Ways to Increase Sales of Your Manufacturing Business

Sales are what any business thrives for. If you are selling your machines or any product online or through physical stores, chances are either you are doing this on your own or working with sales representatives or you’re using a combination of both.

A few businesses like large air separation unit manufacturers are selling their products online. More often than not, selling online direct to customers offers the best profit margins anyway because you don’t have to share your profits with a sales rep or distributor.

However, what if you are away from getting the desired results or you want more product revenues in your business?

Some clients make good money after selling their products online. While some businesses, at retail, are ready to get out there in a bigger way. So, they can generate more sales and ultimately make more money.

There are various sales strategies you can use to extend your reach and sell your products to a larger audience.

Work with distributors.

A distributor has a chain of retailers they work with and they have a team of sales reps that cover whole territories, even outside of their country. So, you can have a good chance of extending your products’ visibility to a bigger customer base. Suppose you are a cryogenic air separation manufacturer, if you get good distributors under your arm, you can increase your sales manifold.

Another important advantage while working through a distributor is you don’t need to worry about product stocking, which typically takes a large chunk of your overhead expense. The challenge for new businesses is getting a distributor willing to represent a new product line with a restricted to zero sales history.

Distributors and retailers look at their profits or the bottom line. So they need to have specific conditions that they bring into consideration while working with a manufacturer. They obviously need to add products as per their mix that gives them the best returns. Therefore, a great machine with excellent sales history and a well-positioned business is something that distributors want when considering product lines.

Expand your sales representation across your country.

If you can find a firm of sales rep with different teams of sales reps covering different regions, willing to represent your product line, you have got a better start. However, for a new business and especially for a small line business, it might be a challenge for an established sales firm to represent your line. The best strategy might be to work personally with as many accounts as you can in your surroundings. Also, if you can, engage sales reps that can cover different other territories.

Another method to find what territories you should begin with is to search for stores online that offer similar products. For instance, if you discover that the majority of stores are on the East Coast and West Coast, target these territories and find rep firms or reps that cover these regions. Later they can work their way across your country.

Directly sell to departmental stores and national chain accounts.

Another method to grow and increase your sales is to directly work with the buyers of the departmental store or national chain accounts. Some representatives might cover these accounts. Also, some sales representatives specialize in consulting with major chain stores and they maintain good business relationships with the buyers. So, it is an excellent idea to find what stores or accounts they cover while choosing a sales rep firm or a sales rep.

Target specialty stores having a chain of stores.

Depending on the product, there might be some specialty stores having more than one location. It is recommended to identify these stores and divert your sales efforts on these accounts. Because this might offer you a good chance of keeping your products in more than one store while enhancing visibility and sales for your product’s brand.

5. Expand your e-commerce capacities.

Apart from having your own online store, get your products displayed on as many virtual catalogs and stores as you can such as eBay, Amazon, Yahoo!, Big Commerce, Shopify, Etsy, Living Social, Groupon, etc.

Find product catalogs that would be a good fit.

Catalogs are also a good way to showcase your products. There are hundreds of catalogs, both in digital and print formats out there. Go through the catalogs you feel you should carry for your product. Also, reach out to them as you would reach to any independent department store. The more retail channels you get your products into, the more chances you will have of making more sales and ultimately your business will grow further.

Expand your product line.

Finally, a massive to grow your business online is to focus on the machine or any of your product development. The more products you can add or develop line extensions for your products’ brand, the more chance you can increase revenues and grow interested from buyers, retailers, sales reps, and distributors. The selection of a wide product range is key to growth while running a wholesale or manufacturing business.

These are some of the ways through which you can enhance your odds of improving sales for your business.

Always remember when working with distributors or reps, make sure you have the correct pricing structure. You will put your foot wrong if you get into business and try to sell your products that have no potential of making money!

Bottom line

It is better to presume that you will work with a distributor or representative. It will add commission expense into your pricing mechanism when setting your retail price; even if you have a plan to sell your products online.