Are suppliers online a better alternative to traditional suppliers?

The internet has come to occupy an important position in the lives of common people, encompassing all spheres of life and activity such as business, commerce, administration, global sourcing, multinational purchasing etc. and so have the roles of traditional activities such as dealers changed over to online suppliers. Particularly suppliers online are increasing occupying a leading role in global sourcing and multinational purchasing. One certainly begins to wonder whether suppliers online are better than traditional suppliers in the context of global sourcing and multinational purchasing activities, or suppliers online are just a hype of the time which might subside in the coming days and traditional dealers will regain their position in the scenario of global sourcing and multinational trading.

In this article we will briefly cover this topic and try to see whether suppliers online are better than traditional suppliers, and gauge the usefulness of both particularly with regards to global sourcing and multinational purchasing activities. Now we know that the main reason behind such phenomenal rise of suppliers online is the power of the internet and the ease and convenience which this technology has to offer even to a layman, not to talk about huge organizations involved in multinational purchasing and global sourcing activities. Hence since backbone of suppliers online is strong in the form of a sturdy technology, it can be certainly said without doubt that suppliers online are a powerful community in the world of global sourcing and multinational purchasing and they are there to stay. Secondly suppliers online are not that much distinct from traditional suppliers in the world of global sourcing and multinational purchasing because most of them are transformation of their traditional roles only. Traditional suppliers which were doing very well in global sourcing and multinational purchasing have adapted themselves by opening a suppliers online wing so to speak in order to benefit from the changing circumstances and advancing technology.

Of course this does not rule out the traditional suppliers in favour of suppliers online in the context of global sourcing or multinational purchasing for there certainly exists ample room for both to coexist harmoniously. Moreover certain types of products or services cannot be handled effectively by suppliers online and no matter how much the global sourcing or multinational purchasing has grown, it still has its limitations especially related to activities which need a more human touch than mere mechanical or robotic involvements. I would not go deeply into this matter but it just takes a little reflection to prove that suppliers online as well as traditional dealers are necessary parts of the current global business scenario despite increasing trends of global sourcing and multinational purchasing activities and none is complete without the other.