In the course of an interview with a rep that focused on his long-standing relationship with one principal, the rep volunteered that while there were many reasons why the relationship has weathered the test of time, there were three very important attributes the principal possessed that the rep valued:

• “The principal’s in-house rep-support teams are outstanding. When we contact them there is no problem left unsolved, no question left unanswered.”
• “They generously support us in our joint field visits to customers, and they always allow us to take the lead in presentations to customers.”
• “They have insisted that we complete regular visits to the factory. Once there, the people go out of their way to accommodate us and make us feel as if we’re an integral part of the team.”

The Value of In-The-Field Training

As a follow-up to the last item mentioned above — factory visits — the same manufacturer who sold with reps related how he has enjoyed great success by making sure that his reps get all the in-the-field training that they need. According to the manufacturer, “When we have a new product or even an innovative application for an existing product, we will get in touch with our reps and offer to pay for their travel to and from the job site. We do this to ensure that they can watch the installation and testing of the product. Usually, these presentations are conducted by our own engineers. That ensures that our reps are familiar with them and much more receptive to what’s being done.” The manufacturer added that he’s careful to make sure these presentations aren’t overdone. “We’re very much aware of the time constraints the rep works under, and we know he pays a price for being out of the territory to attend them. We make every effort to guarantee the sessions will truly complement his body of knowledge.”

Keeping Abreast of Rep Plans

The subject of the importance of agency owners having succession plans always seems to be a part of conversations with reps. Related to that, when a manufacturer recently informed us how unhappy he was when he learned one of his reps was selling his agency, it reminded us of some advice we heard from another manufacturer years ago. Sure, it’s in his own best interest for the rep to keep his manufacturers in the loop regarding future plans. Likewise, as we were advised by the manufacturer, the principal has an obligation to himself to be proactive when it comes to learning what his rep’s future plans are. He went on to say that this can be done in an unobtrusive manner by simply letting the rep know you care about what he’s doing. The manufacturer who advised us said he made it a habit to ask his reps to share their annual business plans as well as any retirement or other plans that could affect the agency — and its relationship with the manufacturer.

Give the Manufacturer Credit for Caring

A rep was a bit pessimistic as he described the latest effort one of his manufacturers was taking to keep the line of communication open. According to the rep, the principal was very generous in paying all expenses for the rep to travel to a warm-weather location for a one-on-one meeting with no holds barred. It seems that the manufacturer was looking for some objective, critical comments on how he — the manufacturer — was perceived in the territory and how he was relating to his reps in general.

The rep was very open when it came to describing his discontent as he had been through this exercise in the past. “While I’m face-to-face with the manufacturer, in my opinion, he appears to show interest in what I’m saying, but once the meeting ends, nothing really changes.”

Now, that’s a good reason to be a little down; however, the rep was reminded that at least the manufacturer was trying. And, as long as he was willing to try, the rep should reciprocate in the hopes that this time would be different, and the manufacturer would truly listen to and take to heart what the rep had to say. Or, how about this — why not thank the manufacturer for his continued interest, but remind him that you’ve been down this road before? Wouldn’t it be in the best interests of both if, for a change, some action was taken as a result of the meeting? In any event, give the manufacturer some credit for continuing to care.

Valuing the Rep’s Contribution

A manufacturer was quick to cite his reps as dependable sources for customer credit information that he wouldn’t necessarily be able to find elsewhere. “We continue to make use of credit reporting services, but the information that our rep provides very often develops intelligence that wouldn’t regularly appear from those services.

According to the manufacturer, “When we combine the rep’s input with the credit service input, we’ve found that we’re in a fairly solid position to evaluate the customer’s ability to pay in the future.”

He adds that reps aren’t expected to develop and provide this type of information for free. “Of course, we pay them a relatively small consulting fee because we certainly understand that any time they spend away from selling will be reflected in their earnings. In addition, since we affix a value to this information, we let them know how important it is for us.”

Paying for Market Info

A manufacturer who late last year took part in one of MANA’s regularly scheduled chats came away a bit confused about some of the opinions voiced on the question of reps conducting market research for manufacturers. Some, not all, expressed an unwillingness to provide such a service with compensation. The focus of this issue is as follows — most manufacturers’ representatives tell us that they are more than willing to conduct market research (at no cost) during the normal course of business (i.e., regular sales calls) for at least three reasons:

• It is of assistance to their principals.
• Gathering the information solidifies their relationships with principals and customers.
• It is a part of their job.

Concerns arise, however, when a manufacturer requests that the rep undertake a major research project. It’s not unusual to have the rep balk at such a request because it takes him away from doing what is most important and that which he does best — sell.

A word of advice that might get the rep over his reluctance to undertake such projects — discuss additional compensation.

Service Tied to Compensation

Reps often raise an eyebrow when their principals ask for some form of market research or pioneering work without mentioning compensation in the same breath. One rep offered the following food for thought recently: “The rep today is providing services that were never part of any original compensation plan. Whether it is computer, communication, pioneering or engineering services that are being performed, the rep isn’t being properly compensated.

He added that if the subject of compensation is raised, “The rep can’t be asked for something that he’s not willing to provide. If we want to be paid for our value-added services, we’ve got to offer them and offer them professionally.” He continued that some manufacturers don’t require all these value-added services, but others do. “But a problem occurs, since our original contracts don’t provide for the compensation of those services. In the future, the level of service we elect to provide will determine our level of compensation.”

We don’t offer any solution to this ongoing concern, but the above words certainly point us in the direction of considering that this is a two-way street that only the manufacturer and the rep can solve — but only by working together.

Planning Is the Key

Most companies, whether they are large or small, have a marketing and sales plan. These plans most often only go so far as to state how the products will be brought to market. And when agents are the method of choice, the plans seldom go into any detail other than the obvious concerns of territory allocation and commission structures. A manufacturer we spoke with recently explained that he has a specific plan for working with reps. He explained that he had developed it using much of the material available from MANA and by working with the first rep he appointed as his consultant. “Our first rep pointed out that we needed a consistent plan for working with reps and we engaged him to help us develop the plan. Needless to say, we felt we were like having a fox in the hen house simply because we had no experience with reps at all, and we knew very little about our first rep. However, it turned out that our choice of rep and our decision to have him help develop the plan was a very good way to go. I’d suggest that all manufacturers have such a plan in place regardless of how they develop it further. I’d suggest that even manufacturers who have been selling through reps for a long time develop a plan if they don’t have one. It will not only help them clarify the relationships. It will probably point up areas that need bolstering and areas that can be augmented to be even better than they are.”

Learning Customer Needs

As his company and his reps continue to operate in the post-Covid sales environment, a manufacturer let us know that in his view his best agents are those who spend most of their time on a first-time call clarifying prospect needs that they later use to make tightly tailored presentations on their second calls. According to the manufacturer, “There’s a tendency today to think we have everything we need from the internet and other electronic sources to make a bang-up sales call the first time. But this just isn’t true. It takes a face-to-face meeting to get a handle on what is really going on. I’ve noticed over the years from making calls with my agents that those who sell best are those who have considerable experience. The newer and younger people tend to think that everything they get off the Net is true and unique. It’s a good start, but it’s only part of the picture.”

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