Digital Commerce as a Hedge: Why Manufacturers Are Rethinking Their Sales Channels

Manufacturers are facing a new reality of rising costs and unpredictable disruptions. From sudden tariff hikes to volatile supply chains, external pressures are squeezing margins and forcing a strategic re-think of sales channels. For many, adding an online channel isn’t just about convenience anymore, it’s about resilience. In this climate, digital commerce has emerged as a kind of insurance policy against volatility, giving manufacturers agility and control to protect their business when external factors threaten to erode profits.

Tariffs, in particular, have become a flashpoint. A tariff can spike costs by 10%, 25%, or more overnight, directly eating into a manufacturer’s cost of goods sold (COGS) and gross margin. Few companies have built-in flexibility for such shocks; if they try to simply pass those costs to customers, they risk losing market share and damaging hard-won customer relationships. And tariffs are just one example. Geopolitical tensions, pandemic-era supply shortages, and other supply chain disruptions can threaten the availability and cost of critical materials without warning. Relying solely on traditional distributor networks or manual processes leaves manufacturers exposed in these moments of crisis.

This is why forward-thinking manufacturers are hedging their bets by shifting to digital commerce channels for resilience. It’s not about abandoning tried-and-true sales reps or partners, but about creating a parallel, direct channel that the company controls end-to-end. When the world throws a curveball—be it a new tariff, a logistics delay, or a sudden change in demand—a company with a nimble digital commerce operation can adapt far faster than one relying 100% on old-school channels.

Modern digital commerce platforms are empowering manufacturers to turn these external challenges into opportunities. They do so in a few key ways:

• Dynamic sourcing and fulfillment

• Direct-to-customer sales that protect margin

• Turning commerce into a margin engine by slowing hiring/spending in COGS

Saltbox Mgmt saw this play out in real time with one recent customer, a global HVAC leader.

After struggling through a prior failed implementation of Salesforce Commerce Cloud, the customer partnered with Saltbox Mgmt to build a future-ready digital channel for their field service teams. The goal? Allow technicians to quickly find and order replacement parts with real-time pricing and inventory across devices.

With Saltbox Mgmt’s blueprinting and integration work, the customer's new system supports complex pricing models, mobile-first usability, and intelligent product search. These are all critical capabilities that help them offset cost pressures without compromising service.

Achieving these benefits isn’t theoretical, it’s happening now with the right technology. Platforms like Salesforce Commerce Cloud combined with a strong Order Management System (OMS) are key enablers for manufacturers seeking agility. They provide the connected infrastructure to execute the strategies above.

Salesforce Commerce Cloud and OMS deliver the agility and control manufacturers need. They support smarter sourcing decisions (through integrated data and business rules), margin protection (through direct sales and pricing control), and fulfillment flexibility (through a unified view of orders and inventory). These tools give manufacturers the levers to pull when the market shifts, rather than being caught flat-footed.

Manufacturers are rethinking their sales channels not as a trendy digital experiment, but as a strategic necessity. Digital commerce is proving to be a hedge against the uncertainties of global trade and supply dynamics. It offers a way to take back control: to flex sourcing strategies in real time, to preserve margins under cost pressure, and to continue serving customers reliably when competitors might falter.

The bottom line is clear: those who invest in robust digital sales channels now are building a more resilient business model for the long term. At Saltbox Mgmt, we’ve seen our manufacturing clients thrive by adopting this approach and using Salesforce’s platform to not only drive growth, but to safeguard that growth against whatever comes next. In an era of constant change, a well-executed digital commerce strategy is the closest thing to a safety net.