© Christophe Boisson | Dreamstime.com

I have the pleasure of speaking with many of MANA’s manufacturer members each year. And from time to time I also speak with manufacturers who choose not to belong to MANA or any other not-for-profit association that supports the representative system of selling.

Frankly, the differences between those two groups are dramatic. Manufacturers who belong to MANA and other not-for-profit trade associations that support the representative system of selling are much more likely to be deadly serious about:

• Taking their products to markets through manufacturers’ representatives.
• Thoughtful reflection of the impact house accounts have on their relationships with manufacturers’ representatives.
• Improving their understanding of the outsourced system of selling through MANA resources like Agency Sales magazine and “Nine Steps to Being a Quality Principal” professional development program.
• Implementing (or working toward implementing) rep councils to serve as their company’s advisory board.
• Collaborating with representatives to create mutually-agreed-upon marketing plans.
• Offering written representative agreements that allow the representative a fair return on time invested in that line.
• Planning territory visits for maximum efficiency and productivity.
• Putting themselves into the representatives’ shoes to create long-term, mutually profitable relationships.

Do all these insights and commitments manifest themselves the first day a manufacturer joins MANA? Of course not. Savvy MANA representative members know that manufacturers who have been MANA members for months have begun to make a commitment to representatives and manufacturers who have been MANA members for years. They have not only made that commitment, they have had time to study MANA’s professional development resources and integrate representative best practices into their businesses.

So our message to MANA manufacturer members is to be sure to tell prospective representatives that you are a MANA member and also to share with them your progress on making your company representative friendly.

Our message to MANA representative members is that when a MANA manufacturer member contacts you, remember that they have made a commitment to support your trade association and the representative system of selling. And always reciprocate that commitment by extending the courtesy of a response to every MANA member who contacts you regardless of whether or not you are interested in their line.