---
title: "6 Models for Marketing Executives to Stay Close to the Market"
description: "The art of war says, 'A skilled commander seeks victory from the situation, not from blaming his men.' Marketing executives, as commanders, should create favorable conditions for their teams rather than just pushing them hard. This article outlines six practical models for marketing executives to stay connected with the frontline, including regular market visits, dealer communication, employee feedback platforms, breaking down departmental silos, monthly themed work, and focusing on terminal sell-through."
author: "吴忠文"
publisher: "New Distribution"
email: "zhaobo258@gmail.com"
telephone: "+8615854817671"
published: "2016-03-03"
language: "en"
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# 6 Models for Marketing Executives to Stay Close to the Market

> The art of war says, 'A skilled commander seeks victory from the situation, not from blaming his men.' Marketing executives, as commanders, should create favorable conditions for their teams rather than just pushing them hard. This article outlines six practical models for marketing executives to stay connected with the frontline, including regular market visits, dealer communication, employee feedback platforms, breaking down departmental silos, monthly themed work, and focusing on terminal sell-through.

The art of war says, "A skilled commander seeks victory from the situation, not from blaming his men." This means the commander-in-chief should be adept at creating a favorable situation for the army to fight, rather than just holding a "gun" to force subordinates to fight hard, or using expenses and rebates to coerce dealers.

The marketing executive is the commander-in-chief of the three armed forces. The so-called "rely on the situation, not on people" means coordinating the production, marketing, finance, and logistics departments to serve the frontline market. Ensure that frontline sales personnel have weapons in hand (differentiation advantages, advertising advantages, cost-performance advantages, quality advantages, etc.) and support behind them (promotional support, market material support, logistics, finance, and back-office systems), so they can stand tall and expand territory without worries.

"Lead by example rather than by orders." If a marketing executive doesn't spend at least one week a month visiting terminals, calling on customers, and listening to frontline voices, then when business reports come in, they will say: "Leader, you don't know, the competitors have gone crazy," "Listen to me," "Give me this much budget, and I guarantee I'll complete the task," etc. The support, services, policies, and assessments you provide to the frontline often become accomplices to price cutting, cross-region selling, and inventory loading, turning the marketing team into "drug addicts" with expenses, "gamblers" with promotions, and "parasites" with dealers. The sales created are also "junk sales." Everyone can see this, but "disasters" still repeat around us:

1. Market Sales Chaos

1. No advantage in brand or product:
Regional dairy products are all imitative, but no one has ever surpassed. "Mozilian" led the national dairy industry to make normal-temperature yogurt; "Youyi C" guided the dairy industry into a mix of true and false brown drinks. Who has considered that your product should lead the industry in positioning, function, appeal, and channel selection? Sales is not about selling good or bad products, but selling differences. If your product has no advantage in the market, you have to compete with competitors on bundling and price. This causes business personnel to be unable to stand tall in various channels. Dealers say, "You've been selling this single product for years, the profit is too low, you haven't successfully launched a new product in all these years, the profit on old products is getting lower, expense reimbursement takes longer and longer, damaged goods are not returned or exchanged, I'm losing confidence in you, I might as well stop selling"...

2. Market policies don't match reality:
The gifts designed by the marketing department are unwanted; the finance department requires that display fees be reimbursed only with "display fee invoices," which is impossible in practice. Supermarket special prices are lower than ex-factory prices; cross-region selling is penalized but continues; stores don't sell without promotions, competitors always beat you to it, and many merchandisers want to resign...

3. Headquarters' logistics services have problems:
When launching a new product at an ordering meeting, after one order, the good-selling items are out of stock, and the effort is wasted repeatedly; business personnel at the frontline have to beg the delivery driver to bring a few promotional items or take back damaged goods; there are orders and inspections, but no one solves frontline problems; sales targets are set high, with many deductions and taxes, and bonuses are not paid promptly. Regional managers face customers outside and then face department heads when they return to the company for reimbursement or promotional items; dealers get angry when their payments don't arrive within ten days or half a month, and they vent their anger on the salespeople...

