Bruce Merrifield, President — Merrifield Consulting •competitive strategy •profit strategy •management strategies •distribution industry trends •leadership training Wednesday, February 21, 2018—Triaging Customers and Setting Priorities to Increase Profit Performance Randy MacLean, President of WayPoint Analytics, and Bruce Merrifield, Vice President of WayPoint, sit down for a talk about the issues and opportunities, tactics and strategies for increasing profit performance in distribution companies. One area worth looking at is how you allocate your people resources. Randy and Bruce talk about using your people to focus on the best opportunities and the accounts with the highest profit potential, rather than calling all your customers your best. Many businesses operate under the belief that every customer is good, despite data that a good portion is mediocre, at best. What is your service strategy? There can be a real boost to profit performance when you gain a solid service strategy. You don't have a strategy if you say yes to everything, and you have no added value for the customers that matter most. Instead of reacting with a first come first serve approach and giving everyone the same service, think about proactively building out your service plan so that you can go broader and deeper with your best customers. In addition, figure out who doesn't fit your new service-cost model and provide a base level of service for these customers. It's important to decide who gets first call on personnel, inventory, and favors. These should be your five or so most profitable customers at each branch, and these customers should be top of mind for your employees. Also, when you have a service strategy, you don't have to fire customers that are losing you money. Simply lay out the terms you need so that they will be profitable to you. Then, if they choose to leave, it's no problem. Let your competitor have all the money-losing business. This is why it is essential to understand profit potential and focus on the big clients with excellent service. Don't treat all customers as though they are equal, because they are not. The best way to be successful is to make sure that you and your people are putting more energy into things that matter the most as opposed to diffusing your energy, time, and talent across everybody equally. For more information about Bruce Merrifield, visit: www.merrifieldact2.com |
Measuring & Managing Fleet CostsSophisticated New Delivery Costing Drives Higher Profits The 5 Things Customers Want (brief)The 1st of 3 lists defining the markers of Distribution companies outpacing their peers. A Culture of Innovation Starts at the TopSteve Epner and Randy MacLean discuss topics from Steve's book. In this video: How to Innovate. Staying Effective in the Changing World of SalesThe top business know not only how to innovate, but where to spot opportunities where innovation will bring the greatest results. Optimizing Salesforce Pay Through Deep Data AnalysisCompanies are developing more and more sophisticated approaches to sales compensation and here Bruce Merrifield and Randy MacLean examine the trends. Webinar: Profit-Based Sales Incentives (part 1)Webinar: Quantum Sales Compensation - How to Create a powerful new kind of sales incentive plan Using Profit Analytics to Manage Your Sales ForceUse profit analytics to help drive radical profit gains by balancing volume, margin and service costs for every account, doubling and tripling territory profits Sales Force SpecializationDiscussion of how the most successful companies are adopting specialized sales functions, achieving superior results. Managing Product Line ProfitabilityManaging Product Line Profits shows how operations can have a significant impact on net profit and examines Peak Internal Profit, accumulated profit and more 9 Steps to More Profitable RelationshipsDiscussion about a 9-step process aimed at transforming a transactional relationship with an account into a partnership. Profit Value-Based Customer SegmentationRandy MacLean and Bruce Merrifield of WayPoint Analytics discuss profit value-based customer segmentation. The Advantages of SegmentationA discussion of the benefits of segmentation and how this approach can help distributors achieve far greater levels of profitability. How to Turn Big Data Into Big Profits!Top companies like Amazon can leverage big data to predict consumer buying habits. Bruce Merrifield discusses how you can do this too! Gross Margin Percent: A Poor Indicator of ProfitabilityMost distributors have naturally occurring, high gross margin percentage accounts and high gross margin percentage (small dollar pick) SKUs. Discussing the Enterprise Account Selling Model (#3)Continuance of the Enterprise Account Selling Model video series. Refers to a preceding video. Drawn from Bruce's presentation at APIC on March 1, 2016. Getting Your Salespeople to Negotiate SmarterUsing the negotiation process to achieve CTS savings, allowing you to offer your customers lower prices while leaving the table with a larger profit. Looking at a Customer Whale CurveCustomer whale curves are a great opportunity to view the overall picture of your customer profitability and apply appropriate sales models to each Increase Innovation with a Rule and a ToolBruce Merrifield discusses the Wheel of Learning and how this simple tool can catapult you forward with innovative thinking. Cost-to-Serve Math: Why Gross Margin May Fool You Every TimeThis video by Bruce Merrifield and Randy MacLean describes why you can't rely solely on gross margin to determine profitability. The Changing Face of SalesAn in-depth look at some historical limitations to sales compensation, and why those factors no longer apply with the availability of LIPA. Maximizing Account Potential through SegmentationRandy MacLean discusses the value and utility of segmenting your customer accounts. Gross Margin FixationA fixation on gross margin – without looking at cost-to-serve (CTS) – has blinded countless distributors and limited their ability to achieve profitability. A WayPoint Client and Whale Curve Success StoryLearn how this distributor was able to massively ramp up its profitability even as it lost many of its customers. Cost Structures: What Makes for a Good Sale?Learn why distributors can't simply rely on gross margin when determining whether a sale will add to the bottom line. Changing Sales Strategy Using LIPARandy MacLean talks about the emergence of a new sales strategy. Why You Should Sweat the Small DeliveriesA discussion on how little extras can sometimes add up to a lot of infrastructure cost in wholesale distribution companies. How and Why Amazon Drives Change for Catalog OperatorsCatalogs still exist, but they have gone online. In this video, Randy MacLean and Bruce Merrifield outline the changing reality of catalog operators. It's Not Who You Think It IsRandy MacLean discusses key profitability metrics for QPM. Why You Should Be Optimizing InventoryRandy and Bruce explain why it's important to optimize inventory in the same way you optimize personnel and other resources toward the best profit opportunities A Two Step Strategy for Being Number One in DistributionIn this video, Bruce Merrifield turns the tables on Waypoint President Randy MacLean, and asks Randy to strategize on how to beat the competition. Using WayPoint's High Volume Account Report to Increase ProfitRandy discusses the benefits of the extraordinarily valuable High Volume Account Report. Prioritizing Your CustomersA discussion of the perils of a cookie cutter approach when it comes to sales and service in the wholesale distribution industry. How Customer Segmentation Unlocks Hidden ProfitsBruce Merrifield of WayPoint Analytics teaches the importance of customer segmentation and the insights it can offer your distribution company. The Element of PricingIt's not necessary to compete with AmazonSupply on pricing when you've got your ordering and delivery systems, fill rates and customer service at a high level. Quantum Profit ManagementRandy MacLean introduces the core principles of QPM and illustrates how it's the most effective way to run a business. The Benefits of a Cost-to-Serve Math ProgramHave you had trouble conveying the importance of CTS to your team? Learn how this course provides an affordable and convenient educational solution. Why Come to APIC?What is the value of the APIC conference for a business, and why does it stand out above other education programs? Getting Results with a Customer AuditGetting Results with a Customer Audit Making Money by Giving Away ProductBruce Merrifield and Randy MacLean discuss profit strategies for wholesale distributors that will raise their cost-to-serve and profits. Webinar: How to Create a Sales Compensation Plan (pt 2)Webinar: Quantum Sales Compensation Plan Part 2 Webinar: How to Create a Sales Compensation Plan (pt 3)Webinar: Quantum Sales Compensation: Designing Your Plan Webinar: How to Create a Sales Compensation Plan (pt 4)Webinar: Quantum Sales Compensation for the Wholesale Distribution Industry: Launching Your Plan |