Supplier selection often starts before the first commercial contact. Familiarity, relevant information and a clear understanding of the value a company can provide can all influence which suppliers buyers decide to consider.
A request for information, a trade show meeting or a conversation with a sales team may appear to mark the beginning of a B2B purchasing process. In many cases, however, an important part of the selection has already taken place.
According to the Buyers' Journey Survey by Forrester, 41% of B2B buyers already have a single supplier in mind when they formally begin the buying process, while 92% already have a shortlist.
This suggests that supplier discovery is often an ongoing process rather than a single purchasing event. Buyers may become familiar with companies through previous contacts, trade events, industry media, recommendations, technical information, market content or repeated exposure to their products and expertise.
For suppliers, the implication is equally important: becoming visible only when a buyer is actively looking for a new partner may mean entering the process after some preferences have already been formed.
What helps a buyer consider a supplier?
Awareness alone is not enough. A buyer also needs reasons to consider whether a company, product or solution deserves a place on the shortlist.
For food and beverage products, this may depend on factors such as product differentiation, relevance to local consumer demand, assortment potential, price positioning, supply reliability, certifications, production capacity and the supplier's ability to support distribution.
An importer or distributor evaluating a new food company may therefore ask a series of practical questions. Does the product fill a gap in the current range? Can it respond to a developing consumer trend? Does it offer a sufficiently distinctive proposition? Is the supplier able to provide continuity, documentation and commercial support in the target market?
For equipment, ingredients, packaging and services used by the food industry, the criteria may be different. Buyers and technical teams may focus on efficiency, productivity, cost reduction, reliability, food safety, regulatory compliance, sustainability, integration with existing processes and measurable operational benefits.
In both cases, the ability to explain clearly why an offer is relevant can make the evaluation process easier.
Continuous visibility reduces the information gap
A buyer rarely develops a complete understanding of a potential supplier through a single message or interaction.
Repeated exposure to relevant information can progressively answer different questions: what the company produces, what makes its offer distinctive, which markets it serves, whether it can support international distribution and why its products or solutions may be relevant to a particular customer or channel.
This is why continuity in B2B communication can be more useful than isolated periods of high visibility. The objective is not simply to increase the number of messages, but to build a clearer picture of the company over time.
A product launch may communicate innovation. A market case can demonstrate practical application. Information on certifications can reduce uncertainty. News about new production capacity can indicate reliability, while participation in a trade fair can create an opportunity for direct contact.
When these elements are communicated consistently, buyers can gradually build the information they need to decide whether a supplier deserves further consideration.
Buyers are rarely the only decision-makers
B2B purchasing decisions often involve several people within the same organisation.
Research by LinkedIn and Bain into complex B2B purchasing processes found that in 81% of the purchases analysed, the selected brand was already known by all or almost all members of the buying group at the beginning of the process (B2B Thought Leadership Impact Report 2025).
The research relates to the B2B technology market, but the underlying dynamic is relevant to other complex purchasing decisions as well.
Within the food sector, a category manager may identify an interesting new product, but quality, procurement, logistics and senior management may also need to assess the potential relationship. For industrial technology, production teams, engineers, operations managers, purchasing departments and financial management may all participate in the decision.
This means that suppliers need to make different types of information available while maintaining a consistent overall proposition.
A buyer may focus on price, terms and continuity of supply. A quality manager may need certifications and technical documentation. A distributor may assess the commercial potential of the product, while senior management may consider the strategic value of opening a new category or working with a new partner.
From product features to buyer value
One of the most important questions in supplier evaluation is relatively simple: why should this product or company deserve a place in the buyer's assortment or supply chain?
Technical characteristics remain important, but they become more meaningful when they are connected to a practical benefit.
For a food product, this might mean helping a distributor differentiate its range, respond to growing demand, reach a particular consumer segment or strengthen its offer of authentic Italian products.
For an industrial solution, it could mean improving efficiency, reducing waste, increasing production capacity, simplifying compliance or lowering operating costs.
Effective B2B information therefore does more than describe what a company sells. It helps buyers understand what problem the offer addresses, what result it may deliver and why it may be preferable to available alternatives.
Useful content can support supplier evaluation
The information buyers encounter before a commercial conversation can also contribute to their perception of a potential supplier.
According to the B2B Thought Leadership Impact Report 2025 by Edelman and LinkedIn, 64% of hidden decision-makers regard thought leadership as a more trustworthy basis for assessing a supplier's capabilities than traditional marketing materials and product sheets.
Market analysis, technical information, case studies, regulatory developments, category trends and practical applications can therefore perform a useful role in the evaluation process.
For buyers, this content can provide additional evidence of expertise and market understanding. For suppliers, it offers an opportunity to demonstrate knowledge and capabilities before the discussion becomes explicitly commercial.
Building a better supplier-buyer connection
For buyers, discovering a potential supplier is rarely the result of a single interaction. It is often the outcome of information collected over time, repeated exposure and a progressively clearer understanding of what that company could contribute.
For suppliers, this means that effective B2B communication is less about increasing the number of promotional messages and more about making relevant information consistently available: what the company offers, how it differs, which needs it can address and what value it can create for the buyer.
When a purchasing need finally becomes explicit, familiarity and relevance can make an important difference. Instead of being discovered for the first time, a supplier may already be known, understood and considered as one of the possible partners.
Italian Food News connects the international food business community through editorial content and B2B information. Companies interested in reaching professional buyers, importers, distributors and food industry operators can find audience data and available communication formats in the IFN Media Kit.
