---
title: "Eight Distribution Behaviors That Quickly Kill New Products!"
description: "In the process of introducing a product to a regional market, the effectiveness of the initial distribution and whether it meets expectations are often key factors determining the product's success or failure. Therefore, studying how to execute distribution efficiently and understanding the techniques and key points are essential. This article shares the criteria for evaluating distribution success or failure, highlighting eight common mistakes that lead to failure and six ideal outcomes."
author: "New Distribution"
publisher: "New Distribution"
email: "zhaobo258@gmail.com"
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published: "2015-09-16"
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# Eight Distribution Behaviors That Quickly Kill New Products!

> In the process of introducing a product to a regional market, the effectiveness of the initial distribution and whether it meets expectations are often key factors determining the product's success or failure. Therefore, studying how to execute distribution efficiently and understanding the techniques and key points are essential. This article shares the criteria for evaluating distribution success or failure, highlighting eight common mistakes that lead to failure and six ideal outcomes.

In the process of introducing a product to a regional market, the effectiveness of the initial distribution and whether it meets expectations are often among the most important factors determining the product's success or failure. Therefore, how to execute distribution most efficiently? What are the techniques and key points? These are topics we need to seriously study, and we must educate the planners and execution teams of distribution more broadly to achieve effective and beneficial results. Nothing can be accomplished without norms or standards. Today, this article first shares with you the criteria for evaluating distribution success or failure.

**I. Eight Concentrated Manifestations of Distribution Failure:**

**1. Lowering the difficulty, consignment sales lead to sluggish sales, and the product quietly dies**
When new products enter the market for distribution, because retail points are uncertain about future sales, fearing inventory buildup and capital occupation, they lack the desire to stock up. In such cases, the difficulty of distribution is undoubtedly high. Many sales personnel, to meet the company's target number of distribution customers or with the aim of distributing quickly and increasing volume, as well as for other reasons, often directly agree to or tacitly accept consignment sales to reduce difficulty, increase distribution rate, and shorten distribution time.

However, for retail points, consigned products carry no risk; if they sell, they earn a bit, and if not, they return them. So, without consumers specifically requesting the consigned product, it's better to sell more of their own stocked items, as this recovers capital faster. Therefore, consigned products without active consumer purchase often face a dead end at the retail point. When we discover that the product is completely stagnant at the terminal, taking remedial measures later, possibly after a month, may be too late.

Moreover, when we attempt remedial distribution, we find that converting consignment to dealership becomes exponentially more difficult. Hence, in the first round of distribution, we should insist on cash-on-delivery and not easily waver.

**2. Insufficient coverage, market sales stagnate**
The total sales in a regional market are accumulated from all individual retail points. When distribution breadth is insufficient, the cumulative sales from single points are undoubtedly low. Additionally, with insufficient breadth, the market's influence is lacking, consumer visibility is low, and the pull effect on retail points is limited.

Of course, we are not saying that during distribution we should not select and classify terminals. When necessary, a strategy of initially targeting core stores to achieve sell-through and then gradually expanding is acceptable. The key is to have clear and accurate execution goals and effect evaluations for different distribution stages.

**3. Excessive initial distribution intensity affects second-time stocking**
What are terminal retail points' views on promotions? All businesspeople pursue profit; for them, reduced profits are hard to accept. So, when later profits are lower than earlier ones, it becomes unacceptable.

We know that product price space is limited, so market promotion costs and profit margins are also limited. When doing initial distribution, to speed up and reduce difficulty, we often adopt high-intensity promotions. This intensity, if not careful, can occupy a large expense ratio, even consuming all promotion resources until losses occur.

Such investment cannot be sustained because companies need profits and cannot continuously reduce profit margins; operations require office expenses; employees need salaries. Even if reserved promotion funds are insufficient, it's hard to increase them. Will retail points lower their promotion demands? If we meet retail point demands, what about channel promotions? Consumer promotions? Other ground promotion expenses? If retail point demands are not met, will they stock up?

