How to Choose a Lab Supply Marketplace: A Guide for Procurement, Researchers, and Lab Managers

If you’ve ever found yourself thinking, “There has to be a better way” when managing lab supply procurement, the good news is—you’re right. There is a smarter, more efficient solution to the daily challenges of maintaining a smooth supply chain. From biotech startups to global pharmaceutical leaders, labs are turning to lab supply marketplaces to consolidate and simplify their procurement processes, turning the often-nightmarish process into a finely oiled machine. Not only can they save time for scientists, lab managers, and procurement, but can also help significantly reduce costs and build a strong, more resilient supply chain.

What is a Lab Supply Marketplace?

Before we get into the nitty-gritty of how to choose a marketplace, let’s talk about what they are. A lab supply marketplace simplifies and streamlines the complex process of procuring scientific supplies. It aggregates products from thousands of vendors into one easy-to-navigate platform, enabling users to browse, compare, and purchase items from multiple suppliers with a single consolidated invoice. These marketplaces, like ZAGENO, serve as a one-stop solution for labs by offloading supplier onboarding, automating order tracking, and integrating with existing systems such as ERP and accounting software. By using such platforms, labs can achieve both operational savings and improved purchasing control. 

8 Key Considerations: How to Choose a Lab Supply Marketplace

Not all marketplaces are created equally, so, how do you pick the best one for your lab? Here’s a breakdown of the key factors to consider when choosing one.

1. Product Selection. When choosing a lab supply marketplace, product selection is possibly the most important factor. The platform should offer everything your lab needs—whether that’s common consumables like gloves and pipettes or specialized reagents, equipment, and instruments. It’s important to consider:
   • Number of distinct SKUs available: Does the marketplace provide a wide-ranging selection with millions of options? Is the selection diverse enough to meet your lab's unique or niche material needs? How easy is it for new products to be added to the marketplace?
   • Number of suppliers available: Can you purchase from a broad range of vetted suppliers? Are the suppliers a mix of large and small, known and unknown? Do they hail from a diverse geographic area? How easy is it for new suppliers to be added to the marketplace?
   • Quality: Does the marketplace partner with reputable suppliers who deliver high-quality, reliable products that meet your standards? Are there quality metrics available on suppliers?
   • Variety of product categories covered: Does the platform support all your lab's needs across multiple categories, from chemicals to capital equipment? Will it help reduce longtail and non-catalog spend and streamline vendor relationships?
   • Supplier-agnostic search: Does the search tool allow users to find the best products for their needs without marketing bias or vendor limitations?
2. User Experience. The easier it is to use a new platform, the more likely your ordering users are to adopt it long-term. Consider the following when searching for a seamless, intuitive user experience (UX):
   • Search functionality: How intuitive is the product search and comparison process? Can you find what you need quickly using filters such as product category, price, supplier, sustainability information, and specifications? Does the platform utilize AI and machine learning to continuously improve the search experience over time?
   • Personalization features: Does the platform allow users to create saved shopping lists and reorder frequently purchased items easily? Are there options for collaboration between users, such as shared lists or group order management?
   • Ordering workflow: How streamlined is the process for building a multi-supplier cart? How many clicks does it take to build a cart? Does the platform support custom approval workflows? Are order and delivery tracking features automated and easy to use?
   • Billing options: Does the platform offer the option to receive a consolidated invoice with a single bill-to, where the platform acts as the sole vendor of record?
3. Pricing and Cost Transparency. Who doesn’t want to keep costs under control? One of the biggest advantages of a lab supply marketplace is the ability to compare prices across various suppliers. However, it’s not just about getting the lowest price—it’s about knowing exactly what you’re paying for.
   • Transparent pricing: Does the platform allow you to easily compare all components of price, including shipping, and ensure there are no hidden margins or other expenses?
   • Pre-negotiated discounts: Will you be able to keep any pre-negotiated discounts or pricing with suppliers you already purchase from?
   • Competitive rates: How simple is it to competitively price the same product across multiple suppliers to ensure you’re getting the most competitive rate?
   • Real-time pricing/availability information: Does the platform provide real-time price and product availability updates?
   • Quote management: Does the platform streamline quote requests and approvals, allowing you to compare pricing, timelines, and terms across suppliers efficiently?
4. Customer Service and Support. Customer service should never be an afterthought. Ideally, the marketplace should offer a dedicated customer success manager who provides end-to-end support throughout the entire purchasing cycle, as well as multiple channels of highly-rated support (e.g., email, phone, live chat).
   • Support availability: Is customer support accessible during your lab’s operating hours, and do you have access to real-time assistance when needed?
   • Return policies: Does the marketplace offer a simple and efficient process for returns or exchanges when products don’t meet expectations?
   • Dedicated account manager: Will you have access to a dedicated account manager who can assist with navigating the procurement process and resolving any questions or issues?
   • Supplier management: Does the platform offer supplier management services to reduce the time spent on onboarding, due diligence, contract negotiation, unified payment terms, and invoicing?
   • Nuanced life sciences support: Does the marketplace provide tailored support for life sciences, such as finding product alternatives quickly, managing backorders, handling order changes, and adding new suppliers or products?
     
