How to Prove You’re a Reliable Supplier

The world is a single connected marketplace now thanks to the astronomical progress in information technology over the past few decades. Supply chain management nowadays can make or break a business depending on how efficiently it is handled. Due to the connected nature of today’s world, competition among suppliers is also fiercer than ever. As a result, standing out as a reliable supplier requires some extra effort. The good thing is that the fundamentals have not changed. Read on to learn how to stand out and make a name as a reliable supplier.

Leverage Technology

There is no denying that a supplier needs to leverage technology as much as possible to stay relevant these days. For example, a supplier whose business is about service delivery will gain an edge over its competitors by using service dispatch software. However, the golden rules for achieving success remain the same no matter what type of supplier you are.

Accountability and Quality Control

Businesses of all shapes and sizes demand one thing in common from their stakeholders – accountability. When it comes to choosing a supplier, accountability is even more meaningful. Supply chain management is important because of the central role it plays for any business owner in ensuring the smooth daily operation of their business. You should already have a foot in the door of your potential client if you can meaningfully demonstrate your accountability as a supplier.

The next most critical factor business owners want from their suppliers is quality control. Quality products and services bring new customers to a business and consistency is the key to retaining them in the long run so that the business can recover the acquisition cost and start making a profit. You should visually present your quality control arrangements and checkpoints with a well-drawn and detailed flow chart for your potential client.

Scalability and Competitive Pricing

Most businesses are impacted by seasonality in one way or another. To prove yourself as a reliable supplier, you should understand the nature of your client’s business and plan ahead for any potential surge or decline in their demand with realistic buffers. The last thing you want is for your customer to turn to your competitor because you are out of resources, or to find yourself sitting on excess resources counting losses because you did not foresee the dry season.

Once you have suited yourself to the scalability needs of your client, you should focus on competitive pricing. Be careful about bumping up your prices above the market standard while blindly focusing on sourcing that extra resource when a surge occurs. The key to success here is planning ahead. If you remain proactive and start preparing for a surge in demand ahead of time, you can still keep your prices competitive to remain a reliable supplier.

Communication and Cultural Empathy

Communication is key when it comes to conducting business. In today’s world of instant communication, it is important to define and present your preferred business communication channel and response time with your client so that there remains no room for misunderstanding. Due to the global nature of business these days, you should also make customer support services available in English for the highest compatibility.

After defining the communication channel, it is time to focus on learning about any special needs or preferences your client may have as per their culture or religion and try to accommodate them if feasible. Though it may seem trivial, showing your client that you care and respect their values only helps to strengthen your reliability in the client’s eye. Anticipating such things as national/religious holidays is also crucial to conducting international business.

Credibility

It is good if you can highlight all the positive aspects of your business to the potential client yourself, but it is always better if those facts are also verified by a third party. That is why having a third-party certification or due diligence audit report of your business is very important in quickly earning client trust and also positioning yourself as a reliable supplier.

Compliance

All industries are subject to some form of regulatory and/or ethical compliance to some extent. As a result, business owners value the suppliers who are aware of and comply with the compliance requirements of their industry. In addition to complying with your client’s compliance needs, you should also ensure that your business complies with the requirements of your own industry if applicable. This helps you to stand out to your potential clients among your competitors.

Contingency Plan

Having a realistic contingency plan helps to reassure your client that they are entering a business relationship with a reliable supplier. Unforeseen events may occur at a local or global scale at any time. You may not be able to handle all of them without consequences depending on the scale of the issue, but it is important to maintain a list of potential issues along with your action-plan for a proactive demonstration to your client.

In addition to having a realistic contingency plan, you should also focus on achieving and demonstrating the general best practices of entrepreneurship to your clients so that they start thinking highly of you as a reliable supplier for their business. Good business depends on good relations. Getting to know your client at a personal level, as permitted by business etiquette, helps you create a good bond with them, which may help in ways you wouldn’t anticipate.

Final Thoughts

Supply chain management is a hot topic in the business world these days. Big businesses are hiring top talents to manage their supply chain in the best and most efficient way possible to maximize profit. To become successful as a supplier, you need to plan for long-term business relationships with these companies by positioning yourself as the most reliable supplier among them.