How it works
Are you tired of trawling search engines to find quality suppliers? Are you fed up spending hours contacting sources, trying to compile a shortlist of who’s who in the market? Matchboard makes sourcing as simple as 1, 2, 3! Just follow these three simple steps to get started:
- Select a product/service category
- Complete a 60-second questionnaire outlining your needs
- Matched suppliers contact you directly.
How it works “behind the scenes” is that our proprietary matching technology instantly queries your needs against our database of approved suppliers, and produces a shortlist of the best matches. Every request is then quality checked by our verification team, before we connect you with suppliers to assist. Matched suppliers receive your contact details and requirements so you don’t have to “repeat the story” to each one.
Let’s take an example: you want to outsource your call centre but don’t know who’s reputable, and you’re not even sure what information you need to provide call centre outsourcers so they can give you a quotation…
Matchboard’s questionnaire takes away that headache by prompting you for all the questions you’ll need to answer, and then mapping every criterion you specify against a comprehensive supplier database. A short time later, you’ll be speaking to all the right outsourcers with a call centre in the location of your choice! At any time during the process, if you prefer to speak to a Matchboard consultant to guide you along the way, we are only too happy to help.
Matchboard is proudly vendor-agnostic – we’re on your side, with the simple goal of finding you the genuine best-fit solutions for your needs. In nearly every instance, we’ll connect you with multiple suppliers who’ve met our stringent quality criteria. We also monitor the quality of service they provide on an ongoing basis, through a Customer Satisfaction Survey.
There are no catches – Matchboard is a free service to use, as we earn our revenues from suppliers. Our suppliers are happy to pay a small fee for the opportunity to connect with companies with a need they know they can fulfill.
Try our service for your next sourcing need, and see just how quick and easy it is to use!
Buyer FAQ
The privacy of our buyers’ and suppliers’ information is of paramount importance to Matchboard. Please see our Privacy Policy.
Please feel free to call Matchboard at any time for a complimentary phone consultation.
Matchboard is a facilitator, simplifying the process for buyers to find the best-fit suppliers of the product or service they are looking for. After making introductions, Matchboard does not stay in the middle of any business discussions between the parties.
Matchboard conducts its own due diligence prior to accepting a supplier on its database. Mechanisms include market feedback, client reference checks, site visits and technology demos, but exclude formal assessment of corporate/financial viability. Matchboard cannot accept responsibility for the performance of the supplier. However we carefully monitor the service buyers receive from suppliers via customer surveys. Negative feedback is investigated, and Matchboard reserves the right to remove suppliers from its database.
Yes
In most cases, requests are verified and sent to matched suppliers within 24 hours. After that, suppliers are encouraged to contact buyers asap, within 1 business day. In the unlikely event that suppliers have not initiated contact with you in this timeframe, please contact Matchboard – we will follow up immediately.
Please e-mail info@matchboard.com.au and a Matchboard representative will contact you as a high priority.
Alternatively, please call us on 1300 062 711.
Our buyer/supplier matching process follows two steps in order to identify best fit: the first is data-driven, where an extensive database of suppliers’ profile information, capacity, capability, experience, locations and desired business parameters is matched with “needs data” derived from a questionnaire completed by the buyer. The second step is manual verification to ensure the quality of the data-matching results.
No, the service is free to use for buyers. We are funded by the supplier community.
Supplier FAQ
Please contact sales@matchboard.com.au with an outline of your product or service. Matchboard will continuously add new categories to meet market demand.
Matchboard does not promote its supplier database on its website. Your brand and logo will not be used by Matchboard unless by express mutual written consent for a specific purpose (for example, a joint PR exercise).
No. However we recommend that suppliers try the service for at least 6 months.
There is no joining fee and no ongoing fees – just a simple success fee. Pricing varies by supplier category. Please contact sales@matchboard.com.au for more information.
