---
title: "Discover Market Problems and Create Incremental Opportunities | A Checklist for Regional Managers' Market Visits!"
description: "This article discusses how regional managers can effectively visit markets. It emphasizes the importance of going with specific anomalies or issues to investigate, conducting experiential visits across channels and tiers, gathering detailed information on both own and competitor products, engaging in deep conversations to uncover pain points and opportunities, and providing timely feedback to distributors. The goal is to move beyond superficial visits that rely on personal relationships and instead use data and professionalism to drive performance."
author: "海游"
publisher: "New Distribution"
email: "zhaobo258@gmail.com"
telephone: "+8615854817671"
published: "2019-12-26"
categories: "Dealer Operations, Management & Methods"
language: "en"
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markdown: "https://xinjignxiao.com/en/articles/discover-market-problems-and-create-incremental-opportunities-a-checklis-e6406957.md"
original_source: "https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/t5ZbUCOc36g_8l9N3RT_QQ"
translation: "https://xinjignxiao.com/zh/articles/%E5%8F%91%E7%8E%B0%E5%B8%82%E5%9C%BA%E9%97%AE%E9%A2%98-%E5%88%9B%E9%80%A0%E5%A2%9E%E9%87%8F%E6%9C%BA%E4%BC%9A-%E5%8C%BA%E5%9F%9F%E7%BB%8F%E7%90%86%E8%B5%B0%E8%AE%BF%E5%B8%82%E5%9C%BA%E6%B8%85%E5%8D%95-e6406957.md"
attribution: "New Distribution — https://xinjignxiao.com/en/articles/discover-market-problems-and-create-incremental-opportunities-a-checklis-e6406957/"
citation: "海游. “Discover Market Problems and Create Incremental Opportunities | A Checklist for Regional Managers' Market Visits!.” New Distribution, 2019-12-26. https://xinjignxiao.com/en/articles/discover-market-problems-and-create-incremental-opportunities-a-checklis-e6406957/"
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---

# Discover Market Problems and Create Incremental Opportunities | A Checklist for Regional Managers' Market Visits!

> This article discusses how regional managers can effectively visit markets. It emphasizes the importance of going with specific anomalies or issues to investigate, conducting experiential visits across channels and tiers, gathering detailed information on both own and competitor products, engaging in deep conversations to uncover pain points and opportunities, and providing timely feedback to distributors. The goal is to move beyond superficial visits that rely on personal relationships and instead use data and professionalism to drive performance.

Today, let's talk about how regional managers can effectively visit markets.

I once accompanied a regional manager on a market visit. The process was like this: in the morning, the manager handled his work; in the afternoon, he went to the market with the worst performance for the month to understand why the distributor wasn't shipping goods. Before leaving, he called the sales director responsible for that market to inform him of his arrival and requested a joint visit.

After a one-hour drive, we arrived to find the sales director and distributor already prepared. Under their guidance, we visited several wholesale and retail outlets.

The visit revealed excellent merchandising, high inventory, and a full SKU range—a picture of prosperity and oversupply. The distributor was friendly and hospitable; over a meal and drinks, they talked about personal connections, each sharing their difficulties, and they gave each other face. Eventually, they reached an agreement: the distributor would pay a certain amount and ship a certain number of cases by a specific date. The task was completed, and the manager returned the next day.

This is a classic case of: **alcohol capacity equals sales capacity; boldness equals output.**

In reality, many regional managers operate this way—relying on brand power and personal relationships. But there's a limit to face; beyond that, relationships break down. And even breaking down has a limit; beyond that, it's a complete split.

Let's get back to the point: How should regional managers visit markets to discover problems, create incremental opportunities, and maintain harmonious relationships with distributors?

**-01- Visit with Anomalies in Mind**

Before visiting a market, regional managers should thoroughly understand the target market's detailed data, such as:

1. What is the market's monthly target? How much has been achieved? What is the year-to-date target and achievement? How does it compare to the same period last year?
2. How many outlets does the customer have in the system? What is the active rate? What is the positive/negative growth compared to the previous two months? What is the proportion of circulation and wholesale?
3. What is the quality of outlets (average SKU and visit frequency in the system)?
4. Are there any anomalies in the company personnel's attendance, visit route tracking, joint delivery frequency, morning meeting logs, work logs, etc.?

In short, **the core of management is managing anomalies, not managing normalcy. Before going on a business trip, identify anomalies, list them, and visit with the purpose of understanding the truth and solving them.**

**-02- Visit Experientially, by Channel and Tier, with Full Focus**

**1. Advocate experiential visits:**

Many regional managers like to make a show of their visits—announcing in advance and arriving with fanfare. Upon arrival, the distributor and local company head are already waiting, leading the way and following behind. You see only what they want you to see, which is meaningless. So I suggest:

(1) Visit with the distributor only when you've identified market opportunities; otherwise, don't invite them.
(2) Visit with the market head only when you've identified market problems; otherwise, don't invite your subordinates.
(3) Visit with frontline staff only when you have ample time and decide to support basic business and joint visits; otherwise, don't invite them.

If you don't have these three purposes, I recommend going alone for an experiential visit—see both good and bad, visit both large and small accounts. Only then will what you see, ask, and hear reflect your true market situation.

**2. Visit by channel:**

Regional managers have many tasks and limited time for visits. If you want to cover everything, I suggest:

(1) Visit several stores in the circulation channel, including supermarkets, mom-and-pop stores, tobacco/alcohol stores, community convenience stores, etc.
(2) Visit several stores in the catering channel, including breakfast shops, Chinese/Western restaurants, chain system stores, night market stalls, etc.
(3) Visit several stores in the modern channel, including NKA, LKA, CVS, etc.
(4) Visit several stores in special channels, including nightclubs, bath centers, sports venues, entertainment venues, etc.
(5) Other channels.

