MANA is the Association for Manufacturers Who Require the Utmost Professionalism From Their Agent Partners
As a manufacturer that outsources the sales function to independent manufacturers’ agents, you want to create relationships with the most professional manufacturers’ agents willing to work with you. The more professional the manufacturers’ agent, the more they sell for you.
On the other side of the relationship, the manufacturers’ agents want to partner with the highest quality manufacturers willing to work with them.
The goal is to create long-term and mutually profitable relationships, a “Partners in Profits” relationship.
9 Steps to “High Quality” Status With Manufacturers’ Agents
There’s a lot more to high quality than just the products and services they provide. Product quality, on-time delivery, responsiveness to customer issues are a given. That’s not the focus of this program.
Below we outline the steps to achieve the characteristics of high-quality manufacturers, as seen in the eyes of a manufacturers’ agent.
- Understanding the Rep-Manufacturer Relationship
RESOURCE TYPE Working Together as Trusted Partners in Profits (7 minutes) Video Working Together as Trusted Partners in Profits (7 minutes) Podcast Analyzing the Manufacturers’ Rep-Principal Relationship Special Report Sales Reps/Manufacturers — Adversarial or Cooperative E-Book Agent-Manufacturer Evaluations Paint a Partnership Picture Agency Sales Trade Offs in the Relationship Agency Sales Are Call Reports Effective? Agency Sales Achieving Better Results From Your Manufacturer-Representative Relationships Agency Sales Understanding the Rep-Principal Relationship Teleforum When Customers Want to Work Directly With the Factory Teleforum Outsourcing Field Sales PDF - Selecting the Right Manufacturers’ Rep
RESOURCE TYPE Selecting the Right Sales Channel Partner (10 minutes) Video Create a Successful Rep Network (11 minutes) Video Get Them to Call You Back (7 minutes) Video Getting Them to Call You Back Teleforum Selecting the Right Representative or Principal Partners Special Report Selecting the Right Representative Teleforum A Primer for Selecting an Agency Agency Sales Red Flags That Make Reps Run the Other Way When a Prospective Principal Calls Agency Sales Top Considerations When Hiring Manufacturers’ Reps Agency Sales Searching for Agents Agency Sales Advertising for Agents? There’s Room for Improvement Agency Sales Selecting the Right Sales Channel Partner (10 minutes) Podcast Create a Successful Rep Network (11 minutes) Podcast Get them to call you back (7 minutes) Podcast Our 53 Best Interview Questions When Hiring Manufacturers’ Representatives Blog Interviewing Guidelines PDF Consultants Who Help Set Up Rep Networks List - Negotiate Fair and Balanced Written Agreements
RESOURCE TYPE Manual for the Creation of a Rep-Principal Agreement Legal List of MANA Member Attorneys Legal The Rep-Manufacturer Agreement Teleforum Commission Survey Special Report Concern With Split Commissions Never Ends Agency Sales There’s More to Negotiating Than Just Talking Agency Sales Back to Basics: Why Contracts can be a Rep Agency’s Most Valuable Asset Agency Sales Product Liability Protection for Agents — By the Numbers Article Example of Agent Menu Services for Missionary Line Launch Legal Sample Letter to a Principal Concerning Product Liability Coverage Legal Intellectual Property Protection Guideline Legal Extended Post-Termination Commission Clauses
(7 minutes)Video Extended Post-Termination Commission Clauses (7 minutes) Podcast - Develop Trust and Open Communications With Manufacturers’ Reps
RESOURCE TYPE Drawing the Line Between Communication and Call Reports Agency Sales Maximizing Communication | Agent Communication Guides Agency Sales Rep-Manufacturer Communications Teleforum - Form Rep Councils to Improve the Rep-Manufacturer Relationship
RESOURCE TYPE Open Doors by Building an Effective Rep Council Special Report How to Establish and Benefit From Rep Councils Teleforum Agent Council Operating Charter Guideline Real-World Tips for Effective Rep Councils Agency Sales The Case for Rep Councils Agency Sales - Create Mutual Action Plans on How to Grow Territory Sales
RESOURCE TYPE Mutual Action Planning Agency Sales Mutual Action Planning Teleforum Guidelines for Planning the Business Year PDF - Set Up Territory Visits for Maximum Benefit
RESOURCE TYPE How to Handle Territory Visits Teleforum Passport Into Territory PDF - Run Impactful Sales Meetings
RESOURCE TYPE How to Run Impactful Sales Meetings With Manufacturers’ Agents Teleforum What Makes a Successful Sales Meeting? Agency Sales - Develop Missionary Territories
RESOURCE TYPE Developing New Markets With Professional Field Sales Agents Special Report Developing New Markets With Professional Field Sales Representatives (7 minutes) Video Developing New Markets With Professional Field Sale Representatives (7 minutes) Podcast Examining Contrasting Views on Shared Territorial Development Fees Agency Sales Pioneering | Successfully “Prospecting” New Lines Agency Sales Pioneering Revisited Agency Sales Shared Territory Development Agency Sales
High-quality manufacturers abide by MANA’s Code of Ethics