Why sourcing the right supplier can be beneficial for businesses?
When sourcing a supplier for your business, search engines provide comfort as long as you have a search term. However, the challenge comes when you start to rely on the information provided by the search engine to make long term pivotal and strategic decisions such as supplier selection. Here are some steps you can take when selecting your supplier. Read to find out more.
Purchase Crown Connective's supplier e-books and request references
You need to get to the root of identifying if the supplier is beneficial for you and your company. Ask specific questions pertaining to the supplier's customer service, delivery model, and ability to meet your business needs. Discover the expertise they are good at delivering. Crown Connective's supplier e-books are tailored for each business niche, which takes the hassle out of asking these questions.
Ask enough questions to your suppliers
Even though Crown Connective provides you with supplier contact details, we would still encourage you to ask your supplier(s) questions. Ask about and research the long-term business strategy of their business. What new markets are they pushing, product development, and are they on-trend?
Don't always fall for the cheapest prices
Literally, quality is synonymous with a high price! Suffice it to be that prices go down with bad quality. With this in mind, you don't have to feel you have got a good offer when you haggle down your supplier to the lowest price. Do your research and find the price range from most sellers, and any odd price most probably indicates compromised quality.
Analyze basic information of the supplier
Take your time to look at the details of your potential suppliers. Look at their business name, what they sell, do they manufacture as well? How many units of products have they sold? When was the store opened? To check for these, ask your chosen supplier(s) from the Crown Connective supplier e-book.
Check how many products the supplier sells
Suppliers who sell a variety of items in a different niche often lack top-notch professionalism and offer less favorable pricing. For instance, if you want to import electronic products, go for suppliers who specifically focus on the electronics niche. With this idea, you can cross-sell as you will get a better product idea when you choose a supplier with a specific market focus.
Purchase from suppliers that have 95 percent plus positive rating
While the positive feedback rate indicates the rate of feedback the supplier has gotten over time, the feedback score shows the volume of sales made by the seller. When sourcing our suppliers listed in the Crown Connective e-books, we chose suppliers with feedback scores of 2,000 or more and a 95 percent positive feedback rate.
Stay away from products with no feedback
Another good tip is to stay away from products that have no feedback. Evidently, you wouldn't want your customers to be the testers, and possibly pour their bad experiences as this kills your brand.
Communicate with your choice of supplier
When you shortlist suppliers, there is a need to communicate with them. Call/contact your potential suppliers, ask questions, analyze their professionalism, inquire about the shipping details, and negotiate in the case of big orders. Make use of the contact details provided in the Crown Connective e-books for each supplier, then take note of how long it takes each of them to reply.
Never join the out of stock team
When one tells their customers they are out of stock, they lose customers as well as their trust. To avoid that get more than one supplier for the same or related products, so you don't run out of products to sell to your customers. You may lose a few pounds by selling from two different suppliers, but it will keep the customer's trust intact.
Choosing the proper shipping service
Regular shipping can take about 20-60 days to deliver, but ePacket shipping cuts shipping time drastically to around seven days. When you want to choose a supplier, it's imperative to find one that offers packet service because faster delivery doesn't just build your brand but improves your buyers' experience. ePacket service was put into place to make shipping out of China cheaper and quicker.
Use freight company for suppliers outside the UK
If you choose a supplier based in the UK, inquire with Royal, the best service to use for your business. If the supplier is outside of the UK and the shipping costs are over your budget, we would suggest using a freight company.
Check the suppliers for yourself by placing sample orders
If it's financially possible, you can place about three to five orders with various sellers and check their delivery time, product quality, and shipping package. Do not upload pictures of the products onto your website before testing and verifying your samples. After every evaluation, the test order can be the last point of your supplier evaluation. Once your suppliers pass, you can use them.
Continue to follow Crown Connective and purchase their supplier e-books
The fact is that most retailers will not want to reveal their suppliers to you, so purchase Crown Connective supplier e-books to find the right suppliers for your brand. Get good at building relationships with insiders in the industry, and soon you'll become one of them. Follow Crown Connective on LinkedIn and build your LinkedIn profile to be professional, and start connecting.
Order from your competitor if they have different suppliers
This is something most business owners will not tell you. If your competitor has a different supplier from yours or who you intend to use, place an order on their store to get an idea of the level of service they offer. You might want to consider them or take your game up a notch to stand above the competition.
General tips for safety: Buyers' safety policy
A partial refund is granted if the received item is not as described by the seller. Discuss possible solutions with the seller to reach an amicable agreement. Get your e-book at www.crownconnective.co.uk, choose quality and reliable suppliers, and take your e-commerce business to another level!
