Tips to

Succeed
on SAP®
Ariba®
Discovery

Win business opportunities

and create a strong presence
on SAP Ariba Discovery using
these quick tips and best
practice guidelines.
Selling Effectively on About SAP Ariba Discovery

SAP Ariba Discovery is a premier

SAP Ariba Discovery global B2B matching service that
offers you new business
opportunities from leading buying
organizations – including Global
2000 companies. If your vendor
capabilities match a buyer’s project
requirements, you will be instantly
notified of the opportunity. By
bringing the quality leads to you,
Matched you save on time and costs.

You could access SAP Ariba

Discovery from your Ariba Network
supplier portal or by going to the
website.

Recap: The Selling Process

Register and create your

company profile

Keep track of notifications

from buyer postings that
match your profile or when
buyers contact you directly
Sellers

Buyers Submit your proposal to

buyers

As an SAP® Ariba® Discovery seller, you gain About SAP Ariba Solutions
immediate access to a wealth of new business contacts
and opportunities. Using this matching service, you are SAP Ariba solutions support the
marketplace for modern business,
able to spend more time growing your business and
creating frictionless exchanges
reduce the effort needed to source new leads and build between millions of buyers and
relationships. suppliers across the entire
source-to-pay process. Our
To maximize your success, take the time to fine-tune market-leading solutions enable
companies to simplify collaboration
and update your content regularly. This will ensure
with their trading partners, make
that you are always prepared and optimized when smarter business decisions, and
new opportunities come your way. extend their collaborative business
processes with an open technology
Here are some best practice guidelines and quick tips platform. More than 4.6 million
companies use SAP Ariba solutions
to help you get tangible results quickly on SAP Ariba
to connect and collaborate around
Discovery. nearly US$3.2 trillion in commerce
on an annual basis.

Jump to
Optomizing Responding Unlock To learn more about SAP Ariba
Your Profile to Postings Additional solutions and the transformation
Benefits
they are driving, visit www.ariba.com.
Optimizing
Your Profile

Keep it Outstanding and Current

Your profile is the face of your business on SAP Ariba Discovery. All of your potential buyers will
evaluate it as they consider your company for business. Make sure that your profile stands out
and represents your company in the best way possible.

Keep your profile up-to-date Polished and complete

Make regular improvements to reflect Showcasing a polished and complete

new keywords that are trending for the profile heightens your credibility and
products and services you offer and show leaves a better impression for visitors
that you are actively engaged in seeking when they can easily find the information
new business. they need to know about your company.

What to Include
To increase your chances of receiving high quality leads, it is critical to include accurate
information in your profile. SAP Ariba Discovery’s search engine uses your products and services
categories, ship-to and servicing locations, and industries to match your company with buyer
postings.

Make it easy for potential buyers to contact you

• Designate a main contact for SAP Ariba Discovery.

Click the dropdown arrow next to your company name > click on “Account Settings” > click
the “Users” tab > click “Create User” to designate your main contact person

• Ensure all relevant notifications are received by the designated

person.
Click the “Notifications” tab > check off the relevant notifications you would like to receive
 Add all the products and services you offer

• Select all the possible categories to classify your products to cover

a wider scope.
• Make sure your choices best describe what your company provides.
Type in appropriate keywords to pull up category options or click “Browse” to scroll through
category lists

List all your shipping and operation locations

Add all the products and services you offer

• Enter all the addresses where you have a physical presence – many
buyers require local sources of supply.
• Indicate the regions you ship to.

Include financial information that backs you up

• Information that could help buyers assess your company’s

financial health is important in the vetting process.
• Include your D-U-N-S® number in your profile. If you don’t have it,
consider getting one at www.dnb.com – it’s free for SAP Ariba
Discovery sellers.
Click the “Profile” tab > click on “Edit Profile” > go to the “Marketing” tab > click “Add” under
the Credit and Risk Information from D&B to provide your D-U-N-S number

• Include your tax ID information.

Click the “Profile” tab > click on “Edit Profile” > go to the “Business” tab > fill out the relevant
fields under Tax Information

Boost Your Profile with Good Reviews

Strengthen your credibility with buyer ratings and online references. Feedback from peers is a key
factor in the decision-making process when buyers are selecting sellers to do business with.

