Distributor and supplier partnerships are not just transactional arrangements; they should be collaborative relationships built on trust and shared goals.
When done right, these strategic partnerships can help both businesses expand their reach, increase market share and improve their bottom line.
Are you looking to elevate your business relationships? Here’s what has worked for other distributors and suppliers in the group.
Collaborative Strategies for Better Supply Chain Partnerships
Make Communication a Priority
Open, transparent communication forms the foundation of solid partnerships. Regular dialogue between distributors and suppliers facilitates the sharing of information, insights, and feedback.
Open lines of communication also help distributor and supplier partners work towards common goals. KYOCERA SGS and Blue Ash Industrial Supply, both NetPlus members, have been channel partners since 1989 and say communication is key.
“I speak with at least one person from Blue Ash almost daily,” said Alex Blomeke, independent manufacturer rep for KYOCERA SGS. “I think the openness and candidness of our conversations have helped everything grow exactly as it should. Nothing feels forced. Chris Huey (Procurement and Business Development Specialist at Blue Ash) has been a major ally for us and working with him and the team just feels natural.”
Another NetPlus supplier, Wright Tool values the relationship with one of its key distributors, Midland Tool & Supply, and makes a point of staying connected with training and product information. Al Ryding, vice president of sales at Wright Tool, believes it is the supplier’s responsibility to keep the relationship alive, so he’s always asking what he can provide in the form of training, literature, and more.
Chris Arthur, Midland’s vice president of sales, thinks the responsiveness and personal relationship that Midland’s sales team has with Wright’s sales representatives keeps them excited and focused on building sales together.
Take Advantage of Supplier Trainings
At NetPlus, we believe training has always been a critical component of our partners’ success, especially when developing relationships and promoting new product lines. That’s why we created the NetPlus Academy, powered by BlueVolt. This online training platform offers industry-specific training for distributors to empower sales and marketing teams.
In addition to our online trainings, we partner with NetPlus suppliers to host virtual and in-person industrial product trainings which will give your sales teams the resources and confidence they need to sell more.
COAST Products won the "Top Training of the Year" award at the 2023 NetPlus Annual Meeting. This award acknowledges a supplier who conducted training in 2023, achieved the highest post-survey ratings, and contributed to the growth of new or existing sales. Their Virtual Hands-On training provided our distributor members with a hands-on learning experience in a virtual format. COAST provided attendees with a training kit that included product samples and collateral such as sell sheets, pricing, and flyers for a robust training experience.
Lee McWilliams, national sales manager at COAST, said that for training to be effective, it should go beyond the product itself to create deeper connections with your partners. “Training like this creates a more personal relationship. You get to know your partners and put a face to a name.”
Cicero Supply is one example of a distributor member that experienced growth due to supplier training from PIP® (Protective Industrial Products). PIP® invests heavily in digital learning opportunities and in-person training programs for their distributor partners.
Leslie Peterson, director of buying groups at PIP®, said: “Our training programs helped Cicero Supply expand their offerings, learn more about safety products, and dive deeper into the category through web-based training and in-person training from regional specialists.”
Build Trust and Respect
Any strong relationship requires a solid foundation of trust. Accountability is one surefire way to build that trust and make it easy to do business.
Terry Snower, President at Cicero Supply, said of their relationship with Protective Industrial Products: “PIP® has been an easy company to work with. We have confidence in PIP® that they will keep us informed of order status and shipments and will not leave us scrambling at the last minute to find products.”
In addition to timely deliveries and transparency, distributors sometimes need to lean on their supplier network to problem solve. Blue Ash Industrial Supply trusts KYOCERA SGS to work directly with their end-users and inside and outside sales staff, to test products and find better solutions to tooling challenges.
“KYOCERA SGS offers us a lot of critical support in these matters,” said Huey. “Alex will test various products on end-user applications to find just the right fit for our customers. He also does joint sales calls with our outside reps and has led different training modules, online and in-person.”
Participate in Targeted Promotions
Suppliers can help their distributor partners stand out from the competition with promotions and product displays selected for their target market.
