Hope Is Not a Sales Strategy (But Most ITeams Are Running on It)
While we all know that hope is (or should not be) a sales strategy, most industrial supply sales teams, whether they are distributors, manufacturer reps, or manufacturer direct salespeople, are running on it. Yes, there are planning processes and yes everyone sets goals based upon bottom-up input (until the field’s number doesn’t match management’s expectations (or their goals!) At…
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Fastenal Q1 2026: Strong Growth, Tightening Margins
Fastenal Q1 2026 results put the Winona, Minnesota-based industrial distributor at $2.2 billion in quarterly revenue, up 12.4% year over year. The headline is clean. What sits…
Stop the SPA Leak: Don’t Let Margin Slips Away – Free Webinar
Scott Sinning from MarginMax Partners has been sharing ideas to help industrial supply distributors improve their profitability this year with his articles on plugging leaks,…
Hope Is Not a Sales Strategy (But Most ITeams Are Running on It)
While we all know that hope is (or should not be) a sales strategy, most industrial supply sales teams, whether they are distributors, manufacturer reps,…
Full Warehouse, Empty Wallet – The Surplus Inventory Trap
What can an inventory holder do with excess inventory, why does it happen? In MRO & Industrial, inventory is a double-edged sword; it’s the lifeblood…
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Hope Is Not a Sales Strategy (But Most ITeams Are Running on It)
While we all know that hope is (or should not be) a sales strategy, most industrial supply sales teams, whether they are distributors, manufacturer reps, or manufacturer direct salespeople, are running on it. Yes, there are planning processes and yes everyone sets goals based upon bottom-up input (until the field’s number doesn’t match management’s expectations (or their goals!) At the…
Full Warehouse, Empty Wallet – The Surplus Inventory Trap
What can an inventory holder do with excess inventory, why does it happen? In MRO & Industrial, inventory is a double-edged sword; it’s the lifeblood and the weight. With gross margins around 30%, it is pretty attractive, but all distributors have experienced a “just-in-case” order for a critical part turning into five years of dust-collecting deadstock. Looking into 2026, the…
Thriving Amid Consolidation: Talent Opportunities for Independent Distributors
Independent distributors know that business is won based upon their people. It’s relationship and knowledge that makes the difference, In a word, it’s “caring.” Achieving that level of customer intimacy requires staff that genuinely care for customers, each other, and their company. This is why employee retention is higher at independently owned industrial supply distributors than it is at national…
The Manufacturer / Rep Alignment Ecosystem
A little background … Channel Marketing Group manages Industrial Supply Trends as a service to the industry. Our core business is consulting with distributors, manufacturer reps, and manufacturers in the electrical, HVAC, and industrial supply business. One of our clients is NEMRA, which is the association for electrical reps. A couple of engagements have included developing their Rep of the…
NetPlus Members Forecast a Successful 2026
NetPlus Alliance, the industrial and contractor supply distributor marketing group that represents over 400 distributors who purchased over $600M through the group, recently shared their members’ 2026 outlook, in conjunction with a recap of their Q4. And the membership, by and large, is looking for growth to continue in 2026. NetPlus Delivers Growth in 2025, Forecasts Same in 2026 According…
2026 Q1 Pulse of Industrial Supply Survey
Last year we launched our Pulse of Industrial Supply survey, and subsequent report, to democratize information and provide distributors, reps, and manufacturers free marketplace information. The research, sponsored by William Blair, asks you to share quarterly performance and outlook, by key product category (if applicable) and key market segments (again, if applicable,) 2026 Q1 Pulse of Industrial Supply Survey Now…
Unlock Margin and Cash Flow Through SPA Enterprise Governance
SPAs, whether you define them as special pricing agreements or ship and debit initiatives, are a way to simultaneously capture business and ensure, perhaps improve, gross margin … if you manage them right. But like most things, the devil is in the details and, with SPAs, because the administrative process touches so many people within a distributor, many distributors do…
Winning Orders with AI-Powered Sales Quoting & Ordering
Last month I participated on Prokeep’s webinar on order quotation and order automation. For a pre-launch event, the attendance was great. Winning Nowadays Goes to the Quickest – Customers Don’t Have Time to Waste Customers want speedy responses to quote and questions. The reason – they are running fast. Not enough time, or maintenance labor, to get all the work…
