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Being the biggest isn’t always the formula for success. That’s what one manufacturer maintained as he explained, “I know that I’m a small fish in a much bigger pond when it comes to getting the attention of successful reps.

“What has worked for me is that I’ve had great luck when I take a really close look at the other lines the manufacturers’ representative represents. After looking at the rep’s entire offering, I determine if there’s a void. What that void represents is a niche for me to fill. Once I identify that void, I’ll contact some of his other lines. Believe me, it’s really not that difficult to get information from other manufacturers as long as you’re non-competitors. What those other manufacturers tell me is the rep’s level of commitment. The bottom line here is that commitment to a line is what we’re really looking for. If we can learn that the rep is committed to his other lines, then we’ll feel as if we’re a shoo-in. It all comes down to synergy and determining if we can assist the rep in presenting a more complete line card to the majority of his customers. This is an approach we’ve successfully followed whenever we seek new representation.”

The Effectiveness of Joint Sales Calls

One manufacturer has taken the joint sales call to a proactive level that has worked well to establish relationships with high-level personnel at many customers’ locations. According to this manufacturer, “One of the major strengths the rep possesses is the ability to establish, nurture and maintain relationships at the decision-making buying level, especially with their larger customers. However, we’ve found that by putting our top executives on the road with a rep — obviously with the rep’s approval — we often have doors opened to us at a higher level than ever before. I believe it’s a little bit of intimidation. They may be a little intimidated to meet our CEO without their top executives present. We’ve tried this several times and it’s worked well enough for us that we’ll continue with the practice.”

Living With Realistic Expectations

A long-held belief is that contracting with reps is beneficial since they’re able to hit the ground running from day one. They’ll get the business much faster than a manufacturer’s direct sales force ever could. However, some manufacturers have cautioned about having expectations that were over and above what anyone could realistically achieve. “From the very first day, both the manufacturer and the rep have to agree that their relationship has to work for both. Sure, there are times when a rep will go overboard in his desire to obtain the line. That may open the door for the manufacturer to dictate terms of the relationship that just aren’t going to work for the long haul. Ideally, it’s the rep and the principals who both think short- and long-term who will maximize their relationship. Basically, there’s got to be a level of flexibility during the first year of the relationship. Learn what works for both of you while benefiting the customer at the same time. It’s only then that you’ll have a good chance for a profitable long-term relationship.”

Advice From Rep-Savvy Manufacturers

Among the many benefits that grow out of participating in industry meetings and events is the exchange of views or best practices. That was the case late last year when two manufacturers described a couple of practices they employ with their rep networks:

• Don’t demand conformity from all your agents — According to one of the manufacturers, “Assuming that conditions are the same across the board for all of your reps in all of your territories could prove to be disastrous. Sure, a certain amount of control is sometimes needed in order to prevent salespeople from reacting to conditions that can relate to critical corporate issues; but rigid control prevents your salespeople from reacting to conditions that can be beneficial or harmful.”
• The critical importance of long-range planning — “Just as manufacturers expect their reps to exhibit an ability to plan short- and long-term, we’ve got to be willing to act in a similar fashion. If more companies performed better long-range planning and let their agents know about their plans, there would be far fewer problems and much better sales results.”

Diffusing Negative Experiences

After digesting the article on rep councils that appeared in last month’s issue of Agency Sales, a MANA-manufacturer member contacted us with some of his thoughts based on his experience with rep councils. According to the manufacturer, “Whenever we’d conduct a meeting, we’d find that several of our members would attempt to force discussion into a direction that was way too negative. It’s my opinion that they had their own agenda and were bound and determined to complete it no matter what we said.”

Based on several conversations we’ve had with other manufacturers and reps that tout the council experience, here are some thoughts on that experience:

• Before you conduct your first meeting, make sure that it is you — and not they — who are in charge. It is the manufacturer that should set the agenda and conduct the meeting. It’s you who went to the trouble of creating the rep council and hosting the meeting. Take advantage of the opportunity — after all, you’re entitled.
• Don’t ever consider that it’s a problem when someone is being outspoken or what we might consider “constructively” critical. But keep an eye on the individual who only brings up problems and never offers a solution. Chances are it is they and not your company that is the problem.
• Be careful of how you populate your rep council. It might be wise to keep your distance from those that have nothing but negative reputations.

Planning and Preparation Ensure Success

When it came to making the move from a direct to an outsourced sales force, one manufacturer admitted that he was anxious to make the move, but when he made it, he didn’t put planning and preparation on the front burner. Here’s how he described his experience: “When I made the move, I was naturally pleased that I didn’t have a salaried direct sales force. That was a tremendous saving. At the same time, however, I didn’t make the internal investment of having a rep support staff in place prior to making the move. If I was able to learn anything from the experience that I can pass along to others, it’s that your reps are your ‘sales partners’ and they need as much support — if not more — than your direct people ever did.

“Since I was saving all that money on salaries, it was the opportune time to beef up the inside sales staff. Training the inside people on how to work effectively with reps is critical. And, it’s not a one-time deal; it’s an on-going process. With the aid of my reps, I now regularly conduct ‘audits’ of my inside staff to ensure they are performing at a level that makes the outsourced sales force function as efficiently as possible.”

Knowing Your Audience

After investing a good deal of time, effort and money in the creation of a new website, one manufacturer was faced with the reality that he had missed the mark. Here’s how he described what happened: “It was certainly a hard pill to swallow when several of my top-performing reps let me know that the new website didn’t meet their needs. Even if I do say so myself, I’ve developed a good reputation for listening to what my reps tell me. That’s why when they said the website I had worked long and hard on wasn’t doing the job, I knew I had better pay attention. My biggest mistake was not consulting them from the beginning. My thinking was that the site was being put together for my and my customers’ needs, not necessarily for them. My mistake was not considering their needs. Among the things that got my attention was their desire to have a link running from their respective sites directly to mine. And once there, they provided me with a number of tips on how to make the site more useful — for them and their customers. Once again, I should have included them in the loop — like I usually do in other matters. I won’t make that mistake again.”

More on Responding to Reps

An apt follow-up to the previous item is found in the response one manufacturer offered when he was asked why so many of his reps considered him one of their favorite principals. He answered: “I’ve always done my best to immediately respond to their needs.”

As an example, he said “I can recall any number of occasions when one of my reps would let me know they were having a problem with a specific customer. Instead of just letting the situation drop, I got back to him immediately and offered suggestions on altering his approach. If that alternative didn’t work, I’d keep open the dialog until we came up with something that would result in getting the business we expected.

“What I’m really referring to here is that a manufacturer can’t let his rep stand naked in the cold. Since the rep would show a willingness to come to me with a problem, it would be inexcusable for me not to offer my assistance. In addition, I’ve found that this willingness on my part to help the rep has been returned in kind by the reps. So, if they compliment me for the way I work with them, I’d like to return the favor. They make me look good in front of their customers.”

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