If you supply a quality product or service related to sales, service or back office, please contact sales@matchboard.com.au and we will walk you through our participation criteria and answer any questions you may have. You’ll need to sign a Supplier Agreement, provide 2 references (name, company, email), and complete a Supplier Profile – it’s that simple.
The supplier’s authorised contact will receive an email marked high priority, containing buyer contact information and details of the opportunity (eg. budget, scale, specific services or products sought).
Matchboard targets on average 3 suppliers per lead. This number may vary from 1 to a maximum of 5, depending on buyer criteria.
This depends on buyer demand, as well as your capability, capacity and willingness to accept different types of business. Some suppliers receive leads multiple times per week, others 1-2 times a year.
The Pinboard is designed to make the market aware of events, reports, business opportunities and important news. In most cases, it is not a place for suppliers to simply advertise a product or service. If you would like to pin a notice, please contact us.
Referral Partner FAQ
Outsourcing is often thought of as a way to reduce costs, particularly if the outsourcing destination is in a developing economy with low living costs such as the Philippines, South Africa or Fiji. However there are many other benefits to outsourcing – for example, the “HR headache” is passed on to the outsourcer and does not present a distraction and burden to the company. Outsourcing provides companies with greater bandwidth to contract and expand based on planned or unplanned events. It also reduces the liability of fixed employee costs, lowering the company’s risk profile. Not to mention that outsourcing is an excellent strategy if the process is not a core competency of the company, and the outsourcer can bring expertise to the table which is not resident inhouse.
There is no one size fits all and therefore no reliable list of “best” outsourcing companies. The best company for your needs will vary based on criteria such as budget, location, industry and volume of work. You can enter your needs via a multiple choice guided questionnaire to find the best companies matching your specific needs.
Not all outsourcing services are suitable to offshore. For example, companies that deal in the aged care sector typically find their customer-base prefers communicating with someone local. Other examples where onshore is often a preference include brands with high-ticket products/services, where customers expect a premium experience; and government organisations, which want to keep jobs in their own country. However the bulk of front and back office services in most industries are potential candidates for offshoring. Simple, repetitive tasks are easiest to offshore, if these processes are not able to be automated. Customer service, telemarketing, early stage consumer collections, and finance & accounting are all functions where offshore is a common delivery model. Contact Matchboard if you are unsure if the process or function you want to outsource is suitable to run overseas.
Contact centre and back office services are the most popular to outsource, along with sales and IT.
Outsourcing companies traditionally charged on an hourly rate basis, or per transaction (such as call received or claim managed). But over time more innovative pricing models have grown in popularity, aligned to the client’s desired business outcomes.
An outsourcer is another term for an outsourcing supplier or vendor. Outsourcers are also known as BPOs (business process outsourcing companies) or ITOs (information technology outsourcing companies).
Most medium-to-large companies outsource one or more functions. The telco industry was a pioneer in outsourcing offshore to the Philippines and India, followed by energy retailers, insurance, travel and retail brands. Sectors outsourcing onshore more than offshore include Government, health care and banking.
For a decade now, the number of small businesses outsourcing has steadily risen – outsourcers have packaged and priced their services to meet the needs of SMEs, including offshore outsourcers establishing an onshore sales presence
With its many benefits, outsourcing is a growing industry with the major players increasing in size and more and more new players coming into the market. Outsourcing has become an accepted standard approach to managing non-core processes.
If you’re outsourcing for the first time, the most critical decision you can make is which outsourcing company you partner with. This will be the biggest factor in whether the outsourcing succeeds or fails. Look for an outsourcing company that shares your values, is aligned with your approach to people, and comes with strong references from existing clients. Secondly, it’s important to understand market rates for the outsource services in the chosen location, so that you can negotiate a fair and reasonable price. Thirdly, understand that outsourcing is a partnership which requires investment in time and effort from both sides, and it’s a mistake to think you can “ship” a process to an outsourcing company and cease regular involvement.
