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“I am not taking on any new lines.”

Manufacturers sometimes tell me that’s what they hear when they call prospective representatives.

“Why do they even have a profile in MANA’s RepFinder database if they aren’t taking on any new lines?” ask those manufacturers.

When I get that call, asking the manufacturer some strategic questions usually reveals the truth.

• Does your line have existing business that will be turned over to the representative, or is your line a pioneering line?
• If it is a pioneering line, did you offer to share the costs of launching your product with some sort of shared market development fee?
• If you have existing business, will that be turned over to the representative, or will you only pay commission on new customers?
• Does your representative agreement allow you to terminate all commission payments on 30 days’ notice, or does it include a post-termination commission and/or life-of-part/life of program clause to let the representative recoup the start-up expenses that came from launching your product?
• Have you worked with representatives before, or will this be the first time?

Honest answers to those questions often lead the manufacturer to an unflattering truth: “The representative hasn’t really decided not to take on any new lines. He or she just decided my offer was not appealing and said what was necessary to end the call quickly.”

There is no such thing as a representative who is not taking on any new lines:

• If a manufacturer needs a representative to take over a $10,000,000 territory and receive 10 percent commission on all existing business calls, what is the representative’s likely response?
• If a manufacturer needs a representative to take over a pioneering territory and bear all the expense of launching the product calls, what is the representative’s likely response?

For manufacturers who fall between those extremes, the difference between getting a “yes” or a “no” from a representative is usually whether or not the representative feels the manufacturer is looking for a mutually-profitable long‑term partnership.

To succeed recruiting representatives, craft an attractive package that emphasizes the opportunity to build that mutually-profitable long-term partnership. And then you won’t hear any more little white lies.