---
title: "The Right, Crooked, and Underhanded Tactics for Suppressing Channel Competitors"
description: "This article summarizes various tactics used by FMCG sales personnel to suppress competitors in traditional distribution channels, categorized into legitimate, questionable, and underhanded methods, based on the author's extensive experience."
author: "许光明"
publisher: "New Distribution"
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published: "2014-12-20"
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# The Right, Crooked, and Underhanded Tactics for Suppressing Channel Competitors

> This article summarizes various tactics used by FMCG sales personnel to suppress competitors in traditional distribution channels, categorized into legitimate, questionable, and underhanded methods, based on the author's extensive experience.

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Due to the unique nature of the domestic market, building and maintaining traditional distribution channels is a crucial and routine task in corporate marketing. The success of channel distributor setup directly determines the success of regional sales. Hence, it's common for several brands of the same product category to share one distributor. Sales is an industry where results matter, leading to fierce battles among brand salespeople in the channel. Sometimes, to meet targets, they resort to all sorts of tactics. Based on years of operational experience, I've summarized several categories of tactics for suppressing channel competitors.

**I. Legitimate Tactics to Suppress Competitors:**

**Legit Tactic 1: Suppress at the Source**
This is a conventional approach. When your product holds a certain share with a distributor, and the distributor shows signs of switching or playing the field, you must act decisively and swiftly.

"Mr. X, that brand is our direct competitor. If you take on their product, I'm sorry, but I have targets from my company, and I need to survive. If you really don't want to continue, just say so. Old Zhang has been after me to take over your account for a while now."

Distributors are seasoned players, not easily fooled.

"Brother, don't worry. I'm afraid they'll grow in my market and eventually affect our volume. You know my market is only so big. Trust me, I'll take them on but keep them on a leash, drag them down."

Some novice salespeople get confused by this move, thinking, "That makes sense." Once the distributor tastes the benefits, it's hard to take action later.

**Legit Tactic 2: Open a Second Account with Different SKUs to Suppress Competitors**
If you've already lost the first round to the distributor, is there a remedy? Marketers believe "there are more solutions than problems."

At this point, you need to take drastic measures. Should you "cut off" the distributor? If it were that simple, great, but reality often requires you to both integrate the market and maintain stable sales—it's tough! Our view is: without a better option, the current one is the best. But if this "best" has a "mistress" outside, what to do? The only solution is "if they find, you also find."

This operation requires that our salespeople maintain good relationships with other market players daily, even if they are your distributor's business rivals. When visiting your distributor, also drop by for a chat with others. This isn't wasted effort; it helps maintain market order and, more importantly, serves as a constant warning to your distributor: "They all want to do my product. If you don't perform, I can replace you anytime." In essence, salespeople should always have backup distributors in hand.

With this premise, you can rest assured. If the distributor keeps a "mistress," you can immediately find a "lover." The purpose of finding a "lover" isn't to actually "switch certificates" with the distributor but to make them "return to the fold." So, don't say absolute words or do absolute things. It's best to split the product items to achieve a "1+1>2" effect, because we still need to meet targets (many colleagues have failed because they mishandled this, ending up defeated before starting). If the distributor remains unrepentant, gradually transition. Based on our experience, this tactic is 100% effective when used properly.

For existing "polygamy" situations (a distributor already represents several similar products), how to handle? See the following tactics.

**Legit Tactic 3: Targeted Promotions to Suppress Competitors**
In the domestic market, once a product or brand achieves success in a region, followers quickly swarm in. Generally, when a product reaches scale in a market, prices become transparent, and channel profits decrease. At this point, distributors will inevitably show interest in these follower products for short-term gains. This is critical; salespeople must keenly detect the client's bad intentions and take immediate action. The specific methods are the same as the above two tactics, but this time, you must combine with soft tactics: plan promotional activities targeting the impact of follower products and strike back hard.

Many second- and third-tier brands, to survive, often nibble away at strong brands' market share. They often use the tactic of directly attacking the secondary wholesalers (二批), because in traditional distribution channels, secondary wholesalers are the most unstable link, often switching allegiances, and are easily bought with simple incentives. At this time, you must be vigilant and quickly follow up with targeted promotions. I previously operated a successful campaign in a northern meat products company against an industry giant in the Hebei market. Despite the giant's strong network and impressive distribution, our strong local position and quick, effective promotional counterattacks forced the giant to painfully recall large quantities of returns (since meat products typically have a shelf life of about 3 months).

**Legit Tactic 4: Inventory Loading to Suppress Competitors**
Pre-holiday inventory loading is a well-known tactic in the consumer goods industry. Used properly, it's a heavy punch in the distribution channel. Loading the distributor's warehouse isn't just before holidays; it should be a daily task for every salesperson. For products with longer shelf life, you don't always need to follow the so-called 1.5x inventory rule; load as much as possible, pushing the distributor forward (especially now that most companies require payment before delivery), leaving no opportunity for competitors. Before major holidays, conduct inventory loading activities to launch a major counterattack against competitors. After a few rounds, competitors will find it hard to mount strong offensives.

