Except“ Of Course” in the Home Territory
“ We have had great success selling through reps,” said the manufacturer,“ and we use reps throughout North America. Except of course in the home territory.”
He said“ of course” as if there was no other choice.
Why do some manufacturers think selling without a rep in the home territory is an“ of course” decision?
Sometimes a small company’ s founder feels customers he or she developed in the company’ s early years require the founder’ s continued personal attention.
Other times a manufacturer thinks it’ s cheaper to tack responsibility for local customers onto the other duties of a local employee.
© Michael Brown | stock. adobe. com
What happens when the founder is still the salesperson for customers in the home territory? One of the founder’ s two jobs suffers.
A founder who devotes enough time to being the salesperson in the home territory spends less time managing the company, so crucial decisions are stalled while the founder is distracted by sales calls. A founder who devotes enough time to managing his or her company can’ t give customers and prospects the attention needed to grow sales in the home territory.