Why is Sourcing Playground different from the usual sourcing platforms?

We often get asked by suppliers why our platform is radically different from the usual B2B sourcing platforms that they use?

So, this would be a good time for an explanation.

Their questions usually relate to the following;

• “Why can’t we view buyers’ profiles and contact details? We can on other platforms!”

• “Why must we submit a quote, and have this quote accepted, before we can view the buyer’s details?”

• “Why is it only the buyer that can initiate communication?”

• “We do we not know who the buyer is before quoting?”

• “Why can’t we browse buyers?”

These are good questions. Honestly, we expect our suppliers to ask them. When they do, our answer is simple.

“Sourcing Playground is not like other platforms”

The best explanation, is that we focus on the needs of the buyer. This is not to say we do not pay equal attention to the needs of suppliers. Not at all!

What it means, is that we want our suppliers to be the best suppliers they can be! With the thousands and thousands of suppliers out there, average suppliers struggle to get business. We know this because we get contacted by suppliers every day, who cannot find buyers.

These days being “average” will not get you business. Especially, when numerous suppliers are competing for the same buyer. Often projects on our platform get in excess of 20 quotes. And, keep in mind, these buyers are probably using other platforms as well. So, they could be getting well in excess of 100 quotes for on project. That’s a lot of competition.

Our team has collectively over 20 years experience sourcing and have used every B2B site out there. They all have one major failing. They promise suppliers the world, but make no such promises to buyers.

They put very little effort and focus on what their buyers want out of a sourcing platform.

How do we know this?

Simple. We have been using these platforms for long enough and know them inside and out!

Sourcing Playground, on the other hand, asks two very simple questions.

• What do our buyers want?
• How do we give our buyers what they want, and still cater for what our suppliers want?

A good way to illustrate this, is through an example. We are positive every buyer will relate to this.

Let’s say you post a Request For Quotation (RFQ), for cotton/spandex leggings, and specifically state that you are looking for factories in Fujian province, China only.

This is how things will play out.

• You will get fifty quotes.

• Some will be via the platforms messaging service, and some will be direct emails, as the suppliers can see my details.

• Now you need to use two methods of communication. The messenger service and email. Extra work, as not everything is in one place.

• Half the quotes will be from suppliers outside China. Some might not have noticed I mentioned Fujian. Even worse, they noticed and contacted me anyway. The ones that noticed send long emails or messages explaining why I should consider them. This is a waste of time, as experienced buyers know their business. Do not assume that their choice of location is random.

• Another twenty will be from Chinese suppliers outside Fujian.

• Five will be from suppliers offering totally unrelated products, like generators, sunglasses, and jam.

• Five will be from Fujian suppliers that can meet my requirements.

For a buyer, 55 of these 60 messages are spam.

We do not mean any offence to any suppliers reading this, but it is fact! If you are contacting a buyer and cannot meet their requirements, you are sending unsolicited messages. This is spam. We have not even mentioned the follow up by all these suppliers. Another hundred mails/messages.

This is why we have made our system “blind”. Only buyers can initiate contact with a supplier if they are happy with the quote. On top of this, the “blind” system ensures that quotes only come through Sourcing Playground’s platform. No emails, Whatsapp messages, etc. No double work for the buyer.

Taking this into account, we have also spent a lot of time preparing resources for suppliers.

As mentioned, we will always take their needs seriously.

These resources have to do with how to create a great profile, and how to send a relevant, top quality quotation. We really hope this explanation is useful to our buyers, and our suppliers.

We are happy to listen to any input you might have, whether favourable or not. As usual, we hope that all our buyers and suppliers have the best sourcing experience possible!!

Happy Sourcing.