How To Look For The Right Manufacturing Rep, Part 2 A good rep can boost your sales and free up your time for other business matters. Get smart about commission structures . Some big discount houses often work only with reps who deal with them exclusively. Therefore, you may need two reps one who calls on big stores and another who covers specialty stores only. Commission percentages depend on what the stores your reps are selling to are paying for your product.
Discount chains order very large volumes and pay much less for products than specialty stores.
Beware of hiring a rep who is carrying too many products or selling competing products . A common problem is reps who carry competing products without letting you know about it. Be sure to ask prospective candidates what other manufacturers they work for. Keep your reps motivated . You're competing for their time, so you need to figure out ways to keep them as interested in your product line as they are in the other ones they represent.