6 Secrets for Success

One of the most popular features on Brandboom is our Connect Marketplace. 

You can get your brand in front of verified buyers looking for products like yours in just a few clicks.

In this article, we’ll dive into how it works and how you can set yourself up for success.

Let’s get started.

What is Brandboom Connect Marketplace?

The Connect Marketplace acts as a sales and marketing tool for your brand. It gives you warm introductions and leads to new buyers looking for products like yours.

The best part? Everyone with a Brandboom account can use it, and there’s no fee to get started.

How does Brandboom Connect find me new buyers?

We do this through our curated, AI-driven marketplace. Our AI learns details about your brand and the purchasing habits of more than 200,000 verified buyers. As our AI learns more about you, we can match you with the best potential buyers for your products.

Then, we market your brand to your potential buyers via a curated buyer feed. Buyers can browse your presentation, learn about your brand, and submit purchase orders.

Pictured: Curated buyer feed

What information does Connect’s AI use to create matches?

Our proprietary AI takes in the preferences that brands select when joining Connect, as well as the following activity:

  • Who brands share their Brandboom line sheets with
  • How buyers interact with a brand’s line sheets (which types of buyers are opening them, which types of buyers are placing orders, which buyers aren’t interacting with them, etc.)
  • How buyers interact with different types of presentations

Why Brands Love our Connect Marketplace

It’s low risk, high reward.

It’s completely free to get started. We only charge if we find a new lead who submits a purchase order.

It’s also cost-effective. Before the pandemic, the average cost to meet at a prospect’s office was $259, including travel, lunch, and so on. This estimate is only for one prospect, and there is no guarantee they will show interest in purchasing.

By contrast, we only charge $40-$60 for a guaranteed lead who has submitted a purchase order.

Your exact fee will depend on your Brandboom plan.

Free plan: $60

Startup plan: $50

Business plan: $40

We do the heavy lifting for you.

Here’s an analogy for you.

Think of a gathering you’re attending where you don’t know the other people in the room. It takes time to build up the courage to say hi to someone you don’t know, let alone introduce yourself to everyone in the room.

Now, imagine you’re attending another gathering. This time, a friend who has established relationships with everyone in the room introduces you around. This is much faster, and the connections are stronger because they came from a mutual connection.

Think of Brandboom Connect as that friend. We’re here to introduce you to our buyers. We have over 200,000 active buyers, and in our latest survey, 90% said they loved purchasing through Brandboom. 

To make things even better, Connect Marketplace works in the background 24/7, so you can focus on running your business.

Set Yourself Up for Success

Now that we’ve talked about the benefits, let’s dive into how you can be successful.

Step 1: Customize your line sheet

The quality of your line sheet is the most significant factor in your success. 

After looking at thousands of line sheets, we’ve found that the following components make a line sheet most successful.

1) “About the Brand” Section

The “About the Brand” tab will appear at the top of your line sheets. Buyers can click into this section to get a good feel of who you are, your mission, and your products.

Include text, logo, and product images showing potential buyers what your brand is about. 

2) Lifestyle Images & Videos

Add lifestyle images and videos to the line sheet to help buyers get a feel for your collection and brand beyond the products.

Brands that include lifestyle content are much more likely to find new buyers than those that don’t.

You can add lifestyle content to your presentation by using the image and video sections on your presentation customization page.

3) High-Quality Product Images

Don’t underestimate the value of professional photos! You can have fantastic products, but buyers won’t be able to tell without high-quality images. Buyers have to put a lot of trust in new brands to order products: Do your part to represent your products in the best way possible.

Brands often ask: Do photos with a model do better or worse? Our general rule is that images without a model do better; however, model shots can be great for apparel, so long as they are high quality. Accessories or smaller pieces can get lost on a model and typically do better on their own. Model shots can be great for apparel, as long as they are high quality.

4) Line Sheet Organization

We recommend exploring all of our customization features for your line sheet. Here’s where you’ll add those lifestyle images and videos, organize your products, add text, change font settings, etc.

Organizing your products is especially important. Buyers don’t want to search the entire line sheet to find a product. Navigating your line sheet should be as easy as possible.

We recommend organizing by product type (e.g., shirts, pants, etc.) or by collection (e.g., same design in each product section).

Here’s a step-by-step guide to adding product sections.

Step 2: The Vetting Process

We want your line sheet to be successful, so we’ll take care of this step for you. All you do is submit your line sheet. To submit, log in to your account and click the handshake icon on the left-hand side. 

After setting up your account, you’ll see a drop-down menu and can select the line sheet you’d like to submit.

At that point, we’ll have our team review it. If we think there’s something that needs improvement, we’ll let you know. If you want feedback before submitting, you can always contact your account manager.

Step 3: Set your presentation settings.

In presentation settings, choose either the  "At-Once" or "Future" order type. You can also set optional order minimums and deposits.

At-Once vs. Future Orders: For presentations where you have the inventory on hand, select At-Once ordering. If you want your presentation to be available only for pre-orders, select Future ordering. This helps fulfill orders successfully and lets your buyers know what delivery timeline to expect.

Order Minimums: Order minimums help protect brands, especially smaller ones that need to reach a certain threshold before manufacturers produce their items.

To set a minimum, enter a dollar minimum or SKU minimum in settings.

