A recent post in a Facebook Group for Promotional Product Professionals had a distributor upset because a supplier didn’t contact him to tell him the ship date wasn’t going to happen as noted on his order.
Supply chain issues, staffing shortages and the effects of Covid have made it a stressful time for distributors and suppliers, and these issues are expected to continue until the end of the year if not longer! What can you, a promotional products sales professional, do to make the situation less stressful and avoid missed shipped dates and mishaps on orders from becoming even more common?
The answer is to set up systems in your office for all your daily activities. Here’s a system I use for every order to make sure it goes as smoothly as possible.
1. Check inventory with the supplier ahead of placing the order. As I side note, I really appreciate it when suppliers have inventory levels on their website. It saves me a ton of time and effort.
2. Double check that I sent the supplier requested form of art.
3. Make sure the delivery address information and in hands date on the order are accurate.
4. If I haven’t received an automatic confirmation, check with the supplier the day the order is sent to make sure it was received. As I side note to suppliers, it’s great to receive automatic confirmations!
5. If a proof is requested and sent, get approval from my client as soon as possible to make sure there are no delays with the order.
6. Check with the supplier mid-way to make sure everything is on track to be delivered on time.
7. Get tracking numbers from the supplier the day the order is shipped and send the tracking number to my client.
8. Call my client the day the order is supposed to arrive, or a day later, to make sure they received it and everything looks good!
9. Thank my client for their business with a follow up phone call, email, personal note or gift.
Of course, no system is fool proof. Mistakes may still happen, but I can tell you from actual experience having a system will save you a ton of time and effort and make your day-to-day activities much more pleasurable!
Speaking of saving a ton of time and effort, and making your daily activities more pleasurable, check out my latest Free On-Demand webinar on “9 Million-Dollar Habits to Double Your Sales!” (https://promobizcoach.com/9-million-dollar-habits-to-boost-promotional-product-sales/). You’ll learn what highly successful people do every day to increase their sales and income!
Here's to your success!
© 2021 Rosalie Marcus
Rosalie Marcus, The Promo Biz Coach, is a promotional products business expert, sales coach and top-rated speaker. Combining her skills and years of experience in promotional sales, she helps her clients sell more at higher margins to better clients. Get FREE up-to-the-minute sales tips and a FREE On-Demand Webinar 5 Must-Know Strategies for Selling in the New Normal at her website: www.PromoBizCoach.com Reach her at Rosalie@promobizcoach.com.