Share Advertising Costs With Suppliers

Company advertisements frequently show consumer customers using their product. Notice also, companies where their advertisement show their product or service being used by one of their business customers. Such ads can improve the image and sales of both a buying organization as well as the selling company.

Suppliers are often happy to include their customers in their magazine ads as well as ads on television. It is up to business buyers to suggest a collaboration of this kind. The supplier may compensate the buyer organization when using them in an advertisement by offering a reduced price for their product.

But the arrangement requires a negotiation. There may be no direct compensation to either buyer or seller. Or the supplier may want to be compensated. Sometimes it is worth it for the buying organization to pay a portion of the advertising cost. This can be the case for a small company that wants to get the public’s attention, but has limited funds to pay the full cost of advertising.

This type of arrangement between the buying company and the selling company is not a normal and routine function for the purchasing departmen. However, it shows imagination and thinking outside of the box. It gets the attention of general management and shows the wider interest and higher value of purchasing professionals.

Including your company’s name and photos probably will require getting the agreement of one or more of the buying organization functions. That may be general management, or the advertising department, or the buyer’s marketing function

Art work and wording of the ads should be reviewed and approved before use to make sure the ads include nothing that would embarrass the buying organization. Checking the ads should avoid any erroneous statements, conflicts, or inappropriate pictures or wording. In some cases the ad needs to be checked or reviewed by the legal department.