--- title: "Six Things You Should Never Believe a Distributor Says" description: "At a summit on FMCG internet transformation, experts warn manufacturers against blindly trusting distributors' claims. The article lists six common statements distributors make, such as 'we're not making money on your products' or 'we'll take exclusive rights and meet any sales target,' and explains the real motives behind them, urging sales reps to see through the rhetoric." author: "陆和平" publisher: "New Distribution" email: "zhaobo258@gmail.com" telephone: "+8615854817671" published: "2016-09-14" language: "en" canonical: "https://xinjignxiao.com/en/articles/six-things-you-should-never-believe-a-distributor-says-0857bb5e/" markdown: "https://xinjignxiao.com/en/articles/six-things-you-should-never-believe-a-distributor-says-0857bb5e.md" original_source: "https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/c2y7ACO8A0M1Ij1a2I7DFQ" translation: "https://xinjignxiao.com/zh/articles/%E5%8D%83%E4%B8%87%E4%B8%8D%E8%83%BD%E7%9B%B8%E4%BF%A1%E7%BB%8F%E9%94%80%E5%95%86%E8%AF%B4%E7%9A%84%E5%85%AD%E5%8F%A5%E8%AF%9D-0857bb5e.md" attribution: "New Distribution — https://xinjignxiao.com/en/articles/six-things-you-should-never-believe-a-distributor-says-0857bb5e/" usage_policy: "https://xinjignxiao.com/ai-policy.txt" --- # Six Things You Should Never Believe a Distributor Says > At a summit on FMCG internet transformation, experts warn manufacturers against blindly trusting distributors' claims. The article lists six common statements distributors make, such as 'we're not making money on your products' or 'we'll take exclusive rights and meet any sales target,' and explains the real motives behind them, urging sales reps to see through the rhetoric. 30+ industry experts, 100+ B2B platform founders, and 800+ manufacturer and distributor friends gathered in Fuzhou to discuss the path of internet transformation for the FMCG industry. Although manufacturers and distributors are partners, they each have their own interests. As they say, in business, one must be businesslike. We still need to keep our eyes open to some insincere remarks from merchants, see through the surface to the essence, and understand their true intentions. Knowing yourself and your enemy leads to victory. For newly recruited manufacturer sales representatives who often blindly trust and follow others, the following content will be helpful. **1. "Selling your products doesn't make money."** No matter what a merchant sells, they will always say this. There are two reasons why distributors continue to sell your products: - High volume with no profit, or - Low volume with profit. The first scenario often involves products with high market awareness and large sales volume, but their prices are highly transparent, leaving merchants with no or minimal profit. Why do they still sell them? Mainly because these products bring foot traffic and business opportunities, generating profit through the sale of other products. The second scenario often involves products that are new to the market with low awareness. Although sales volume is low, merchants can control market prices through exclusive distribution and still make a profit. In this era of thin margins, can you still find a product that yields high returns with minimal investment? **2. "Give me exclusive rights, and I'll take whatever sales target you set."** If the merchant fails to meet the annual target, they will only say sorry, and the market risk ultimately falls on the manufacturer. If you agree but require the merchant to deposit a sales guarantee as compensation for the manufacturer in case of failure, few merchants would be willing to do so. **3. "Business is about being a good person." (Implying they are generous)** Anyone can talk about big principles; the most important thing is to listen to their words and watch their actions. In fact, merchants care most about interests, just expressed in different ways. Some manufacturer sales representatives abandon principles and make private deals with unscrupulous merchants, often because they think the other party is a good friend and loyal, leading to major mistakes. **4. "Give up Brand A? No way. I can register another company to operate your Brand B."** If they also ask for exclusive rights to your Brand B, they may have the following purpose: - To prevent competitors from obtaining the distribution rights of Brand B and competing with their Brand A. In reality, they will not actively promote Brand B; they may only make token purchases when the manufacturer pushes hard. No wonder many manufacturers sign exclusive distribution agreements with distributors. **5. "You're a big international company; losing a little money is just a drop in the bucket." (They can't afford to lose)** Wrong. Both merchants and manufacturers, regardless of size, aim for profit as their ultimate goal. In business dealings, both parties have their own interests. However, some manufacturer sales personnel lack a clear understanding of this; at least in their hearts, they agree with the customer's view. To achieve personal sales targets, they sometimes make unprincipled concessions to customers. **6. "Product A has strong advertising support, competitive pricing, and credit support."** Don't believe that Product A really gets all that support. Perhaps they say the same thing to the manufacturer of Product A. Distributors often "overlook" the work you have already done, with one goal: to get more favorable terms from the manufacturer. New Food Era · New Distribution — 2016 China "FMCG + Internet" Summit Forum — **This is a grand event focused on how the FMCG industry channels will transform under the trend of Internet+.** **Agenda** 09:00-09:30 Registration 09:30-09:35 Opening remarks by host 09:35-10:05 2016 China FMCG Industry Trend Analysis Report — Zhao Bo 10:05-10:25 Transformation Strategy and Path for FMCG Enterprises — Liu Chunxiong 10:25-10:45 Opportunities and Challenges Brought by FMCG Channel Reform — Liu Zhao, CEO of Waiqin365 10:45-11:25 Alibaba Retail Link Full Empowerment — Guo Kunkun, Alibaba Retail Link 11:25-12:00 Roundtable Forum — Brand Transformation: Improvement vs. Reconstruction? (Guests TBD) 12:00-13:30 Lunch 13:30-14:00 Distributor Transformation: Trends in City Distribution — Wang Qi, CEO of Weijie City Distribution 14:00-14:30 Roundtable Forum — Why Should Distributors Transform into Logistics? 14:30-15:00 Detailed Explanation of Zhongshang Huimin's "One Machine, Two Wings" Strategy — Su Xiaoxin, VP of Zhongshang Huimin 15:00-15:30 Detailed Explanation of Zhanghe Cloud Factory Strategy — Yang Lixiang, Zhanghe Tianxia (Topic TBD) 15:30-16:00 Supply Chain Finance as a Lubricant for B2B to Drive Traditional Business — Chen Xian, CEO of 51 Order 16:00-16:30 Principles and Approaches for 2B Investment — Xu Xiaoping, Founder of ZhenFund (Guest TBD) 16:30-17:00 Small Retail, Big Opportunity: Transformation and Upgrading of China's Retail — Wang Jianfeng, GM of E-commerce Division, Yurun Group 17:00-17:30 Roundtable Forum — Who Will Be the King of FMCG B2B Models? (Guests TBD) 18:00-20:00 Dinner For manufacturers and distributors looking to transform, this grand event is not to be missed. Interested friends can long-press the QR code below or click "Read Original" to register. **Registration: Long-press the QR code below or click "Read Original"** ↓↓↓ Click "Read Original" [Register] --- ## Copyright and AI use This article is sourced from New Distribution. Search, quotation, summarization, and model training are permitted, but every use must credit New Distribution and retain the canonical source URL. Contact: zhaobo258@gmail.com · +86 158 5481 7671