---
title: "What Can Save the Manufacturer's Sales Representative?"
description: "The manufacturer's sales representative is the link between the manufacturer and the distributor, and a key part of the profitability of all three parties. However, in reality, distributors often find it hard to appreciate them. This article discusses common complaints from distributors and offers advice for improvement."
author: "李德猛"
publisher: "New Distribution"
email: "zhaobo258@gmail.com"
telephone: "+8615854817671"
published: "2014-09-15"
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# What Can Save the Manufacturer's Sales Representative?

> The manufacturer's sales representative is the link between the manufacturer and the distributor, and a key part of the profitability of all three parties. However, in reality, distributors often find it hard to appreciate them. This article discusses common complaints from distributors and offers advice for improvement.

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**Summary:** The manufacturer's sales representative is the link between the manufacturer and the distributor, and a key part of the profitability of all three parties. However, in reality, distributors often find it hard to appreciate them.

In every issue of recruitment in local talent markets, you will see that nearly 90% of companies are recruiting manufacturer's sales representatives. Similarly, when marketing personnel visit customers to discuss contracts, many distributors will proactively ask: "Will your company send someone to guide our sales work?" Indeed, sales personnel have become a "scarce resource" valued by both manufacturers and distributors. In today's fiercely competitive market, many companies, in order to quickly win customers, seize terminal markets, and better implement the "customer is God" service principle, will also arrange 1-2 sales representatives at distributor locations to help solve problems encountered during operations. From this perspective, they are undoubtedly "saviors" for distributors. However, based on my communication with many distributors, the reality is quite different—more often, it is resentment and complaint.

**1. Boasting at the dinner table, but shirking when it comes to policy**

Most people in sales can drink. Distributor Mr. Li from Pei County, Jiangsu Province, often invites Mr. Xiao Yang, a manufacturer's sales representative from Tianjin, for a few drinks to gain more sales rebates and policies. At the dinner table, after drinking games and idle chat, they talk about brotherhood, and Xiao Yang boasts: "Mr. Li, don't worry! The promotional plan and the 4% rebate you want—I'll take care of it. If it doesn't come through, I'll compensate you with a month's salary. What do you think?" Later, when Mr. Li asks about it, Xiao Yang makes excuses, saying the boss is out of town inspecting the market and will be back in a while, and he will try to persuade him. A month later, when Mr. Li mentions the rebate again, Xiao Yang says the general manager has gone on a trip... Six months pass, and Xiao Yang still hasn't secured the sales policy Mr. Li wanted. As is well known, almost all distributors prefer salespeople who help solve practical problems, not those who boast at the dinner table and then ignore them. Even now, when Mr. Li talks about manufacturer's sales representatives, he still holds a grudge.

**2. Just as the market starts to improve, the sales rep is transferred**

Mr. Zhang, a distributor in Fuyang, Anhui Province, has been in business for many years. He is usually mild-tempered and honest. He treats manufacturer's sales representatives like his own family and friends. Whenever a manufacturer's salesperson visits, he entertains them with good food and drink. As he puts it in rural terms: "No matter how they treat me, I am sincere." However, in 2012, this sincere Mr. Zhang suffered a major setback, truly "bumped" by the manufacturer's sales representative. Mr. Zhang had been in business for 7 years and had always done well. But in 2010, during the peak sales season, the manufacturer's sales representative helped Mr. Zhang plan a promotional activity that was very successful, not only boosting product sales but also increasing sales by 8% compared to the same period in 2009. After this promotion, Mr. Zhang valued the sales rep, Mr. Li, even more. In 2012, Mr. Li told Mr. Zhang that the company had developed a new product with better features, packaging, and selling points than other products. If Mr. Zhang wanted to be the exclusive regional agent, he would need to pay a prepayment of 500,000 yuan. Trusting Mr. Li, Mr. Zhang paid the 500,000 yuan in one lump sum and signed a new product sales contract. When the new product was about to launch, the factory delivered the goods to Mr. Zhang's warehouse and store, and Mr. Li also came along with the delivery. Mr. Zhang was pleased, believing that as long as Mr. Li helped him plan the market, business would be good. During that period, Mr. Li was indeed very effective. As soon as the product arrived in the regional market, he was busy planning community promotions and contacting downstream distributors. Market feedback showed that most of Mr. Zhang's stores had good sales. In 2012, when the peak season arrived again, Mr. Zhang noticed that Mr. Li, who usually came as expected, was nowhere to be seen. He called Mr. Li, who first replied by text message: "I'm very busy with work recently, so I can't come." A week later, when Mr. Zhang called again, Mr. Li told the truth: "Now distributors in various regions need salespeople to guide the market and help with new product sales. The company has few salespeople, and even fewer with experience. I've been transferred to another region." Later, although Mr. Zhang strongly requested that the company transfer Mr. Li back, it was ultimately in vain.

