Most beer wholesalers have struggled to effectively integrate online ordering as part of their main business strategy.
Managers and sales teams don’t see the benefits online ordering can provide. They also fear that their customers will penalize the wholesaler if they are forced to order online.
A few years ago, W&S wholesalers fully transitioned retail customers by forcing them to use the online portal, offering no alternatives to placing and receiving orders. Meanwhile, the typical beer wholesaler has been dabbling with online ordering, with most wholesalers achieving only marginal success.
4 REASONS BEER WHOLESALERS ARE BEHIND WITH ONLINE ORDERING (AND WHAT THEY CAN DO TO MOVE AHEAD)
1. Wholesalers want to “sell” each account on using the online portal to place orders.
It takes years to “sell” all their accounts to voluntarily place orders via the portal. When it’s voluntary, retailers can (and likely will) be inconsistent in using the online portal.
Beer wholesalers must make using the online portal to place 100% of their orders mandatory for retailer accounts.
Wholesalers that are successful with online ordering had to force their retailers to use the online portal for 100% of their orders. They were able to convert all of their on-premise accounts while selectively attacking portions of their off-premise account base to convert them to the portal.
2. Many wholesalers don’t see the benefits of online ordering.
They don’t know how online ordering allows them to transform their sales model, so they get stuck asking, “Why should I change?”
Do research and get smart on how online ordering will change the sales model for the better.
Converting accounts to placing orders through the portal has significant business benefits. For example, sales calls will become more effective because the sales rep will have more time to sell and be able to call on their accounts when the decision-makers are on-site.
3. The sales force and sales management don’t provide enough support for implementing online ordering.
The sales team believes online ordering will replace them and they will lose their jobs, so they aren’t 100% behind the total conversion of accounts to online ordering.
Proactively communicate your vision for online ordering with the sales team.
Meet with the sales team and explain your vision of what the sales process will look like when a high percentage of accounts are ordering online. Salespeople will still be needed. Their jobs will change, requiring more selling, and they will be more valuable, not less valuable.
4. Owners and executives are looking at the wrong measures of success.
They are measuring how many retailers have signed up for the online portal and how many have placed an order on the portal. This provides an incomplete picture and gives them a false sense of online ordering success.
The true measure should be the number of retailers using the portal to place 100% of their orders.
When retailers place 100% of their orders online, wholesalers can begin to change their sales model and realize the benefits of online ordering. In many wholesalers, less than 20% of accounts are placing 100% of their orders online. Use this new measure to set account conversion to online ordering goals and track progress.