If you have a large business to business client ($50 million in sales and up), chances are good it sells products through distributors, dealers or franchises.
If the 20-80 rule holds as it usually does, 20% of these distributors or dealers are probably generating 80% of the business. And usually, that 20% is the more sophisticated in marketing and sales, with websites and marketing communications programs.
BUT, the other 80% may not be sophisticated—and not have a website. And while they may not be your ‘A” list, they, first, may have the potential to be on that list and, second, are worth cultivating to generate more business in these economically hard times.
Convince your top executives or client that you should help create and maintain a website for as many of them as you can afford. Why should you do that? Several reasons.
1) The Internet is an important and inexpensive way of doing business.
2) Creating a website for each of them can be very inexpensive if you create a template that changes only slightly to accommodate each distributor. In fact, you want the look to be similar to your own website. That works particularly if each has a geographically exclusive territory. A simple four-page website can cover all the bases on who they are and what they offer—with your products highlighted, of course.
3) If you create and maintain the site, you can also track all incoming inquiries to each site, as well as the distributor’s responses, to make sure leads are being followed up.
4) If you are tracking their sites and they are not following up on leads, you have a choice. You can nudge them, you can follow up on the leads yourself or you can ultimately replace them with another distributor in their marketplace.
5) And always make sure that each of the sites has a link right back to your own website so prospects can get a more detailed picture of what you are offering.
Make the cost of maintaining these sites inexpensive by working out a monthly retailer with whomever you hire to maintain them. And reward those distributors or dealers who use the site effectively by helping them to upgrade and enhance their sites. You may even have five or 10 distributors who are major customers who do not have websites. Help provide them with something more sophisticated.
Yes, this takes an investment and that investment , depending on the number of distributors or dealers you have , can cost in excess of $100,000 to set up. You have to ask yourself if the anticipated payback is worth it. I recommend you pay for the sites. You could ask the dealer or distributor to pay part, but you’ll lose control and get less participation.