Every major holiday is your best chance to strike competitors. During major holidays, especially Spring Festival, launching a warehouse-loading battle at the right time will maximize the compression of competitors' living space. In my sales management experience, I've operated large-scale Spring Festival channel loading activities. When distributors' warehouses were full and funds insufficient, I encouraged them to temporarily lower prices to quickly absorb secondary wholesalers' funds and complete stock transfers. This "strong medicine" left competitors in disarray before the holiday.

**Legit Tactic 5: Control the "Ordering Right" to Suppress Competitors**
Consumer goods companies, especially those with relatively short shelf life, often place resident salespeople to help distributors maintain the market and expand distribution. A successful resident salesperson will firmly grasp the client's "ordering right." Once salespeople control the distributor's "ordering right," suppressing competitors becomes a simple task. I've discussed the "ordering right" in detail in another article ("Successful Resident Salespeople Must Obtain the Client's 'Ordering Right'" ).

**Legit Tactic 6: Coordinate with Headquarters to Suppress Competitors**
Distributors take on competitor products mainly for profit. So, salespeople should regularly calculate accounts for clients. Many distribution channel clients have messy accounts; without calculations, they never know how much profit your product brings. Talking about profit should be a routine task for salespeople, but this alone is often insufficient. Sometimes, leveraging the deterrence of headquarters' senior management is necessary.

Many distributors have close relationships with company executives, especially in marketing headquarters, due to years of cooperation. Frontline salespeople can use this relationship to effectively block competitors. When a distributor shows signs of straying, quickly report to the marketing center. In my company, we had a market supervision department. For such incidents, they would first issue a formal warning letter, emphasizing contract terms (usually stipulated in distribution contracts), and then the marketing director or other executives close to the distributor would play the "good cop." This tactic works remarkably well with major accounts.

**II. Crooked Tactics to Suppress Competitors:**

**Crooked Tactic 1: Use Business Contacts to Suppress Competitors**
When distribution channel distributors grow large, they are usually cautious and conservative in hiring. In my experience, many distributors have assets in the millions or billions, mostly from the late 1980s when they went into business. However, their mindset hasn't evolved with their business; they prefer to trust only family members in the business and are often stingy with income distribution. As a result, these trusted relatives often complain. Salespeople can exploit their psychological imbalance by occasionally catering to their interests, gaining leverage over the distributor's business managers. This is effective in suppressing competitors because, as the business grows, the boss pays less attention to daily operations, and these family members' opinions can influence the boss's decisions.

**Crooked Tactic 2: Use the Distributor's Family Relationships to Suppress Competitors**
For distributors run as husband-wife operations, salespeople can leverage the relationship between the couple to suppress competitors. I recall a subordinate who effectively used this in Bazhou, Hebei. Distributor Mr. X and his wife had been in wholesale for years, accumulating wealth and properties. The wife worried about Mr. X's activities outside. Coincidentally, the competitor's salesperson often invited Mr. X out (to maintain goodwill). My subordinate, seeing Mr. X go out, would subtly hint to the wife. After a while, news came that Mr. X faced unanimous impeachment from "both houses." Later, more news: Mr. X gave up the competitor.

**III. Underhanded Tactics to Suppress Competitors:**

**Disrupt Competitor Price Order to Suppress Competitors**
If a distributor is determined to take on a competitor for profit and you have no other choice, you might resort to this underhanded tactic: occasionally have competitor products flood in from neighboring markets at low prices. After three to five times, the distributor will surely complain. Then, act innocent and talk to them: "See, I warned you these generic brands can't guarantee distributor profits, or these so-called big brands only care about volume and won't consider distributor interests (tailor the words for weak or strong brands). Look at our years of cooperation; it's been quite pleasant overall." Then, use the profit story again, help them calculate accounts. I believe most distributors will come around.

Disrupting price order is a double-edged sword; use it with extreme caution. Pay attention to three points: 1. It must be seamless; if the distributor finds out it's the salesperson behind it, it will backfire. 2. You can use it, but so can your competitors; the key is who is more clever. 3. Use it with the right mindset and clever methods. Clients are always friends; salespeople must always remember this. In practice, we often see such business elites who occasionally "lie," but with good intentions—they fight competitors for their own business while continuously creating profits for clients. On the other hand, some overly "honest" novices fail to do well and even incur client complaints because they don't know how to "lie." That's the difference between experts and ordinary folks.

In summary, to maintain a strong position in a fiercely competitive market, you need not only targeted tactics but also speed. As the saying goes, "In martial arts, nothing is unbreakable; only speed is unbreakable." On the African savannah, antelopes and lions coexist. In the morning, the antelope wakes up thinking: I must be faster than the fastest lion, or I'll be killed. The lion also thinks: To get my meal today, I must be faster than the fastest antelope. Thus, on the vast grassland, a thrilling life-and-death struggle unfolds. If the antelope is slow, it becomes the lion's meal; if the lion is slow, it starves. Market competition is the same!

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