On the last day of the first half of 2015, the Chinese stock market, which had repeatedly hit new highs in 'greening rate', finally cut a bloody path under repeated stimulation of positive news, though it lasted only one day. Among the distributors I know, most have some spare cash, and those who don't speculate in stocks seem to be in the minority. As the backbone of retail investors, they are also typical representatives of China's middle class. Recently, I met a former Anhui distributor in Guangzhou, who I used to think was eager for knowledge, often reading marketing articles, buying marketing books, and attending training sessions. This time, he had changed completely, talking only about stocks, and lamenting, 'Making money as a distributor is too slow; the stock market is faster!' In fact, history repeats itself. Before the 2008 stock market crash, I knew some distributors who 'abandoned business for stocks'. Their sales were a mess; when you talked about policy implementation or market rectification, they would ask if they could return all the goods in the store to get cash for stock speculation. Eventually, they gave up their distribution rights. They were happy then, but after the 2008 subprime crisis, they probably lost everything and started pestering regional staff to get back their distribution rights. Business is not a game of house; you can't just break up and make up with a handshake. The domestic market is like the stock market: in the first half, policies are introduced and resources are invested to ensure annual and semi-annual targets, so positive news naturally stimulates the achievement of first-half sales targets. The headquarters' policies and intentions are positive, but in regional execution, due to execution issues, misunderstandings, or even regional interests, any plan is discounted several times. Especially in the second half, when the ugly daughter-in-law finally meets the in-laws, real money and clear data can no longer be fooled. A sales curve that starts strong and ends weak is not uncommon in sales progress management. The first half is difficult, and the second half seems even harder. The stock market is a mirror, indicating that the second half will not be calm, and reflecting the current predicament of the real economy. As an extension of the real economy's commodity channels, distributors need to find a good way to survive, which is a very real problem, especially for those who slacked off in the first half. Step 1: Know yourself and know your enemy, and you will never be defeated. So, to reverse the decline in the second half, we must first understand the market situation this year. Find a few distributor friends in the same industry and brand who did well in the first half and chat with them to see the situation in your industry and brand. Although they are friends, they won't tell you how much they earned or what policies the manufacturer secretly gave; but as friends, they can tell you whether the overall sales feeling in the first half was good or bad, which categories are expected to grow, which channels are promising, and which policies are more flexible. With the market reference from the first half, assess your own funds and inventory, and set a bottom line. Maintaining annual sales is the ideal goal, ensuring second-half sales is the realistic goal, and finally set a minimum goal. If you achieve it, it's luck and effort; if not, you can be satisfied with yourself. Step 2: Confirm the growth points for sales. First, after doing these two things, you can talk to the regional manager to probe their attitude. The regional manager of a big brand is probably already overwhelmed by your first-half performance and full of complaints; a small brand might welcome your return. Whether criticized or praised, regional sales staff have just finished their first-half sales targets, and many cooperating distributors' warehouses are likely overstocked, so July (except for obvious seasonal goods) is usually not good for restocking. But after half a year of clearance sales, your warehouse will have some gaps, which is both an opportunity to show your performance and to optimize your inventory structure. Which products and brands to choose depends on your communication with regional staff. Generally, big brands have abundant resources and strong market pull, but their management is standardized, and special policies are usually not available to small accounts, but regional staff won't forget to reciprocate for distributors who help them hit targets at critical moments; small brands have flexible resources and sometimes offer strong resources for special customers, but due to poor management, they may become empty promises. Second, re-evaluate key outlets and relationships, and focus on maintaining those that can generate volume in the short term (within six months). Classify them into outlets with strong stocking capacity, outlets with strong store promotion capabilities, and outlets with special relationships. For those with strong stocking capacity, they usually have no problems with funds and sales channels, so prioritizing their orders is crucial; for outlets with strong promotion capabilities, they typically have fast turnover but low inventory, so consider providing some product or even financial support to make them more enthusiastic about selling your products; for outlets with special relationships, they often have engineering and group purchase orders, and they want convenience, so try to provide them with convenience and follow their pace. Helping others helps yourself. Step 3: Confirm the focus of market promotion. Regular promotion should focus on and include small and medium-sized enterprises. Start with the end in mind; without process, there is no result. If you only want to get policies and resources from small brands, stock up, distribute, re-evaluate existing channel resources, and even invest some resources in promotional activities and develop new outlets, the regional staff of small brands will classify you as a cooperative customer. For brand enterprises, market expansion must show unique value. On one hand, you need to pick up the old relationships, whether retail outlets or special contacts, but relying on the original resources is clearly insufficient to complete the second-half task. More importantly, you need to understand what the brand enterprise's focus is this year. Every enterprise, especially brand enterprises, has new business models and structural adjustments every year. Such adjustments are initially thankless, so regional distributors are often reluctant to follow up promptly. At this time, distributors who slacked off in the first half should quickly assess the situation and make quick decisions on these marginal opportunities. What seems thankless now may be an opportunity in the future; such examples are numerous in the growth of many enterprises. Trying new business models has two benefits: first, during the exploration period, the enterprise has specific resource investment and allows failure. If you are diligent, you can accumulate experience and lessons that others cannot experience; second, expanding new business models is another form of performance highlight and a way to score points in reporting to regional staff. To some extent, this excites regional staff more than increasing sales, especially for salespeople who value personal development in the enterprise. Distributors who plant more good causes will naturally reap more good results. Finally, I must remind all distributors: if you treat business as a task, skills and strategies can add points; if you treat business as a career, diligence and steadiness are the foundation of management. Reply with the following keywords to search and read related professional articles: Sales Supervisor, Second-tier Management, Regional Manager, Distributor Management, New Channels, City Manager, Competition, 2015, Manufacturer-Dealer Game, Product Stagnation, Terminal Visit Management, Route Management, Deep Distribution, Internal Management, Sales Skills, Profit Improvement, Recruitment, Distribution, Daily Management, Team Motivation, Trade Promotion, Sales Misconceptions, New Product Launch, Township Market, New Product Pricing, Sales Target Achievement, Closing, Market Visit Inspection, Baijiu, Beer, Sales Increase, Agency Products, Channel Crossing, KA, Terminal Merchandising, New Market, Market Operation, Learning, Book Recommendations, Inventory Management, Sales Novice, Consumer Promotion, Execution, Old Products, Expired Product Handling, Model Market, Investment Attraction, New Media, Distributor Development, Performance Appraisal, Assessment, Annual Planning, Shopping Guide, Morning Meeting, Display, Transformation, Stock Pressure, Holidays, Distributor Cost Control, Channel Operation, Marketing Theory and Laws, Brand Truth, Order Meeting, Team Management, Training, Work Report, Work Report. Reply with number 1 to enter the library category browsing.