FedEx's decision to end its relationship with Amazon illustrates the complex nature of working with a potential competitor, writes David Gordon, president of Channel Marketing Group. When deciding whether to work with Amazon Business, distributors must consider whether the business is worth the potential risks or whether it's better to develop in-house e-commerce solutions, Gordon writes.

Avnet plans to buy Witekio, a French software developer and internet of things specialist, according to a company announcement. The acquisition will help Avnet develop IoT solutions.

Arrow Electronics has opened a collaborative lab aimed at helping partners in the Colorado Smart Cities Alliance develop technology. The Colorado Open Lab includes laser cutters, 3D printers and other useful equipment for product development.

Companies can become effective differentiators by paying close attention to customers and building an operation that engages them on several levels, writes Isaac Krakovsky of PwC US. He names six areas of operational differentiation but cautions that it's best to be excellent at least two areas, not all six.

Just over 51% of business-to-business marketers think their content is effective, and half don't personalize it, per Heinz Marketing and Uberflip. The top content channels are email, organic social posts and digital ads, and the best strategies for encouraging content to be viewed include providing related content based on topics, adding calls to action and newsletter signups.

The process of building strong client relationships has only just begun when a sale is made, writes Larry Levine. Sales reps should strive to take care of their clients to retain their business in the long term while using feedback to improve service whenever possible, Levine writes.

Improve your leadership skills by frequently saying 10 phrases such as, "What's possible?", "How can I help?" and "I don't know," writes Dan McCarthy. These phrases help show that you desire to understand, care what others think and seek to praise others, he writes.

NAW's groundbreaking research study, "Optimizing Channel Profitability: A Playbook to Align Manufacturer-Distributor-Customer Relationships," is distributors' key to implementing channel management best practices. Purchase copies for not only your internal team, but for your manufacturer partners, too. You'll find 24 best practices on channel design and management from actual distributors and manufacturers, 44 ready-to-implement action steps, and 38 real-world distributor and manufacturer examples to benchmark against.

Large Company CEOs, CFOs and operations executives attend these roundtables to benchmark solutions and strategies with distribution executives who are at the top of their game. The companies invited into this community are from distribution firms between $100 million and $1 billion in annual sales. You'll experience the best networking in the industry, share ideas and benchmark with your C-suite peers in distribution -- who aren't competitors. Register today.

Growing in popularity within our industry, the NAW Certificate in Distribution Professional Management Program is ideal for high-potential managers who seek to complement their professional development with a strong emphasis on practical application within the distribution field. Two, one-week sessions at Texas A&M University focus on Generating and Managing Growth (Feb. 10-14) and Distributor Capability Development (April 13-17). Get all the details and enroll your high achievers today before the seats are gone.