The above chaos sounds like a fantasy, but it exists in every dairy company. The root cause is that the bigwigs in the palace are far from the frontline and don't know what's happening or what's needed. Hence, "some things are clear to the people below, but the leaders themselves are not clear."

2. Six Models for Staying Close to the Market

As a marketing executive, if you want to be omnipotent, you must first be omniscient about the frontline. The premise of management is inspection, and the premise of inspection is knowledge. Without inspection and rewards/punishments, there is no management. Report data analysis can only indicate where problems are, but it can never replace your personal visits for information collection and market research. If you don't find problems, it means there's no opportunity for improvement. Maybe the target is set too low, and under the current target, it might be perfect; another possibility is a lack of ability and tools to find problems. So, if the market has no problems, then your own work has problems.

Marketing executives also want to visit the frontline, but they have too many meetings, reports, and social engagements. So they say, "Once I finish this busy period, I'll go see the market," but it seems they never finish. Sometimes when they get to the market, customers invite them for drinks, and regional managers arrange mahjong and sauna companions, making it like a county magistrate's inspection tour, with no chance to see the market. Time is never enough? Li Ka-shing said, "Time is grabbed!" Next, I'll share some good habits and work models for grabbing time and ensuring smooth communication from top to bottom:

**Model 1: Routine Market Visits, Set Terminal Visit Days**
What is routine? Every morning you get up, brush your teeth, wash your face (must do in the morning), and at noon, whether hungry or not, you know it's time for lunch. That's routine. Once a thing becomes a habit and routine, it's easy to persist.

The so-called market problems and improvement plans are best understood by the grassroots, but their perspective is limited, their level is limited, and their methods are not systematic. The so-called senior executives are those who dive into the market frontline, hear and see the grassroots' "unsystematic, incomplete, and possibly incorrect" opinions, gather enough information, listen to many people's ideas, consult with a few, and then make their own decisions. The so-called middle managers are those who overcome all difficulties to execute top-level decisions and deliver results.

The marketing general manager of Yunnan's No.1 dairy brand once came to Shenzhen to communicate with me. When he first started working in Kunming, he was busy in the office every day and had no time to visit the market. As a result, the busier he got, the more things piled up, the less he knew about the frontline, and the more excuses his subordinates had. Later, he fixed the 10th to 20th of each month as routine market visit time, with no less than 3 days in the Kunming market. He approved documents in advance each month, told his assistant not to disturb him unless urgent, and had documents requiring his signature sent to his email by 6 PM daily, which he handled at night. Now I've been to all 128 counties and cities in Yunnan. I know the names and locations of the top three shopping malls in each county and city, and the key second-tier distributors. When I return, I formulate next month's promotional policies, decide which manager to fire or promote, which region to invest in, and which product to increase promotional efforts for—I have it all in mind.

When you go out, you find many excuses are nonsense. No matter how difficult the market, there's always room for action. Sales doesn't require intelligence, only physical strength! It's hard at first, but if you persist, you'll experience that a fixed time to go out and run around is more effective than a year of meetings in the office. The market will tell you the answer.

Marketing general managers should also give regional managers fixed times to visit the market, and for reimbursement of travel expenses, they must attach terminal visit records. During this time, avoid disturbing them (e.g., calling them back for meetings), so the company forms a system and model of fixed-time terminal visits.

**Model 2: Routine Dealer Phone Calls, Establish Dealer WeChat Groups**
The marketing executive calls a dealer every day after lunch and dinner to communicate: upcoming sales policies, new product pricing, and progress on previous issues. When a dealer suddenly receives a call from the marketing executive, they will have a lot to say. What's the significance of dealer calls? Dealers have a special status—they are bosses and "real" regional managers. They know things that salespeople don't. Dealers are at the frontline, knowing what the market needs, what product upgrades are needed, and what competitors are doing. They serve as "chiefs of staff" for the marketing executive in formulating company strategy.

