---
title: "Struggling to Push Products in County-Level Markets? Without the Right Methods, It's Exhausting..."
description: "In the new era of competition, going downstream and intensive cultivation have become the marketing main themes, making county and township-level markets increasingly important. Whoever wins consumers in the shortest time, with the fastest speed and best methods, will be the winner in the future market. As many enterprises continue to push their market focus downward, county-level distributors are becoming more important and irreplaceable, and their market performance can directly determine the fate of the enterprise. Enterprises need to develop, distributors need to survive, and county-level markets must break through, with the key to success being 'speed' and 'efficiency'."
author: "朱志明"
publisher: "New Distribution"
email: "zhaobo258@gmail.com"
telephone: "+8615854817671"
published: "2019-11-02"
categories: "Management & Methods"
language: "en"
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original_source: "https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/eDZZZhWMugZ1kO-y5_mEQA"
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citation: "朱志明. “Struggling to Push Products in County-Level Markets? Without the Right Methods, It's Exhausting....” New Distribution, 2019-11-02. https://xinjignxiao.com/en/articles/struggling-to-push-products-in-county-level-markets-without-the-right-me-f65fe73e/"
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---

# Struggling to Push Products in County-Level Markets? Without the Right Methods, It's Exhausting...

> In the new era of competition, going downstream and intensive cultivation have become the marketing main themes, making county and township-level markets increasingly important. Whoever wins consumers in the shortest time, with the fastest speed and best methods, will be the winner in the future market. As many enterprises continue to push their market focus downward, county-level distributors are becoming more important and irreplaceable, and their market performance can directly determine the fate of the enterprise. Enterprises need to develop, distributors need to survive, and county-level markets must break through, with the key to success being 'speed' and 'efficiency'.

