If you are looking to sell a product or a service, then you should become familiar with the 8 different types of major sales channels available. While there are other types of sales channels available, these top 8 sales channels are more widely used.
- Personal Selling
With personal selling, you are personally going out there to sell a product or service directly to the customer. As you grow, you can create a sales team that will sell on your behalf. Personal selling is an excellent choice for selling to a local market. However, it does take skill to sell directly to the customer. Also, finding productive sales people will be a challenge.
- Third Party Sales Force
If you do not want to sell your product or service directly, or spend time and money hiring and training a sales force, you can simply use a third party sales force. A third party sales force can save you a great amount of time and get your sales coming in right away. The big downside is that the third party sales force will demand a larger commission. If you begin to scale up your sales, you can end up paying the majority of your revenue to the third party sales force.
- Retail
With retail, you will have a psychical place where you will sell your goods or services. The great advantage of a retail space is that the customer comes to you. And a successful retail store can easily be duplicated into other locations and markets. The downside is that you will need to have an ample marketing budget in order to get traffic to your location.
- ECommerce
With Ecommerce, you will be opening an online store where you can sell to a potential audience of billions. There are a number of platforms, such as Shopify, that offer a turnkey Ecommerce store service. Also, you can use Mageworx to get the SEO, marketing and fulfillment tools you need to in order to scale up your business. There is lots of competition in the online world. However, with the right tools and the right strategy, you can grow your business faster online than just about any sales channel.
- Direct Marketing
With Direct Marketing, you will be reaching your potential customer on a one-to-one basis through several marketing executions. These marketing executions can include:
- Telephone
- Door-to-door
- Digital Marketing
Direct Marketing is a great way to sell if you know your market. However, if you do not know who your audience is, you may end up wasting a lot of time and money trying to prospect the right people. If you want to get started direct marketing, it is a good idea to buy a lead list from a reputable company that has qualified prospects in your niche.
- Wholesale
With whole, you will be selling your product to resellers and online sellers. In order to become a wholesaler, you will need to have ample capital to buy bulk products directly from the manufacturer. Also, you will need to gauge the marketplace to ensure that there is a demand for the product before you make a bulk purchase.
- Import & Export
When it comes to importing, you will be bringing in products from an overseas market and selling it to your local market. Importing will require knowledge of your country’s customs laws (those importing to the US from China, for example, will need to get to grips with things like Importer Security Filing Onilne) and have a relationship with an overseas wholesaler or manufacturer.
On the exporting side, you have a product that you can sell to an importer at an overseas market. With exporting, you will want to ensure that the customer will be able to actually pay you when they make the purchase order.
- Agent
An agent is a intermediary that is authorized to sell on your behalf. The agent model is used by companies who have a network of sellers who work exclusively with that company and are paid by a sales commission.
Knowing Which Sales Channels are Best
It can be a challenge to know which sales channels will work best for you and your company. In order to make the best decision, here are some tips to help you decide on your sales channel.
What is your competition doing? – If you competition is specializing in eCommerce, then you should take a look at the eCommerce model first.
Where is my market? – If your market is local, you can look at a retail store or direct selling. If you have an international audience, then look at eCommerce or exporting.
How much start-up capital do you have? – If you have lots of start-up capital, you can use third party sales team, start a wholesale business or put together a network of agents.
With the right strategy, you will be able to create a sales channel that will increase your revenue and grow to meet increased demand.
