Cardinal Health moves toward end-to-end visibility | General Finance acquired by United Rentals subsidiary | How tech can make distributors more responsive to buyers
Cardinal Health is using a real-time visibility platform from FourKites in its pharmaceutical and medical segments to improve distribution and better serve customers. The company eventually wants a control tower that can predict estimated time of arrival and provide customers with self-service visibility.
The Death of Field Sales The days of large field-based sales teams are numbered for most organizations. Most customers don't want it and most businesses simply can't afford it! This book shows a better way to grow sales significantly faster than expenses, as we return to business as usual. Get the first four chapters FREE.
Digital tools such as chatbots and mobile apps, as well as vending machines, marketing automation and data analytics, allow distributors to respond quickly to customers' needs, provide more value and gain vital information, writes Mark Hill of 1sourcevend. "These tools don't take away from your relationships. They improve them," Hill writes.
Warehouse operators can improve safety through preventive maintenance and keeping warehouses organized and free of clutter, writes Limble CMMS CEO Bryan Christiansen. He also recommends listening to workers' safety concerns and reducing turnover.
Facebook offers various features for business-to-business marketers to connect with audiences via content marketing, including video on Facebook Live. Use unpolished photography to connect emotionally with prospects and tell stories about your brand and customers, tap Groups to interact with audiences, and use Messenger to personalize engagement.
Salespeople who waste time on prospects who are unlikely to buy will inevitably have a harder time making sales to new customers. To address this, figure out if the prospect can afford what you're offering, if you have access to decision-makers and the overall fit to disqualify them early in the sales process, writes Kurt Sima.
Harnessing Data to Drive Omnichannel Efficiency Data has become a critical piece in today's omnichannel puzzle, and the most successful retailers are those who can manage the flood of data they face and make sense of that data to help them make the best decisions possible for their business. Read this SmartFocus to learn how to prepare for new buying habits and embrace new technologies
Businesses should encourage collaboration as rules are created, encouraging a "learning mindset" and enabling experimentation, write David Hannah, Christopher Zatzick and Jan Kietzmann. They advise that it's counterproductive to assume organizations and society will be free of turmoil, so accept the necessity of change and recognize the value of employee input.
Duke men's basketball coach Mike Krzyzewski in this article and video shares his advice for forging strong teams, including the need to connect differently based on someone's needs and emotional makeup. "It doesn't make a kid bad if he's more sensitive -- then you have to change your delivery," Krzyzewski says.
How have distributors been innovating their business during the pandemic? Find that out and much more from 10 distributors who tell their stories and share ideas for both surviving and thriving in a drastically changed business environment. Author Mark Dancer shares up-to-the-minute ideas and insights from distributor leaders based on their experiences and lessons learned from the coronavirus pandemic. Order this just-released e-chapter, "Distribution Leans In: Stories of Resiliency and Innovation During the COVID-19 Pandemic."
The pandemic is nearly over, and it's time for distributors to apply the lessons from the last year so they can grow their businesses faster in the future. Watch NAW's free webinar on demand and find out what distributors said about their sales in the pandemic, what their 2021 forecasts are, their work-from-home policy, how their website and digital tools performed, which digital tools they'll invest in, and more. Also, sign up to be notified when the accompanying Pandemic Effects on Distributors Research Report is available for free download. Sponsored by Oracle Netsuite and Conexiom.
Designed for C-suite executives, these roundtables provide actionable strategies that will increase your company's competitive advantage. Companies belonging to this community are from distribution firms between $100 million and up to $1 billion in annual sales. You'll engage in thought-provoking conversations with your peers and hear from industry experts on topics that will ultimately increase your profits! Register today.
