Looking for Cost Savings?
We are all striving to be the best stewards of our limited funds and find the best value, but sometimes to do so we have to know where to look!
Knowing where to look, without taking a bunch of extra time to do so, can be tricky. Sometimes we have to start by doing a little research to find out what is available before we can seek out the supplier that will provide best value. Often times we pop open Amazon to do a quick search to see if what we want/are looking for exists and is available for purchase.
It does take a few extra minutes to log into Workday and access the Iowa State University Amazon Business Account through the cyBUY Marketplace, but conducting your Amazon search through our Amazon Business Account allows you to see additional discounts that are provided through that account.
If you don’t currently have access to the Iowa State University Amazon Business Account and would like it added the list of vendors available in cyBUY, you will need to register for one of the Amazon Business training sessions through Learn@ISU. After logging in to Learn@ISU the easiest way to find the training is to type cyBUY into the search field. The sessions that are currently available can be found under the List Events link. Additional information can be found on the Amazon Business Training page of the Procurement Services Website.
Once you know what you are looking for and what the price is on Amazon Business, the next step is to utilize the cyBUY Supplier Information page to find out which contracted cyBUY Supplier may have this same, or a very similar, item. This page was created to point you in the right direction when looking for potential cost savings.
The cyBUY Supplier Information Page is searchable and contains information about each supplier including the most commonly purchased items, contact information, catalog features, and the contracted shipping/delivery information for each of the cyBUY Suppliers in the cyBUY Marketplace.
Checking the catalog of a contracted cyBUY Supplier is a necessary next step when completing a purchase. Not only is the best value often found through one of our contracted vendors available through cyBUY, but if there is a comparable item available through a cyBUY supplier or University Internal Stores you will want to include the name of that supplier, the price, and the item number in your business purpose in order to expedite the approval of your purchase through Amazon Business.
Items that are lower cost through Amazon Business, are unavailable through our contracted suppliers, and/or are backordered through our contracted suppliers (and available through Amazon Business at that time) can be ordered.
Finding an item and utilizing our contracted vendors for the purchase has resulted in actual cost savings for departments and units from 10% to 92% of the price they would have paid had they not checked a cyBUY Supplier’s catalog and made the purchase from Amazon Business. These savings have been found on items such as power banks, tripods, microphones, dymo labels, headsets, and plastic wall sign holders.
Being the best steward of our limited funds and finding the best value is important to all of us! If you’ve checked the cyBUY Supplier Information Page and still aren’t sure where to start looking, please reach out to the cyBUY Helpdesk cybuy@iastate.edu or 294-7568 so that we can assist you.