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 Distributor Dialogue PIDA Introduces the Power of D By Steve King Executive Vice President, Pet Industry Distributors Association
To reinforce the value that distributors bring to the supply chain, the Pet Industry Distributors Association unveiled its Power of D campaign at its 2004 Management Conference and Annual Meeting. Available both in print and on the web, the Power of D is intended to enhance distributor/manufacturer relationships by providing the information manufacturers need to effectively contact and work with distributors. Here are some of the highlights. Setting Up a Distribution Network Because the Power of D is never more evident than when you don’t have it, one of the key issues PIDA addresses is how to set up a distribution network. Essentially, this boils down to four steps. 1. Finding distributors 2. Getting distributors’ attention 3. Making sure your products and policies measure up 4. Having a comprehensive distribution plan Space limits what we can publish here, but each of topics is detailed on PIDA’s web site at www.pida.org. Getting Your Products to Market At its core, the distributor/manufacturer relationship is about moving products through the distribution channel effectively and efficiently. Manufacturers can maximize this process by avoiding some common problems. Freight delivery delays, mislabeled products, missing or misapplied bar codes and goods damaged in shipment bog down the distribution channel. Many of these problems are preventable and result in millions of dollars each year in unnecessary expense to both manufacturers and distributors. The Power of D material covers ordering, shipping, fill rates, delivery, packaging, carriers and identification. A few adjustments in these areas can make a world of difference in both the cost and efficiency of getting products to market. The Distributor/Manufacturer Marketing Partnership The ultimate goal of any manufacturer is to get its products into the hands of consumers. There was a time when distributors could pioneer new products but, with 12,000 skus and excessive product duplication, those days are over. Even the best distributor sales representatives don’t have time to put every new product in front of their customers. Now, focused brand representation and support from the manufacturer is a healthy, necessary component of a distributor’s sales effort. The Power of D materials focus on the distributor contribution to the sales process and how manufacturers can complement rather than duplicate those efforts. They explore how manufacturers and distributors can best work together to ensure that retails, and ultimately consumers, buy the manufacturer’s products. Why Work with Distributors? The Power of D materials also serve as a reminder of the assets distributors bring to the supply chain. They cover distributors’ customer relationships that are key to helping manufacturers understand the needs of the retailers who represent them to consumers. They discuss inventory and how distributors help manufacturers contain costs through consolidation. The materials also cover the credit and collections responsibilities distributors shoulder that mean fewer, more reliable accounts for manufacturers and reduced risk associated with financing receivables and collecting on them sooner. They also touch on services provided for retailers including inventory management, one-stop shopping, warehousing, market information and merchandising. The Bottom Line When it comes down to it, you can avoid using distributors, but you can’t avoid the cost of distribution. The question then becomes who can do it more efficiently. From the manufacturer’s standpoint, you can prepare to deal with small, fragmented shipments as well as collection problems and transactional costs. But can you be in thousands of retail locations, keep them stocked and get the product when they need it? Can you serve as consultant and confidante on a broad spectrum of industry issues? Can you duplicate the bond that distributors and retailers share from years of mutually beneficial relationships? In the end, distributors can do all of these things more efficiently and more economically. That’s the Power of D. Download all of the details from PIDA’s web site (www.pida.org) or ask your PIDA-member distributors for a copy of the Power of D brochure pack. Start enhancing your distributor relationships today. Steve King has been executive vice president of PIDA since 1989, and has been involved in the pet industry for over 20 years. |
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