Therefore, we must control the intensity of initial distribution within a reasonable range. We cannot make it too high to pursue speed and reduce difficulty, as long-term it will affect future promotions for channels, terminals, and consumers. Short-term, it will affect second-time stocking.

**4. No follow-up actions, affecting sell-through, becoming half-cooked rice**
We know a 50-square-meter convenience store sells over a thousand product varieties; a small restaurant has at least 5-10 types of alcoholic beverages. Does entering a retail point mean consumers can easily see the product? How can consumers buy without understanding? We cannot have human promotions at all points; many points, especially small grocery stores and small restaurants, rely on owners, clerks, and waiters to recommend to consumers. How do we motivate them? After sell-through, we cannot have enough manpower for direct delivery; how do we get second-tier distributors to deliver for us? These require planned, purposeful, and continuous actions.

Otherwise, after distribution ends, without push methods or pull measures, the sales network cannot be quickly built, so how can sell-through happen? How can volume increase? If the product cannot sell through, it becomes stuck in the market, like half-cooked rice.

**5. Wrong timing for market entry**
All products have peak and off seasons based on seasonal changes. Consumers' purchasing power and demand curves for certain goods change with customs, holidays, seasons, and income. Therefore, for any product, the distribution period, market maintenance period, sell-through period, and volume increase period have relatively fixed time frames in a year (special cases exist but are not mainstream).

Typically, baijiu (white liquor) focuses on market infrastructure in July-August, terminal promotions and continuous sell-through in September-October. If delayed, it may directly affect annual sales. Because by around October, consumers have formed certain perceptions of that year's baijiu consumption (what to drink is basically set), and the year's market protagonist is confirmed. Companies not prepared by then will not have good sales performance that year.

When entering the market, we must also consider consumers' recognition and acceptance of new products, their consumption concepts and habits, and whether their purchasing power is sufficient.

**6. Heavy air coverage but weak ground support, causing counterproductive effects**
Currently, new products enter the market mainly through air coverage to create pull, while ground relies on distribution, sales network building, and promotions to create push, forming a combination of push and pull. In many cases, ground push can achieve some sell-through because products are displayed at terminals, supply chains are smooth through sales networks, and promotions target consumers and channels.

However, if there is only air pull without ground support, it results in the awkward outcome of "shouting loudly but having no rope to pull." Ground push must rely on alignment of organization, sales plans, resources, manpower, and channels. When ground configurations do not match market needs, products cannot be quickly expanded on the ground, and air promotions cannot be echoed.

Even if distribution is completed, due to misalignment in organization, resources, and channels, the entire product distribution and promotion system may fail to establish, ultimately preventing sell-through. Channel customers may also form negative views, reducing trust, and ultimately the product cannot achieve sell-through or volume increase, even "dying" in the market.

**7. Distribution to a large number of ineffective outlets**
After distribution, all products rely on sell-through at retail points to develop and survive. However, many terminal points produce different sales results due to location, customer income levels, main products, sales format (retail, wholesale), and owner's popularity. Some stores may not be suitable terminal points for the initial market entry stage. Therefore, products will not sell through after distribution, and a large number of non-moving points cause inventory buildup and reduced channel confidence. These low-activity customers or second-tier distributors may be the main customers for next steps, and with core store drive, they can have some sales, but early negative results will hinder future work. In the distribution stage of market entry, such points are ineffective for us and should not be entered temporarily.

**8. Overextended battle lines, low team morale, loss of rhythm control**
Any company's financial, material, and human resources are limited, and the depth and breadth of management and monitoring have limits. Therefore, market expansion must rely on the company's actual situation and current adjustment limits. If battle lines are drawn too long, it inevitably generates large expenses for personnel, travel, market, storage, and management, causing financial strain and increased management difficulty. Insufficient management creates loopholes; financial strain prevents timely expense reimbursement, adversely affecting the marketing team and distributor system, lowering morale. Low morale causes inventory buildup, worsening the situation.