As long as your products are sold in these channels, you must visit them in person. As a regional manager, understanding your product's survival across all channels is a basic course; making generalizations without full knowledge gives you no right to speak.

**3. Visit by tier: Any market has strong and weak areas.**

(1) When visiting strong areas, understand why they are strong: which specific SKUs are strong? Can they be replicated?
(2) When visiting weak areas, understand why they are weak: which specific SKUs are weak? Can they be improved?

**4. Visit with full focus**

I know regional managers have many daily tasks, and during visits, phones ring constantly, WeChat groups demand attention, and occasional conference calls interrupt. But please plan your itinerary; doing things half-heartedly yields no results.

For example, you're chatting with a store owner, just getting into the flow, and the owner is openly sharing sales data for your product and competitors. Then a call comes in: "Sorry, I need to take this." Can you pick up the conversation where you left off?

So before visiting, inform relevant people, and during the visit, turn off your phone or put it on silent (not vibrate). Only with full immersion will you get results.

**-03- Collect Relevant Information and Take Notes**

**1. Collect information on your own product:**

(1) Does the retail price and case price meet company requirements? Record any anomalies.
(2) How is the market merchandising? What score would it get on the rating system?
(3) What is the distribution rate? Average SKU per store? Average inventory per store?
(4) How frequent is the business maintenance? How timely are deliveries? Any customer complaints?
(5) What is the average age of inventory? How are near-expiry and expired products handled?
(6) What is the store's receiving policy? Any suggestions or thoughts about your product?

**2. Collect competitor information:**

(1) Competitor attributes: brand, packaging, weight, case size, flavor—map out one-to-one competitive relationships with your product.
(2) Competitor pricing: factory price—wholesale price—terminal price—retail price—map out one-to-one competitive relationships.
(3) Competitor promotions: channel promotions—display investments—consumer promotions—map out one-to-one competitive relationships.
(4) Collect competitor information in the same way you collect your own product information.

**3. Analyze and crack the competitive landscape**

(1) Which brand is the main competitor in a particular channel? How to counter?
(2) Which brand is the main competitor in a particular area? How to counter?
(3) Which brand is the main competitor in a particular wholesale or retail store? How to counter?
(4) Which brand is the main competitor for a particular SKU? How to counter?

In short, deeply understand the market situation of both your product and competitors. If your product is a leading brand in the market, think about how to defend: who is attacking you, and how to defend?

**-04- Communicate Deeply to Discover Pain Points and Opportunities**

**1. Some regional managers visit markets superficially—just a touch and go.**

They look around, speak with an official tone, and it's clearly an inspection. They chat briefly with store owners: "How's business? Please recommend our products more!" These are correct but useless words. My suggestion is to communicate deeply, for example, ask the store owner:

(1) How are our products selling? Do you know our product's selling points?
(2) Are our sales reps visiting regularly? Are distributor deliveries timely? Are you satisfied with the service?
(3) Which SKU sells fastest? Which sells slowest? How many do you sell per day?
(4) What are the reasons for fast/slow sales? Who buys them? Men, women, old, young? Poor or rich? Do they buy by case or individually?
(5) What is the purpose of purchase? Gifting or personal use?
(6) Do you feel the profit is satisfactory? How does it compare to competitors?
(7) What feedback do consumers give?
(8) What suggestions do you have for our new product?

Regional managers should learn to chat about substantive topics. In real conversations, you might drift into unrelated topics to lighten the mood, but don't forget your purpose—you're working. Don't let the store owner lead the conversation astray.

**2. Learn to quickly organize your thoughts and extract market pain points and opportunities.**

Example: A manager from a mineral water company once chatted with a store owner. The owner said: "My store is next to a school. Students buy water after evening self-study, usually in groups of three to five. They buy four or five bottles at a time. I have to give them two bags, and it's inconvenient to carry. It would be great if there were a small pack that's convenient and affordable."

So the company launched a 6-pack: pay for 5 bottles, get 6—affordable and easy to carry. It's perfect for sharing in dorms, boosting sales.

**-05- Feedback to Distributors After Market Visits**

Feedback after market visits should be timely. Ideally, communicate on the same day and take notes. Waiting a day loses the feel of the visit.

When discussing work with distributors, be serious and professional. Work is work, life is life; mixing them creates chaos. Sometimes negotiating with distributors is like a game: they're not afraid of your toughness, but they fear your thorough market knowledge and professionalism that leaves no escape, and they fear your selflessness and dedication. A regional manager with these four qualities is invincible.

For example: What if the distributor isn't shipping and performance isn't met?

Distributors are human; human nature is to seek benefit and avoid harm. They don't think they have problems; they blame external factors. When they give an objective reason, you counter with a real case and a solution, mapping one-to-one until they have nothing to say. As long as they want to do it, they will ship. Never slam the table or glare, nor try to outdrink the client at dinner—that only works temporarily, not long-term.

**Final Thoughts:**

**Thorough market understanding is the foundation of performance. Performance detached from market reality is like a castle in the air—only briefly beautiful. Regional managers have many tasks; visiting markets requires learning and accumulating skills, training yourself to gather more market information in limited time. This is a skill; only by mastering and applying it can you improve your work efficiency.**

**Extended Reading:**

> ## **Defensive War for Strong Brands | Nongfu Spring's Distributor Reform**

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## Citation metadata

- Publisher: New Distribution
- Author: 海游
- Published: 2019-12-26
- Canonical: https://xinjignxiao.com/en/articles/discover-market-problems-and-create-incremental-opportunities-a-checklis-e6406957/
- Original source: https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/t5ZbUCOc36g_8l9N3RT_QQ

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Contact: zhaobo258@gmail.com · +86 158 5481 7671