The Benefits of Communicating with Your Vendors

Vendors are people, too. As a matter of fact you may be a purchaser and a vendor also. So, you know how important it is for companies to treat you with respect and communicate with you often.

Sometimes vendors can be your best advertisers. If they have a good relationship with a business; vendors are constantly being asked about referring other companies through word of mouth and community referrals. If a vendor delivers a product, that delivery person is out talking to hundreds of people a day and the people they talk to are usually the ones who are looking to do business in other areas and are interested of the "word on the street" so to speak.

Knowing your vendors and how they operate is very important when things go smoothly but more important when you have a problem. When you have a dispute with a vendor you really need to already have the "answer person's" phone number and email address handy so you can quickly get the situation resolved. So many times I have seen these issues drag on for months at a time, especially if the vendor is very large, this takes away any hope for resolution in your accounting departments.

In any business these days it is a relief when we are familiar with the voice on the phone or the email address that we have been waiting to see. After you have taken the time to establish a relationship with your vendors you have another kindred soul in the mix. We are all tied together through different business types and entities, but we are still all a part of a community if you will.

Networking with your vendors is usually a good educational tool and there have been times when I have spoken to managers at a vendor company about some different aspects of a situation I was having in my company, and vica versa. Usually if I get a tip about a good seminar in town or a great book, it is nice to have another business acquaintance to share the information with.

These days, it seems old school to build any relationships with your vendors, but it really is to your advantage to do so. When you need a human being to help you with some special needs on your order or if of course you needed your order yesterday, suddenly, you realize you don't have any one to call for help.