Overexpansion on the surface also leads to loss of efficiency and consistency due to insufficient management and monitoring. Control over market operation rhythm is lost, resulting in a mess. Finally, only forced downsizing and contraction of the battlefield remain.

**II. Ideal Distribution Results:**

**1. Complete distribution in the off-season**
Only by completing distribution in the off-season is there time to conduct air promotions, terminal promotions, personnel interception, and consumer pull promotions during the transition from off-season to peak season, ultimately increasing volume in the peak season. If delayed excessively, when terminals are filled with various products, distribution difficulty increases, and the product may be "unappreciated" due to competitors' heavy promotions. Channel and terminal promotions and consumer cultivation may also be unable to be done deeply due to time constraints, ultimately affecting peak-season volume.

Especially for alcoholic beverages, consumers easily form taste habits; once accustomed to a certain degree or aroma, it's hard to change. Typically, around October, consumers form the psychological hint of "what to drink this year." If consumer cultivation is not established by then, this year's sales are already "lost." So, the off-season is the best time for distribution and terminal sell-through work.

**2. Fast, concentrated, and grand; distribution itself is a form of publicity**
Rapid distribution actions leave an impression of good product quality, favorable policies, and strong manufacturer strength, boosting customer and channel confidence. Dragging distribution appears to channels and customers as obvious "symptoms" of poor product and weak manufacturer, causing them to lose interest and resulting in unwillingness to sell.

Concentrated distribution actions allow limited funds, manpower, and materials to be used most fully, improving efficiency and effectiveness. Ample support and logistics ensure the entire action is grand. A motivated distribution team, active and efficient work, sufficient resources, and high momentum also reflect the company's professionalism and positive corporate image, making it easier for channels and customers to identify with. So we say distribution itself is a form of publicity.

**3. High cash-on-delivery rate**
First, only with cash-on-delivery do terminal points bear the risk of "self-responsibility for profits and losses." Under such pressure, store owners will proactively recommend to consumers, and owner recommendations are trusted by consumers, thus generating sell-through.

Second, only with cash-on-delivery can companies or distributors recover funds promptly, avoiding the risk of default, effectively increasing capital turnover frequency and bringing more returns. It also increases distributor sales enthusiasm, improves cooperation, and makes various tasks easier.

**4. Combination of points and surface, with sufficient breadth and good points**
As mentioned, total sales in a regional market are composed of sales from individual points. Only when there are enough individual points with good sell-through can influence be formed on the surface. Only with influence and sell-through on the surface can the product survive and volume increase naturally.

Otherwise, with only a few moving stores and a wide surface, products will accumulate in most points; if the surface is narrow, even good single-point sell-through won't create influence in the overall market, ultimately preventing volume increase.

**5. Tight follow-up actions to achieve rapid sell-through**
After distribution, if subsequent terminal or consumer promotions are not timely, sell-through cannot be pushed, and products gradually become stagnant from new products.

After distribution, if sales network construction suitable for current product sales is not timely, terminals will quickly become quiet without supply. Timely follow-up in publicity also has the effect of "striking while the iron is hot."

Only when distribution is completed or basically completed, and follow-up promotions, publicity, and infrastructure actions are timely, can good and continuous sell-through be achieved. At this time, the promotional influence of distribution is still active, products are fresh, and retail points and channels are enthusiastic, making rapid sell-through easier.

**6. A shot of adrenaline for the team**
Efficient distribution relies on "people." An active and proactive distribution team undoubtedly brings hope and the best results. However, distribution work is full of boredom and pressure; heavy workloads, terminal doubts, and setbacks can negatively impact the team. Therefore, positive incentive measures are needed to improve team spirit and work enthusiasm.

We believe that for frontline employees, material needs are the primary concern in daily life. So we advocate a motivation method with "material incentives as the main, spiritual incentives as auxiliary," serving as a "shot of adrenaline."

**-END-**

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