In today’s promotional products and print services market, distributors are being pinched to get their sourcing leaner, cut costs, and keep quality up—all while attempting to navigate a pretty unsettled global trade war with rising tariffs, shifting demands, and your run-of-the-mill, everyday supply chain disruptions. Utilizing smart sourcing software provides business entities a competitive edge in that its users are in a better position to handle major problems such as these by raising process visibility, providing real time information for enhanced decision making, and driving efficiency in areas that perhaps would never have been deemed as time consuming or costly.
The Advertising Specialty Institute’s 2024 State of the Industry report revealed that more than 70% of distributors rank managing supplier performance and controlling costs as their top sourcing challenges. But with the right tools, distributors can reduce these and optimize their operations. Here are five key features you’ll want to look out for when searching for a sourcing platform that can truly make a difference in your day-to-day, and your bottom line.
1. Advanced Spend Control Features
Successful spend control is a game-saver for distributors. Having absolute control and surveillance measures on large and small purchasing decisions can have a tremendous impact on your bottom line. As sourcing prices rise, it’s more crucial than ever that distributors leverage their purchasing power with the proper visibility and strategic controls in place.
According to research from the Hackett Group and similar firms, companies that implement automated procurement software can reduce overall purchasing costs by approximately 20%, with some realizing savings of up to 50%. Applications like DB Sourcing can help distributors leverage these savings with strong spend control features such as:
- Enhanced Approval Rules: When you tailor workflows within the system to match your processes and policies, you ensure every purchase gets the right review and approval—no surprises down the line.
- Configurable Workflow Builder: For easily setting up rules for everything from simple budget limits to complex approval hierarchies—without IT intervention!
- Multi-Parameter Rule Support: Defined conditions based on factors like product type, supplier count, and item costs, ensure every purchase meets your business’s overall strategic goals.
These capabilities not only help streamline the procurement process but also ensure that distributors have full visibility and control over their spending, without the extra administrative burden or risk of costly mistakes.
2. Streamlined Project & Supplier Management
Manual supplier and project management often means juggling multiple spreadsheets, emails, phone calls, and lots of manual tracking. Without proper oversight, this can lead to delays and rising operational costs, especially for larger distributor operations. By connecting project and supplier management to sourcing platforms, distributors can define clear, efficient processes, speed up decision-making, and reduce the complexities of manual management.
In fact, as the HICX Voice of the Supplier survey found, 60% of suppliers to some of the largest organizations globally feel that they spend too much time on customer-driven administrative work.
Here’s how supplier management via a dedicated software platform can save time and reduce errors:
- Live Dashboards: When you can see everything visualized—like job status and action items—it’s way easier to stay on top of project timelines and make sure everything stays clear and on track.
- Standardized Product Templates: With pre-defined templates, you can create consistent, accurate quotes with all the information needed, minimizing errors and follow-up time, every time.
- Robust Approval Rules: With dynamic, customizable approval rules in place, you can control what jobs or suppliers require approval(s), for even more control.
- Competitive Quoting: Ensure that responses from suppliers meet your specific requirements, so you can easily compare bids and select the best vendor, no matter what the job.
- Cost Savings Analysis: By automatically analyzing and comparing savings across bids, you’re empowered to make data-driven decisions and select the best value!
Powerful features like these allow users to manage projects and suppliers more efficiently, while maximizing cost savings and quality.
3. Real-Time Data Access through Integrations like SAGE
With a day-to-day setting whose prices and supply are continuously changing, real-time information on product parameters is invaluable. By integrating real-time pricing, specification, and availability data, the distributors can guide their decisions with minute-by-minute data and minimize costs as well as effort.
Although most distributors recognize that access to real-time product information is a key driver of competitiveness, many have yet to implement the tools necessary to provide this critical data.
SAGE integration is particularly relevant because it allows distributors to directly connect with their suppliers’ systems for real-time data, streamlining processes and reducing the chance for error. Here’s how real-time data and integrations like SAGE, offered by DemandBridge, can benefit distributors:
- Real-Time Product Updates: When your systems are synced up, you can automatically pull the latest product specs, images, and prices straight from your suppliers’ systems, ensuring your quotes and proposals are always based on the most accurate and up-to-date data. This direct connection to supplier information helps eliminate manual entry errors and improves pricing accuracy.
- Job & Project Monitoring: With this premier integration, users can actively track the status of print projects in real time, so you always know where things stand and can adjust on the fly as needed.
