Re: [spiers] reps vs. distribuutors

Re: [spiers] reps vs. distribuutors

----- Original Message -----
From: "Jesse Milden"
> In my industry (skateboard accessories) I've found that the store
> owners I've talked with buy their products through distributors, not
> through sales reps. - I am contacting some of the larger
> distributors in the country, but do you have recommendations for
> spreading the word to stores across the country about my product? I'm
> thinking about advertising in industry magazines and on industry web
> sites.

Sales reps and distributors are not necessarily mutually exclusive. Most
distributors also use sales reps or brokers, usually in-house, but sometimes
independent, depending upon industry, or size of the distributor.

Your best investment in getting the word out is FREE PUBLICITY (i.e.
stories) in your industry's trade pubs. Period. You are unlikely to ever get
your investment back by paying for advertising in those same publications,
until you are already a player with name recognition.

If you are not well versed in how to do a press release that gets results,
it's easy to find that expertise. You can hire a PR agency, and pay big
bucks for media kits etc that you don't need, or find a stringer or
freelancer who specializes in writing news stories and press releases...
saves a lot of money, and generally more effective. To find one, a good
method is to call the nearest daily newspapers (or trade publications) and
ask them for the editors who handle your industry (e.g. business editor,
food editor, fashion editor, etc) then call that editor and ask for the
names of stringers/freelancers they could recommend. Stringers often take
their own photos, or have existing relationships with freelance
photographers, so you can cover that critical end of the publicity as well.

Malcolm

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