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5。 Will the channel be cost…effective？ A small manufacturer may not find it
cost… effective to sell to retailers over a certain distance because the direct
‘drop’ size – that is； the load per order – is too small to be worthwhile。
6。 Will the mark…up be enough？ If your product cannot bear at least a
100％ mark…up； then it is unlikely that you will be able to sell it through
department stores。 Your distribution channel has to be able to make a
profit from selling your product too。
7。 Push–pull： Moving a product through a distribution channel calls for
two sorts of selling activity。 ‘Push’ is the name given to selling your
product in； for example； a shop。 ‘Pull’ is the effort that you carry out on
the shop’s behalf to help it to sell your product out of that shop。 That pull
may be caused by your national advertising； a merchandising activity
or the uniqueness of your product。 You need to know how much push
and pull are needed for the channel you are considering。 If you are not
108 The Thirty…Day MBA
geared up to help retailers to sell your product； and they need that help；
then this could be a poor channel。
8。 Physical distribution： The way in which you have to move your product
to your end customer is also an important factor to weigh up when
choosing a channel。 As well as such factors as the cost of carriage； you
will also have to decide about packaging materials； warehousing and
storage。 As a rough rule of thumb； the more stages in the distribution
channel； the more robust and expensive your packaging will have to
be。
9。 Cash flow。 Not all channels of distribution se。。le their bills promptly。
Mail…order customers； for example； will pay in advance； but retailers can
take up to 90 days or more。 You need to take account of this se。。lement
period in your cash…flow forecast。
Logistics
The goal of a marketing logistics system is to manage the whole process of
ge。。ing products to customers in an efficient and cost…effective manner to
meet marketing goals； and to get faulty or unwanted products back。 This
interfaces with a host of related areas of business； including physical transportation；
warehousing； relationships with suppliers； and inventory and
stock management。 Some important considerations in logistics include：
。 Just in time （JIT） aims to reduce the need for warehousing through
accurate sales forecasting。 All parties in the distribution channel carry
minimum stock and share information on demand levels。
。 Vendor managed inventory （VMI） and continuous inventory replenishment
systems （CIRS） require customers to share real…time data on
sales demand and inventory levels with suppliers。
Both supplier and customers； while benefiting from cooperation； have
mutually conflicting goals in that they want to shi。。 costs onto the other
party。 Their capacity for doing so depends on their relative strengths。 For
example； giant retailers such as Tesco and Marks & Spencer have been
very successful in ge。。ing their suppliers to carry a major part of the cost of
stockholding。
SELLING
Marketing is the thinking process behind selling； in other words； finding
the right people to buy your product or service and making them aware
that you are able to meet their needs at a petitive price。 But just because
customers know you are in the market is not in itself sufficient to make
them buy from you。 Even if you have a superior product at a petitive
price they can escape your net。
Marketing 109
Ge。。ing customers to sign on the do。。ed line almost invariably involves
selling。 This is a process that business people have to use in many situations
other than in persuading customers to buy。 MBAs have to ‘sell’ bank
managers the idea that lending their business money is worthwhile； that
shareholders should invest； that employees by working for them are making
a good career move or that their boss should back one of their proposals。
Though essential； selling on its own is an inefficient method of ge。。ing
potential customers to the point of buying。 Understanding the ‘ascending
ladder of influence’； as marketers call it； puts the salesperson’s role in
perspective。 This is a method to rank the ‘warm bodies’ a customer will
encounter in the selling process in the order in which it is most likely to
influence your customers favourably。 At the top of the scale is the personal
remendation of someone whose opinion is trusted and who is known
to be unbiased。 An example here is the endorsement of an industry expert
who is not on the payroll； such as an existing user of the goods or services
who is in the same line of business as the prospective customer。 While
highly effective； this method is hard to achieve and can be expensive and
time consuming。 Further down the scale is an approach by you in your
role as a salesperson。 While you may be seen to be knowledgeable； you
clearly stand to gain if a sale is made。 So you can hardly be unbiased。 Sales
calls； however they are made； are an expensive way to reach customers；
especially if their orders are likely to be small and infrequent。
How selling works
There is an erroneous view that salespeople； like artists and musicians；
are born； not made。 Selling can be learnt； improved and enhanced just like
any other business activity。 First； you need to understand selling’s three
elements：
。 Selling is a process moving through certain stages if the best results
are to be achieved。 First； you need to listen to the customers to learn
what they want to achieve from buying your product or service； then
you should demonstrate how you can meet their needs。 The next stage
is handling questions or objections； a good sign as it shows that the
customer is sufficiently interested to engage。 Finally es ‘closing
the sale’。 This is li。。le more than asking for the order with a degree of
subtlety。
。 Selling requires planning in that you need to keep records and
information on customers and potential customers so you know when
they might be ready to buy or reorder。
。 Selling is a skill that can be learnt and enhanced by training and
practice； as shown in the case study below。 The Sales Training Directory
（sales…training…courses。uk》Directory） lists sales course
providers in the UK。
110 The Thirty…Day MBA
NEGOTIATING
Like selling； negotiating； of which it usually forms a part； is as much a
science as an art。 There are a few immutable rules； easily understood but
invariably difficult to execute：
。 Aim high at the outset。 Unless you can find the point of resistance； you
can’t find the outer limits of your negotiating range。
。 You must be prepared to walk away from a deal and make that evident；
if you are to have any negotiating leverage。 To achieve this you
must have prepared plans B and C ready to execute if the terms you
want can’t be achieved。 For example； when negotiating to buy out a
petitor； have other businesses in the frame too； or have plans to
enter that market without them。
。 Search out a range of variables to negotiate other than price。 Delivery
date； payment terms； quantities； currencies； shared future profits； knowhow
swaps are just a handful of areas rich in negotiating possibilities。
。 Never give a concession away。 Anything given for nothing is seen as
being worth nothing。 Instead； trade concessions and always put the
highest value possible on the concession。 ‘We will pay 30％ upfront
rather than the 20％ you’re asking for （a gain for the seller） if you bring
the price down to ￡1。2m rather than the ￡1。3m you’re asking’ （a gain for
the buyer） is the place to start if you hope to hit a ￡1。25m final price。
。 Talk as li。。le as possible。 The less you say the less you can give away。
。 Once you have put a proposition on the table； shut up。 The first to blink
is the loser。
When Sumir Karayi started up in business in the spare room of his flat in
West Ealing； London； he wanted his business to be distinctive。 He was
a technical expert at Microsoft and with two colleagues he set up 1E
（1e） as a mune aiming to be the top technical experts in
their field。 The business name es from the message that appears on
your screen when your puter has crashed。 Within a year of starting
up the team had learnt two important lessons。 Businesses need leaders；
not munes； if they are to grow fast and prosper； and they need
someone to sell。
On the remendation of an adviser Karayi went on a selling course
and within months had won the first of what became a string of blue chip
clients。 The pany is now one of the 10 fastest…growing panies in
the Thames Valley； with annual turnover approaching ￡15 million； profits
of 30 per cent and partners and reseller partners worldwide。
Marketing 111
MARKET RESEARCH
The purpose of market research is to ensure you have sufficient information
on customers； petitors and markets so that you can be reasonably
confident that enough people want to buy what you want to sell at a price
that will give you a viable business proposition。
You do not have to launch a product or enter a market to prove there
are no customers for your goods or services； fr