Looks More Professional
- As a buyer, you want to project a professional image. A complete and detailed profile, definitely contributes towards this.
- If you visit any B2B site, are you going to be attracted to suppliers with half completed profiles? Probably not, as it indicates a certain laziness and lack of detail on the supplier’s part.
- If a supplier is unable to complete a simple task, such as completing a profile, how are they going to deal with complicated tasks, such as your order?
- You want suppliers that show attention to detail from the word go.
- The same applies to suppliers you are dealing with.
- If you want them to take you seriously as a buyer, your profile should also be detailed and complete.
- Essentially better profiles attract better suppliers and quotes.
More Information, Better Quotes
- Ensure your company information / description is as complete as possible.
- Suppliers need to know in detail, who you are and what your company does.
- You may be asking yourself, “Why should more profile information lead to better quotes? Surely only project information is the key important for better quotes?”
This is partially true. Here’s why.
- The more informative and detailed your profile, the more professional you look.
- Looking professional creates a strong impression in a supplier’s mind that you know your business. This is without the supplier even contacting you.
- This impression is very powerful, as all first impressions are. This is a fact.
- If a supplier believes you really know your business, they are much less likely to send inflated quotes. The assumption being that if they do, they will be immediately rejected.
- Following this line of reasoning, they have an incentive to send market related quotes.
- If they think you are new to the business, there is a very high likelihood of inflated quotes from many suppliers, so you will have less idea of the market price and probably end up paying a lot more than you should.
Your Position in Your Company
- Stating your position within your company is also an often-overlooked part of your profile. Essentially, people want to know who they are speaking to. Especially in the business world.
- Just like you would want to know who you are talking to when dealing with a supplier, the same applies to those suppliers dealing with you.
A Company Logo Will Catch the Eye
- Sourcing Playground allows you to upload a company logo. A logo adds credibility to your profile, simply because all successful businesses have a logo.
- A logo is not expensive to have designed, and there are plenty of sites online where you can even create one for free. So, get creative.
- A logo should be relevant to your business and should represent it well. The more eye catching the better. Use colors and contrast to create the best logo. One that will catch a supplier’s eye.
- Good suppliers tend to look for details. Average suppliers do not.
Profile Picture
- Besides your company logo, you should also add a profile picture.
- Many people are very visually orientated and respond better to visual cues.
- A photo also adds to a completed profile. Complete and detailed profiles will get more attention.
- Your photo does not need to be professionally done. Any head and shoulders view, with a smile usually works.
- Smiling is important, as you will seem more approachable.
- If you do not want to use a photo of yourself, a photo that represents your company and what it does, will do.
Ensure All Fields Are Filled In
- When you create your profile, ensure you fill in every field in detail.
- A 100% complete profile looks a lot more professional than a 70% complete one.
Heather Williams
Michael Eisman
