Know-How Exchange : Strategy

Ilan,

Financially strong. Good customer service/support. Basic stuff. You can usually find that out by asking around the industry.

You can also work with independent sales people in those countries and ask for their input. There are plusses and minuses.

Some countries (like Japan) you're better off will some sort of JV-ish program.

Michael

It really depends on what you want the distributor to do. Do you want them to inventory (then they need financial strength and the ability to warehouse)? Are they calling on your target customers? Have you set performance goals and do they feel they are reasonable. Some distributors are good at placing POP's. others have a strong warehouse clientelle. What do you think of their sales staff and management. Does the culture of the org align with yours?

Spend some time thinking of the important attributes you expect of a distributor. Then assign values to each, 10 is something you just cannot live without. The weighted scale of decision making is very good for biz decisions as this.

Ilan,
The World of Distribution is broken in many sub sectors.
Some are experts at logistics, others at amalgamating orders, and still others at developing the product demand. Organizations who get these confused face issues from day one. For instance, if you hire a logistics based distributor, they generally will not do a good job at selling your product - but they can satisfy the demand once someone else creates it. And, in some instances, organizations must plan for a migration in their distribution channel.

If you would like to spend a few minutes chatting about distribution strategies, contact me via my profile.

Frank Hurtte

K, then you want either a distributor with dealer contacts or OEM. If its dealer -- warehousing and financial strength is impt. If its OEM, warehousing may not be as important-- the manufacturer may have specific specs.