Blog / Memo 002← All notes
Setup

Setting up your catalog before inviting buyers

Sequence matters more than the software itself. Suppliers who have a strong first month consistently complete these four steps before sending a single invitation.

1. Start with your best sellers, not the full catalog

Loading a full 2,000-line price list before inviting any buyer may seem thorough, but it delays your first real order by weeks and obscures the products that actually drive volume. Suppliers who move fastest begin with the 50–100 SKUs that represent most of their sales, get a buyer ordering against those, then add the remainder over the following weeks.

2. Decide list price versus negotiated pricing up front

If most buyers pay the same price, set that as your list price and override it only for accounts with a special rate. If pricing is negotiated account by account, compile those figures before you begin — from prior quotes, invoices, or an existing spreadsheet — rather than setting them one buyer at a time as questions arise.

3. Keep unfinished items hidden

A product does not need to be visible the day it is added. Discontinued items, seasonal stock, or anything with unfinalized pricing can remain hidden in the catalog until ready. Buyers see only what has been made visible to them.

"We loaded our top 80 items, invited our biggest account, and had a real order in three days. The other 400 SKUs went in over the next month, in batches, while orders kept coming."

4. Test with one buyer first

Before inviting your full buyer list, invite one account, ideally the one that calls most frequently. Confirm what they order, whether the pricing is correct, and whether anything is missing from their view. Resolve any issues once, then invite the remaining buyers with confidence rather than addressing the same question repeatedly.

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