Wouldn't it be great to have "Yelp" for manufacturer representatives? A place to look for the best of the best and those to avoid?
A public list of "bad" manufacturer representatives is not generally available, as reputational issues are typically handled on a case-by-case basis, often quietly, due to concerns about legal and ethical implications.
This is very unfortunate because a marginal manufacturer representative can cost a company millions of dollars.
Instead, it's more common to find guidance on recognizing signs of a bad manufacturer rep and the behaviors that signal poor performance or toxic working relationships.
You can keep track of scores for those on your business development team and your manufacturer representatives. Hopefully, an excellent manufacturer representative will both support your bizdev team and potentially outshine them.
Here are key signs and characteristics you can use as a checklist that are often associated with "bad" manufacturer representatives:
- Lack of Communication: They do not respond promptly to emails or phone calls, avoid participating in meetings, or fail to keep clients and manufacturers informed.
- Failure to Follow Up: Consistently neglecting to follow up with leads, customers, or necessary paperwork reflects a disorganized approach or a lack of commitment.
- Failure to Meet Commitments: They frequently miss deadlines, neglect deliverables, or fail to follow through on promised actions, putting projects at risk and eroding client trust.
- Lack of Initiative: Rather than proactively seeking out new opportunities or suggesting improvements, these representatives wait for instructions and rarely take ownership of their territory.
- Resistance to Feedback: Instead of learning from constructive criticism, they become defensive or dismissive, making it challenging to foster growth or resolve performance issues.
- Extremely High or Unrealistic Demands: They make demands for compensation, ownership, or flexible schedules that are out of line with industry standards, showing entitlement and self-serving motives.
- Blame Shifting: They regularly blame other team members, managers, or territory limitations for their shortcomings, rather than taking personal accountability for their results.
- Unprofessional Conduct: This includes badmouthing supervisors or previous employers, disregarding company policies, or behaving in a manner that is toxic or damaging and undermines the company culture.
- Disregard for Process: Refusal to comply with established sales processes, skipping crucial steps, or operating as a rogue 'lone wolf' that disrupts teams.
- Poor Product or Industry Knowledge: They lack an understanding of the products they're selling or the needs of their target customers, resulting in lost deals and unhappy customers.
- Frequent Manufacturer Hopping: A track record of short stays with multiple companies often signals dissatisfaction or underperformance.
- Bad Attitude: Constant negativity, lack of belief in the product, and a tendency to drain team morale can all point to a toxic salesperson.
- Inconsistent Updates: Lack of transparency regarding sales pipeline status or repeated vague updates suggesting minimal actual work.
Additional Resources
If you suspect your manufacturer representative is not performing well:
- Track metrics versus agreed goals.
- Solicit feedback from customers and team members.
- Document repeated issues and give constructive opportunities for improvement.
- If improvement doesn't occur, consider terminating the relationship.
Tracking and documenting indeed appear to be "extra work." However, people are not like the tomato plants in our garden, which are growing without my help. People are in constant flux and need to be led, guided, educated, cheered, and sometimes held accountable.
Reputation lists are rare; due diligence, references, and an understanding of these red flags are your best tools for identifying and avoiding bad reps.
Identifying these warning signs early enables organizations to intervene before more severe problems arise. Proactive management, including regular check-ins, clear expectations, and open communication, can sometimes redirect struggling team members onto a more positive path. However, if these patterns persist despite support and coaching, it becomes crucial to take decisive action to protect team performance and the company's reputation.
We are driven to overachieve so that our customers and the premier manufacturers we represent never encounter the issues listed above.
To help you evaluate your team and manufacturer representatives, you can download this checklist.
Your feedback is always welcome (both cheers and jeers).