What is a Manufacturer Rep?
Manufacturer's representatives, manufacturer's rep, manufacturer's
agent, manufacturer's broker or independent sales agent are interchangeable
terms used to describe an independent sales representative. Since
the majority of reps work with companies that manufacture a product(s),
they are most commonly referred to as a Manufacturer Rep.
Many businesses utilize manufacturer reps to help sell their products
and services. Each rep might represent from five to twenty businesses.
Traditionally, each business a manufacturer rep deals with is a
non-competing supplier to the same industry. A manufacturer rep
may break down their businesses by the products or services offered
to the industries they call on and the geographic coverage area.
The main task of a manufacturer rep is to gain more sales for the
businesses they work with.
Commission
A manufacturer rep generates their income by earning a commission
on completed sales. Commissions are paid on sales that tool place
within the rep's sales territory or geographical coverage area.
Commission rates may vary between companies, which is often due
to the particular industry the rep is working within. Since manufacturers
have different profit margins, different companies producing the
same or equivalent product may also offer different commission rates.
Rates may also vary between products from a given manufacturer.
As an additional incentive, manufacturers may also offer a higher
commission rate on new account sales.
Support
The type of support manufacturer reps offer may also vary from
rep to rep. While some reps offer businesses high levels of hands-on
technical support, others may only provide sales support and turn
technical matters over to the manufacturer. The level of support
a rep offers may also depend on whether the rep is a sole proprietor
or if they work with a rep agency. Larger rep firms may contain
field sales people, inside sales teams, order entry staff, customer
service staff and technical support teams.
Areas of Coverage
A manufacturer rep or a rep firm usually cover only a small area
of the country. Some will cover one state and larger firms will
cover several. Depending on the area, some may only cover a portion
of a state (such as Southern California).
Businesses who utilize the services of manufacturer reps can sometimes
see a dramatic increase in sales of their products and services
due to their increased market coverage. Instead of hiring full teams
of sales people, manufacturer reps can get leads on prospective
buyers with much less overhead.
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