Build a promotional product sourcing brief that gets comparable quotes. Use this checklist for specifications, branding, packing, market and deadlines.
LINKORA SOURCE · FIELD GUIDE
One brief, comparable quotes
Product
Material · size · quantity
Decoration
Artwork version · method · position
Packaging
Unit pack · set · outer carton
Deadline
Approval · completion · arrival
Define the item before asking for a price
Start with one row per item, not one paragraph for the whole campaign. Name the product, intended use, material where it matters, dimensions or capacity, colour, target quantity and acceptable quantity range. If the exact model is open, say which properties are fixed and which suppliers may propose. A vague request produces attractively precise prices for products that are not comparable; the missing detail does not disappear, it becomes a supplier assumption that surfaces after selection.
- One row and one item code for every product or colourway
- Separate fixed requirements from points where alternatives are welcome
- Ask suppliers to identify every assumption and exclusion in the quotation
Treat decoration and packing as specifications
Attach the correct artwork version and state the decoration method if it is already decided. Record logo dimensions, position, number of colours and the physical or Pantone reference to be matched. Then describe how one finished unit is packed and what must appear on the inner and outer cartons. Printing, embroidery, engraving and packaging each have their own minimums and setup costs, so leaving them until after the product price is agreed makes the first quotation unusable as a budget.
- Artwork filename and version, logo size, position and process
- Approved colour reference rather than a screen image alone
- Individual packing, units per inner and carton identification
Put the destination and decision dates into the brief
The supplier needs the destination market because materials, labels and documentation may be market-specific, but the compliance decision remains with the buyer and the qualified bodies they appoint. Timing should distinguish the date a quotation is needed, the sample approval date, the factory-ready date and the final in-hand date. Ask for the supplier's production time to begin after approval of the named sample and artwork, not from the day of the first enquiry. This gives every quotation the same clock and exposes any item that cannot fit it before a deposit is paid.
- Destination market and buyer-provided compliance requirements
- Quotation, sample approval, ex-factory and in-hand dates shown separately
- Named approver and a clear route for substitutions or missed dates
Authoritative references
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