The Rise of Self-Service Portals in B2B Aftersales

Influenced by the ‘anytime, anywhere’ buying found in B2C, B2B buyers are signaling a clear shift in preference towards digital autonomy. However, our data shows that the online journeys found in B2B today are not effectively capturing this demand.

According to the survey, 90% of B2B buyers are aware of self-service portals among those, 79% actively use them. This high usage rate underscores not only familiarity but growing reliance. Yet adoption isn’t always limited by hesitation—it can also be limited by access. Of the buyers who don’t currently use SSPs, 58% cite lack of availability from the seller as the reason. In other words, customers are feeling more empowered to use SSPs to make B2B aftersales purchases, but many are held back simply because the option doesn’t exist. This highlights a compelling opportunity for businesses to meet this demand and differentiate through self-service capabilities.

With all of this in mind, it’s unsurprising that three-quarters of B2B buyers consider self-service portals an important part of the aftersales procurement process, with 41% citing them as a very important part of making B2B purchases.

How does this impact B2B sellers who don’t offer a self-service portals in their buying process? Our study found that self-service portal availability has a real influence on the companies that B2B buyers choose as their preferred suppliers. 88% of SSP users say that the availability of this channel has a positive impact on supplier selection, with 30% saying that access to an self-service portal makes them more likely to continue purchasing from the company.

That’s right. Buyers are more likely to continue doing business with companies that offer self-service capabilities, making SSPs a tool for operational efficiency and a factor in long-term customer retention and competitive differentiation.

We’ve established that B2B buyers want self-service capabilities. But what’s the impact when they’re not available? Our study found that the cost goes far beyond inconvenience. The data indicates that without a self-service portal customers are more likely to face slower response times, a lack of transparency, and more friction throughout the aftersales journey. These challenges don’t just stall potential sales; they can have an impact on customer satisfaction.

According to the study, non-SSP users are notably more likely to encounter delays, with 68% citing slow support response times, 68% reporting lengthy approval processes, and 53% citing lack of transparency in pricing and availability as key challenges in the current purchasing process. In fact, across all the challenges listed in the survey, more non-SSP users cited experiencing them than those who make purchases through a self-service portal. It’s also important to highlight that 25% of SSP users say they don’t experience any notable challenges in the current purchasing process—an answer that not a single non-SSP user gave.

This shows that self-service portals don’t just streamline procurement and customer service; they actively reduce friction in the buying process. When a self-service option is available, buyers experience fewer delays, minimal pain points, and a remarkably smoother overall experience. Without one, there’s a much higher chance the buying journey becomes manual, time-consuming, and frustrating, putting customer relationships, up-and-cross-sell deal velocity, and long-term loyalty at risk.

From slow response times to lengthy approval processes, the challenges that B2B customers experience compound with each additional touchpoint. This is important because the data shows self-service portal users move through the purchase process with fewer interactions, while non-users report more frequent communication with teams. 90%* of SSP users interact less than 7 times with a Sales rep, compared to 52%* of non-SSP users who interact more than 8 times with a sales rep. It’s no wonder your teams are stretched thin—fielding repetitive inquiries, chasing approvals, and managing tasks that could be automated through self-service capabilities.

With this in mind, you won’t be surprised to learn that only 32%* of non-SSP users say they’re satisfied with their current B2B experience, compared to 86%* of SSP users. Perhaps even more telling, 53%* of non-users are (rather) not satisfied with the current B2B experience, compared to 3% of SSP users.

This clearly indicates that those with self-service portal access move faster, encounter fewer hurdles, and walk away more satisfied, while those without are left navigating outdated, manual systems. The takeaway? Not offering a self-service portal is costing you time, resources, and customer loyalty—three things you cannot afford in today’s competitive market.

Market volatility is a constant in our current landscape, making efficiency a competitive advantage for B2B businesses looking to stay agile, reduce costs, and meet evolving buyer expectations. If your company—like many others—is looking for proven ways to increase digital commerce efficiency, then the data shows that implementing a Self-Service Portal is a high-impact place to start.

Our study found that 95%¹ of B2B buyers who already use an SSP believe that SSPs improve purchasing efficiency, with 41% saying that SSPs make the process significantly more efficient.

But the benefits are not just theoretical; they’re also tangible. 68% of buyers who are aware of SSPs report saving between 30 and 60 minutes per purchase when using an SSP, with 21% saving upwards of 2 hours. This translates to notable gains when scaled across complex organizations and high-volume aftersales procurement, making time savings one of the most measurable benefits of implementing a self-service portal. 

Beyond efficiency, the top benefits cited by buyers who use SSPs are traceability of purchase history (82%), more flexible, on-demand access to product information and ordering tools (75%), and greater transparency of product information (66%). These capabilities help buyers move independently through their aftersales journey—without waiting on human support for pricing, product availability, or order updates.

All of the evidence points to the high performance of self-service portals in B2B aftersales. But what features do you need to offer customers to provide the online experiences that keep them coming back? According to our study, the most frequently used self-service portal features by the respondents who use SSPs are order tracking (92%) and customer support via live chat (75%)—clear indicators that buyers who use SSPS rely on them to stay informed and resolve issues quickly.

Meeting B2B buyers’ expectations requires more than a feature checklist—it demands a strong, reliable technical foundation. Even the most intuitive self-service portal is only as good as the infrastructure behind it. Buyers are quick to notice when performance falters and equally quick to lose trust when systems feel unstable or insecure.

Our study found that the top challenges buyers face when using self-service portals are technical issues or system downtime (51%) and security or data privacy concerns (38%). This highlights the importance of choosing a robust, enterprise-grade solution designed for stability, security, and scalability.

This isn’t just a plus for your buyers. Your technical and support teams will also be thanking you. A well-architected SSP, with the support of a flexible digital commerce platform, reduces the burden on IT and support teams by minimizing downtime, streamlining integrations, and ensuring data is handled securely. It enables faster updates, easier maintenance, and a more scalable infrastructure, freeing your teams to focus on innovation rather than issue resolution. In short, the right digital commerce set-up doesn’t just serve your customers better—it strengthens your entire business.

In the coming years, the role of self-service portals is expected to expand, shifting from a nice-to-have to a core component of the B2B aftersales experience.

And the data confirms what market behavior has begun to show. When asked how important self-service portals will be in B2B buying over the next three years, 79%¹ of respondents said they will play an important role, with 41% saying they will play a very important role. That sentiment is even stronger among those who actively use them, signaling that demand and expectations will only continue to rise. That sentiment is even stronger among those who actively use them, signaling that demand and expectations will only continue to rise.