PPB March 2016

56 / 102

54 • PPB • MARCH 2016 GROW
HOW DOES
YOUR BUSINESS
STACK UP?
PPAI’S LATEST INDUSTRY BENCHMARK REPORT TAKES A CLOSER LOOK AT EIGHT TOP
SALES-RELATED CONCERNS OF DISTRIBUTOR COMPANIES By Mo Das and Tina Berres Filipski
DISTRIBUTOR BUSINESS STUDY
RUNNING A PROMOTIONAL PRODUCTS DISTRIBUTORSHIP can
lead to big wins financially and personally, but it can also be mentally, physically
and emotionally exhausting. Entrepreneurship can test your confidence in ways
you never imagined but can also bring out remarkable qualities about yourself
that you never knew you possessed.
Like most small businesses,
it’s common for distributor own-
ers to have their fingers in all
facets of the business, from
building sales teams and com-
pensation packages to marketing
the business and bringing in the
dollars. Occasionally you may
stop and think, “Is this the best
way to do this? Do other distrib-
utors know something I haven’t
found out about yet?”
Every few years, PPAI pro-
duces its Distributors Business
Study based on surveys with
distributors to provide a bench-
mark of average industry trends
and standards, to help owners
better understand where their
businesses stand in relation to
one another. This survey, which
was fielded and compiled in late
2015, consisted of 52 questions
focused on the distributor busi-
ness sales force. Data was col-
lected from 237 PPAI distribu-
tor member principals with 168
completed surveys. With a four-
percent response rate, the level
of precision for performance
ratings is seven percent (margin
of error) at the 95-percent
confidence level. The majority
of respondents were based in
the U.S. with a small percentage
in Canada.
This article highlights the
key findings in eight major areas
of questions showing how other
distributors are running their
businesses and servicing their
clients. Results from the full
study will be released by section
throughout the year and are
available at
research.