PPB October 2015

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QA Multi-line Rep Asks:
Holding the attention of distributor
sales reps during product demon-
strations is a lot like herding cats.
They’re using their cell phones,
talking with each other and going
in and out of the room. What can I
do to attract and hold their atten-
tion during presentations?
Frank Rauch
CEO President
Apex Advertising
UPIC: APEXADV1
If you cannot hold their attention
maybe you had better get better lines to
rep or develop some great ideas for a dis-
tributor’s specific client base. Take a pub-
lic speaking class and learn how to han-
dle those cats. Set rules in advance of
your meeting. Offer free spec or regular
samples to those who do not use their
phones. When they talk among them-
selves, ask them to share their conversa-
tion. Close the door. Limit your presenta-
tion to a few hot or new items from your
key vendors. Hand out a prepared list of
your vendors and the vendor contacts.
Bring in food; they can’t talk to each
other when eating. Instead of a group
meeting, do one-to-one meetings.
Develop spec and virtual samples with
individual sales folks. Stay away from the
page-turn sales pitch, and focus on how
products have been sold and how they
have been used. Bring in the best of the
uniqueness from each of your lines. Don’t
try to cram in 10 lines in 30 minutes;
only talk about three lines for 10 minutes
each. Bottom line: give them a focused
talk that generates money in their pock-
ets via fresh ideas that are new, different
and unique to set yourself apart from the
rest. Have a conversation and you will
have their attention.
DO YOU HAVE THE ANSWER?
QA Distributor Asks:
I placed an order for a client and the supplier required payment
upfront and then used a shipper that delivered to the wrong address,
where someone signed for the products. The package was then lost
in the shipper’s system and the supplier said I had to go through the
shipper to get my money back. I had to pay another supplier to get
the product to my client on time. I’m still trying to get my money
back from the first botched deal. Who owes me in this case, the ship-
per or the supplier? And how can I avoid this problem in the future?
What’s your answer? Email answers along with your name, title
and company name to by October 30 for pos-
sible inclusion in an upcoming issue of PPB magazine.
20 • PPB • OCTOBER 2015 INNOVATE