---
title: "Three Taboos for Distributors in 2018"
description: "Time flies, and even without batteries, it keeps moving; 2017 is about to pass. Due to work, I came into contact with nearly 5,000 liquor and food distributors in the outgoing year, and after compiling data and information from these interactions, I found that nearly 80% of distributors are no longer profitable. How should these distributors face and change in the upcoming 2018? In the market environment, marketing environments are divided into macro marketing environments and micro marketing environments. The macro marketing environment is what distributors..."
author: "师顺宽"
publisher: "New Distribution"
email: "zhaobo258@gmail.com"
telephone: "+8615854817671"
published: "2017-12-31"
language: "en"
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---

# Three Taboos for Distributors in 2018

> Time flies, and even without batteries, it keeps moving; 2017 is about to pass. Due to work, I came into contact with nearly 5,000 liquor and food distributors in the outgoing year, and after compiling data and information from these interactions, I found that nearly 80% of distributors are no longer profitable. How should these distributors face and change in the upcoming 2018? In the market environment, marketing environments are divided into macro marketing environments and micro marketing environments. The macro marketing environment is what distributors...

Time flies, and even without batteries, it keeps moving; 2017 is about to pass. Due to work, I came into contact with nearly 5,000 liquor and food distributors in the outgoing year, and after compiling data and information from these interactions, I found that nearly 80% of distributors are no longer profitable. How should these distributors face and change in the upcoming 2018?

In the market environment, marketing environments are divided into **macro marketing environments** and **micro marketing environments**.

The macro marketing environment consists of factors that distributors cannot directly control, or even cannot control at all. Therefore, the macro marketing environment cannot directly determine distributors' profitability, but it greatly helps in shaping their development direction and goals. Distributors' development must proceed within the macro marketing environment. The purpose of analyzing the macro marketing environment is to better understand the environment they are in, and to adapt to changes in the social environment through their marketing efforts, thereby achieving their marketing objectives.

In addition to analyzing the macro marketing environment, distributors should also analyze the micro marketing environment, because the ultimate goal of various strategies and measures adopted by distributors is to serve customers and consumers profitably and meet local market demands. Therefore, the micro marketing environment has the most direct impact on distributors, but it is also changeable, as long as distributors can conduct a good analysis of the micro marketing environment. By adjusting themselves, controlling market channels, and grasping competitors, they can seize opportunities in the fleeting market competition to increase volume and profit. **Therefore, it is an important topic for any distributor to deeply understand their micro environment, build an efficient marketing team, and respond quickly to the market.**

During the period of rapid economic growth, due to supply-demand relationships, the macro environment for distributors was favorable, and distributors could increase sales and profits without much effort each year. The bad habits that distributors should avoid were formed during this period of rapid economic growth. **In today's era of low economic growth, these habits must be corrected, otherwise they will bring great harm to distributors' development.**

Perhaps many distributors will think these bad habits have nothing to do with them, but to be safe, it is better to conduct a self-check.

The taboos for distributors can be roughly divided into the following three types:

1. **High-and-Mighty Distributors**

This type of distributor is characterized by sitting comfortably on their boss's throne, putting on an air of superiority, and passively waiting for subordinates to report.

These distributors rarely go to the market frontline for research, and rarely proactively explore new ideas or methods. They focus their main energy on thinking about opinions heard from others, often showing a passive waiting posture.

During the period of rapid economic growth, this type of distributor could get by. But now it is no longer the era of waiting for others' opinions before making decisions. **The new economic environment requires distributors who can take the initiative in everything, proactively conduct market research, grasp the actual situation, use thoughtful ideas to motivate employees and provoke deep thinking; face difficulties personally and solve them proactively; and provide inspiration and help to subordinates in confusion.**

2. **Comparison-Oriented Distributors**

The characteristic of comparison-oriented distributors is that they are quite sensitive to the movements of other competitors. As soon as a competitor makes a new move, they immediately investigate and then imitate. This type of distributor has a habit of immediately following and imitating.

