The Debate Continues

Staff -- Gifts & Decorative Accessories, 12/1/2000

This month, we have three fresh takes on the controversy that has raged in this column ever since Chris Collins' June 2000 interview dealing with new sales strategies and the July 2000 interview with Toland's David Sands. The first is a letter from a retailer who is content with Toland's decision to move away from independent sales reps. In the second letter, a telephone sales rep defends his profession. In the last letter, the Manufacturers' Agents National Association weighs in.

I wanted to comment on Margaret Johnson's letter about Toland (page 14, October 2000) in particular, and the gift industry in general. I was a sales rep for six years and now own a retail store. I receive better service from the Toland telemarketers than from the majority of the reps who should be calling on my store. The lack of work ethic in this industry is appalling! There are some reps who I haven't seen since I wrote my original order 15 months ago.

Needless to say, I am capable of sourcing out new merchandise. I agree that reps should be consultants with the store buyers. I will continue to work with the reps who work with me and have my best interest at heart. As for the other 85 percent-good luck getting my inventory dollars. Give me a catalog, and I will write the order myself. But, at the same time, please deduct the salesmen's commission from my invoice, since they did nothing to earn it.

As for empty Toland racks, the responsibility [for restocking] rests with the store owner. If a call from Toland's telemarketer causes me to check my inventory and generate an order, then I appreciate the call. It is more than I ever got from the road rep.

Brad Duncan

Owner of On the Corner Cards & Gifts

Tulsa, Oklahoma

Boy, have you gotten a lot of response on the sales rep and telemarketing subject. We are a call center that represents companies in the gift and collectible marketplace. One thing that has not been covered is that there is good in both sales forms. A road rep cannot be all things to a company or a retail store, and inside sales reps cannot be all things to a company or a retail store. The companies that will succeed in the future are the ones that master a harmony between both sales forms, satisfying the need of the company and retailer with exceptional customer service.

For example, by having an inside sales rep, stores are able to order small orders on a continuing basis, beyond the initial order that the road rep has sold them. This is important because the rep may have a store on a four-, six-, or eight-week schedule; during this time, the inside sales rep can make sure that the store's needs are met.

Also, it isn't feasible for a road rep to take hundred-dollar orders, because of the expense. An inside rep can take these orders all day, giving great service, while the road rep focuses on larger accounts that need more attention. This does not prevent a rep from visiting that store, but only complements and gives the store better service.

In this marketplace, there is room for all rep forms. Road reps and inside sales reps work hard and care about what happens to the industry. Sales in any form-on the phone or on the road-takes true talent. No sales rep on road or phone can do it all, but together they can make a powerful force.

Jimmie O'Donley

Director of marketing at Atelco

Paducah, Kentucky

I read with interest your article in the Manufacturers and Reps Corner entitled "Toland Adopts Telemarketers."

It is not uncommon for manufacturers to work with a hybrid sales team of factory-direct and multiline agents. To say that a multiline sales agency can be replaced with a telemarketer is an unfair comparison of the two.

The misconception still exists that multiline sales agents are middlemen. They are not middlemen. They are the manufacturer's outsourced sales force in the territory, simply paid on a different basis. The professional sales representatives of today are not salesmen in business, but businessmen in sales.

They are building a business, and are in it for the long haul. The established relationships they have with their customers and the knowledge of their territory cannot be attained or maintained over the phone. These long-term relationships take years to develop.

Communication is the key to a good working relationship among agents, principals, and customers. Agents are information-gatherers and regularly communicate to the factory what is going on in the field. It is their job to understand the customer's needs and wants. They are the principal's eyes and ears in the territory. The involvement of an outsourced field sales force in no way prevents or inhibits direct communication with the customer.

There are times, depending on the product, when it can take an agency years to introduce a line. And all during this time, the agents are covering their sales costs. After they have spent the time, effort, and upfront costs to establish your line, why would you want to penalize the agents by taking it in-house? Where is the growth potential in doing this? With an agent, your line will grow with the agency.

The synergy of their product lines gives agents the selling advantage of presenting several products on one call, which reduces sales costs. The representation of synergistic products, the knowledge of their territory, and the long-term relationships they have established with customers and principals just cannot be replaced over the phone.

Helen Degli-Angeli

Vice president of the Manufacturers' Agents National Association

Laguna Hills, California