Source丨Sales and Market The current FMCG market is undergoing a profound cyclical shift. Once, the market grew rapidly, sales climbed steadily, and distributors could easily get a share of the pie by representing well-known brands. Even if manufacturer salespeople only focused on pushing inventory and demanding payments, sometimes with a tough attitude, many distributors chose to endure for the sake of profits. After all, making money is the absolute principle. However, the environment has changed. The market has moved from incremental competition to existing competition, with slowing growth, thinner profits, channel sinking, and intense competition. Distributors are finding it increasingly difficult. If manufacturer salespeople still only care about their own targets, turn a blind eye to distributors' difficulties, and only push inventory without helping sales, then even the most prestigious brand will lose its luster. The reality today is that most distributors are no longer willing to pay for a one-sided relationship. Behind this lies a simple truth: you reap what you sow. If manufacturer salespeople treat distributors merely as ATMs and warehouses for inventory, the relationship is bound to be fragile. Once the market changes or the brand experiences any turbulence, it will inevitably lead to "when the wall is about to collapse, everyone gives it a push." So how should brand manufacturers' sales teams handle their relationship with distributors? My view is: if you can build an ally-type relationship, supporting each other, you can form a sustainable business community. At the same time, I have "two transformations" and an "action list" to share with the sales elites of brand manufacturers. Mindset Shift: From Self-Interest to Mutual Prosperity The first thing to completely change is the mindset: manufacturer salespeople and distributors are essentially a community of shared interests. Sales performance comes from distributors' sales, and distributors' profits depend on the manufacturer's products and support. If you only focus on your monthly collection figures, even at the cost of pushing inventory to overdraw the market and squeeze distributors' funds, you might meet your targets in the short term, but in the long run, it will definitely harm channel health and eventually backfire on you. True ally thinking is to treat the distributor's business as your own and the distributor's problems as your own. Only when distributors make money can your products continue to sell; only when distributors grow can your market foundation be solid. Role Shift: From Manager to Enabler After the mindset shift, the role naturally needs to be repositioned. Manufacturer salespeople should not be high-and-mighty "managers" but should become consultants, assistants, and coaches to distributors. You need to: Understand their business: Know the other brands they represent, their cash flow, their team structure, and their downstream network; Solve their problems: Is terminal sell-through slow? Help design promotional plans; Is inventory turnover low? Help plan safety stock; Are salespeople not skilled? Organize sales training immediately; Plan their growth: Jointly find growth space for your product—whether it's developing new channels, laying out new outlets, or promoting new products. When you have the above mindset and role shifts, I can assure you that you will be welcomed by distributors. So, for brand manufacturers' salespeople, what specifically should they do? This leads to the "action list." Action List: Put the Ally Relationship into Practice 1. Regular Visits: Become Synonymous with "Reliable" Regardless of weather, show up at the distributor's place at fixed times. This conveys not only professional attitude but also stability and trustworthiness. Once a brand salesperson establishes a foundation of trust with the distributor, you'll find that communication costs decrease, execution efficiency increases, and the level of attention rises, naturally leading to better results. 2. Come with Solutions, Not Just Demands for Payment Before each visit to a distributor, brand salespeople should ask themselves: What problem can I help solve this time? Review last period's sales data, visit terminals to identify pain points, and prepare a simple analysis report or proposal. Change the opening from "This month's target..." to "About the XX issue you mentioned last time, I have an idea..." When brand salespeople keep distributors' problems in mind, their own problems are more easily solved by distributors. 3. Visit the Market First, Office Later Many brand salespeople go to distributors and almost never visit the market, heading straight to the distributor's office. I ask: If you don't understand the actual situation on the front line, what can you do in the distributor's office? What suggestions can you give? So, I suggest that brand salespeople, before going to the distributor, spend half a day alone or with the distributor's salespeople visiting the front line: check terminal displays, ask store owners about sales, and observe consumer reactions. Remember, when you bring frontline intelligence to the boss, your suggestions will be grounded, and your communication will carry more weight. 4. Win Over Their Team, Not Just the Boss We all understand a saying: The more diligently people work, the more they crave respect. Think about it: Who respects the distributor's salespeople? After careful thought, probably no one. But these are the people who actually sell goods every day, and the daily sales truly rely on them. So, I suggest that brand salespeople, when at the distributor's place, proactively offer a cigarette, bring breakfast, or occasionally treat the distributor's salespeople to a meal. If you pay attention to and respect them, they will be more willing to push your products. They are the "last mile" for products to reach the terminal. If you can also understand the problems they encounter when selling products and provide targeted training, when they start calling you "teacher," you have truly won them over. 5. Lead by Example: Create a Benchmark After determining the growth direction with the distributor based on the market situation, brand salespeople should not only train the distributor's salespeople on specific methods but also personally accompany them for a day in the market, demonstrating how to negotiate with outlets, how to do displays, and how to sell. If brand salespeople can lead the distributor's team to create a benchmark market, this will become the most persuasive case, not only motivating the entire team but also establishing the brand's product firmly in the hearts of the distributor's sales team. However, one thing brand salespeople must remember is that going to the field yourself is not to replace the distributor's team in doing all the work, but to give them "visible" methods and confidence through demonstration. The Rewards of an Ally Relationship When brand salespeople truly become allies of distributors, changes will quietly occur: distributors will look forward to your visits, be willing to listen to your advice, and be more willing to invest resources to push your products. Because your success and their success are now intertwined. Difficult market times are also a period of relationship restructuring. Those brand salespeople who still cling to old mindsets, only taking and never giving, will eventually be abandoned by the channel. Meanwhile, those businesses and brands that stand shoulder to shoulder with distributors and weather the storm together will build a deep moat.