Every evening, send dealers: product display photos, vivid display photos, new product photos, store opening information, competitor advantage photos from your market, and share learning materials. You can get valuable first-hand information feedback from dealers and also cultivate customer relationships. The key is routine and persistence.

**Model 3: Establish Employee Communication Platforms, Encourage Employee Participation**
In "Kangxi Dynasty," Empress Dowager Xiaozhuang said, "The most unreliable thing in the world is the memorials of officials." The same applies in enterprises. Many companies collect market information by having salespeople fill out "daily information reports," but in reality, they fabricate stories, and by 2016, it's all fake. Most market information daily reports say: "No dynamics," "Normal." It's not that people don't want to write, but no one reads or cares, so it gradually becomes "no dynamics" and "normal."

1. The executive personally establishes an employee communication platform:
A Guangdong dairy general manager had HR compile the birthdays of all sales department employees. On an employee's birthday, HR would send the basic information to him. He would call to greet or send a "Happy Birthday" message. He established communication channels with frontline sales staff and joined various sales department WeChat groups. He stipulated that marketing leaders take turns on duty in the sales WeChat group daily to promptly handle employee feedback on work issues. Employees could directly report any objections to company policies via WeChat or the company office platform to any superior. Only the sender could see it. Management order must be hierarchical authorization, but if information feedback strictly follows "level-by-level reporting," it's like cutting off your own ears and eyes. You must encourage direct upward communication. This not only speeds up frontline information feedback but also creates a management atmosphere. Everyone knows the internet is more powerful than the discipline inspection committee. Similarly, establishing such an online feedback mechanism in the enterprise can deter those with ulterior motives from acting rashly.

2. Set up a market dynamics bulletin board:
At the entrance of the sales company, hang two large blackboards: one named "Market Dynamics Photo," the other "Problems to Solve." All business personnel, whether returning for meetings or reimbursement, must write any market dynamics or problems to solve on the blackboard immediately, and they can voluntarily decide whether to sign their names. The general manager can see the market dynamics and suggestions on the blackboard daily and reward those who report significant information with signatures. For problems to solve, implement a "blackboard erasing campaign"—erase one when solved, and unsolved problems stay on the board until resolved.

3. Democratic centralism in market strategy formulation:
When promotional policies are issued, there are always objections from various markets. How to ensure execution while accommodating regional differences? After the company issues promotional policy documents, give each region a feedback period (e.g., 3 days). Open a dedicated section on WeChat called "Promotional Policy Feedback." Regions that cannot implement the unified policy can explain reasons and propose alternative regional plans within the feedback period. If the company doesn't approve, they must strictly implement the unified policy. If approved, the regional promotional policy can be adjusted to local conditions, giving regional staff a voice and reducing policy costs.

**Model 4: Break Down "Departmental Walls"**
Salespeople fight at the frontline, and the marketing executive commands from headquarters, helping employees create a good environment for cooperation with support departments to "not drop the chain." Specific methods are as follows:

1. Open a "Break Down Departmental Walls" column:
On the sales department blackboard and WeChat message board, open a column for salespeople to complain about logistics, finance, marketing, storage, and other related departments, list specific problems to solve, and suggest improvements for departmental cooperation. Use the blackboard erasing method to solve them one by one. Also, assign someone to improve cooperation processes between departments (e.g., the finance department should promptly return non-reimbursable invoices to the sales department with an explanation of why they can't be reimbursed, rather than making salespeople wait months and then come back to ask).

2. Hold monthly production-sales joint meetings:
Hold monthly joint meetings between sales and logistics, finance, marketing, and warehousing departments. The meeting name is "Break Down the Walls Between Departments." At the meeting, bring up specific problems and solve them on the spot. More importantly, formulate improvement processes and ensure their implementation.

