The last year has been a year of transitions and changes in the distribution industry. Distributors have had to evolve their business in order to stay competitive. While growing your customer base is important, it is even more important to ensure that your existing and your one-time customers now become regulars. Happy customers will in-turn refer even more customers which can help expand your distribution network. At GOFRUGAL, we believe giving our customers the best possible experience. This year, give your customers a very sweet and fulfilling experience with these 6 tips
1. The smarter the scheme, the better the sales.
With the festive season here, all your customers will be announcing a variety of attractive offers and discounts to attract more consumers to their shops. As a distributor, passing on new schemes can make the difference in turning an occasional customer into a regular. An exhaustive offer management module with over 76 offers can help you pick and choose the right offer at the right time.
2. Keep it Personal
While an offer given to everyone can surely attract more clientele, a personalized deal or discount can make your customer feel truly special and valued. Using customer-wise rate setting, make your customers feel great by giving them specific deals which no one else can get. You can give them special rates, slab discounts or even free items exclusively for them!
3. Time is money
When a retailer runs out of an item, it will be hard for him to wait for your sales rep to place an order. This can in turn make him approach another distributor whose sales rep he sees down the street! Ensure that your customers can place orders at the convenience of their own homes with WebOrder by generating a special login just for him.
4. Nobody likes waiting
After placing an order, a retailer should not be made to wait for the items to be delivered. At the same time, the distributor also needs to use his transporters effectively so that fuel costs can be saved. A pickslip can be generated at the end of the day. Efficient rack and row tracking can then ensure that items are picked up efficiently. Parcel and dispatch management ensure that lorries are loaded upto the right amount and delivery acknowledgement can help track which items were delivered and which were not.
5. Quality is more important than Quantity
Minimizing damage and wastage returns from customers should be a top priority for every distributor. Damaged goods not only take up unnecassary space and waste time, they also cause a lot of irritation and anger as the retailer gets a feeling that he is being cheated. To ensure that this does not occur, effective inventory management processes like physical stock audits, expiry management, stock updates after purchases can help make yours a zero returns business giving both you and your customer peace of mind and reliability. Your customer will over time have a lot of trust and respect knowing that you always send only quality products.
6. Timely reminders are helpful but constant reminders cause irritation!
Retailers do need reminders to pay their outstanding amounts on time. But this should not be in the form of daily phone calls causing unnecassary stress and irritation. A simple email or a text message two days before the due date followed by a timely thank you message with the collected amount can keep it professional and urge your customers to pay you on time.
These six tips can help you grow your distribution business by leaps and bounds.
Just remember the mantra
Customers first, Always!