Channel analysis of the hottest foreign automation

Channel analysis of foreign automation manufacturers and Countermeasures of Chinese manufacturers

Introduction: in the field of automation, manufacturers sell different products through distribution, direct selling or a combination of distribution and direct selling. For example, abb PLC business is almost all through distribution, and there is almost no direct sales; Almost all DCS manufacturers sell directly

with the improvement of the automation level of the engineering personnel of the system integrator, DCs also began to take the road of distribution. For example, abbdcs business has developed distributors on a large scale since 2007. Ac800fdcs takes the road of distributor for two reasons: first, it is said to be about to stop production; The second is to touch the light of the controller ac800m of 800xA. Yokogawadcs' voluntary distributors are also increasing year by year. All manufacturers' DCS businesses basically have cases of agency by project

the main reasons why manufacturers adopt distribution

① manufacturers assist distributors to expand the market in the region where they are in the process of transportation. This method is a low-cost sales model for manufacturers

② provide advanced technical support for large distributors, while small distributors and end users provide technical support through large distributors

③ in order to ensure timely delivery and sales performance, manufacturers require distributors to have a certain amount of inventory. For example, ABB's DCS business requires distributors to purchase products of at least 500000 US dollars a year, so as to reduce manufacturers' inventory costs

④ avoid commercial risks and transfer the pressure of collection to large distributors

internal competition of distributors

internal competition of distributors is a common problem faced by distributors at present. As automation products are more and more widely used in the industrial field, the current market is close to saturation, resulting in increasingly fierce competition among major manufacturers in various fields. Manufacturers will transfer the pressure of annual sales targets to distributors, and at the end of the year, most of them will let distributors overstock inventory to complete the sales targets. In order to achieve their own performance indicators and quickly digest inventory, on the one hand, distributors will sell goods at a price lower than the market price level, on the other hand, they will try their best to develop customers, and even compete for customers of other distributors. This creates a vicious circle, which eventually leads to the fact that distributors in the market are unwilling to spend time and cost to develop new markets

financial problems of distributors

with the increasing sales, distributors generally need to prepare a large amount of inventory in order to meet the delivery time of customers; In addition, in order to get a better price from the manufacturer, distributors try to raise funds to place large-scale orders when ordering, resulting in a shortage of funds for large distributors and the withdrawal of small distributors from the market due to lack of funds

the ability of distributors cannot keep up with the business development of manufacturers

with the increasingly fierce competition in automation business, more and more automation product manufacturers require their distributors to have higher technical ability and more professional sales ability, so as to better serve customers and obtain a larger market. Some distributors gradually fall behind due to insufficient capacity. When Chinese automation manufacturers went abroad to develop sales channels in the early stage, foreign large companies usually did not look up to Chinese manufacturers; Chinese manufacturers also do not look up to small foreign companies; Because medium-sized companies have already acted as agents for other products, they are not willing to act as agents for Chinese products due to problems in technology and the original agency contract, so it is difficult to choose a suitable agent

classification of distributors

the following is a classification of the different development realms of distributors in the current market

realm 1: such distributors account for the majority of the market, and most of them are secondary and tertiary distributors. There are two sources: first, having a good relationship with oneortwo end users of automation products, and relying on this relationship to survive; Second, it comes from some larger distributors. When a small-scale distributor develops to a certain extent, some experienced employees will rely on their customers and knowledge of the market to open their own doors. The market does not have high requirements for such distributors. As long as they have a little understanding of products and markets, or have a good relationship with a few customers, they can survive, but they only barely survive

it is worth noting that most distributors with a higher level have developed at this stage

realm 2: no doubt

most of these distributors are first-class distributors signed with manufacturers, maintain good relations with manufacturers, and have their own customer base in some regions, with annual sales ranging from millions to tens of millions. The common characteristics of such distributors are: although they have cultivated the market for many years and maintained good relations with customers and manufacturers, they can not make new big progress, and the growth rate has slowed down or stagnated significantly. There is no clear strategy for the future and development of the company

this realm is the key realm for the development of distributors. If it passes smoothly, the future will be bright, otherwise it can only withdraw from the market

realm 3: zhitianming

such distributors are distributors who have created their own world in the market through fierce competition. Its characteristics are: annual sales are usually more than 100 million, maintaining a deep relationship with manufacturers, and there are a large number of loyal users, which has a high reputation in the market. Through fierce competition in the market and long-term cultivation in the market, they have their own way of survival. They have certain financial strength, clear development strategies and the ability to grasp their own destiny

realm 4: peeping at the world

few distributors can reach realm 4 in the market. Their annual sales are usually more than one billion, and they have their own sales network in the country, and they perform in some fields. This paper mainly introduces the static load testing machine and its outstanding performance, and has strong financial strength at the same time. The company of realm 4 will be the leader of the development trend of distributors in the future, and will also be the winner of the game of big fish eating small fish. To some extent, they have initially had the ability to negotiate with manufacturers on the same desktop. In the future development, their distribution capacity will be further strengthened, thereby increasing their voice in the whole market. Manufacturers also sell with the help of their marketing network

what should we do

both distributors and agents can be collectively referred to as distributors. The following analyzes the characteristics of four kinds of distributors and the Countermeasures of Chinese automation manufacturers:

develop "stand-alone" distributors. Due to their own lack of technology and industry capabilities, and limited funds, and the low popularity of Chinese automation manufacturers, both sides are dissatisfied with each other. Businessmen are eager for quick success and instant benefits. Even if they become distributors, the expectations of both sides are high, and the possibility of cooperation and performance is not great. Moreover, if such a company is developed as the distributor of the corresponding accessories of the experimental machine equipment, it needs to develop such a company on a large scale in order to produce scale effect. This way, with less development, cannot have a great impact; If there is more development, Chinese companies are not allowed in terms of capital, time, human and material resources

develop "confused" distributors. Because they have their own customer base in some regions, even if there is no new project, because DCS or PLC has been developed for more than 30 years, the transformation projects have been won over, which is enough for sales tasks. In addition, there is no clear strategy for the future and development of the company. As long as the Chinese automation manufacturers are properly guided, the potential for success is still great

develop distributors of "knowing destiny". Due to their large number of loyal users and high popularity in the market, Chinese automation manufacturers can just rely on their marketing network and the trust of customers. In addition, due to their equal identities, the success rate and timeliness of cooperation can also be guaranteed.

developing "confused" distributors and "knowing destiny" distributors are the main ways that Chinese automation manufacturers need to adopt at present, There are also many companies of these two kinds. Chinese automation manufacturers need to give priority to developing such companies with recent projects

develop "peeping" distributors. Its own characteristics determine that it has a deep relationship in large companies, and this relationship is exactly what Chinese automation manufacturers need, that is, to take the high-level route. If the relationship is good, it will have the potential of millions, even tens of millions of sales performance. This method requires relatively less human and material resources and is worth recommending