The cost of inventory sourcing services will vary on a number of factors, including the volume of your order, the kind of product being requested, the location of the service provider, and whether or not you want them to offer other services, like inventory management.

What sets Quikful apart from other inventory sourcing services is that we don’t just specialize in helping businesses get the products they want. We help businesses manage their entire supply chain, including finding a supplier, getting products made, getting items to fulfillment warehouses, managing those warehouses, and fulfilling orders on behalf of companies. We offer everything a business might need, along with the depth of experience to get you to the best suppliers at the best prices.

Contact us! We’ll go over your business and your needs, and we’ll make a determination as to whether the services we offer are a good fit for your business.

Aside from what we’ve outlined, one of the most important tips is to be patient. Don’t rush to the first option you see. Instead, find a list of potential candidates, and take your time vetting them. This can be making sure they offer the services you need, as well as making sure that they don’t use underhanded business tactics.

Once you’ve chosen a provider, there are a few tips that you can follow to make sure you get the most out of what they offer:

• Communicate: Just like how it’s important that the service is able to communicate easily with you, you need to be prepared to regularly communicate with them. Respond to their questions and make specific needs known so they can meet them.
• Monitor: If you’re working with a new sourcing service, keep an eye on their progress. Are they doing what they said they would do? Are they meeting deadlines? Are they otherwise reaching the expectations they’ve set for you? This can help to prevent problems or to end a business relationship that isn’t a good fit before you become too deeply invested.
• Flexibility: Finally, remember to be reasonably flexible with your provider. Things can go wrong that are outside of their control and changes may need to be made quickly. This is why you should be readily available to communicate with your provider so they can quickly make changes to address unexpected issues

Let’s take a look at some challenges you may face when using a sourcing service:

• Lack of pricing transparency: Many sourcing services make it difficult to see what you’re actually paying for, and these are not providers you should be partnering with. Take the time to fully understand exactly what you’ll be paying for, and if it seems like the service is trying to hide fees, move on to a different option.
• Inflexible contracts: Many providers will create contracts that are frustratingly binding so it’s difficult to end services if you aren’t happy with what they offer. Again, this is another reason to take the time to fully understand the contract and how to end the contract if working with the provider isn’t beneficial to your business.
• Limited selection: Some providers may offer fantastic service, but their selection of suppliers is limited, which can frustrate your search for the perfect fit. Make sure that your provider either specializes in your specific industry or has a broad range of options to choose from.