3. Dealer satisfaction surveys and feedback:
Twice a year, headquarters conducts a dealer satisfaction survey and salesperson scoring. List all dealer complaints about company services, hold a special meeting to solve them one by one, and publish the results and salesperson evaluations in a special issue or open letter to dealers to show sincerity and educate all company colleagues.

**Model 5: Set Monthly Themed Work, Use Meetings for Training and Sharing**
The entry barrier for marketing is too low; if you can take care of yourself, you can do sales. Sales relies on a mouth and two legs. Company assessment indicators: one is sales volume, the other is profit. For many companies, performance is a "death exemption card": alcohol capacity = sales volume, courage = output. Employees hope to get high salaries and fast growth. Salary is limited, but personal growth is unlimited. Salespeople often regret not learning enough, and the lower their status, the more they want to learn. But facing high performance assessments, distribution rate checks, display competitions, and damn store entry fees, they can only bow their heads and struggle to make a living.

Marketing executives face many things: legacy market problems; old products in new markets not adapting; chaotic market prices; weak channel foundation; uncooperative or "crying and complaining" customers; paralyzed marketing teams. Marketing executives must maintain a positive attitude, face problems actively, conduct comprehensive research, prioritize, plan before acting, and based on the company's annual sales plan and actual market conditions, determine monthly themed work. Hold monthly key work seminars, focus on key points, integrate resources, apply targeted solutions, and implement a "meeting as training" system. The marketing executive makes PPT training materials on the monthly theme, provides direction, and discusses implementation details. Train salespeople in various sales skills and product knowledge. Make salespeople feel that each month's work is fresh. Through training, narrow the distance between leaders and employees, establish the marketing executive's professional image in employees' minds, and let employees feel they learn something new every month—even if they don't earn much, they learn.

**Model 6: Focus on the Most Important Work: Terminal Sell-Through**
The marketing executive has a thousand tasks, but which is most important? Terminal sell-through! No matter how good the data analysis, training, or management, if your product doesn't sell through at the terminal, if consumers don't want it, employees lose morale, and dealers lose confidence.

The first question a marketing executive should ask when visiting the market is: Is my product selling through and how fast? Sell-through requires momentum. Terminal distribution rate determines product visibility in the market and the strength of market momentum for rapid sell-through. While pursuing distribution rate, also pursue recommendation rate, check salesperson visit rates, and inquire about terminal complaint rates. Identify terminals that can "guide" consumption, focus resources, attack key points, and replicate product sell-through based on these model terminals. Follow the four principles of sell-through:

First principle: "Point-Line-Area" principle. First, do well in one terminal store, an image store, then expand to a street, form a regional high point, radiate to a region, and then magnify to achieve a market.

Second principle: 80/20 principle. It's often said that 80% of sales come from 20% of outlets, but that's not entirely true. Large supermarkets emphasize pull, while mom-and-pop stores emphasize push. These 20% of outlets only serve to radiate to the surrounding business district, affecting 80% of sales and profits.

Third principle: Matching principle. Channel layout should match product positioning.

Fourth principle: "Mushroom Strategy" principle. All strong brands have followed this principle: first select and occupy the most attractive target market, then select and occupy relatively attractive regional markets, and finally radiate gradually.

Only when products sell through can you have the opportunity to manage channels, management, teams, and data. If products sit at the terminal unsold, put everything else aside, find experts, consult dealers, hold discussions, run pilots, and find ways to sell through. Believe that even the worst market has bright spots, with good sales regions, terminals, promotional methods, and excellent merchandisers, even suggestions for improving sell-through. The market is the best test for sell-through. Marketing executives, standing at the overall height, must maximize sell-through methods. Once a method is proven effective, replicate it immediately to start a positive cycle for the entire company's marketing.

Sometimes, marketing executives must "condescend" to personally select product gifts, experiment with terminal demonstration methods, and find sell-through methods.

In marketing, terminal sell-through is paramount!

Deputy General Manager Wu Zhongwen

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