MSC Industrial Supply totaled earnings of $65.4 million on revenue of $824 million during the fiscal first quarter. Sales and profit were down from a year earlier.
Amazon is gearing up to debut a digital shopping platform for luxury brands in the US in the first half of this year, industry sources said. The site is expected to offer upscale brands space to run online concessions.
Big companies are looking for skills training to complement tuition reimbursement, and the more than 738,000 degrees and certifications offered have complicated how companies assess which programs are the best fit. Lockheed Martin has added support for dozens of certifications after a vetting process that also examined educational providers.
Distributors can improve online sales by adding detailed product information and helpful content such as demos, writes Bridget McCrea. E-commerce should be its own department, not just an extra sales channel, McCrea writes.
MOI Global's Alex Sandoval offers five insights to bring a more human approach to business-to-business marketing, including evoking emotional responses in prospects that give a sense of job security and personal value, and using data-driven creativity to provide a similar seamless experience as those delivered by Amazon or Netflix. "[B]y engaging audiences on a human-to-human level, B2B marketers can better influence the buying process, generate more leads and drive better ROI," Sandoval writes.
Bridget-ann Hart, who recently retired as president and CEO of KPH Healthcare Services, says that employees need to have their fears addressed before the conversation can turn to what the business must do. "When times are good, you can lead people with their minds, but, when times are bad, you have to lead them through their hearts," she says.
Smart leaders will consistently listen deeply, ask clarifying questions, control their emotions and display positivity, all of which helps avoid miscommunication, writes Lolly Daskal. "Whatever you send out as a leader is usually returned to you, so own the power of contagious positivity," she writes.
Hear wholesale distribution and payment experts answer real questions about the impact of electronic invoices on DSO and margins. Download or stream the 14-minute podcast from NAW's Trusted Partner, Unified Commerce, to learn how Smart e-Invoices can help your business simplify AR and get paid faster, smarter and at less cost.
Real companies are finding real solutions and practical steps to attracting and keeping their best employees with "Optimizing Human Capital Development." You've got to have the right arsenal to keep your top performers and build your competitive advantage. Grounded in research and a data-driven approach with 18 leading distributors, this study includes 25 sets of talent best practices, 16 action steps and 62 real-world distributor examples. Read the table of contents and introduction.
The October kickoff meeting was so popular that the NAW Institute and Texas A&M are holding a second kickoff meeting Jan. 23, so more companies can participate in our groundbreaking Digitizing the Sales Process Consortium. Distributors: This is your opportunity to contribute to this fundamental research on how distributors will determine which portions of the sales process will be digitized. Learn more here; if you're interested, you have to register soon, because only two seats are available.
