1****Recruiting distributors is getting harder In the past two years, all companies have been complaining about the difficulty of recruiting distributors. This is a fact, and it will only get harder. Why? Distributors have graduated from university! 20 years ago, distributors might have been primary school students, the market atmosphere was good, and distributors were easy to fool. A single recruitment meeting could basically bring in tens of millions in payments. Now? When a salesperson goes to develop a new distributor, they will be asked one question: How do you ensure sell-through? The salesperson gives a grandiose speech with a bunch of promises, but the distributor calmly distinguishes which words are true and which are unreliable. It's not that distributors don't need new products; they rely on distribution for survival, and they especially crave best-selling products. The key is how companies solve the "best-selling" problem and how they let distributors see tangible hope. In essence, the recruitment problem is a problem of the company's team's systematic sales capability. Nowadays, distributors are basically "zero-risk bearers"; they stick to a stubborn principle: Better not to do it than to lose money. When the distributor group becomes completely "rational and mature," it turns into a "industry mirror". Whether a company's products can sell well, whether the team's execution is strong, whether market investment is sufficient, whether profit margins are attractive, and whether the company is trustworthy—these all become criteria for whether distributors are willing to be recruited. Once negative reviews appear, recruitment basically fails. 2****Channels enter the "cooking small fish" era In the realm of marketing concepts, channels belong to "push." The "fine distribution" model advocated by FMCG giants has not expired; on the contrary, it remains mainstream and the royal road. Doing FMCG still cannot do without core elements such as "display, promotion, free samples, rebates, outlets, distribution, customer relations, service, etc." Without these elements, you will die. But are there any new tricks for these elements? No, almost none. At most, there are micro-innovations at the "quantity" level or "pseudo-innovations" at the conceptual level. Leaving product factors aside, the size of a company almost differs in "channel execution capability building." Many companies place great emphasis on "team execution training," but it's basically useless. Besides giving the team two bowls of chicken soup, it doesn't solve substantive problems. Behind team execution is the support of the company's systemic capabilities. For example, regarding display issues, why can only a few giant companies achieve neat and standardized displays? Some say it's because they have money to invest in expenses. But there is a domestic company that splurged on display expenses in the market and basically spent itself to death! What's the reason behind that? The lack of team and channel control capabilities. Digging deeper, what other reasons are there? A series of problems such as unstable product quality and salespeople colluding with distributors to defraud expenses. This series of problems ultimately boils down to "the company operating with illness". The era of grand marketing is basically over. Channel construction in the Chinese market has entered a "cooking small fish" era. Do solid work in one terminal area, even just a model street, then go street by street, persist, start slow and then speed up, truly benefit distributors—how could the market not be good! FMCG channel operation is "hard and tiring work," with nothing novel or special. What it pursues is forming an "overwhelming advantage" over competitors in channel construction. Of course, no one wants to do hard and tiring work; the only driving force is "strong culture and high incentives." Let every distributor continue to profit; let every effective terminal have profit margins; let every marketing person make money and maintain high stability. These all test the company's strategic endurance and resilience. Governing a big country is like cooking small fish! Doing market is the same. 3****Products: "marketability is king" There are many messy and varied products in the market seeking distributors, especially at the annual sugar and wine fair where you see some very weird products. Whether a product sells well does not depend on innovation; sometimes innovation can even destroy a company. The best product is one with strong "marketability." For example, Bull sockets are ordinary and unremarkable, with no technical content—just "copper strips + plastic + a few wires"—but they are very "marketable." Sister Ma's hand-torn bread sold like hotcakes this year. Why? Marketability! What is marketability? Essential needs, cost-effectiveness, excellent quality, consumer repurchase, and precise reach to consumer needs. Sister Ma's hand-torn bread is not original, but the product quality is a latecomer advantage, and costs are naturally high. It entered the market at a low price, expanded the consumer base, then started low and went high, and profits came naturally. Of course, there is another premise: Sister Ma has a highly strong and resilient execution team. Sister Ma's secret to success is very simple: excellent quality, stable team, and mass-market positioning. Wahaha's new products in the past two years have not achieved expected success. Why? The marketability problem was not solved. Why did Nutrition Express become a hit? Xiaoyangren's Meilian first became popular, solving the marketability problem. Wahaha only did one thing: spent a lot of money to borrow the fire. Does your product fit the consumer demand you are targeting? If you can't answer this question clearly, the market is just a gamble. But strangely, many companies never test product marketability; they just launch first. 