The optimal minimum amount depends on your product price point and typical buyers. For example, boutiques may not be able to purchase in high volumes. And if you sell coats at $100 each, a minimum of $400 may not be enough to start the manufacturing process.

Deposits: You also have the option to set a dollar or percentage deposit amount. If you are on our business plan, you can collect a percentage or dollar deposit when the buyer places the order.

Step 4: Set your preferences accurately.

When you start using Connect Marketplace, it will walk you through your preferences for regions to pitch to and your product price point. This is our AI’s jumping off point. If your preferences aren’t accurate, it will be more difficult for our AI to find you the right buyers, so think a bit before making your choices.

Step 5: Help our AI learn your brand. 

With Auto Mode, you can choose to set your preferences and forget about it, letting the AI do the work. But it’s like a gym membership: The more time you put in, the better the results will be. 

The same is true with our Connect Marketplace. You’ll get the best results when, in addition to letting our AI do its job, you are generating your own leads. This gives our AI more opportunities to learn about your products and buyers, increasing its ability to match you with buyers who are a good fit for your products. 

Step 6: Keep an eye on analytics.

Take a look at your analytics. Here, you’ll be able to see your leads and engagement to gauge what is and is not working.

Remember: You can make updates to your line sheet at any time. If you think there are areas you want to improve but would like more guidance, you can always reach out to your account manager or contact us.

Auto Mode vs. Manual Mode

What we’ve been discussing so far is our Auto Mode. It’s the default option when you join. We recommend keeping it on because it gives you the most exposure with the smallest time commitment.

Within Auto Mode, you have options to customize your experience. You can turn it on and off whenever you’d like, and you can choose the types of buyers we send your presentation to. Here are your three options:

  1. Connect Buyers: We’ll send your presentation to buyers you’ve never met, focusing on new leads interested in brands and products like yours. 
  1. My Buyers: We’ll send your presentation to your existing buyers to view in their buyer dashboard. This is especially useful for brands that are short on time and want their buyers to stay updated.
  1. All Buyers: We’ll send your presentation to both existing and new buyers. Maximum exposure, minimum work.

Once we have enough data, you’ll have the option to switch to Manual Mode. With Manual Mode, you will choose which new buyers you want to share your presentation with. It requires some time to research and filter through our many buyers.

Buyer Verification and Demographics

We’ve mentioned our buyers quite a lot, but who are they, and are they verified?

Yes. We have over 200,000 active buyers, and each buyer goes through a verification process, so you can feel more confident taking orders. During verification, we look at business IDs, certificates, social media, web sales, and marketplaces, who they’ve represented before, and who they’re representing now.

Here’s some information on our buyer demographics:

  • Primarily located in North America, but actively expanding worldwide.
  • Primarily in streetwear, kids clothing, jewelry, and womenswear categories. We’ve seen a significant expansion into home goods, skincare, beauty products, and more.

FAQ’s

When can I expect my first connection/order?

We recommend waiting a month. In the beginning, our AI is still learning about you. During that time, Connect may send your presentation to buyers that don’t make immediate sense to you, but it’s likely because our AI is still gauging interest.

If you don’t see much engagement or activity, contact your account manager. They'll be happy to review your line sheet and see what can be improved.

How do I collect payments and ship my products?

Once a buyer submits a purchase order, you can talk with the buyer, edit the order, and decide how you want to collect payment. Brandboom has an invoicing feature available for free and paid plans. Our Business plan allows you to collect payments through integrations with Stripe and Paypal.

Do customers pay up front?

No. In wholesale, buyers typically submit a purchase order, which allows you to review the order before moving forward. You can, however, request a deposit from the buyer. If you are on our Business plan, you can require and collect the deposit when they order from you. Click here to learn more.

Can I pay to get new leads?

We do not allow brands to pay for more leads because we want it to be a level playing field. This allows us to create a genuinely curated experience. Our smaller brands enjoy it because they aren’t shut out by bigger brands. And our buyers want it because they know brands with bigger budgets aren’t spamming them.

Can I search for a retailer?

No. All matches are made based on a buyer’s preferences and purchase history. 

Will I still be charged a fee if a buyer doesn’t follow through with an order?

Yes, you will still be charged if they submit a purchase order. This marketing fee covers the pitching and exposure that led to a warm lead interested in your products.

Since we vet our buyers, if an order falls through, it’s often due to bad timing or them not having the budget at that moment. For brands that continue to build a relationship with this new potential buyer, we often see the buyer purchase from the brand at a later date.

Will I be charged for subsequent orders from a buyer?

No. Once a buyer places an order with you, it’s your buyer. You can send them your line sheet directly and continue taking orders from them without a fee. There is no fee for any orders you take outside of Connect Marketplace. 

The only time we charge for subsequent orders is if that buyer finds you through Connect Marketplace and places an order based on that marketing. However, this fee is only 50% of the initial fee.

Can I update or change my line sheet?

Yes. Any changes you save will be updated in the cloud automatically. You can also swap your existing line sheet for a new one. Once changes are saved, the line sheet will undergo the approval process again.

Conclusion

And that’s everything you need to know to succeed with our Connect Marketplace! To get started, click on the handshake tab on the left-hand side of your account, and away you go! 

Want to learn even more? You can schedule a free demo, contact your account manager, or contact our support team.