Compared to distributors who are indifferent to external movements, work behind closed doors, and only talk about big principles without taking action, comparison-oriented distributors cannot be said to be bad. **However, imitating other competitors' new moves does not necessarily align with their own company's priority development strategies.** Each company has different goals and tasks, and their priority development strategies also differ. Perhaps you are troubled by unresolved basic issues, while other companies no longer have such problems and are planning for future development. Also, if other companies lower prices, you lower prices; if they offer buy-one-get-one-free, you do the same... Your product is in the introduction stage, while other competitors are already in the maturity stage. Compared to your competitors, you are like a child compared to an adult.

Other companies' new plans may not necessarily align with your company's current priority development strategies. Every company should have its own pressing issues to solve. Being distracted by other companies' movements and repeatedly postponing major issues that need to be solved is an absolutely unforgivable mistake. Therefore, comparing with other companies is not feasible. Only by combining your own company's conditions, leveraging strengths and avoiding weaknesses, and formulating plans is the correct path for development.

Each company has its own different strengths and characteristics, so when formulating plans, it is necessary to tailor unique ideas and methods based on one's own characteristics. There is a saying that goes well: "Trying to draw a tiger but ending up with a dog." Just like this proverb, **every distributor should do their utmost to come up with unique reform plans, otherwise they cannot win in the fierce market competition.**

**Blindly imitating other companies may not require much effort, but the drawback is that it is difficult to improve one's own crisis response capabilities.** Imitating others is a simple thing, at least you haven't personally experienced the painful thinking process of "wasting away for the sake of beauty." However, directly borrowing others' ideas is of no benefit in improving your own abilities.

3. **Procrastinating Distributors**

This type of distributor is characterized by indecisiveness, delaying decisions on many matters, especially postponing decisions on unresolved issues (such as many problems reported by employees).

This type of distributor is caused by long-term habits and laziness. But in today's fiercely competitive era, all matters must be decided immediately, executed quickly, and results should be obtained as soon as possible to correct shortcomings. This is an era that pursues practical results. If you procrastinate, important business opportunities will have already changed.

Think about it: which type of distributor do you belong to?

During the period of rapid economic growth, due to supply-demand relationships, the operating environment was favorable, and distributors could increase sales and profits without much effort each year. However, times have changed. It is difficult to significantly increase sales, profits stagnate or even decline, while employee wages must rise every year, and manufacturers' supply prices and energy prices are also constantly rising. The era of waiting for profits to come to you is over. If you stick to old ways, you will inevitably incur losses.

**The micro marketing environment has the most direct impact on distributors, but it is also changeable, as long as distributors can conduct a good analysis of the micro marketing environment.** By adjusting themselves, controlling market channels, and grasping competitors, they can seize opportunities in the fleeting market competition to increase volume and profit. Therefore, to ensure company profits, distributors can only "create profits" through internal efforts.

To create profits, distributors must carry out full participation, streamline personnel, cut expenses, reduce unprofitable products, lighten interest burdens, and seize every opportunity to increase sales. In this context, distributors must become the first to eat crabs, take the lead in internal consciousness innovation and secondary education, resolutely overturn deep-rooted old concepts within the company, and promote problem-solving with vigor and speed. Correct employees' wrong concepts without hesitation; persistently implement correct concepts until they take root in the company; provide specific guidance to each employee, explaining tirelessly until subordinates fully understand.

To create profits, distributors must step out of their offices and engage in actual business. If they are too far from the "on-site atmosphere," even capable people will lose inspiration and head toward failure. Being confined to a small room all day will make you half a beat slower than others in work pace, and you won't be able to discover and solve problems in their infancy, thus missing opportunities.

To create profits, distributors must always pay attention to changes on the marketing frontline, then think carefully about what measures should be taken for each change, and the plan will naturally emerge. This is the best way to obtain new plans. Because whether it is information or actual conditions, you must see, hear, or experience it personally to believe it. It is very dangerous to judge solely based on numbers or your own subjective speculation.

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