The importance of terminals is self-evident, at least in the foreseeable future, as wine is still sold through terminals. As the saying goes, 'Those who win terminals win the world; victory is decided at terminals.' This seems to be a marketing maxim, and catering terminals are especially coveted by manufacturers and distributors. However, terminals often raise the bar and increase their value, making many manufacturers and distributors hesitate or even fear them. Yet, to develop markets and increase market share, companies cannot bypass the catering terminal channel. Catering terminals are a crucial part of market development and the first step of a long journey. As the saying goes, 'The hardest part is the beginning,' but developing catering terminals is even harder due to high entry barriers, high costs, poor returns, many conflicts, and long payment cycles, leaving companies struggling and helpless.
Currently, for manufacturers and distributors, there are two paths to developing catering terminals:
Path One: Rely on Strength – Money Makes Things Easy. Unless your brand has extraordinary pulling power like Moutai or Wuliangye, you must rely on economic strength. That is, when developing catering terminals, if you feel it's necessary to enter, you use money to 'settle' any 'exorbitant taxes and levies' such as entry fees, shelf fees, promotion fees, and sponsorship fees. This approach seems efficient and high-profile, but it carries high risks and is not something ordinary manufacturers or distributors can afford. In practice, most fail. Clearly, this method of 'buying' your way into terminals is not advisable.
Path Two: Rely on Cleverness – Humanized Relationship Building. Relying on cleverness is not about being opportunistic, but about using a humanized strategy of grabbing, finding, and building relationships to develop catering terminals. This strategy reduces costs and risks, minimizes conflicts, and yields better results and higher efficiency. It is undoubtedly the best choice for manufacturers and distributors developing catering terminals.
But how can manufacturers and distributors implement humanized relationship building when developing catering terminals? Based on years of practical experience, I have summarized the nine-character secret for humanized terminal development: 'Seize opportunities, leverage networks, build platforms.' Details are as follows:
Seize Opportunities Seizing opportunities is the most critical point in humanized relationship building; it is both a principle and a skill. That is, when developing catering terminals, manufacturers and distributors should be observant, seize opportunities, and implement humanized relationship building at the right time. As we all know, most catering terminals are private or individually owned businesses. Whether your product can enter the store and whether fees are required usually depend on the owner or the person in charge. Therefore, when developing catering terminals, you should be bold in approaching owners and key personnel, understand their preferences, build rapport, and strengthen emotional bonds. Don't miss any opportunity, such as birthdays, weddings, funerals, opening ceremonies, or other events related to the owner or key figures. These are perfect occasions for humanized relationship building. Seizing these opportunities not only yields twice the result with half the effort but also lays a solid foundation for future cooperation.
Case: A Bouquet of Flowers Worth 18,000 Yuan This is a true story from my personal experience. At the time, I was in charge of terminal marketing for a beer company in Henan. One of my salesmen, Zhang Jun, had repeatedly visited the owner of a medium-sized hotel but failed because of the 18,000 yuan entry fee. The terminal was doing very well, with an estimated annual beer sales of around 80,000 yuan, so the salesman didn't want to give up but was at a loss. On one visit, he overheard the owner (a woman) telling someone that her birthday was in a few days. Without saying much, he took his leave, knowing an opportunity had arisen.
On the morning of her birthday, Zhang Jun bought a bouquet of flowers and went to the terminal. The owner happened to be there, so he presented the flowers and wished her a happy birthday and eternal youth. A bouquet of flowers and a simple blessing moved the owner deeply. She immediately called him to her office and offered him 500 yuan in gratitude (since he was the first to send her flowers and blessings that day), but he declined. The next day, she called Zhang Jun to say he could deliver the beer and waived the 18,000 yuan entry fee. That's how a bouquet of flowers earned 18,000 yuan.
Later, the salesman learned that the owner was a divorced woman who had received no care from her ex-husband or children since the divorce, and even her employees didn't care about her birthday. In such circumstances, the salesman's care, blessing, and respect naturally made her grateful.
Leverage Networks When developing catering terminals, manufacturers and distributors should leverage social connections that are directly related to or affiliated with the terminals, such as health and epidemic prevention departments, public security and fire departments, industry and commerce tax departments, or the terminal's supervisory departments. They can also mobilize employees, relatives, and friends to tap into relationships with terminal staff. With these networks, terminals will often show respect for the intermediary, making entry relatively smoother. However, it's important to note that you should use these networks to build your own relationships and integrate new emotions, not to abuse administrative power to pressure others. Otherwise, even if you enter the store, sales won't be good, and it's better not to enter at all.
Case: From 'Gambler' to Friend I have a friend who specializes in night market catering terminals. When developing a terminal with excellent business, he faced a very high entry fee of 15,000 yuan, plus 800 yuan per month per promoter, and monthly settlement. The conditions were harsh, but he really wanted to enter. While hesitating, he suddenly thought of a person – the head of the local police station.
He had met the police chief when he was arrested for gambling, and over time they became friends. He went to the chief, explained the situation, and asked for help. Since the nightclub was within the chief's jurisdiction and the chief knew the owner, the chief intervened. The terminal owner, respecting the chief, asked for only a token 2,000 yuan, and the deal was done. Moreover, their cooperation was very pleasant afterward.
Build Platforms What if you have no social connections or networks to leverage? The key is whether you can create and build a platform yourself, and then use it to build relationships and networks. For example, establish a catering store manager club or a fellowship association. First, invite terminal owners and key figures to join, become friends first, and then do business. Once there is emotional connection, things become easier.
Case: Store Manager Club Helps Him Soar Lao Yue is a distributor for a distillery in Maotai Town, Guizhou. As a new entrepreneur with limited financial strength and no secondary distribution network, he decided to start with catering terminals, knowing the difficulty. Surprisingly, he didn't follow the traditional terminal development model but took a unique path by establishing a 'Catering Store Manager Club.' At the first session, he invited over 40 catering terminal owners and key personnel, hired a hotel management expert to give a free lecture, and in the evening treated them to a tasting of the wine he distributed. After the first session, he built good relationships, some becoming close friends. Through follow-up contacts, he successfully entered over 10 catering terminals, saving several times the development cost. Within a year, his small distribution office sold 2 million yuan worth of products. Imagine if he had used traditional methods; he would have been lucky not to lose money, let alone sell 2 million.
Developing catering terminals is indeed a challenge for manufacturers and distributors, but no matter how difficult, as long as you persist, innovate, master the 'nine-character secret' of humanized relationship building, and skillfully use cleverness, you can surely pry open the door to catering terminals.
In response to the requests of many distributor friends, our platform's third B-end e-commerce inspection tour will visit Wan Shang Yi Zhan, Yun Bao Shang Meng, and Wei Jie City Distribution from July 9-12. Distributor friends interested in transformation are welcome to join us for on-site inspections:
Organization Format
- Company visits
- Actual market case visits
- On-site explanations
- One-on-one exchanges
Participating distributors only need to pay a registration fee of 200 yuan. Time: July 9-12, 2016. Location: Changsha, Xiamen.
Interested distributor friends can register by long-pressing the QR code below. When adding friends, please reply 'Third Phase Registration'.
Previous Inspection Cases:
- Yishang Logistics Model Inspection (Second Phase B-end E-commerce Inspection Tour)
- Caiba Model Inspection
- Jinhuobao Model Inspection
- Beiquan Model On-site Inspection
- Piduoduo Model On-site Inspection
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