4****The best companies are always unpretentious People often ask me, is the Xiaoyangren company you serve doing well? Yes, not just well, but quite well! It has been growing all along! Unfortunately, you don't know about it. Precisely because you don't know, Xiaoyangren grows. BBK ranks first in China's mobile phone market and third in the world, surpassing Huawei. But do you know the presidents of BBK's VIVO and OPPO? 99% of people don't know them; they rarely appear in the media. SF Express boss Wang Wei is basically absent from forums, and even Ma Yun admires him. In contrast, the boss of Huang X Ji often comes out to talk about business model innovation, and now everyone knows him. Truly powerful companies and teams are moving forward silently. Doing business is like living a life: reduce expenses, don't spend extra money on useless PR and marketing activities, and focus all the company's energy and capital on internal management and market execution optimization. Only in this way can you sustain profitability. The essence of the market is risk. Many companies forget this, and once they are taught a lesson by the market, it's too late. If the boss doesn't seek fame, the team will be embarrassed to "show off," and the whole company culture will be "down-to-earth, real, and hardworking." Fickleness naturally has nothing to do with such entrepreneurs and companies. Comparing and contrasting, what remains in the end are often "stupid companies." Smart companies are always like beautiful meteors, flashing by. But "silly companies" like Laoganma are thriving more and more. Pine trees are unadorned, yet they can survive the changes of seasons. Epiphyllum is beautiful, but it cannot see the sun the next day. Everything finally settles. The future belongs to "real and down-to-earth people and companies."

Source: Shangyu Consulting

Shangyu Consulting: The first domestic consulting agency focused on corporate marketing transformation, specifically assisting outstanding domestic enterprises in completing the four major service areas of "strategic focus, product innovation, brand upgrade, and channel transformation." It is a comprehensive marketing service provider. New Food Era · New Distribution —— 2016 China "FMCG + Internet" Summit Forum —— This is a grand event focused on how FMCG industry channels should transform under the trend of Internet+ transformation Conference Agenda 08:00-09:00 Registration 09:00-09:05 Host opening 09:05-09:35 2016 China FMCG Industry Trend Analysis Report——Zhao Bo 09:35-10:05 FMCG Enterprise Transformation Strategy and Path——Liu Chunxiong 10:05-10:35 Opportunities and Challenges Brought by FMCG Channel Transformation——Field 365 CEO Liu Zhao 10:35-11:05 Reconstructing Distribution Channel System, Promoting Urban Retail Upgrade——Alibaba Retail Link Backend General Manager Tian Yuan 11:05-11:25 Channel Efficiency in the Internet Era——Benlai Holding Vice President Fu Xiaoyun 11:25-12:00 Roundtable Forum——Brand Transformation: Improvement vs. Reconstruction? Guests: Liu Zhao, Liu Chunxiong, Fang Gang, Chen Feng, Shi Zhengchuan, Deng Xia 12:00-13:30 Lunch 13:30-13:50 Distributor Transformation: Urban Distribution Trends——Weijie City Distribution CEO Wang Qi 13:50-14:20 Roundtable Forum——Why Distributors Should Transform into Logistics Guests: Zhao Bo, Wang Qi, Liu Zhongmin, Tang Guangliang, Wang Cheng, Sheng Yan 14:20-14:40 How FMCG Enterprises Can Take Off with the Internet——Xijiu E-commerce Operations Director Wang Hui 14:40-15:00 Detailed Explanation of Zhongshang Huimin's "One Machine, Two Wings" Strategy——Zhongshang Huimin Vice President Su Xiaoxin 15:00-15:20 Category Value and B2B E-commerce Development Strategy——Yijiupi CEO Wang Chaocheng 15:20-15:40 Supply Chain Finance as a Lubricant for B2B to Drive Traditional Business——51 Order CEO Chen Xian 15:40-16:00 Zhanghe Cloud Factory Helps Upgrade FMCG Supply Chain——Zhanghe Tianxia CEO Yang Lixiang 16:00-16:30 Integrating Small and Micro Retail, Reconstructing Business Ecosystem——Quanshi Vice President Miao Dong 16:30-16:50 B2B Investment Principles and Ideas——Junlian Capital Vice President Zhao Mingwei 17:00-17:30 Roundtable Forum——Who Is the King in FMCG B2B Models Guests: Fu Xiaoyun, Zhuang Jianzhong, Jiang Tao, Zeng Weiqin 17:30-19:30 Dinner For manufacturers and friends who want 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]