Member Spotlight

Ken's Foods, Inc.
Established in 1958, we are a leading manufacturer of dressings and sauces, combining the finest possible ingredients in the most distinctive dressing recipes. The result is a complete line of signature dressings with the taste that your customers will swear was made from scratch. From Caesar to Ra…
Agency Management Success Factors
Manufacturers with productive sales agency relationships have several management traits in common. Any manufacturer seeking healthy partnerships with their agencies can adopt these strategies. The result is better strategic alignment that fosters great relationships between client and agency, leading to greater results. And these success factors fit on a single page!
Click here for FSMA's Success Factors Guideline
DO
treat your sales agencies as integrated parts of your outsourced sales & marketing team
pay your agencies appropriate compensation for the services you expect
involve your agencies in marketing, sales, and promotional planning activity
provide top level talent that is well trained and competent to effectively manage your agencies
allow your agencies to manage their own resources to best support your line
use industry standard technologies such as EDI with your agencies
provide feedback and on-going support to your agencies – communicate promptly & professionally
understand the differences between a direct and outsourced sales group
consult with your agencies before making major changes to sales and marketing plans
establish on-going communications with agencies through an advisory council
financially assist your agencies local marketing efforts when appropriate
DON'T
treat your sales agencies as a third party contractor that appears as an expense line on the P&L
micro manage the market level activity of your agency
pull scarce selling resources away for non-selling activity
penalize your agencies due to customer non-payment or other misbehavior
overburden your agencies with excessive administrative requirements
develop proprietary technology that forces agencies to juggle many systems
measure activity instead of results
think your agencies cannot manage your line along with other clients in your category
hire away your agency people
shift costs by deducting heavily from agency commission payments
Member Spotlight

Ken's Foods, Inc.
Established in 1958, we are a leading manufacturer of dressings and sauces, combining the finest possible ingredients in the most distinctive dressing recipes. The result is a complete line of signature dressings with the taste that your customers will swear was made from scratch. From Caesar to Ra…