- Collaboration Tools & File Management: Empowered with interactive tools, users can manage file attachments and collaborate with colleagues within the context of their digital file jacket, streamlining workflows and speeding up decision-making.
- ERP Integration: Sync purchase orders, invoices, and vendor data with your ERP system to eliminate manual data entry and improve overall efficiency.
- Efficient Proposal Creation & Submission: With integrated systems, users can easily manage the full cycle—from generating proposals to submitting orders to suppliers—keeping everything streamlined and accurate.
SAGE integration and such integrations like it allow distributors to automate tasks, reduce human errors, and make faster, data-based decisions, staying one step ahead of the competition.
4. Instant Connections with Trusted Distributor & Industry Partners
In today’s rather unstable market, having access to a wide network of solid suppliers is not a luxury—it’s a competitive advantage. A diverse supplier base guarantees that you get the most value for your application—whether you require a specialty item or high-volume order. It also enables distributors to compare products, pricing, and lead times, helping reduce costs, avoid delays, and fill customer specifications more reliably.
A 2023 article from Supply Chain Management Review highlights that supplier diversity not only drives improved procurement outcomes and reduces risks during supply chain disruptions but also leads to a 133% greater return on procurement investments for companies with diverse supplier bases.
With DB Sourcing, distributors have hub access to an enormous network of pre-vetted suppliers—without spending hours trying to locate or contact vendors one by one. Not only is time saved, but risks of errors are reduced, data accuracy is maximized, and teams are freed from unnecessary administrative tasks to concentrate on strategic sourcing decisions. The result is a faster, more efficient process that leads to better pricing, less turnaround time, and greater confidence in every order. Plus, there’s the added benefit of the DB Alliance Network, which we’ll get into next.
5. Access to Pre-Vetted, Reliable Suppliers at Your Fingertips
Building strong supplier relationships has always been critical to operational success—especially in industries where timelines, product quality, and trust matter most.
Whereas the DemandBridge marketplace connects distributors with a wide range of suppliers and industry partners, the DB Alliance Network takes a more focused approach by offering access to our select group of pre-vetted, trusted suppliers. This curated network allows you to bypass the time-consuming process of searching and vetting appropriate suppliers, ensuring that you only work with those who meet your high standards for quality, reliability, and on-time delivery.
In the competitive and niche industries that DemandBridge serves, working with suppliers who truly understand the specific needs of distributors is a key advantage! The DB Alliance Network offers a distinct competitive edge by ensuring that distributors can quickly access the right suppliers without compromising quality or service.
Here’s how working with suppliers in the DB Alliance Network sets you apart:
- Streamlined Supplier Selection: By leveraging an exclusive network of pre-qualified suppliers, distributors can quickly identify partners who are aligned with their business needs, reducing the complexity and delays of supplier research and qualification.
- Stronger Supplier Relationships: With a select network of trusted suppliers, distributors are able to build more strategic, long-term relationships that foster better communication, reliability, and personalized service.
- Targeted Expertise & Specialization: The DB Alliance Network provides access to suppliers with specialized knowledge of the industries served by DemandBridge, ensuring that distributors receive tailored solutions that meet unique requirements and standards.
- Predictable Lead Times and Pricing: Working with a vetted network ensures more consistent delivery schedules and stable pricing, reducing the uncertainty that often comes with sourcing from unknown or less reliable suppliers.
By leveraging the DB Alliance Network and similar resources offered by other provider networks, distributors can gain a competitive edge, ensure smooth operations, and build strong, reliable supplier partnerships—without the extra time and effort typically required to source and vet new suppliers.
Final Thoughts
In the dynamic sourcing environment of today, distributors can no longer waste time using outdated tools or slow processes. With more complex supply chains and shifting customer demands, having the right sourcing software in place is no longer a nicety—it’s a necessity.
Modern-day systems of sourcing automate more than simply functions. Distributors are capable of making smarter decisions, economizing on the cost of running operations, and communicating more actively with suppliers due to real-time information, automations, and enhanced visibility end-to-end. Whether enforcing better spend controls, managing projects efficiently, or working with an increased network of already pre-screened suppliers, a suitable software solution makes sourcing into a strategic as opposed to an ad-hoc process.
Technology investors such as DB Sourcing who invest in it position themselves for long-term success. With better tools, clearer sight, and more productive alliances, they’re more apt to navigate supply chain turbulence, stay responsive in a difficult world, and deliver superior value to their clients—step by step.
For more information on DB Sourcing or DemandBridge, reach out to us today: https://www.demandbridge.com/contact/
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