How Will You Generate Business in 2019?

By myConnXion

As we kick off a new year, many businesses large and small are thinking about their growth strategies for 2019. Investing your resources to develop your business capabilities and fuel innovation has become a vital component for market success. Suppliers are often asked to highlight their differentiating factors in a bid to win large contracts from corporate buyers. So in today’s market, what stands out? How do you generate more business and maximize your productivity?

There are a few key areas any organization, specifically small to medium-sized companies, can focus on for this coming year:

• Security & Risk: A few notable corporate buyers have been in the news lately having their confidential business information compromised because of a weakness in their supply chain. As security and risk mitigation are becoming more important for procurement teams, maintaining a code of conduct/ethics, keeping your technology up-to-date and training your employees can play a crucial role in developing buyer-supplier trust, and building business contingency.
• Transparency: Customers across various markets and industries are increasingly demanding that businesses act with corporate social responsibility and transparency. Appealing to your target audience can help boost your advertising, capabilities and brand reputation.
• Project Management: Sometimes businesses with constrained time and money don’t place enough upfront investment in organizational controls or training. Relying on third-party expertise to lay a strong foundation can pave the way for business success.
• Collaboration: Businesses shouldn’t underestimate the power of collaborating with their stakeholders, whether clients or corporate buyers. Engaging with diverse backgrounds and new ideas can encourage product innovation that makes your brand stand out from all the rest. Developing sustainable relationships with your buyers and the other suppliers you work with will give you more room and experience to grow.

As a whole, procurement is rapidly moving forward. Sourcing new business can be tough. The RFP process your business enters into can be complex and tedious, with low rates of return. Putting your vendor information into a company’s registration portal and bid pool might not generate any business at all. Conferences and trade shows can be expensive, and take away valuable time that could otherwise be spent working on your business. And in general, there’s a lack of centralized, up-to-date information. These factors impede business development as buyers and suppliers miss valuable connections with each other.

As a rapidly growing supplier ourselves, our team at ConnXus faces these pain points and work closely with both buyers and suppliers. Our background in supplier development has given us a greater understanding of the market gap. The current sourcing process impedes the ability to have meaningful two-way conversations. Additionally, many business owners cite a disconnect between availability and quality of information, and actual timing of opportunities. Outdated business data don’t support in-person networking and sourcing events. Many suppliers don’t have the time or staff to register through individual portals and tell their stories.