Question

Topic: E-Marketing

Allowing Customers To Re-distribute Your Pdfs

Posted by mschonauer on 11/7/2007 at 10:05 AM ET 125 Points
As the web becomes more and more interactive many of my customers/distributors are asking us for pdf versions of our catalogs so they can make them available for download directly from their websites.

Further some of our distributors have taken it upon themselves to scan our catalogs and post them on their websites without permission

Obviously they are unknowingly infringing on our copyrights but what do you say to your customer.

What is the best practice for this situation? Should I provide high quality pdf's of our literature so they can make it available from their site? On the positive side it will help our brand on the web...

Part of the problem is that we have an old website (in the process of update) and we do not currently have this data available for download from our site.

On one hand I think I should let our distributors do this and the other part of me is considering all of the reasons not to let them make our literature available for download from their site:
1. If we make a change in our literature, it may not be made on a customer website.
2. Less traffic will be generated to our website
3.we may not want some of the data they are posting on the web for competitive reasons...how do you politely tell your customers not to do it?

what do other B2B companies do in this situation?

Thanks for your input...
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RESPONSES

  • Posted by Inbox_Interactive on 11/7/2007 at 10:23 AM Accepted
    I am by no means the most qualified person to answer your questions, so I'm looking forward to other responses.

    However, I'll throw a few things out there...

    If you are concerned about your rights, then you have to let your distributors know that, while you want to help them build their businesses, they will have to use creative assets that are approved or authored by your company. Once you knowingly ignore a violation of your rights and marks, they can become fair game.

    I think you should support your distributors by providing them with creative assets. You can even make them custom for the distributor. I would also keep record of who has what so that when changes are made, you can provide updated versions. You should also keep track of where these items are hosted to ensure that current versions are in use.

    I'm not sure I understand your concern about traffic to you site. Are you supporting your distributors' efforts or not? If you are, then you have to accept that they are going to make some sales that you are not...but that's why they became distributors, isn't it? Sounds like you have a small channel conflict brewing...

    If your distributors are posting confidential data that would be useful to competitors, I think you're clearly within your rights to request (that is, politely and tactfully order) them to refrain from doing so. However, if they are getting this information from your site or other public sources, I'm not sure you can make such a request. And you have to figure, if it's available to the public elsewhere, your competition probably already has this information.

    It almost sounds like you're competing against your distributors. I think you might need to assess whether you're really interested in supporting them. I almost get the feeling that these relationships pre-date the Web, and now you're a little upset that you're losing Web sales to distributors that you feel you could have made on your own. Whereas you needed these distributors in the past, you now feel that the Web has made them obsolete. Just a thought...probably wrong.

  • Posted by mschonauer on 11/7/2007 at 10:48 AM Author
    Thank you for your response. We don't sell any of our standard product line direct and we don't have sales directly off of our website. Our distributors are very much our partners and will continue to be that.

    We currently do provide our distributors with creative assets but primarily in the form of images and logos. We have not started to provide the brochures and catalogs yet digitally yet.

  • Posted on 11/7/2007 at 3:21 PM Accepted
    You should start by making current PDFs available from your own website, and allow customers to enter thier email address to get updates. Then you can email them each time you have a new catalog with a link to the new one.

    You should want to have some relationship wth the customer. This gives you more power over distributors. You can start with the PDF catalog and an email list.

    The next step would be to improve your website.

    [Commercial portion of message deleted by staff]
  • Posted by Peter (henna gaijin) on 11/7/2007 at 3:24 PM Accepted
    I would make the PDFs yourself and get them to the distributors. Until that could be done, take the scanned versions and use them (get to all distributors). You lose some control, but get better distribution of the docs.

    In regards to not having the most recent being used - this same problem occurs with printed docs. You probably have a system that updates the printed ones - just add the PDFs to this system to make sure they are updated also.

    But at least PDFs get around issues of running out of the literature or someone not having it at their desk (and not wanting to wait for it to be mailed or they go to the distributor to get a copy).
  • Posted by darcy.moen on 11/9/2007 at 7:15 PM Accepted
    First off, a disclaimer: I'm a web guy who usually is paid to find solution to this type of problem.

    There, that said, let's get to work.

    For simplicity and content control, you should have all this information, and more, ON YOUR web site. When you have product or price changes, its an easy fix.

    Now, once content is off your site and pushed to other web sites (like distributors and affiliates), you lose control and increase your administration headaches. You have already experienced the night mare of chasing everyone and their sales person to get consistency and some resemblance of control.

