Requests your clients send

What it is

A buyer can ask you to source a product without writing to you: from your Catalogue, or with New request for anything else. Their request arrives in Sourcing > Requests like the ones you record yourself, with Source set to Portal.

Why it matters

Requests arrive complete (product, quantity, delivery place, date and photo), and nothing gets lost in a chat. You work them through the same steps as any other request.

Steps

1. The buyer selects Request this product in the catalogue, or opens New request.
2. They fill in What do you need? and Quantity (pieces), and if they know them Deliver to, Incoterm, Needed by, I need a sample first and a Reference photo, then select Send request.
3. You get a notification (the bell at the top). It goes to the request’s agent; a new request has none yet, so every Sourcing Manager and Sourcing Agent gets it.
4. Open the request, set the Assigned Agent, and continue with Ask factories for prices.

Common mistakes

• Leaving a portal request without an Assigned Agent. Every later message from the client then notifies the whole team.
• Expecting every product in the catalogue. Only products with a photo, Allow Sales and Maintain Stock ticked are shown.

Tips

• The request’s title is made from the product and the quantity, for example “Corrugated Shipping Carton, 40,000 pieces”. You can change it.
• Add a photo to your best-selling products: they appear in the catalogue, and clients can order them again in a click.