Reinventing the Future of B2B Services: Behind Our Series B Funding
Last update: 12 March 2024 at 12:10 pm
5.00/5Today, we announced our latest fundraising, raising €11 million. You can read the full press release to know more about it. But here, we want to talk to you about the future of the B2B marketplace and the importance of the human and digital relationship for the customer: two topics close to our heart.
Over the past couple of years, we have seen the emergence of many B2C marketplaces that have done everything that was technologically possible to ease the buying experience of customers just like that giant, Amazon.
But when you actually take a look at the B2B ecosystem, purchasing a service or finding a trusted partner is a chaotic, complex, and time-consuming task.
In a world where time runs at double-speed, technology disrupts our daily routines, geographical boundaries are rendered invisible, and access to limitless information is clicks and seconds away, businesses are lost at sea. More than they’ve ever been.
It is time for us to take advantage of the countless opportunities in the B2B world and give it the attention it deserves compared to its older brother, B2C.
By using the endless technological advancements inherent in systems such as AI, we can better help businesses in the B2B world, forever.
But technology alone will not be the secret to unlocking the potential of this ecosystem. Never disregard the need for an actual helping hand.
Digital is Losing Its Human Touch
The world of B2B is still only in its early stages of development with technology, but from the small amounts that it has already managed to do with it, it’s undeniable that the potential is endless.
In other ecosystems, the big data explosion has birthed international giants (Amazon, Google…) but it has had an equal and opposite reaction, amplified by the pandemic: the desire to return to more local, human economies.
As Robin Rampaer, our Head of Product likes to recall:
“Sortlist is not a cold, faceless platform. We have experts helping both sides meet each other and build great business stories together”.
Not only have we noticed the desire to maintain that human touch in the sea of technology, but we have bet on it being the key to the success of the B2B ecosystem.
Within the B2B marketplace, automation and AI are where most businesses are heading, but the only way a B2B service can survive long term is to seize the opportunity to regain and retain their human side.
At the end of the day, what people really want is simple and unchanged. They just want to easily start meaningful conversations with partners they can trust.
This is exactly the environment we’re here to create.
A Place Where Experts Get the Recognition They Deserve Thanks to People
In the digital world of today, it is easier than ever for any expert to start their own business and wish to take their part of the lion’s share thanks to their talent and bold ambition.
The harsh reality is that, even in the digital world, talent and ambition are still not enough for them to make a mark in their field. The giants are still in the best position to win.
The people behind these newly formed businesses can easily feel small and invisible if they aren’t given that human attention during their time in the B2B marketplace; a helping hand in the form of human guidance and connection.
These smaller providers often have more in-depth knowledge and talent in their niche expertise and can provide much more to their clients than bigger marketing organizations. This is exactly why at Sortlist, we are committed to bringing them the visibility they deserve with an equal opportunity to grow and innovate…a promised land.
We are there for the unrecognized, less known providers, the experts, and agencies, looking for opportunities to expand their professional network, build collaborations and grow either on a local or international level which in turn help our economies.
Here, they have the opportunity to prove themselves and show what they are capable of.
In Today’s Digital World, You Either Sink Or Swim
At the end of the day, we’ve created a digital idea around a human concept and we can’t afford to let digital ever take over the human.
It has become difficult for companies to find their match within the chaos of the B2B ecosystem. But by combining the performance of data and that irreplaceable human feeling…Sortlist promotes efficiency with a human face.
The perfect mix of AI and the human touch.
Companies want to take back control of their decisions, find new and qualified talent all whilst making sure they are not wasting their time and money in the process.
Our role is to not only give them their control back, but we also know that it is not always about getting reliable and competent suppliers with a relevant and powerful algorithm. It’s also about making sure that these “matches” lead to more. Beautiful encounters, creative solutions, and exemplary success.
We’ve always known that behind every marketing, communication, and digital B2B match, the elements of creativity and emotion are always common denominators in the winning equation.
New Means to Nurture Stronger Ambitions
We know we’re not perfect. We still have some work to do to get where we want to be, but with our recent fundraising efforts, this boost will help us get closer to an idea of perfection, renew the way businesses will innovate and collaborate in the future and reinvent the B2B world forever.
From the €11 million we have recently raised with our current and new investors, we now have the financial capabilities of focusing down on our three major goals to:
1. Invest in Our Product Experience
Invest in the development of our product to a place where agencies feel they can further trust us to find their perfect matches and see Sortlist as a partner rather than a service. Along with adding expanding our Sortlist team, we want to create a community around the agencies where they can share their creative ideas and expertises.
2. Expand to the UK & US
Additionally to the improvements in our product, we will be putting in motion our much-anticipated expansion to the UK and the US. Despite already having our services running in both these English-speaking markets, we plan on settling there in a more focused manner.
3. Bring In More Human Advisors
All while expanding our team in all departments, we have especially decided to bet and invest more in our Sortlist team for our agencies to have more human guidance throughout their entire matchmaking process. We want to make sure that the level of AI and the level of human touch create a meaningful and fruitful experience for both parties.
Needless to say, our last quarter of 2021 and the next full year will be one of extraordinary growth at Sortlist and we can’t wait to get started on this journey to get closer to our clients and offer a premium B2B service to all those looking to build great business stories.
Watch out. We’re coming.
