{"id":118,"date":"2010-08-02T08:00:55","date_gmt":"2010-08-02T13:00:55","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.rephunter.net\/?p=118"},"modified":"2020-02-23T11:26:10","modified_gmt":"2020-02-23T17:26:10","slug":"top-6-support-items-manufacturers-representatives-should-expect","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rephunter.net\/blog\/top-6-support-items-manufacturers-representatives-should-expect\/","title":{"rendered":"Top 6 Sales Support Items Manufacturers Representatives Should Expect"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.rephunter.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/08\/sales-reps-hring-checklist.jpg\" alt=\"sales reps hring checklist\" width=\"250\" height=\"220\" class=\"rh-image1 alignright size-full wp-image-1476\" \/>These top six sales support items manufacturers representatives should expect from the manufacturers, distributors or sales managers whose products or services are on their line cards. Missing any one of these critical elements can seriously impact either sales or the rep&#8217;s sales relationship with the company &#8230;or both.  <\/p>\n<p>&raquo; <strong>Training<\/strong> \u2013 Principals must train the independent sales rep on products and\/or services. Principals may pay or split expenses with the manufacturers rep for training tools, courses (if they are necessary), and travel (if the independent rep is expected to visit the principal\u2019s office or manufacturing facilities).<\/p>\n<blockquote style=\"margin-left: 20px;margin-right: 20px;\"><p>&#8220;The BIGGEST factor in an independent sales rep\u2019s failure is their lack of product knowledge. If a sales rep is not comfortable selling a product, they WON&#8217;T.&#8221;<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>&raquo;  <strong>Initial Travel Period<\/strong> \u2013 For the first few months, it is suggested that the principal make a person available to travel with the sales rep to make initial sales presentations. This gives the rep time to understand and get a feel for the sort of questions that customers ask, problems, what sorts of things to look for, what the sales cycle looks like, and so on.<\/p>\n<p>&raquo;  <strong>Sales and Order Tracking<\/strong> \u2013 Sales reps do not work under the same roof as the principal, and they are paid commission only. Because revenue is not guaranteed, it is vital for the independent rep\u2019s business to receive information such as:<\/p>\n<ul style=\"margin-left: 20px;\">\n<li>Copy of quotations and price lists<\/li>\n<li>Pending orders<\/li>\n<li>Order status<\/li>\n<li>Shipping notifications<\/li>\n<li>Copies of invoices<\/li>\n<li>Commission schedules<\/li>\n<li>Copies of literature sent with Products<\/li>\n<li>IMPORTANT: The most common way to lose a rep is poor communication.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&raquo; <strong>Timely Follow Up<\/strong> \u2013 When independent manufacturers representatives bring in quotation requests, the principal needs to turn them around as soon as possible! Likewise, if there are problems in the field, principals should offer support to the sales rep, as well as their customers.<\/p>\n<p>&raquo; <strong>Customer List<\/strong> \u2013The principal must supply the sales rep with an installation or a user list of their lines or services within the independent rep\u2019s territory. This is a great way to help the rep build a customer base, as well as to understand the principal\u2019s products. This can greatly assist the principal, as it can open up previously unseen sales opportunities.<\/p>\n<p>&raquo; <strong>Supply Marketing Material <\/strong>\u2013 Principals need to supply independent reps with the promotional material needed to sell that particular product or service. Common marketing materials include brochures, samples, catalogs, but may require training videos or manuals for more complex sales.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>These top six sales support items manufacturers representatives should expect from the manufacturers, distributors or sales managers whose products or services are on their line cards. Missing any one of these critical elements can seriously impact either sales or the rep&#8217;s sales relationship with the company &#8230;or both. &raquo; Training \u2013 Principals must train the [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[51,4,17],"tags":[67],"class_list":["post-118","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-managing-your-sales-reps","category-of-interest-to-independent-reps","category-sales-rep-tips","tag-healthy-sales-rep-relationships"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rephunter.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/118","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rephunter.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rephunter.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rephunter.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rephunter.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=118"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rephunter.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/118\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rephunter.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=118"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rephunter.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=118"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rephunter.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=118"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}