**In the new era of competition, going downstream and intensive cultivation have become the marketing main themes, making county and township-level markets increasingly important.** Whoever can win consumers in the shortest time, with the fastest speed and best methods, will be the winner in the future market.
**As many enterprises continue to push their market focus downward, county-level distributors are becoming more important and irreplaceable, and their market performance can directly determine the fate of the enterprise.** Enterprises need to develop, distributors need to survive, and county-level markets must break through, with the key to success being 'speed' and 'efficiency'.
**-01-
Product Breakthrough: Coordinating Leading Products and Breakthrough Products**
Many distributors fail to quickly break into county-level markets mainly because they have too many products. They carry as many varieties as the manufacturer produces, mistakenly believing that with more products, if one doesn't sell well, they can switch to another. This leads to unclear product focus, and trying to sell everything well results in selling nothing well. So, in a specific county market, distributors should choose products with clear priorities and a reasonable structure. **1. Highlight leading products:** No matter how many products the manufacturer has, only one or two may suit the distributor's county market.
For example, when choosing bottled liquor, the most competitive price point in the market is usually 8-15 yuan per bottle. **2. Define breakthrough products:** Once the leading product is selected, consider the breakthrough product.
A breakthrough product is one that competes head-on with competitors, even if it may be sacrificed in the end, it can help the leading product enter the market smoothly and defeat the opponent. **3. Target competitors with 'strike down, press up' strategy, and price the leading and breakthrough products 'one high, one low':** The leading product is priced higher than existing competitors, leaving room for promotions to suppress them.
The breakthrough product should be priced roughly at par with competitors or slightly higher by 5-10%, allowing direct price competition.
**4. Let the leading and breakthrough products complement each other to break into stores where competitors sell well.**
The breakthrough product, with its lower price, can move quickly and satisfy store owners, so let it gain familiarity first, then leverage it to make the leading product profitable and build its image.
This pincer movement forces competitors to give in, leads them by the nose, and eventually drives them out of the hotel. Of course, no tactic is foolproof, and distributors should note: **Always keep the breakthrough product's price consistent with competitors.**
Low pricing is a competitive tactic, but during terminal battles, never reduce prices across the board.
So-called low pricing is just a surface tactic to disrupt the opponent's rhythm and force them to lower prices, used in key battle zones and particularly difficult hotels. The benefits are clear: 1. It makes the leading product more prominent because its higher price allows for more promotional space and resources, enabling various activities to guide consumption. 2. It clarifies the target, directly engaging the opponent and forcing them to respond. 3. It lures the opponent into an ambush, with two products attacking their one leading product, especially in their best-performing hotels, where they will defend fiercely.
The result of defending is promotion, which means lower prices, which means reduced profits for the opponent, eventually forcing them to withdraw.
**-02-
Rapid Distribution: Manufacturer-Dealer Collaboration to Seize Time and Space**
Distribution is familiar to distributors and is one of the simplest steps in marketing, but it hides great wisdom. To put it strongly, it's 'success or failure hinges on distribution.' I once visited a distributor while serving a liquor company. He had stocked goods for nearly 8 months but sales were poor.
He said, 'We work hard. We drive out early every day to distribute, but consumers just don't recognize our products. There's nothing we can do; we'll just have to take it slow.' I admire his loyalty and perseverance, and there are many like him, but why do they face this situation?
Because they distribute just for the sake of distributing. So, no matter how hard they try, it's futile. **Marketing is about opportunity cost; doing things differently in the same time yields different results.** As the ancients said, 'Same trade, different profits' probably captures this. The best way to solve problems is to prevent them. How to distribute effectively?
**1. Manufacturer-dealer joint teams, with the manufacturer leading and the dealer assisting, to form distribution teams.** Specifically, the manufacturer and dealer can jointly form distribution teams with vehicles, at least 6 people and 3 vehicles.
The manufacturer's personnel should be the sales reps responsible for that market or those with management and distribution experience. **2. Focus on one or two areas for rapid distribution.** Each vehicle should have at least 2 people; for township markets, at least 2 vehicles and 4 people. If resources allow, consider simultaneous distribution in several places. **3. Use second-tier distributors to assist for faster distribution.** Since the manufacturer or dealer may be unfamiliar with township markets, it's best to have second-tier distributors lead the way, first distributing along their channels, then expanding to unfamiliar areas, speeding up the process.
Initially, second-tier distributors may be reluctant, so extra subsidies or successful pilot areas are needed to show them the benefits. **4. Specialized division of labor.** Arrange roles in advance—who negotiates, who puts up POP, who unloads, who collects payments, who signs agreements, who sets up displays, who builds customer files—and rehearse to speed up distribution. **5. Create a buzz.** Distribution is also a form of publicity; for example, gathering vehicles together and playing music or promotional materials via loudspeakers can boost effectiveness. **6. Plan the distribution route to avoid detours.** Contact customers in advance or send someone to communicate, ensuring time efficiency and success rates.
During distribution, manufacturers and distributors should note: **1. Manufacturer personnel must be professional, with communication and management skills.** Since distributors often lack management and sales skills, manufacturer staff must be professional. **2. Manage the process with morning briefings and evening reports.** Use daily meetings to train and improve distributor staff skills, and address issues one by one without carrying them over to the next day. **3. Vehicles and personnel must stay together; no solo actions, or results will suffer.**
**4. Offer two or three product policies, not too many, for terminal customers to choose from. **5. Act quickly; don't rush distribution if personnel and vehicles aren't ready. **6. Distribute small quantities but follow up frequently. **7. Ensure POP ads and display policies are well communicated, ideally with a standard manual. **8. When using second-tier distributors to lead, give them a profit margin** to motivate them to share their network and personally accompany you.
It's worth noting that manufacturers and distributors must cooperate throughout the process, as this reduces problems and brings direct benefits: First, manufacturer staff are more professional, speeding up distribution and improving distributor staff skills; second, terminals are more willing to accept manufacturer products and services, boosting their confidence; third, joint rapid distribution can suppress competitors, giving them no breathing room and winning valuable time and space.
**-03-
Pick Off Weaknesses: Attack Competitors' Vulnerable Points**
In real market operations, if we observe carefully, we'll find competitors have many weaknesses. For these, new brands should adopt a strategy of picking them off one by one. For example, a liquor company attacked competitors' restaurant terminals.
First, their targets were clear: 1. In a county market, they chose hotels where competitors had poor service or no after-sales. 2. Hotels where competitors had withdrawn their promotional staff. 3. Hotels with good business but no competitor promotional staff. 4. A few hotels where competitors sold well, usually 3-5.
Second, their attack methods were powerful: 1. High commissions for waitstaff to induce them to sell. 2. Poaching competitor sales reps with high salaries. 3. Recruiting competitor hotel promoters with high wages. 4. Offering big prizes with high winning rates to block competitors and attract hotel owners.
Of course, these prizes were targeted. Once a hotel was selected, they'd bombard it continuously until the competitor withdrew. Note: **When delivering to hotels, give prizes on the spot; don't pre-load them all in boxes waiting for consumers to win.** Otherwise, you might wait forever for the big prize to appear.
**-04-
Core Tasks: Stabilize Profits and Consolidate the Market**
Many liquor companies and distributors have good methods here. 1. Lock in core customers with monthly/annual sales incentives or points-based rewards, using rebates or time-based points to retain them.
2. Engage consumers with prizes, red envelopes in boxes, scratch cards on caps, regular promotions, tasting events, etc. 3. Focus on displays, with rewards for one month, one quarter, or one year, increasing over time. 4. Advertising: either don't advertise, or go all out with a single format (like wall ads, painted door headers, or in-store KT boards), but make it thorough, extreme, and explosive. 5. Use exclusive events to capture consumers, like zodiac souvenirs (12 animals) where collecting all 12 wins a prize; or Water Margin 108 heroes, where collecting them all earns a trip or goods; or restaurant coupons like 'Spend 100 get 50'—all great ways to lock in consumers.
In short, there are many ways to retain customers; only by holding onto customers and consumers can companies and distributors secure profits, solidify their position in county markets, and lay a solid foundation for true market breakthroughs.
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## Citation metadata

- Publisher: New Distribution
- Author: 朱志明
- Published: 2019-11-02
- Canonical: https://xinjignxiao.com/en/articles/struggling-to-push-products-in-county-level-markets-without-the-right-me-f65fe73e/
- Original source: https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/eDZZZhWMugZ1kO-y5_mEQA

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