    Take back control and empower your distributors. In my opinion, you should consolidate your entire catalogue and product line in one area of your web site, and PDF versions for download in another area. All your distributors and affiliates can access this information and draw from your web site.

    Your distributors could either link to the downloads, or use iframes to pull in your online catalogue into their web site (where appropriate).

    Now, some companies may not like this if they are running their own online store or information distribution networks. That is fine, they have to register their web site pages where your information or products are in their web site. Appoint an information or brand manager whose job will be to periodically check the registered pages and make sure products and prices are current and accurate. Enforce consistency, and if folks keep violating, pull your line from them.

    Welcome to the age of information management. :-)

    Darcy Moen
    Customer Loyalty Network
  • Posted by excellira on 11/9/2007 at 9:18 PM Accepted
    I am now a professional SEO but for years I operated a manufacturing business and I can fully understand the rationale of your thinking.

    Reading between the lines I can see some issues which I'm going out on a limb over by making some assumptions:

    1. This seems to be more of a control issue and the objective has been lost.

    2. The dealers do not appear to be properly supported and are becoming "creative" and showing some initiative.

    3. As a manufacturer, distributor, or importer you need to improve and market your web site. Not only from a consumer standpoint but also the dealer/distributor network.

    Manufacturers have an ingrained need to control things. But this is clouding the issue. Your objective is to get your product in the hands of as many prospects as possible. Having mass distribution of your marketing materials is a good way to handle this.

    You could worry about the accuracy and age of all those PDFs out there but I'm sure you are never concerned about the significantly greater number of outdated print brochures that are out there. No one would even think of recalling those.

    If maintaining accuracy is important I'd make sure you set up a dealer communications effort which creates a list of your resellers and provides regular updates and announcements (including updated PDFs). This is the best way to ensure the accuracy of the information while also maintaining the distribution that the dealers are creating for you.

    You'll find that if you implement a system like this the dealers will be more productive because the constant contact with them will keep them working for you. Otherwise: "out of sight, out of mind". Dealers work harder for manufacturers that support them fully.

    Another option is to allow them to hotlink to the PDF file on your server. Then when you update the PDF you're updating all of your dealer's sites simultaneously. Provide them with the html code to insert into their pages. When the visitor downloads the PDF it's coming off of your server.

    This will also provide the added ability for you to actually track the number of page views and downloads. Right now you have no idea.

    If the web site is performing poorly and the dealer's sites are beating you in the SERPs then you have two choices: 1. Don't worry about it. They're marketing your products aggressively for you so you don't have to. Or 2. improve and market your site so that you maintain control of the position if your dealers jump ship.

    An improved web site should have a passworded dealer/distr. section to improve dealer communications and expertise.

    I hope this helps.

    Best Regards,

    Greg Hill
  • Posted by excellira on 11/9/2007 at 9:23 PM Member
    P.S. It would cost very little to have the PDFs put onto your site. I would just do this and not think twice about it.
  • Posted by Deremiah *CPE on 11/10/2007 at 12:33 PM Member
    Hi Mschonauer,

    Hope you're having a great day and a wonderful life. Thanks for such a mind boggling question.

    As you can see from the results of the answers above there are many way's to approach this and in somebodies eyes you're going to be wrong.

    LET'S GET TO THE HEART OF THE QUESTION...
    Given this I think the most important question you need to ask yourself now is this...


    DO YOU SIDE WITH THE CUSTOMER OR THE COMPANY?
    Is it better for me to be right in my own eyes or right in the eyes of the customer?


    When you don't know what to do...remember this...DO THE RIGHT THING...
    Sometimes we have to make decisions that we know are going to cause us to lose customers...AND sometimes we have to make decisions that we know may get us FIRED by our employer because we side with the customer. I've been on both sides of this argument and can only tell you one thing and I got it from a Spike Lee movie..."DO THE RIGHT THING".

    Yes sometimes the right thing is to FIRE your customer and sometimes the right thing is to FIRE your boss (LOL). Either way somebodies not going to be happy and the bigger problem is YOU'RE IN THE MIDDLE.

    I LIKE THE UBER GURU TOM PETERS...
    and Tom would probably tell you to FIRE THE COMPANY...because the truth is the CUSTOMER COUNTS.

