Retailers are at the front line of connecting with the
customer.
Their place in the distribution channel gives them a
unique perspective.
The opportunity to interact with consumers
enables them to learn what consumers like and dislike.
They know what products and services consumers
are asking about.
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Not only can retailers provide you feedback on whether
or not they think that consumers will accept your
product but, they can go one step further and let you
place your product on their shelves on a trial basis to
see if consumers will buy the product.
You can approach retailers with a prototype or an
already developed product.
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There are pitfalls to approaching retailers.
Large retailers can end up costing you money.
They order in large amounts and they expect you
to pick up the cost for returned items or items that
didn’t sell.
So, while they offer the opportunity to get your
products in thousands of their chain stores their
policies and procedures could end up costing you.
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Try approaching smaller retailers where the terms are
more favorable.
Smaller retailers gives you the opportunity to
get your product infront of customers on a smaller scale
that is more manageable and minimizes your exposure.
Remember the object is to do a small sampling of
the customer base in a way that does not leave you with
large expenses.
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Visit the
Distribution page to learn how you can
approach retailers.
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