A rep once said: “There’s more to getting good lines than just sitting in the boat with your mouth open, hoping a fish will jump in.”
The truth of those words was never illustrated better than when Agency Sales went looking for reps who found the magic way to get, attract and keep quality lines. The fact is, there is no magic. All it takes is hard work at best, mixed with being in the right place at the right time, and a little bit of luck.
Consider how a number of independent manufacturers’ representatives responded to questions concerning how they successfully performed the finding, attracting and keeping good lines task.
Greg Wiltrout, Electrotech Sales, Lancaster, New York, notes that when you’re looking to attract the attention of a quality principal, “The first thing you need to have is a customer with a need. Then you find commonality with other customers, determine what manufacturers fit that need by checking with industry publications and directories. Then you do a little follow-up and ask existing customers which manufacturers they have looked at. Do a little more by asking fellow reps in other markets whom they represent. Next step is to negotiate, write and sign the contract with the manufacturer that best meets customer needs and best fits my business model.”
Sounds simple enough as he continues by saying, “Once you’ve signed them on, communicate with them. Let them know what our customers like, what they would like to see different, such as added improvements.”
If there’s anything a rep should avoid when it comes to signing on a new principal, he adds, “Never jump at the first manufacturer that ‘seems’ to be a fit. Take your time.”
A Different Approach
Bob Black, The Identity Group, Inc., Colleyville, Texas, points to the different way his agency works when it comes to attracting and then retaining quality suppliers. “From our standpoint,” he says, “one of our major selling points is the two mobile showrooms that we use to exhibit and demonstrate products. This is our number-one selling feature in that the showrooms allow us to simply pull into a distributor’s parking lot and immediately get distributor personnel out of their offices to view/sample the products. This approach appeals to suppliers. It’s truly a key advantage for us.”
That’s not the only advantage Black points to as he explains how effective social media has been for the Identity Group. “We’ve made a huge effort to keep on top of the advancing technology. We have a mobile app for the agency, use Facebook and other forms of social media. We do that because we’ve found that that’s the best way for us to reach an entirely different age bracket in the territory. Because they’re in a different age bracket they approach business differently than we do, this allows us to get and keep their attention.”
Black adds that when suppliers consider conducting business with The Identity Group, “We’re pretty much of an open book because of our website and our reputation in the territory. If there’s any concern on the part of some suppliers it might be that we represent too many lines. I’m sure many other reps have heard that before but for our part, we play off that. We maintain that the number of lines we carry provides us with additional opportunities. There’s more of a synergy at work here. For instance, if we’re making a call on behalf of 3M, and the customer sees that we also carry a line of caps, we may very well wind up with a sale for both.”
When it comes to what has to be done in order to keep the quality lines that the agency boasts of, Black explains “We just make it a point to keep on doing what we’ve always done. We provide more and more services for our manufacturers and conduct a great deal of marketing for them in the territory. It’s our goal to simply be another marketing arm for them.”
Finding the Best Fit
In general, Kathie Cahill, Net Sales Co., Victor, New York, shies away from soliciting new principals because “I think the risk in that is we do not want to get the reputation of ‘stealing’ lines from existing representatives. The lines we have acquired have come to us as a result of recommendations, either a recommendation from a rep who has the line in a different territory or from a principal who does not have a competing line but knows a product line or sales manager who is looking to fill a slot. We have a superb presentation binder on our company which we take with us to an interview or which we can send in advance to someone who is looking at Net Sales as a potential rep for them. The binder contains a large amount of information about our company, our people, our market space, etc. We think it is a very good representation of the company we are and how we go to market.”
When considering a new line, however, she explains that “It is important to make sure it is a good fit for the rest of your line card. If the salespeople do not know of a single customer who might use the product the manufacturer produces, it is unlikely you can get off to a solid start. Over the long haul, the relationship is unlikely to flourish. Additionally, if the rep company is unwilling to devote the time and effort to introduce a new line to its existing customer base, the relationship is doomed. Taking on a new line is expensive for both the manufacturer and the representative. Each has to be willing to make the investment. If there is reticence on either side, the relationship will be short- lived.”