    HERE'S MY ANSWER...but make your own decision...
    I've been with many major companies and I'll be the first to tell you most have not been in tune and most do not see the customer as the most important asset of a company.

    FAILURE TO CHANGE MAY BE THE #1 REASON COMPANIES FAIL...
    The biggest destruction of a company grows out of thier inability to change. I've seen it first hand and I've read it a lot in books. A great book you might want to read that really HITS companies hard on this point is by Theodore Levitt, "The Marketing Imagination" www.amazon.com/Marketing-Imagination-Expanded-Theodore-Levitt/dp/0029190908 I would quote him from the book but I really think you will appreciate it more if you got it and used the advice he shares. If I were you I'd buy a copy for all of your decision makers since they will ultimately be the ones who build your company or destroy it.

    MOST COMPANIES FAILURE TO GROW AS CUSTOMERS BUSINESS NEEDS CHANGE ARE THE RESULT OF WANTING TO CONTINUE ---TO DO THE SAME THING--- BUT NOT THE ---RIGHT THING---.REMEMBER... our only real problem in life is our failure to be "MORE Creative" than we’ve ever been. If you “Invent” your opportunity YOU WILL most definitely create your future. I'm only an email away from you if you need further guidance, direction or you'd just like to talk more about it. You see I love it when my customers are happy. Are you happy yet? Is this information helping you? Is there anything else I can do for you?

    Your Servant,

    Lovingly Deremiah *CPE (Customer Passion Evangelist)
  • Posted by Deremiah *CPE on 11/10/2007 at 12:43 PM Accepted

    DO THE PDF'S AND KEEP YOUR CUSTOMERS HAPPIER...
    yeah...I think I forgot to say...do the pdf's...have them get the pdf's from you when they leave their contact name. As you update your pdf's have them on your email list and send them out the updates and they'll love you because you're keeping in touch with them and helping them do it ---their way--- the way that works best for them. Even put the sale updates in the pdf and they'll love you more as you save them money on discounts. Keep this kind of cycle in alternating rotation though and make them appreciate receiving an email from you. The variation will keep them looking, reading and wondering whether the new pdf may be a sale or just a general update. In either case the variation or alternating the updated pdf with the discounted pdf will keep your clients happy. Remember it's all about keeping customers happier.

    Your Servant,

    Lovingly Deremiah *CPE (The Happy Customer Guy)
  • Posted by steven.alker on 11/14/2007 at 9:02 AM Accepted
    Darcy’s advice resonates very strongly with me and you’ve received some splendid contributions from the rest of the team.

    The only point I’d like to make is on “Future Proofing” your operation. There is a great deal of time and money to be saved and a commensurate improvement in your professional appearance by having a document management system which can be controlled, implemented and updated from your website.

    The brochures, price lists, white papers etc. don’t even have to be visible to the casual visitor – you can give your distributors access to them via a hierarchy of privileges.

    What’s more, if your distributors will agree to embed your standard code into their own websites, you can keep their information up-to-date via changes which you execute centrally. Just make sure that your communication strategy is sound. A distributor can feel just a little miffed if they discover that 30% of their site content has changed without them knowing about it.

    It certainly beats doing it manually – I used to look after the marketing requirements of 100 UK distributors and keeping them all singing from the same hymn sheet as well as singing the correct tune, preferably in key, used to take my publicity manager about a day a week.

    Because we are CRM specialists, we can set up the entire web-based offering with enquiry forms, quotations, process and even order information from a central Maximizer e-CRM server (Disclosure: For those who don’t already know it, I’m a Maximizer Business Partner.) The distributors can then tap in to or opt out of whatever content they want with the added benefits of zero hassle for their own marketing efforts. Oh and the client gets the benefit of being able to see a lot more of the web traffic concerning his products.

    Whatever you do, ensure that it is secure. I had one client who recently thought it would be a good idea to use a website image for all his literature. This is fine when it works properly. When it doesn’t, due for example to his client’s security settings, you get a box with a red X in it instead of a picture.

    I also dissuaded them from having their email and e-literature signatures dependent on a set of web-based images. When it works, it’s fine but in addition to the red X problem, there is the added risk that someone could hack the site and change the images to something embarrassing. Customers can easily understand this kind of problem on the website because its sort of expected, but it is a hell of a lot harder to explain to perhaps 10,000 people who you’ve sent an email or a brochure to in the last 12 months that your logo isn’t usually and never has been a bit or porn.

    Best wishes


    Steve Alker
    Unimax Solutions
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