The benefits of staying in touch….

For any rep that doesn’t believe in staying in close touch with his principals, here’s a real life lesson proving just how important regularly scheduled meetings are. According to one rep, “I just finished one of my regular weekly phone conversations with one of my principals, and it just serves as another example of how beneficial it can be to keep open the doors of communication. After we finished talking about major projects and some innovative approaches we wanted to take in the territory, the principal offered, ‘I don’t know if this is important, but one of our end-user customers in another territory just ordered a $15,000 piece of machinery.’ Normally just one order of that size doesn’t make much of a difference in the whole scheme of things, but then I asked if this customer made those kinds of purchases for any of its other facilities. The principal responded, ‘That’s why I mentioned it. They’ve got a need for at least 50 more of these at other locations, and all the ordering comes out of your territory.’ That’s what got my attention. I’m convinced that if I didn’t have regular conversations with these people, I wouldn’t have been aware of this type of activity. I got right on it and contacted the right people with the result that there’s going to be plenty more business for me and this principal with that customer.”

“Crib sheets” in a positive light….

We’re sure no one we know ever did this, but remember back in grade school when someone in the back of class would make use of a “crib sheet” to get himself through a history quiz? One rep has turned that time-honored “crib sheet” into something that helps him with his customers. According to the rep, “When I make a initial call on a new customer, I’m right up front with him when I pull a plastic sheet out of my pocket and say ‘I hope you don’t mind if I go over a few important points with you during this meeting. These are questions I ask customers to help me better understand their needs. As a result, I’m able to come up with solutions to their problems and anticipate their needs. Some of the questions might seem a little basic but the answers to the questions point me in a direction that lets me serve you better.’”

He continued by saying he’s never had a customer hesitate or refuse to answer the questions. As a matter of fact, he’s been complimented many times for this thorough approach when it came to getting to know the customer.

How to communicate with a principal….

A MANA member evoked an image of polygamy recently when he described the challenge of communicating with all of a rep’s principals. “It’s a little like being married to five people at the same time. No one method of communication is going to work for each and every principal. As a result, it’s up to the rep to determine what works best. Thankfully, we live in an age where there are any number of effective communication tools available to us. I can remember not that long ago when it was personal visits, the mail or phone. Today, thanks to developments in electronic communication, we’ve got everything from websites, e-mail, PDAs, Blackberries and Internet-ready cell phones that allow us to stay in close touch with our principals. As a result, I can’t see anyone using the excuse that that they don’t have the time to keep their manufacturers abreast of what’s going on. And, when we take the initiative, the principal isn’t going to complain we’ve haven’t kept him in the loop.”

A pitch for rep councils….

The subject of rep councils — whether to have them or not, do they work or not — never seems to go away. Opinions on their effectiveness are all over the place. MANA and Agency Sales, however, have long advocated the need for such meetings between principals and their reps. Such meetings may not even have to be annual, but the give-and-take of these personal-contact opportunities is what leads to creative ideas. This is often difficult to accomplish by electronic communication. We readdress this subject because it’s one that’s often on the tips of manufacturers’ and reps’ tongues when we interview them on matters of communication.

When is the best time to “entertain”…?

When the subject of business entertainment came up among a group of reps, one of the participants weighed in with the fact that he was especially careful when it came to taking time away from the selling function to entertain. According to the rep, “I’ll admit I’m kind of anal when it comes to effective time management. I’ve always questioned the real worth of taking someone out on the town for an event. That’s why I concentrate my efforts whenever I can to making use of lunchtime. I’ve never been much for wining and dining, and I find that lunch still offers the best opportunity to continue the business conversation in a limited period of time. It also allows me to concentrate on both nurturing my relationship with the customer and performing the selling job. I’ve found that the majority of my customers agree with my approach.”

Analyzing the lost sale….

One rep espoused the value of being totally honest with his principal when it came to explaining why he had lost a major project. “After I looked at a timeline that covered every step my agency was involved in during the process, I had to admit to the principal that we simply hadn’t done a very good job. I was accountable and informed him of the steps I would take to see that it didn’t happen again.”

With that as a beginning, another rep went on to describe the value he’s gained by analyzing his lost sales. “The most important reason to analyze a lost sale is that it helps you determine why you didn’t get the order. You get a fix on what you did wrong and learn what steps to take in order to see to it that it doesn’t happen again. In addition, such a process allows your agency to better identify and anticipate the needs and demands of the marketplace. The inevitable result is that the agency personnel will become much better equipped to anticipate and meet those needs in the future.”

Branding the agency….

The importance of creating a brand for an agency took center stage at a MANA seminar. The question related to branding was posed by a relatively new rep — one who had enjoyed a previous career on the manufacturing side. Admitting that he was very much aware of how important branding was to manufacturers, he asked if it was just as important for reps.

In answer, a veteran rep offered the following: “It’s imperative that you create an image or brand for your agency. And, the brand or image you create is something that you and everyone associated with your firm has to live up to. Important contributing parts to that image include everything from your line card, company logo, direct mail pieces, letterhead and your website. That image that you work so hard to create has to include everything that you do; that means all your salespeople, your name, product, direct programs and ultimately your bottom-line performance.”

Not to be ignored in this discussion is the manufacturers’ rep business plan. According to the rep, “a typical business plan will comprise a one-, five- and 20-year focus. As you create and then communicate the existence of your business plan, you may learn that many principals will be surprised you have one. But, as time goes on, more and more of your principals will expect it, and they’ll expect you to share the details of the business plan with them.”