Once the agency does sign on with a new principal, Cahill explains that it is not unusual that a factory visit is scheduled. “That determination can be somewhat geographical,” she says. “We may wait for several months before we make that visit so we can get our feet wet with the line and the factory visit would likely be more meaningful.”
Cahill continues, “Nothing solidifies a relationship better than additional opportunities. That is the single most effective way to satisfy a principal. When a new line is secured, salespeople take that new line into those accounts at which they are strong and for which there is a need for the product. The goal is to find a quick and profitable hit for both the salesperson and the manufacturer. Nothing helps a new line become even more successful in a company than a few quick hits with orders. Once one salesperson has success, that information makes the rounds of other salespeople, and we all try to get the ball rolling. New principals want to hear from salespeople with new opportunities. If you can get the communication started, the relationship tends to get solidified. The communication piece is critical throughout a relationship. If the manufacturer is not hearing from the rep, the relationship can deteriorate quickly.”
Call it “chemistry” or a “gut feeling”— whatever it is, that’s what Dan Payne is looking for when he thinks about new lines. According to Payne, Payne Richard F Inc., Franklin Park, Illinois, “We’ve been in business for 50 years, and we’ve built our reputation on our ability to make sure that we know the background of our manufacturers. We make sure we know all we can about their personnel and how long they’ve been in the industry. We extend every effort to be sure the chemistry is there. After that, everything else is secondary including their goals in our territory and their experience in working with reps. It’s an extended process, knowing all we can about them and making sure we’re both on the same page.”
When it comes to finding these often elusive top-quality manufacturers, Payne admits that word of mouth certainly plays a role in the decision process.
Importance of Reputation
That word “reputation” — both his agency’s and his prospective manufacturer’s — is something Pete Mann weighs heavily when it comes to locating good lines. Mann, Mantec, Danielson, Connecticut, says that “If I’m looking for a line to fill a void in my offering, I’ll communicate with my customers. If I want to learn how a company treats others, all I have to do is ask the people they’ve been selling to. In addition, if I’ve dealt with a manufacturer in the past, either as a rep or a customer, and I’ve been treated shabbily, I know I don’t want to represent their line. It’s really a pretty simple decision.”
In addition to looking for a manufacturer by its reputation, Mann also has had good luck finding lines in manufacturer directories. “I also try to work with manufacturers who are located locally.”
As to anything he tries to avoid or any red flags when it comes to prospective principals, Mann tries to steer clear of manufacturers with house accounts (“Although I might let a couple slide.”) and companies that want him to rep on a non-exclusive basis. He’s also not afraid to take on missionary lines.
Completing the Up-Front Work
Ask Jack Wahlberg what it takes to get, keep and maximize the relationships between reps and good principals and he’ll maintain a key is to do your homework at the very beginning.
According to Wahlberg, Alpha Sales Co., Hanover, Massachusetts, “Here’s the first thing a rep should live by — never take a line just to get a line.” To illustrate his point, Wahlberg points to “a friend of mine had 15 lines and not one of them was an ‘A’ line. That just doesn’t make any sense.”
He continues that when he is able to seriously pursue a business relationship with a manufacturer, “I’ll let him know right up front that I get paid on invoice — not on payment.” And, he’s not done yet. “Now I’m talking to my principals about direct deposit of our commissions. Since we’re trying to streamline our operations just as our principals, it only makes sense to cut back on office procedures. And what better way to do that than by cutting back on our trips to the bank?”
Wahlberg emphasizes the importance of negotiating these and other matters from the outset. “Sometimes it’s hard to get what you want, but if a factory truly knows what it’s doing, then they’re going to be the best type of business partner for the rep. And, that’s what the rep wants in a partner.”
As to how he and his agency locate and identify the manufacturers that they want to conduct these up-front negotiations with, Wahlberg explains that many of the quality manufacturers they rep have found Alpha Sales simply as a result of the agency’s more than 25-year reputation. Others have been located through the agency’s participation in industry trade shows and their membership in MANA.