Secure good ratings with RFI and RFQ responses

• Buyers can only give you a rating when you submit responses to
their RFI or RFQ. Make sure to leave a terrific impression with
professional responses that include all the requested details.
 Request references from buyers

• After you do business with a buying organization, don’t forget to

ask for a written recommendation. Customer references are posted
on your profile for other buyers to see and they enhance your
credibility as a reputable seller.
Click on the “Profile” tab > click on “References” > enter the contact information of each buyer
you’d like to request a reference from > write a personalized invitation in the “Customize Your
Message” section to describe what you’d like the buyer to say and explain your request

When your invitation is accepted or declined by the buyer, you will receive a notification from
SAP Ariba Discovery. Completed recommendations will automatically appear on your profile.

• Review your references regularly to make sure they reflect the

image you want.
To remove a reference from your profile, go to the “References” page > find the reference you
want to remove > click “Delete”

Socialize Your Profile

Incorporate SAP Ariba Discovery’s social media tools into your social media strategy and drive
traffic to your profile. This can help enhance your search results, improve visibility, and increase
sales opportunities for your business. Let’s highlight the SAP Ariba badge.

Add a SAP Ariba Badge to your Social Profiles

Add all the products and services you offer

• Promote your SAP Ariba presence with an SAP Ariba badge and
enhance search engine results by giving users one-click access to
your profile. Place the badge on your website, social media accounts,
email signatures, or printed marketing materials – buyers on Ariba
Network will surely recognize you are an SAP Ariba supplier instantly.
Select “Click here to get your Ariba badge” under Share Your Public Profile on the right hand
side of your company profile page > accept the plug-in terms and choose the badge size,
shape, and style that you prefer > copy and paste the HTML code for the badge(s) you want on
your website or social media
Responding
to Postings

Pick the Best Postings for Your Business

• To maximize your chance of success, only respond to postings that

fully match your company’s capabilities and you could meet all of
the buyer’s requirements.
• You could respond to matched postings directly from your email
notifications or you could navigate to your SAP Ariba Discovery
account and access your “Matched Leads” and “All Leads”.
• Matched leads – These are chosen based on the information that you and the buyer provide.
Review each posting’s details and scope before proceeding to make sure they align with
your business interest.

• All Leads – When you’re browsing through the opportunities, add filters to help you narrow
down the results.

Tailor Your Responses

• Buyers can submit different types of postings through SAP Ariba

Discovery. Be sure to check the posting type to tailor your response
and be mindful of closing dates.
• Request for quotes (RFQ) postings – Usually, these are postings for
larger, longer term, or more strategic purchases.
• Buyer Invited Postings – You are invited to bid on the opportunity because the buyer or their
ERP system has specifically selected you to participate. Typically, this signifies a higher
chance of you winning the business.

• Request for information (RFI) postings – Buyers are gathering

information from potential sellers to determine who would be the
best fit for the business opportunity. Since buyers could just be
looking to prequalify new sellers, only enter a bid amount if it is
requested in the posting.

Information Is Key

Add all the products and services you offer

• The information you provide in your responses could impact your
company’s credibility with influential buyers.
• Include all valuable information for buyers to know and make use of the attachment feature
• Close with a clear and powerful call-to-action
• Make sure to let buyers know how to contact you with any further inquiries or requests
• Highlight anything special about your company or product that might encourage purchases
Unlock
Additional
Benefits

Upgrade Your Subscription to Unlock Additional Benefits

and Services
Boost your competitive edge on SAP Ariba Discovery by upgrading to an Advantage or
Advantage Plus subscription. Your premium profile listing will let you include more assets to help
you differentiate your company from other sellers. You could add:

• Your company logo to promote your brand

• Relevant URLs
• Marketing and product collaterals
• Case studies
• Other helpful documents to highlight your specialties

Benefits for Both Subscriptions Benefits for Advantage Plus Only

• Gain preferential ranking in search results
• Unlimited free responses to postings
• See which companies viewed your profile
via activity reports
• Increased opportunities to connect directly
with buyers to deliver fast ROI for most
sellers
• Gain insider information and best practices
through priority access to customer service
and expert advice that can improve your
success rate and help you win more bids
• Free ticket to the SAP Ariba Live conference
where you could meet prospects and customers
in person at our industry-leading annual
networking and collaborative commerce event
that attracts many Global 2000 buyers

For the full list of subscription benefits, click here.

Upgrading your account is easy. Simply click on the “Subscriptions” tab from your home page
and click “Upgrade” for the subscription of your choice.
 Follow us

www.ariba.com/contact-us

2019enUS (19/08)

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