Tip 4 - KEY TO SUCCESS: GIVE ‘EM WHAT THEY WANT!

The fudge brownies that sold like gangbusters in January may not be moving so well in August; or the Incredible New Delicious Bar that everybody wanted when it came out may not be selling six months later. The brownie slowdown is probably due to seasonal change; people want lighter snacks in summer and more solid foods in winter. The second example is a market-driven item—the manufacturer advertised like crazy, whooped up a lot of public interest in a new product, and the product failed to meet expectations.

What should you do about slow-moving products? Change them, of course! How do you know what to put in their place? Ask your customers! Hand out your menu planner again—it’s amazing how many distributors only use their menu planner when they first land a new location. It’s a useful tool no matter how long you’ve been in business.

There are other ways for you to add new products, and all they take is a little imagination and common sense. If you’ve seen a new product advertised on TV, the chances are that your customers have, too! Ask them if they’d like that item, but be careful—don’t buy too much at first. Quite a few folks jumped on the Peanut Butter Snickers bandwagon only to find that the bar didn’t perform well once the novelty wore off. Most new products do pretty well; they’ve already been thoroughly market-researched before the manufacturer went public with them. Remember, somebody once had the bright idea of putting a peanut in an M&M, or barbecue flavoring on a potato chip!

Many distributors have found out their customers’ preferences by putting a sign on their machines asking for ideas, and providing some form of “suggestion box”. Others have made stickers with their fax number asking that customers fax their suggestions.

It’s a good idea to make product “tie-ins” through suggestive selling. If you’re promoting some new chips, why not suggest an ice-cold beverage as well? If you have a sign for a new beverage, add some cookies. Providing new products is also an easy way to gently increase your prices without having to announce a general price increase.

If all this seems like extra work, don’t worry; most manufacturers offer “point-of-purchase” materials connected with a national advertising campaign, usually available at your wholesaler. We often mention these promotions in the Wholesale Reports column. One of your greatest strengths as a distributor is the ability to give your customers what they want—because that’s what they’ll buy!!