The sudden outbreak of the pandemic has impacted every distributor's business to some extent. To address this, on February 18, New Distribution invited Mr. Li Feng, President of Liaoning Anshan Hongye Hengda Trading Co., Ltd., to its live stream to discuss "How distributors can improve capabilities, analyze customers, and seize market share during the pandemic lull."

Around this theme, Mr. Li Feng streamed live for nearly 160 minutes, sharing practical, hands-on experience from his perspective as a distributor. According to backend data, up to 52,000 people participated in viewing and interaction.

Audience members expressed that they benefited greatly, found the content actionable, and that it helped solve their current difficulties to some extent. Mr. Li Feng's live seminar set a new benchmark for the FMCG industry forum in terms of participation scale and content professionalism.

As regions gradually resume work, distributors have moved past the initial confusion and panic. Now, challenges such as personnel management, sales deployment, and strategy adjustment after resumption have become their new predicament. When 52,000 FMCG practitioners gathered in the New Distribution live room, their thoughts and exchanges brought strength and confidence to the entire FMCG industry.

-01- What was discussed in the New Distribution live room?

Li Feng: "The boss's state determines the employees' state, and determines the company's development!"

In difficult times, only by relying on oneself can one save oneself; relying solely on brand owners or other external factors cannot break through the predicament. Difficulties expose company problems; only the current situation can force distributor bosses to pay attention, trigger reflection, and make changes. Otherwise, distributor bosses still cannot make up their minds to reform and upgrade their companies.

Li Feng: "As long as thoughts don't slide, solutions are always more than difficulties!" Facing the current situation of underutilized sales staff after resumption, distributor bosses must get the sales team moving and not idle, using this gap to enhance the team's combat capability.

1. Improve sales team communication skills

Li Feng: "Never say no to customers; learn to trade conditions for conditions."

Customers have order needs, but whether those needs are given to your salesperson depends on the salesperson's communication skills and customer relationships.

There are 4 communication tips for salespeople:

1) First, say what the customer wants to hear. 2) Then, say what the customer can accept. 3) Then, say what the salesperson should say. 4) Finally, say what the salesperson wants to say.

Communication language that is not designed lacks power; the process of communicating with customers is the process of persuading them to agree with the salesperson's ideas; it is the process of getting the order.

2. Offline market shrinks; use the gap to study competitor data and seize competitors' core stores

Li Feng: "There are only off-season thoughts, no off-season markets."

Due to the pandemic, consumer habits have shifted from offline to online, and the offline market has shrunk. To complete brand owners' growth targets, it is necessary to seize the share of offline competitor brands, i.e., "snatching food from the tiger's mouth."

Salespeople can obtain competitor sales data from various channels (POS data, terminal customer inventory, terminal customer sell-through), analyze why the customer sells competitor products—is it profit? Brand? Service? Customer relationship? Or a long-term benefit binding agreement? Find the key points and break through one by one.

During special times, care for customers and help them solve practical problems. From a business perspective, there are no permanent friends, only long-term benefit binding.

3. Analyze data to find growth points for your customers and develop exclusive sales plans

Li Feng: "No decisions without data."

In special times, conventional marketing methods are the most effective. Caring for customers, solving problems for them, and providing value-added services are key points that distributors should focus on.

Customers are the intangible assets of distributors; creating value for customers is the core work of distributors. In addition, analyze customer data to find the categories, specifications, and price bands that sell well for that customer, and formulate incentive policies for these products to ignite sales.

-02- What did the live stream bring to the FMCG industry?

Mr. Li Feng's course last night focused on the theme of distributor work deployment after resumption. In terms of the event itself, the online organization scale, content professionalism, and online interactive Q&A all achieved landmark breakthroughs, which are of significant value to the transformation and upgrading of the FMCG industry.

1. Online organization scale

Common offline forums and trainings typically have a scale of several hundred people. Last night, Mr. Li Feng's course attracted 52,000 participants, far exceeding the record for offline FMCG industry events.

According to preliminary statistics, among the total online viewers, FMCG manufacturers and practitioners accounted for about 85%, totaling over 44,000 people. Many industry-leading manufacturers such as "Tsingtao Beer, Yili, Yihai Kerry" organized their internal employees and distributors to watch the live course together and engage in exchange and interaction.

2. Content professionalism

Mr. Li Feng has been in the FMCG industry for 24 years. In the early 16 years, as a brand owner, he rose from frontline sales to national director; in the later 8 years, he successfully transitioned to a distributor, growing a trading company in a third-tier city from 80 million to 300 million, increasing the sales team's per capita annual income by 233%, achieving a 462% increase in terminal outlets, and a 500% increase in annual profit.

Mr. Li Feng's 24 years of frontline business experience contributed to the professionalism and practicality of last night's course. Facing resumption, Mr. Li Feng provided multiple solution ideas and implementation plans. The entire 158 minutes of dry goods output was widely praised.

3. Online interactive Q&A

Of the 158 minutes of dry goods output, 98 minutes were dedicated to Q&A. Mr. Li Feng answered various sales management questions on the spot, such as: "How to introduce a new product into a blank market?" "What is the future trend of beverages?" "How to set business compensation and performance?" "How to resolve inventory discrepancies in supermarkets?" and so on. The online activity and professionalism of questions also set a new height for FMCG industry exchange meetings. After the live stream, more professional questions were raised in WeChat exchange groups, awaiting answers.

-03- Why was the New Distribution live room launched?

At the beginning of this year, due to the sudden impact of the pandemic, the FMCG industry has been in turmoil, and many manufacturers have suffered severe losses. In this extremely special period and environment, what response strategies should be adopted is a topic of great concern to the entire FMCG industry.

As a professional new media for China's FMCG + Internet, New Distribution is committed to the transformation and upgrading of FMCG manufacturers and distributors, and channel digital solutions. During this special period, New Distribution urgently mobilized all resources to fully support the FMCG industry in overcoming difficulties.

Since February 2, the New Distribution live room has held online course live streams every night at 8 PM, covering topics from online (community sales, digital upgrading, C-end operations, home delivery platforms) to offline (inventory digestion, resumption manuals), spanning multiple industries such as beer, beverages, and grain and oil, and inviting professionals from each industry, including Mr. Li Feng. To date, 17 days, 21 courses have been held, with over 200,000 participants.

In our view, sharing and exchanging through online live streams during the pandemic can enhance the industry's confidence and help find ways to overcome difficulties. Many manufacturers have already connected resources through the New Distribution live room and found ways and means to overcome difficulties.