Growth Strategies Archives

Channel Strategies / Distributors / eBusiness / eMarketing / Growth Strategies / More Insights / Pricing / Profitability / Sales Channel

Using Price to Expand Your Business

David Gordon Posted On July 24, 2019

Competing on price is a “no no” for many distributors. Few want to say “the reason why people buy from me is price.” But, do all of your customers want to buy from you for your service, people or your […]

Contractors / eBusiness / eMarketing / Growth Strategies / More Insights / Pricing / Sales Channel

Home Depot to Offer Customized Pro Pricing

David Gordon Posted On July 22, 2019

Home Depot’s retiring CFO’s interview last night with Jim Cramer on CNBC shared a glimpse of why electrical distributors who serve small to mid-sized residential and commercial distributors should be concerned. And it’s all about pricing. The home improvement (perhaps […]

Channel Strategies / Distributors / eBusiness / eMarketing / Growth Strategies / Industry News / Manufacturers / Marketing / More Insights / Sales Channel / Technology

Is your supplier finding leads and business, online, for you?

David Gordon Posted On July 19, 2019

ABB recently launched a new initiative, eFinder, that enables visitors to its website to purchase material online. But they are not disintermediating the channel. Instead they are providing distributors with the opportunity to generate incremental business online. And at the […]

Channel Strategies / Distributors / eBusiness / Growth Strategies / Industrial Market / Marketing / More Insights / Productivity / Profitability

Compete for Grainger’s Business: eProcurement

David Gordon Posted On July 12, 2019

Many industrially-oriented distributors lament that they can’t compete versus Grainger for MRO business at their accounts. They say “we now the ‘decision’ makers and can beat them on price but we can’t get the business. The same occurs with large […]

Channel Strategies / Distributors / Growth Strategies / Industry News / Lighting / Lighting2 / Manufacturers / More Insights / Research Reports

2019 Q2 Pulse of Lighting Results … Challenged Market?

David Gordon Posted On July 1, 2019

We now have insight into the Q2 health of the lighting market based upon feedback from over 200 electrical distributors, manufacturers and reps through our Pulse of Lighting survey. And it appears that an apt description may be “an interesting […]

Channel Strategies / Contractors / Distributors / Growth Strategies / Manufacturers / Marketing / More Insights / Profitability / Sales Channel

Reducing Tax Implications of Incentive Travel Programs

David Gordon Posted On June 26, 2019

This week WESCO is taking 800+ people on an Alaskan cruise as part of their WESCO VIP incentive program. It looks like an exciting adventure (check out this pre-program video and follow them on their program Instagram page or on […]

Branding / Channel Strategies / Distributors / Growth Strategies / Manufacturers / Marketing / More Insights / Reps / Sales Channel

3M Changes. Striving for Control?

David Gordon Posted On June 23, 2019

3M’s recent decision to terminate most, if not all, of its remaining manufacturer reps may have represented the culmination of a decision to drive the business in a different direction where the company believes that its brand is strong enough […]

Distributors / eBusiness / eMarketing / Growth Strategies / Industry News / Marketing / More Insights

eCommerce in the Channel

David Gordon Posted On June 21, 2019

During recent calls with distributors to get the pulse of the industry, one area we touched on is eCommerce and specifically the activity that they are seeing from their customers, the investments that they are making and how it is […]

Channel Strategies / Growth Strategies / Industry Consolidation / Manufacturers / More Insights / Supplier / Products

Atkore Expands Cope Tray Offering

David Gordon Posted On June 10, 2019

The recent acquisition of United Structural Products (USP) (known by its brand, US Tray) by Atkore helps Atkore expand its tray offering by bringing aluminum and 316 stainless steel welded tray to complement Cope’s steel, fiberglass and aluminum offering inclusive […]

Associations / Branding / Channel Strategies / Contractors / Customer Segments / Distributors / eBusiness / eMarketing / Growth Strategies / Industry News / Marketing / More Insights / Profitability

Home Depot Orange Coming to Your Customer

David Gordon Posted On June 5, 2019

The color orange signifies joy, happiness and creativity, however, it is also representative of fire and, given that the color is between yellow and red on the color spectrum it is, from a business perspective, between caution (yellow) and “bad” […]