Suppliers expect to be asked. A product that misses your minimums by a few percent is often one email away from a buy, and the ask costs you nothing. The PO Assistant works out the price to ask for, and Ask writes the email.
The price to ask for
When the PO Assistant reads a product and the money falls just short at your cost, its recommendation can be a price: "Ask for $11.82". That's the highest unit cost at which the product reaches your minimum ROI at today's price, rounded down to the cent. Your minimum ROI is in Buying preferences, 30% unless you change it. A read uses credits.
Two things to keep in mind:
- It's today's price. If the chart shows the price sliding or a price war, a cost that works today may not work when your stock arrives. Ask for a little more off, or pass.
- It's your ROI minimum. Look at the profit per unit at the new cost too, so a cheap item doesn't become a buy that makes $0.40 a sale.
An ask for more than about a quarter off rarely works and can sour the relationship. When the gap is that wide, passing is usually the better answer.
The ask
In Ask about this product on the side rail, say what you want: "Write my supplier an ask for this and the other two." Ask drafts a short email for your rep, with each product's cost today, the cost you'd buy at, and the cases you'd order if you say so. You copy it into your own mail. Seller Sync never sends anything to a supplier, and Ask never changes your order without a click.
How to ask
- Ask for a number, not a discount. "Could you do $10.90 on item 4471?" works better than "Can you do better?"
- Offer something back. A bigger first order, full cases, a repeat order, or paying sooner.
- Ask for a few products at once. A rep can move on a group more easily than on one item.
- Ask about the next price band. On a list with price bands, the next band's price may be all you need, and buying a little more to reach it can beat a discount.
When the supplier agrees
Type the new cost into the Cost column on Results. A cost you type overrides the price list for that product and stays through reruns, and the product's details say Cost set by you; see Pack sizes and price tiers. The profit numbers on Results and in the side rail then work from your cost, so the results and your order agree.
Get the new price in writing, an email reply is enough, and check it against the invoice when the order ships.
A worked example
A kitchen gadget costs you $12.40. At today's price of $29.99, Amazon's fees leave $15.37 a unit before your cost, so it makes $2.97, a 24% ROI against your 30% minimum. At $11.82 it makes $3.55, which is 30%. The read says Ask for $11.82, about 5% below your cost.
Two other products in the same catalog read Ask for $6.75 and Ask for $18.20. On the gadget's rail you have Ask write one email for all three, with 5 cases of the gadget and 3 of each of the others, and copy it to your rep. The rep says yes to all three. You type $11.82, $6.75 and $18.20 into the Cost column, the gadget now makes 30%, and you add its 5 cases to your order.