Construction supply business and NetPlus member Gap Power supports walk-in traffic and delivery for small contractors. For that reason, they need to showcase a wide variety of tools, supplies, and rental items their customers need on their trucks and worksites. DEWALT meets that need.
“Because we are a retail location, having promotions front and center when customers walk in drives a lot of our DEWALT sales,” said Jeffrey Eshleman, controller at Gap Power. DEWALT does a great job of helping us put together promotions for the store that are different from our local competitors. Having him in our corner certainly goes a long way.”
NetPlus suppliers frequently promote new products and special offers to NetPlus distributors through their group marketing plans. If you are part of NetPlus, make sure to leverage this valuable information.
Lean on Your Trusted Suppliers for Support
A supplier’s commitment to providing distributor support is paramount to success. When the pandemic struck, industrial distributor and NetPlus member PDF Supply was embarking on a new relationship with FyterTech Nonwovens.
Chad Miller, General Manager at PDF Supply, remembered how scarce cleaning and disinfectant products had become. He said he appreciated the persistence of the supplier’s regional account manager. That’s when FyterTech became more of a partner than just a product supplier.
“What stands out to me is the amount of time our account manager spent reaching out to me and asking how she could help,” Miller said. “She updated me on product lead times and availability during the most difficult times to find COVID-19 supplies my customers needed.”
Create a Growth Plus Plan
Did you know that the average growth between NetPlus Alliance distributors and suppliers is over 40% year-over-year? That’s a growth rate of two times the average.
Participation in Growth Plus is a main contributor to that growth. In 2023, we saw a 61% increase in active sales plans.
Growth Plus is a joint sales planning program designed to enhance and strengthen partnerships between NetPlus distributors and suppliers. Partners embark on special activities, marketing initiatives, and training programs that sharpen the distributor’s product knowledge and selling capability. You can create a Growth Plus plan with a new partner or deepen an existing relationship into new geographic or end markets.
We recommend first-time partners start small. Focus on just one Growth Plus plan at a time and expand to include more partnerships over time.
Wright Tool prioritizes straightforward, simple Growth Plus plans with their channel partners. “NetPlus always says that when you have a plan, it's best to have it in writing and have it mutually agreed upon, and you can work the plan throughout the year,” said Ryding. The key is for both sides to buy in at the beginning. “With that type of agreement, you usually see growth.”
Track Progress to Measure Success
As part of your Growth Plus plan, we recommend establishing goals and tracking results in the NetPlus Member Portal. The Member Portal allows distributors and supplier partners to stay on track and see what’s working and what needs to be adjusted going forward.
Ergodyne and MC Tool & Safety are excellent examples of partners who tracked progress throughout their Growth Plus plan. The result was 212% sales growth together.
Ergodyne’s Channel Account Manager Terri Kerg said she tracked progress toward sales goals each quarter. “If you’re checking it at least quarterly, and you’re off track a little bit, you can nip it in the bud and figure out what’s going wrong and whether you need to change tactics.”
Kerg used this data to drive conversations with MC Tool & Safety President Erika Scherman and her team during their regular check-ins. “This was beneficial in keeping us focused,” Scherman said. Scherman maintained a direct line of communication. “If they had questions, they would call us, which is a measure of success because you know you are getting their attention on those items,” says Kerg.
Attend the Annual Meeting
The NetPlus Alliance Annual Meeting brings distributor members and preferred suppliers together for business strategy sessions, education, inspiration, and networking. Each year, distributors and suppliers conduct more than 2,500 one-on-one meetings, accomplishing in 1.5 days what would otherwise take months.
It's the perfect time to network with like-minded distributors and suppliers, learn about best practices and new technology, and work on your business, not just in it.
Every year we hear stories about people discovering new opportunities and connecting with members and suppliers simply by attending the Annual Meeting. Just by networking at the Opening Reception, Golf Tournament, breakfast or other social events, members uncover opportunities to expand within current product categories and add new ones.
Distributors who attended at least two of the last three Annual Meetings achieved 48% growth.
Developing strong, strategic partnerships is critical to driving growth. If you have questions about how to strengthen your existing partnerships and develop new ones, please reach out to the NetPlus team today!
