When a buyer invites you to a sourcing activity in oboloo, you respond online in the oboloo supplier portal: you answer their questions, give your pricing and upload documents, then submit. This guide is for supplier contacts; you don't need an oboloo account.
Before you start
Respond to the activity
Log in to the supplier portal
Click the link in the invitation email, paste your Reference Code and click Login. The sourcing activity opens. See Log In to the oboloo Supplier Portal.
Review the activity details
The DETAILS panel on the left shows the activity's Status, Opening Date & Time, Closing Date & Time (with the time zone), Currency and Description/Scope. Check the closing date and, if pricing is requested, the currency you need to respond in.
Read the Activity Information tab
If the buyer has included it, the Activity Information tab holds background information about the activity. You can read and download it, but you don't need to respond.
Answer the Requested Information
On the Requested Information tab, click View/Respond on each section, read the buyer's instructions and enter your answer. Each section shows Complete or Incomplete.
Answer the Questions
On the Questions tab, click the edit icon on each questionnaire and answer every question in it.
Enter your pricing
On the Pricing tab, enter your prices for each requested item in the Currency to respond in, including any discount, shipping costs and tax. The totals at the bottom update automatically.
Upload your documents
On the Supporting Documents tab, Client Provided Supporting Documents lists the buyer's documents, such as specifications, for you to view or download.
Under Upload Your Supporting Documents, click Upload on each document the buyer has requested; you must upload all of them before you can submit. To add your own files, such as a proposal or certificates, click Add Document. You can upload PDF, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, JPG, PNG, TXT, CSV and ZIP files of up to 16MB each. See Request Documents From Suppliers in a Sourcing Activity for how buyers set these up.
Submit your response
Check every tab, then click Submit Response at the bottom of the DETAILS panel. Tick Tick to confirm submission and click Confirm. You'll see Submission Confirmed.
Other tabs
Invited Contacts: everyone at your company invited to respond, with when they last logged in. You all work on the same response; see Multiple Team Members Responding To A Sourcing Activity.
Chat: if the buyer uses it, Announcements shows messages the buyer sends to every supplier (you can't reply there), and Private Chat lets you message the buyer directly. You're emailed when the buyer sends you a message. See Messaging Buyers in eSourcing – Private & Broadcast Messages.
Change Log: the changes made to your response, including those by your colleagues.
What happens next
You're emailed a confirmation: every invited contact at your company is emailed that the response has been submitted.
The buyer is notified: the buyer and the activity's owners get an email and an in-app notification.
Your response is locked: no one at your company can change it. You can still log in to view it until the buyer completes the activity; after that, the portal shows This activity no longer exists.
The buyer may reopen the activity: if they ask for changes or a further round, you'll get a new email and code. See Responding to a Reopened Sourcing Activity.
Troubleshooting
Submit Response says I need to complete all sections
Every Requested Information section, questionnaire and pricing line must be complete, and every requested document uploaded. Look for anything marked Incomplete and for Upload buttons still showing on the Supporting Documents tab.
I can't type answers or the Submit Response button is greyed out
The activity isn't open yet or has passed its closing date, or your company has already submitted. Check the dates and Status in the DETAILS panel, and contact the buyer if you need more time.
I need to change my response after submitting
You can't edit a submitted response. Contact the buyer; they can reopen the activity so you can update it.
I can't log in
See the troubleshooting section of Log In to the oboloo Supplier Portal.
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If you need further assistance, please contact your internal platform administrator for support. Otherwise please reach out to oboloo's support team. If you are unable to view the above area in the oboloo platform, please check your user permissions and access rights.