A long-standing reputation coupled with a well-balanced customer base have been the major components of success for Knight Reber Assocs., Minneapolis, Minnesota, when it comes to attracting new lines. According to Dave Knight, these elements worked well for the agency recently when, “Through our MANA membership, a company solicited us regarding representation. We determined that they offered a unique and interesting product line that we decided to take on basically because it offered us an opportunity to expand our line and what they offered wasn’t all that common.”
Knight continues, “We get calls and e-mails daily from people who want us to rep them. Most often they don’t even look at our line card to see what they offer is a good fit. What they’ve done is to simply make the assumption that we’ll take on any new line without giving it any thought or we’ll take on a competing line that we already rep. That’s not how we operate. This approach obviously presents a red flag for us.”
If the aforementioned is what doesn’t attract Knight Reber to a manufacturer, what does work is a company that believes in exclusivity. “When we start working with a manufacturer, we don’t look for a lot of built-in commission. What we truly want is a solid opportunity for the both of us. That’s critical. If I get any feeling that they’re going to take on house accounts, that certainly gets our attention.”
Establish Relationships
Richard Garza, Advanced Biometric Security, LLC, McAllen Texas, readily admits that “I’m hardly your average MANA member in that my goal is to import what I refer to as ‘big boy toys’ (i.e., products for use on cars, boats and recreational vehicles) and sell them to distributors.” But to accomplish that goal, he notes, “I don’t necessarily want to build an empire here. What I’m looking to do is to establish and maintain relationships with suppliers.”
What he’s done to reach his goal is to join MANA and make use of the association’s various products and services as they pertain to finding and working with suppliers. “I’ve already learned a great deal about conducting due diligence when it comes to evaluating principals.”
“There’s business out there, but it’s up to the rep to go out and find it.” That’s the philosophy espoused by Will Fraind, NJ Sales Representatives, Short Hills, New Jersey. A new MANA member, Fraind is a participant in the second round of MANA’s mentoring program which is aimed at assisting nascent reps in their efforts to gain a foothold with their businesses.
Fraind explains that fresh off his mentoring sessions with former MANA President and CEO Joe Miller, “Among my primary efforts to locate profitable manufacturers will be to search those manufacturers located in MANA’s Online Directory. Obviously, if they’re listed there, there is some urgency on their part to locate representation. Those are the people I’ll initially be looking at.”
At the same time he’s seeking principals to work with, Fraind notes there are some things that will cause him to steer clear of a manufacturer as he continues his search. “The first situation to avoid would be one where the manufacturer holds on to house accounts. Next to avoid might be those manufacturers who operate with more than one channel of distribution. That would certainly cause me to think that they’re not going to be especially loyal to any one of those channels. I’d say my risk in establishing such a relationship would be fairly high.”
Another new MANA member — and also a participant in the association’s mentoring program — Shean Dalton, Pricotex, Austin, Texas, has adopted a proactive approach to seeking out the manufacturers he believes would complement his business plan. “Maybe I came about my approach a little differently than others, but what I did was to map out those companies that I believed would fit the niche I hope to operate in. Basically what I’m looking for are companies that are already established, haven’t worked with reps in the past but have made some progress. Perhaps they’re now looking to make the move from low to medium impact in the marketplace.”
Armed with that information, Dalton says he attended trade shows and started a dialog with the companies he identified ahead of time.
Jason LaForge, PJL Group, LLC, Edmond, Oklahoma, explains that when it comes to finding companies to rep, “My goal is to find that absolute best line that will fit my business.” One of the first steps he took to realize that goal was to contact and then join MANA. “When I did some research about reps on the Internet, MANA came up very quickly. I figured that membership in the association couldn’t hurt. I’m a big believer in information gathering and when I spoke to Jerry Leth (MANA’s Vice President and General Manager), I learned very quickly that the association was much like a one-stop shop. Everything that’s available to members from educational programs, forms, instructions on how to do things, and names of people you can contact, was really unbelievable.”
