Designing and producing a good product will not matter much if it can’t reach its target customers, and the best way to reach your target customers when you don’t have the resources to provide them with your product is through a distributor, but what is a distributor? A distributor is an independent agent who offers the possibility of selling a product of another company but doesn’t have the right to use the manufacturer’s name as part of its business name. In short, distributors agree to provide you with the means to sell your goodsby selling them to retailers, which in turn sell them to customers.

Getting a distributor to sell your product won’t be easy; you have to think of a price for your product that will generate profit for both you and the distributor and this price should be reasonable for your target customers. Convincing a distributor to carry your product will depend on how much you know your product and your target customers, here is a list of things you can do to improve your chances of getting a distributor to sell your goods.

• Research your target customers. Knowing how much of your product you can sell in a certain amount of time will also give you knowledge of how much you need to produce to supply with the probable demand. You wouldn’t want to produce a lot of your product if most of it won’t be bought, a product that sells efficiently will be more attractive to a distributor.

• Look for the right distributor. Contacting a good distributor that knows how to work within your designated market will give your product more opportunities to reach the right retailers. You might also want to avoid working with a distributor that is working with a business that competes with yours, as they might have pre-existing contracts that prevents them (the distributor) from promoting similar products (yours).

• Negotiate prices. Before negotiating a price with your distributor you might want to make a report that shows that you are able to produce your product on a long-term basisand that your product will sell, as a visible proof is way more convincing that just your word. And for negotiating prices, try to agree on a price that is desirable for your customers and that will cover your expenses from manufacturing your product while at the same time generating enough profit to invest in your business.

• Agree on special terms. Some special clauses will make a distributor more likely to work with you, as they wouldn’t want to sell your product if there isn’t some kind of fail-safe mechanismin case you are unable to provide them with your products, and the same can go for you, both parties should get some kind of compensation if the other party fails to comply on the proposed contract.They might also want an exclusivity agreement so they can be the only ones to sell your products, this would make them pay a higher price for your product, but it isn’t good if you’re planning to diversify your opportunities.

If you want to convince a good distributor to work with you then you should prove that you have a deep understanding of both your product and your consumer base. Show them that you are able to generate profit for both partiesand that you will be able to keep selling your product on a long-term basis.