**3. Sales rep resigns, manufacturer refuses to exchange goods**

Salesperson Xiao Shen was assigned by the company to develop the market in Shangqiu, Henan. Through his unremitting efforts and "carpet bombing" cold visits, he finally found a distributor, Mr. Wang, with annual sales of nearly 300,000 yuan. Mr. Wang was very interested in the brand Xiao Shen was promoting. After negotiations, they signed a sales contract for 200,000 yuan per year. The contract had three clauses: 1) Complete 50,000 yuan in sales each quarter, totaling 200,000 yuan per year; 2) The manufacturer's sales representative must help the distributor develop the market; 3) Unsold goods will be exchanged by the manufacturer. After preliminary market research, customer visits, and understanding local consumption habits, Xiao Shen developed a "tailored" marketing plan and gradually placed the company's products in downstream township dealers' stores. In the first quarter, the distributor made an initial purchase of 50,000 yuan, and by mid-month of the third month, sales were just completed. In the second quarter, sales were good, completing the task in less than two months. In the third quarter, the distributor paid 100,000 yuan in one go to complete the annual sales task early and get the rebate early. Unexpectedly, Xiao Shen played a "disappearing act."

The distributor called the company and was told that Xiao Shen had resigned. The company sent another sales rep, surnamed Hao, to guide the distributor's work, but the results were not as good as before. In the fourth quarter, the market entered the off-season, and products became unsellable. The distributor requested an exchange of goods, but the manufacturer refused, claiming that the distributor had not maintained a good relationship with Xiao Shen and had not taken good care of him, causing the company's excellent sales representative to resign. The company said its loss from losing a good salesperson was greater than the distributor's loss. The distributor was baffled by this response. Later, Mr. Wang learned that the real reason for Xiao Shen's resignation was not that he was treated poorly, but that his request for a salary increase was rejected, and he felt his pay did not match his efforts.

**4. Appears when payment is due, disappears when problems arise**

"Manufacturer's sales representatives usually appear when it's time to pay, but disappear when there are problems. You don't know where they are at other times. This is a common complaint about them," said a coatings distributor surnamed Zeng from Ganzhou, Jiangxi. According to him, almost all the salespeople from the several brands he currently deals with have this common problem. "Before I pay, they communicate a lot. But when product problems arise, they keep delaying and finally push it to the technical department, which then blames the customer's application. The customer insists they followed the instructions. In the end, we distributors suffer because we lose customer trust and resources." As a manufacturer's sales representative, you must first establish authority in the eyes of the distributor, making them feel you are a reliable person who does practical things and has professional performance, so they trust you more. Secondly, you should have a mature and perfect personality, not put too much pressure on customers. Usually, you should help train the distributor's sales staff, making them feel you are helping them, not just the company. Thirdly, you should often go to the distributor's region to help develop the market. Finally, besides mastering product knowledge and sales skills, you should also be a "doctor" for the industry, identifying problems that distributors and customers have or will have, and helping distributors do things they can't do themselves, especially technical aspects and paint defect handling knowledge, so customers feel you are the person they need.

**5. Colluding to deceive distributors, international brand "pretending" domestically**

Distributor Mr. Cao from Hunan was formerly the marketing director and professional manager of a domestic chemical company. With years of frontline experience and rich enterprise management experience, he always wanted to find a brand to be the Hunan general agent. He joined a group called "Coating Business Information (Super Social Group)". Once, while chatting with a netizen from the "XX Paint Marketing Department", he learned that "XX Paint" was an American brand with a history of over 100 years, had a China Famous Trademark, and was endorsed by a Hong Kong celebrity... Seeing this information, Mr. Cao and the netizen (manufacturer's sales rep Xiao Wu) agreed to meet in mid-March 2011 to check it out in person. When he arrived at Shunde General Station, Mr. Cao called Xiao Wu, who replied: "Mr. Cao, hello, are you at Shunde General Station now? Wait for me at the station exit, and I'll arrange a car to pick you up." That evening, Mr. Cao was arranged to stay at a hotel near Daliang General Station. The next day, Xiao Wu picked him up in the company car and introduced him to the company's general manager. After communication and Xiao Wu's facilitation, Mr. Cao decided to take the Hunan general agency for the brand. But when the general manager and Xiao Wu took him to a production workshop, he found five paint brands being packaged. With his years of marketing experience and observation, Mr. Cao judged that the brand was a repackaging brand, not an American brand at all. Later, a friend confirmed that the brand was filled by a Fujian businessman at a Foshan paint factory. Although there was a large outdoor billboard with a "Hong Kong celebrity endorsement," it was just a facade. Mentioning this, the distributor still feels "lingering fear" and worries about encountering such things again.

Through the above cases, as a distributor, you may have perceived a lot and gained more understanding of manufacturer's sales representatives. As a manufacturer's sales representative, I hope you don't "still sing the same old tune" and "rush around with an expired ticket." Here, I write this article as a warning, hoping that "manufacturer's sales representatives" and senior management will listen more to distributors' opinions, avoid problems that should not occur in honest business and mutual cooperation, and avoid common marketing pitfalls. I also hope that distributors will no longer find it "hard to love you," but rather "love you without hesitation." I also hope that in the near future, Chinese enterprises will produce a large number of high-quality "manufacturer's sales representatives." Honest cooperation is the premise, and win-win for all three parties is the key. Let us look forward to it together!

Source: First Marketing Network

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