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5. Integration with Your Existing (and Future) Systems. Many labs rely on a tech stack of multiple systems to manage financial, accounting, procurement, inventory management, and other critical processes. Your chosen lab supply marketplace should be able to integrate seamlessly with these existing systems, streamlining workflows and minimizing manual data entry. A marketplace that not only connects with your current systems but also scales with your organization can save time, reduce errors, and help cut costs in the long run.
   • ERP Integration: Does the marketplace integrate directly with enterprise resource planning (ERP) software, such as Microsoft Dynamics 365 and SAP ERP?
   • P2P Integration: Can the marketplace embed into Procure-to-Pay (P2P) platforms, such as Coupa, SAP Ariba, Jaggaer, Procurify, Point Purchasing, Accrualify, and Tungsten Network, for end-to-end workflow automation?
   • Accounting Integrations: Can the marketplace integrate with accounting software, such as Intuit QuickBooks, Xero, Sage Intacct, and Oracle NetSuite, to speed up month-end closing and enhance reporting?
   • ELN & LIMs Integrations: Does the marketplace connect to your electronic lab notebook (ELN) and lab information management system (LIMS)?
   • PunchOut Capabilities: Can the marketplace easily function as a PunchOut catalog, allowing you to purchase directly from your internal system?
6. Self-Service Functionality. When selecting a lab supply marketplace, consider how well it supports self-service capabilities. A strong platform should provide a centralized hub where you can manage all your lab supply orders—both catalog and non-catalog. Look for features like real-time order and delivery tracking, automated notifications, self-service returns, predictive shipping, and automated 3-way matching, ensuring your lab runs efficiently with minimal manual effort.
   • Automated notifications: Does the platform automatically send updates if there are delays or changes in delivery?
   • Real-time order status: Can you easily track the status of your orders in real-time?
   • Predictive shipping: Does the platform offer predictive shipping features, helping you plan for future orders based on usage patterns?
   • Automated 3-way matching: Does the marketplace automatically match the order, invoice, and receipt to help ensure accuracy and reduce manual effort?
   • Self-service returns: Does the platform allow you to initiate and manage returns easily?
7. Reputation and Reviews. Before committing to a marketplace, it’s wise to check out reviews and testimonials from other users. Look for customer feedback, industry recognition, and real-world examples of success to gauge how well the marketplace delivers on its promises.
   • Customer testimonials: Does the platform provide feedback from users in similar stages, industries, or research fields that can offer insights into its reliability?
   • Industry recognition: Has the marketplace received any certifications, awards, or recognition from trusted organizations that can vouch for its quality and reputation?
   • Case studies: Are there case studies available that demonstrate tangible benefits from using the marketplace, such as time savings, cost reductions, or improved procurement processes?
     
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8. Spend Visibility and Reporting. Consolidating lab supply purchases into a single marketplace not only makes life easier but also empowers data-driven decision making that can optimize spending, improve budgeting, and strengthen supply chain resilience. Look for platforms that offer comprehensive tools for tracking and analyzing spending patterns and help you stay on budget.
   • Real-time spend data access: Does the platform allow you to track spend as it happens, providing immediate visibility into lab procurement costs?
   • Metrics and filters: Can you filter spend data by different criteria, such as timeframe, product types, location, experiment, project, user roles, cost centers, and suppliers?
   • Custom views: Does the platform enable you to adjust your dashboard to focus on specific data points, and can you organize the analytics by weekly, monthly, quarterly, or annual metrics?
   • Budget utilization: Are you able to gauge current and future experiment budget usage with accurate forecasting, ensuring you stay within limits?
   • Consolidated order history: Does the platform allow you to quickly review past orders across the organization, making it easier to predict future supply needs and plan accordingly?
   • Audit trails: Does the platform maintain a detailed, transparent history of transactions for compliance and auditing purposes?
     
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Lab Supply Marketplace Evaluation Worksheet: How ZAGENO Stacks Up

To aid with your selection process, we’ve created a worksheet outlining the various factors discussed in this guide. As the largest, AI-driven lab supply marketplace, ZAGENO was specifically designed to meet the unique needs of life sciences, making lab supply ordering both simple and efficient. We're confident that we check all the boxes, and to help you get started, we’ve already done some of the heavy lifting for you.

To download the ZAGENO marketplace evaluation, click here.

Click here for a blank version and fill it out yourself when evaluating a lab supply marketplace.

Interested in taking ZAGENO for a test drive? That’s another thing… You should be able to demo a marketplace, so you can try before you buy.

The TL;DR of Lab Supply Marketplace Selection

We've covered a lot of key points in this guide, so here’s a quick checklist of questions to ask yourself after exploring various lab supply marketplaces:

• Is it easy to use?
• Is it a one-stop shop for all of your lab supply procurement needs?
• Will it further automate your purchasing process?
• Will it easily integrate with your current systems and grow with you as you scale?
• Is it easily customizable to your workflows?
• Is it tailored to life sciences?
• Does it have a proven track record of saving labs time and money?
• Is it AI-driven?
• Will it make your life easier?
• Will it free up time for your scientists to focus on research?

Choosing the right lab supply marketplace is about finding the platform that best fits your lab’s unique needs and is laser-focused on giving time back to science. Consider what’s most important to you—whether that’s an extensive product selection, a seamless user experience, transparent pricing, or easy system integration. In the case of ZAGENO, you can have it all. Contact us today for more information.

About ZAGENO: With over 40 million product SKUs from over 5,300 global brands, ZAGENO offers the industry’s largest life sciences lab supply marketplace. Its AI-driven platform provides tools to streamline the procurement process and help increase scientific productivity by removing the manual, tedious steps labs are forced to deal with when researching, purchasing, and tracking lab supplies.