One of the crucial decisions your company will make is the selection of a suitable business supplier. Without the right supplier, you will be unable to perform optimally in delivering high-quality products and services to your customers. These are the steps you should take to ensure that your business works with the best supplier possible.
Establish Requirements
Prepare in advance the standards you expect potential business suppliers to meet. Although, some of these may be flexible, while others will be deal-breakers. These may include parameters for order quantities, the time gap between order placement and delivery, the ability to drop-ship orders, ease of communication, terms, and conditions of payments, and policy for returns.
Evaluate Possible Candidates
Use a supplier directory and other sources to locate possible candidates. Consider the options available to you based on the types of businesses they normally supply, their ability to offer fraud and insurance protection, and their reputations. Take particular note of reviews of potential business suppliers by other companies.
Request Bids
After you have identified potential business suppliers that may meet the needs of your company, put out a call for bids. Use a Request for Quotation or Request for Proposal form to delineate the goods or services you work with along with their quantities, standards of quality, and delivery dates. Conduct research to be sure that the supply chains of possible suppliers are reliable.
Compare Offers
After you have received submissions from the potential suppliers you have approached, compare them to find out which candidate best meets your company’s budget and standards for quality. Once you select the offer that seems most suitable, conduct negotiations to fix the terms of the contract. If necessary, obtain legal assistance for this step.
Ensure Suppliers Meet Their Commitments
Monitor the supplier you have chosen, to be sure that they meet the standards of your agreement. Collect and evaluate data on the punctuality of order shipments, the completeness of orders, and the quality of goods received. If your supplier’s performance falls below minimum standards, negotiate with them to bring about improvements or terminate the contract and find a new supplier.
For more advice on selecting the right business supplier, contact Progressive Capital Funding.