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Don’t ever underestimate the value of being able to network with non‑competitive peers.

That’s what one manufacturer found during his attendance at an industry meeting. While this manufacturer had been working with reps for years, he had recently undergone considerable turnover among his reps. As a result, he was faced with the prospect of hiring new firms. But since it had really been several years since he had to go through that process, he was a little wary of what he was going to do. Coming to the rescue were several of his industry acquaintances, who offered a number of valuable tips including these:

• From the very beginning of the process be sure to outline exactly what the rep’s responsibilities will be. There’s no substitute for complete communication. Performing this task at the beginning will head off problems down the line.
• Take pains to review all of its policies that relate to the sales function — let the rep know how you invoice, collect, provide technical support, etc.
• Provide the means by which your new reps can get to know their fellow reps. This ensures that they can learn from each other and avoid problems. If a rep council is not in existence, don’t be afraid to explore that option.
• During the orientation phase of the relationship, open with a carefully planned and orchestrated plant visit.
• During the course of that visit be sure that the rep gets to know anybody and everybody — especially members of top management — that he will be in touch with. There’s no better way to cement a new relationship than with a face-to-face meeting. Once that’s accomplished, the people involved are going to be much more than the disembodied voice on the phone.

Always Be There for the Rep

When a question crops up or a question is in need of an immediate answer, does the manufacturer have a process in place to advocate for the rep? That question leads to another: “Is someone in place at the manufacturer’s facility who believes in the rep way of going to market?”

In answer to that question, one manufacturer’s national sales manager offered that “I’m that guy. We let our reps know from the very beginning that if I’m not able to assist them, then they’ve got an open door right to the president of the company. To provide proof of that point, we recently had a problem with the follow-up for requests on quotations. The two of us walked right into the president’s office, explained the situation and were able to have corrective action taken immediately.”

In the real world this isn’t always going to happen, especially with very large manufacturers. But reps and manufacturers tell us that it’s practical to have a “rep champion” in place. If there’s no one there the rep has confidence in and who shows confidence in the rep, the relationship is going to suffer.

Searching for Rep Input

How often have new product promotions or new product introductions failed to live up to expectations? Faced with that question, one manufacturer came up with an approach that entailed working closely with its network of independent manufacturers’ representatives.

According to the manufacturer, “I’ve long had unrealized expectations when it comes to my efforts to get reps to jump on board when it comes to promotional efforts or new product launches. In hindsight, however, what I’ve never done is to ask my reps what they need in order to effectively get the job done. Time for a change.”

He goes on to explain that — at his expense — he had one of his reps travel to company headquarters with the sole request that the rep keep an open mind and not hold anything back. Once on the manufacturer’s home turf, the first subject addressed was that of marketing and promotional programs. It was agreed that to effectively hit the ground running with any program, the manufacturer had to employ a variety of methods to communicate stated goals. Among the agreed-upon methods was the use of the company’s annual sales meeting to spread the word to all reps. Supporting that approach was the possible use of a web cast and a conference call. Naturally, the physical launch of a marketing program or product introduction follows the announcement, and the manufacturer noted that input from his reps was essential. He continued that he knew what to do and what not to do, but just hearing it from the rep grounded many of his decisions,. For instance “We, like to so many other manufacturers, have been posting a great deal of our program/product literature on the Internet. Then we’d ask our reps to download and print anything they needed. We certainly got some negative feedback in that area.”

Next in line for discussion was the need for product samples. According to the manufacturer, “Naturally this isn’t always possible, such as when a major piece of equipment is involved, but generally the rep stressed how helpful it was to the sales and marketing process to have the product in his hands well in advance. This allows him to familiarize himself with the product, ask questions himself and ensure that he has answers for customers. I’d emphasize that the rep told us that the fewer the product samples, the slower he was probably going to respond to any launch. For example, if you launch to seven outside salespeople and you have only one product sample, expect reps to report back in 10 weeks, not one or two.”

The manufacturer continued that a few additional tips his rep offered included:

• Never pre-launch anything that isn’t in stock or in production.
• If the program/product launch doesn’t work, don’t be too quick to blame reps. A key to maintaining a strong relationship with reps resides in the manufacturer’s ability to accept responsibility for an effort that doesn’t really work.
• Ensure that field sales support is available if needed.
• Make sure you value the rep’s time. Allow plenty of time for “launch” efforts. That means planning ahead.
• Never make a major launch of a minor program and don’t overload reps with such programs.

Looking For and Finding the Right Rep

One of MANA’s teleforums earlier this year focused on manufacturers’ efforts to find the rep that best suits their marketing and sales needs. Over the years, manufacturers have hardly been shy about detailing what it is they’re truly looking for in prospective reps. Among the most desirable attributes manufacturers tell MANA that reps had better possess are the following:

• Communication skills — “Does a prospective rep have a willingness to communicate with his principals? If not, if he doesn’t see the value of letting principals know the important things that are occurring in the territory, it follows that this diminishes his usefulness in the territory. Next, does he possess the basic tools that will allow him to communicate? What does that mean? Does he have a knowledge of the territory coupled with an understanding of what’s important? Next, does he proactively make use of the most basic communication tools — phone, texting, e-mail?”
• Stability — It serves no party to an agreement if the rep is constantly pinching pennies. When meeting with prospective reps, one manufacturer emphasizes that “We ask them to share their financial background with us. That way we know they’re going to be there for the long term.”
• Experience — According to one manufacturer with a long history of working with reps, “I don’t think a rep can be truly successful today unless he makes the contacts at all levels of his customer’s business. Gone are the days where all he had to do was call on the purchasing agent. Now he has to constantly build relationships with engineers, designers, end users and even CEOs.”
• Synergy — “While we’re knowledgeable that our reps devote some of their time to selling the products of other manufacturers, we are smart enough to value the fact that reps with synergistic lines have a much better chance of meeting customer needs than if they worked as direct salespeople carrying just one line.”
• Existing relationships — “This is a real key value that a rep must possess. If the rep has developed and nurtured those relationships then we know the door remains open for him when he seeks an appointment. By his past performance he’s proven himself to be a solution provider to customers. As a result, the customer will welcome him back and it’s not always to place an order. It might very well be to make use of the rep’s considerable consulting talents. All in all, the customer and the rep depend upon each other.”

Planning Ahead

Here’s the advice one manufacturer offered to another on the subject of visits in the field with reps: “If anything, we’ve learned the value of providing the rep with plenty of advance warning when it comes to making joint calls on customers. “Unless we’re called by the rep to get there in a hurry to handle an emergency, we’ll always provide at least a 30-day notice prior to any visits. But more than just conducting a visit for the sake of visiting, we’ll make sure that we have a definite purpose for the visit and we’ll share that reason with the rep. In addition, we’ll document in advance what the purpose is for our visit and spell out exactly what we hope to accomplish.

“Believe me when I say we’ve learned over the years that there’s absolutely nothing to be gained by surprising your rep.”

MANA welcomes your comments on this article. Write to us at [email protected].