As far back as I can remember, I always wanted to be a sales rep.

Even before I got into the CE industry, as a kid working at sporting goods stores I was always deeply interested in the lives and business of the reps that came calling, representing brands as diverse as Adidas and Salomon. As a result of that interest, over the years I paid a lot of attention to how the reps I knew did business, and asked questions about what their days were like. As I said, it’s something I’ve always wanted to do, it was just a matter of waiting for the right opportunity to come along.

Even today, vendor’s sales reps are crucial to the business. As the “face” of the brand to its dealers, vendors need to take the rep role seriously and appoint people to the job who get that their role is to manage dealer relationships. There’s more involved than just driving around and taking orders. As Dickey Fox said in the movie Jerry Macguire said, “the key to this business is personal relationships!” If you take care of your dealers they’ll take care of you.

Over the years, I’ve known a lot of reps. Many were fantastic, and some were less so. Embarking on this new phase of my professional life, I’ve got a lot of role models to learn from, and here’s what I feel a great rep needs to do in order to be successful.

Be there for your dealers. When I think of the five best reps I’ve ever known, every one of them typically picks up the phone on the first ring, or replies to an email virtually instantly. Even if you don’t have an answer to the question on hand, keep the communication open and let the dealer know that you’ve passed my query on to someone who can help.

Don’t make them hound you. Believe it or not, not every rep I’ve ever known has been punctual at disseminating price changes, inventory status and dealer incentives. For dealers, being a week behind the market on price drops is a serious  competitive disadvantage. It’s certainly been my experience over the years when talking to dealers that reps who don’t jump to the pump when it comes to communicating crucial info is a pet peeve common to them all.

Talk about what matters to you dealers. I don’t drag out my samples and show dealers every single pony I’ve got regardless of whether or not they’re interested. Just like selling to end users, good reps ask questions, listen to the answers, and addresses what’s important to their dealers.

Respect their time. Time is money, and there’s never enough of it. That’s why the best-loved reps always call a week or two in advance and schedule a day for their visits. Sometimes it’s not possible to nail down a specific time, but if dealers know that you’ll be in their town on a certain day, they appreciate the notice.

Which brings up a related point: Sales calls that become social visits. I enjoy gossiping over a cup of coffee as much as anyone.  But usually there’s just no time.  Be good at making a polite exit, and don’t hang around the dealer’s office forever.

Years ago I was at my desk working on a project, when the door to my boss’s office went SLAM!  I was puzzled at first, then ten seconds later in walked a rep well known for his 80/20 rule: 20% of his visit was business, 80% was pointless, and seemed endless, like those uncomfortable segues on Family Guy that just drag on and get more awkward.  My boss spied him from the parking lot, and decided he had no time for him that day (or ever again, for that matter.)  If this is the reaction you get from your dealers, then you definitely need to consider a new approach.

The bottom line is that dealers want to know that a vendor rep is there for them, whether it’s getting them product or information on time, or supporting them when they have a warranty issue. Everybody appreciates being looked after, and when you do a great job, they’ll reward you for it. It’s simple.