If you have a product to sell and are completely confident about the way it works and its usefulness in the homes of people, or businesses, the next step is to take the product to users. Selling to your users is a tricky proposition as you need marketing expertise, something that cannot be learned on the fly. That is why you need to sell through convenience store distribution channels. Here are a few advantages of doing just that.
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They are quickUnless you are making luxury products and want to maintain an air of exclusivity, you need to move product fast. The fastest way to go about this is to make use of distributors. They know all the locations of stores, supermarkets and other such outlets and also know the fastest way to reach them. If you really are interested in moving quickly and efficiently, Distributors are literally the fastest way to do this.
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Wide customer baseThe whole point of a distributor is their wide customer base. They have built up a variety of markets and know exactly how to reach them. The information that they have us highly valuable and not something that you would want to build by yourself. It is also just not worth the time and effort to start from scratch and attempt to establish this base by yourself. Let the distributors do all the heavy lifting.
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Understanding of the marketDistributors have an intimate understanding of the market. They know who to reach, where best to take your product and how to get prospective buyers interested. So if you have a niche product, it is not going to work everywhere, you need to know where to sell it for maximum impact and this information is available with convenience store distribution They might even suggest new markets that you had no idea even existed and take your product there.
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Sales and marketing Distributors are champion sellers. Their main job is to keep convenience stores and other like customer facing centers stocked with quality goods, so they will really sell the idea behind your product to the stores, that, backed by their assurance of delivery and their years of built up reputation alone can kick start your product’s sales in the area.
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MotivatedOne of the biggest reasons why they are able to sell so quickly is because they will sell the products as though they were their own. That is because the only way for convenience store suppliers to make a profit is to resell their stocks. The profit motive is always a driving factor. When the first batch goes out, that itself is an indicator that the product is selling well and they will want to ride on the profits over again.
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LogisticsDistributors have the trucks, vans and manpower that is necessary to transport the goods to where ever it is they need to go. Few manufacturers have this ability. Unless you are a major force in the market and are big enough to be able handle countrywide distribution, this job is best left to distributors. They are experts and know exactly what to do with your product.
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StorageStorage is a part of logistics, an off shoot. When you make more and more of your product, storing it till it is sold is something that can be expensive if you are short on warehouse space, Distributors, on the other hand can take delivery of your goods, and store it in their centers. They are sure to allocate your goods their own spot. You are also saving on space by having it travel from center to center, and there will be smaller houses where it is stored and distributed, this leaves you and your goods with a lot of flexible space.
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Distribution channelsBy making use of a distributor, you all of a sudden have a footprint in markets that you might not have been able to penetrate otherwise. You need not even have a physical presence in these territories, but your product can reach the people there. By taking your product through a variety of convenience store distribution channels and reaching it to even remote locations, you are able to make it a household name and in turn, turn in larger sales volumes.
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Financial savingsAll of the above pointers have one thing in common and that is that they all give you excellent savings. Money not spent in business terms is money saved. Before you go in for expensive advertising and marketing tactics, you will have already made sure the product is accessible to any interested person or business and this is a great way to start off. The saved money can also be pumped back into R&D, making minor improvements to the product, packaging and you will be coming up with a better product than the one you started off with sooner than you expected.
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Route to market Coming to think about it, there might not be a better way to reach people, that is, your end users in terms of sheer speed than through distributors. If you get a really resourceful distributor, you will see your product reach even the farthest corners of the country in no time at all. The coverage of market aspect is strong with convenience store suppliers.
Getting the right distributor
The trick now is to find a really good distributor. If handled wrong, even a really good product can end up in the pits. While it is good to have a distributor that is profit oriented, focusing only on profits will take your product nowhere. What you need is longevity and a brand recognition when you decide to branch out.
At the same time, you need to make it worthwhile to the distributor to come forward and buy from you and build a relationship. Only if you meet certain requirements from their side will it make sense for them to invest time and effort into selling and distributing your wares.
