the Right Strategy and Execution

Why eCommerce Platform Implementation Matters

A Strategic Approach to SEO and Digital Marketing for Sustainable Growth

The holiday shopping season is already in full swing—don’t panic! There’s still time to make quick, impactful adjustments to your eCommerce site that can help you handle the holiday rush like a pro. 🎁 With these last-minute tips, you can boost site speed, optimize your checkout process, and leverage social media to drive more traffic and sales. Let’s dive into the tweaks you can implement right away to get your site holiday-ready.

Imagine this: A small eCommerce business invests $500 in a PPC campaign and, within a month, sees a return of $2,000 in sales. That’s a whopping 300% return on investment (ROI). This scenario isn’t a fairy tale but a real possibility when PPC campaigns are executed effectively. However, achieving such high ROI isn’t just about luck; it’s about leveraging data to drive decisions.

In the ever-evolving landscape of search engine optimization (SEO), staying ahead of the curve is crucial for success. Recent developments have shed light on new opportunities and challenges within this dynamic field. A glimpse behind the curtain has provided us with a deeper understanding of how Google possibly evaluates and ranks content, underscoring the importance of adapting our strategies to align with these newly uncovered criteria. However, Google does caution against making assumptions based on potentially outdated or incomplete information contained in these documents.

The boundaries between social media and eCommerce are becoming increasingly blurred. Today's buyers expect not only to interact with brands through social platforms but also to make purchases there without skipping a beat. This shift has given rise to a new phenomenon known as social commerce, a fusion of online shopping and social media that is transforming the way brands interact with their customers.

Echidna Inc. is pleased to announce it has entered into a partnership with VTEX, the world’s first and only fully integrated commerce platform ready for the next age of digital innovation.

Greetings from Echidna! A large part of growth strategy in 2022 includes digital sales channels. Oftentimes, B2B companies come to us feeling constrained by the limitations of their eCommerce platform and need guidance to streamline their online sales experience. Echidna is with our clients every step of the way, this month sharing insight into understanding the modern-day B2B buyer and what companies should consider when growing their digital sales channels.

Greetings from Echidna! Your team has likely been preparing to welcome a queue of customers to your virtual storefront come November 26th. This month our newsletter is sharing critical areas to focus on for a successful online holiday shopping season + helping brands create a foundation for digital growth and opportunity when we ring in the new year.

Greetings from Echidna! With less than 16 weeks until Black Friday, brands are heads down preparing for yet another highly anticipated digital holiday shopping season. From improving search engine visibility to orchestrating a seamless buy online, pick-up in-store experience- Echidna is with our clients every step of the way. This month’s newsletter showcases various ways to use digital in order to access exponential value creation for the remainder of 2021 and beyond.

Greetings from Echidna! Making order out of the chaos 2020 brought is proving to be a challenge for brands across the globe. In order to realize the opportunity that supporting a wide, strong digital model and buyer journey brings will require an updated strategy and the ability to execute efficiently. This month’s newsletter is dedicated to sharing guidance on digital commerce strategy and how one health and wellness retailer pivoted to meet dynamic market changes head-on.

Greetings from Echidna! Are you ready to set the stage for your brand's eCommerce growth? In this month’s newsletter, we are covering several areas to consider when looking to grow your digital sales and sharing how one company doubled product revenue by streamlining its online sales experience.

Greetings from Echidna! We’ve all watched the growth of eCommerce over the years, and undoubtedly COVID-19 accelerated that growth dramatically. This is true whether you are a retailer selling to consumers or a manufacturer, wholesaler or distributor selling to businesses. With this sudden shift, we focused our May newsletter on sharing several ways your business can find success in eCommerce.

Greetings from Echidna! We are at a pivotal time of disruptive change for all markets. Many leaders are looking to innovate and rethink their online experiences in order to exceed customer expectations and outpace their competitors. This month’s newsletter is focused on eCommerce innovation and sharing ways you can improve and grow your online storefront experience.

Greetings from Echidna! As many of us approach 2021 with cautious optimism, continual innovation is more critical than ever. Part of this is rethinking how to use technology to help your business deliver. Many leaders find themselves considering a new eCommerce solution based on how inflexible their current solution proved to be in 2020. For that reason, we are dedicating this month’s newsletter to focus on the topic of eCommerce development.

Flashback to early 2019, Jessup Manufacturing found itself using eCommerce, but not how it envisioned. What was once innovation, was now antiquated. Between the inability to grow due to numerous restraints its eCommerce platform created and its site’s less than friendly user experience, Jessup Manufacturing knew it needed a change in order to evolve and meet customer demands.

Happy New Year from Echidna! As we start 2021 many of us are in a period of transition. Business leaders working towards making a company stand out in new ways; much shifting attention from offline to online operations. Remember that working towards something genuinely unique isn't always easy, but it can be greatly rewarded.

As we wrap up 2020 we have seen a lot of change in how customers shop. However, the shift from offline to online doesn’t mean that customers will tolerate any less of a shopping experience. Delivering an excellent CX, no matter what device is being used, is crucial. Our team remains committed to helping you eliminate pain points in every step of the customer journey.