Why it’s important to get to know your distributor!

Understanding the motivation of partners can have a positive effect on your business. Below is a report of an interesting meeting that I chaired within the Cambridgeshire Chambers of Commerce yesterday.

Mike Feinson of (Mulberry House Consultancy) introduced a simple, obvious yet very underused strategy in his talk on Motivating Agents and distributors to an audience at the International Sectors workshop on Managing Agents and Distributors on Wednesday, 19^th September.

Getting to know your distributor involved trying to understand what they wanted and needed – which included not only a good product but also principals who knew how to provide the most effective assistance for mutual profit. Endless negotiations with unprofessional manner, a lack of consideration and indeterminate responsibilities were most likely to consign the products of a principal to the C category in the ABC of client groups for distributors – and being a C class principal means that your products are unlikely to ever emerge from the distributor’s briefcase! Distributors are NOT your customers, they are sales people that need to be convinced about your product and that you are serious enough to provide suitable continued support.

Stuart Gibbons (LeMark) recounted his first foray into the international market with BlackTak, a masking foil used in the theatre and filming industry, which through having established a good distributor relationship in the US has actually become synonymous with efficient light leakage blocking (as in “I went round the set and BlackTakked all the light leaks!”). Since then LeMark has expanded internationally country by country, bringing new distributors on board with regular visits and newsletters that keep them on board, engendering the feeling that they share in the success of the venture.

Chris Kubicki (International Sector Chairman, UKTI) rounded off the talks with a timely reminder of not only the OMIS market research facility and financial support to new market entrants but also some initial feedback on the successful link between the Cambridgeshire Chambers of Commerce and the US East Coast.

As ever in these workshops, the audience also played a vital role for a significant proportion of the meeting, with Chris Thomas (Dale Carnegie) facilitating small group discussions on items arising from the talks. The topics raised questions that were answered by both speakers and other participants with relevant experience in a lively exchange of practical knowledge.

The Workshop format has been highly successful; increasing numbers of participants with interests in international business from the novice to the expert have been attending.

We therefore look forward to the next workshop, to be held at Taylor Vinters (Cambridge) in November - see you there!

Photo: Mike Feinson (Mulberry House Consultancy), Stuart Gibbons (LeMark) & Chris Kubicki (UKTI)

Testimonial

Communication

We recently enjoyed a one hour promotional seminar about communication. Prior to the seminar we were given the opportunity to brief the presenter so that they could tailor the presentation specifically for our business and staff. The seminar was entertaining, informative and provided a supportive environment that enabled everybody to participate in the interactive exercises. After the session staff said how much they had enjoyed the seminar and expressed an interest in similar sessions. The seminar raised people’s awareness about the importance of effective communication. The section relating to memory skills was clearly effective; one week later we are still enjoying lively discussions to establish who can remember the most! This bite-sized session will help us to work better together and bring the best out of ourselves and our teams contribute to improved communications skills. We would highly recommend this to our business colleagues and others.


Sue Clements on behalf of Saunders Boston Ltd

Congestion Charging Meeting Stimulates Debate

Report on a Cambridge Chamber event on 17th September 07 at the University Arms Hotel, Cambridge UK

As our meeting Chairman Walter Herriot succinctly put it “Cambridge is a mediaeval city which has gone straight to the 21^st Century, bypassing the industrial revolution” - bequeathing us with a beautiful jewel in the centre and a traffic nightmare. Armed with his red card and whistle he ruled the debate even-handedly throughout the evening.

Speaking for the introduction of a Congestion Charge during the peak morning rush hours, Brian Smith, Deputy CEO of Cambridgeshire County Council painted the familiar picture of increasing traffic and congestion. If no changes were implemented we could expect more pain in an 84% increase in junction delays and 46% increase in traffic times. Cambridge needed to find real solutions that shifted people away from peak hour travel in cars. The government’s Transport Innovation Fund (TIF) would bring in £500m of much needed infrastructure investment over and above the existing changes planned for the A14 and A428. However, the congestion charge was a prerequisite as central government was using TIF as a test bed for its future traffic policy where congestion charging was an integral part.

Speaking against were Richard Normington, Deputy Chairman of Cambridge City Conservatives, Ian Nimmo-Smith, Leader of Cambridge City Council and John Bridge, CEO of the Cambridgeshire Chambers. The counter arguments ranged from the charge being a stealth tax on the poor, the slippery slope of expanding the scheme, counterproductive effects on business, unfair treatment of residents and the inadequacy of presenting viable alternatives. Speeches were delivered in turn politically, longwindedly or with a suppressed fury! The session was then open to the floor as the speakers formed a panel, joined by Nick Clarke of the Federation of Small Businesses and Shona Johnstone, Leader of Cambridgeshire County Council. Whilst participants ranged from the rational to cynical to those with their own agendas, the overall theme from all corners appeared to be hostile to the proposed congestion charging for often divergent reasons.

In the fortunate position of being able to avoid coming into Cambridge during the morning rush hour, happy to have appointments mid-morning or afternoon and arriving at the event like a sizeable fraction of the audience by public transport or bike, my leaning towards the proposed charging before the meeting were actually neutral or even for it. However, to my surprise, I found my opinion changing during the evening.

Trying to analyse the shift, I found that this was not so much a rational as a visceral response. The nub of the matter was the apparently underlying message from the County Council, that “TIF money for infrastructure improvements is conditional on congestion charging”. It was a TINA (as Richard Normington put it), a “There Is No Alternative” option, an ultimatum. That tends to engender resistance rather willingness to engage.

Brian Smith is right when he says “doing nothing is not an option”.

Cambridgeshire County Council promised that consultation would take place over the coming months. I personally hope that the current position is an initial one - to provoke discussion and flush out objections; to allow room for negotiation, cooperation and discussion; to find a solution in a more positive partnership with all affected parties.

Chris can be contacted on 01223 440024.

Dale Carnegie is currently offering free in-house bite-sized seminars to companies in Cambridgeshire - contact Chris for more details