Estimated reading time: 4 minutes

It's Only Common Sense: Ways to Make a Rep Love You

Editor's Note: To listen to Dan's weekly column, as you've always done in the past, click here. For the written transcript, keep reading...Last week I discussed why reps hate board shops and quite a few people got in touch with me to tell me their own horror stories and share the successes they’ve had with the rep/principal relationship. Each of them had the same questions for me: How do I make the rep/principal relationship work? How do I create a successful partnership between these entities? How do I change things around so that instead of hating board shops, reps love board shops?

I've been working in this area for many years, ever since I was a 27-year-old sales manager at Maine Electronics and had to fire every rep. We had just come off of a record year, much of it having to do with the great reps who were working for us. All of them had brought in new customers and a ton of business. But, as always, when reps bring in business--and earn plenty of commissions--the bean-counters putting together the year's 1099s noticed how much those reps were making. They quickly decide to part ways with the reps to save money--a stupid, short-sighted move.Unfortunately for the reps, and for me and the rest of the company, the company director, also a bean-counter by trade, agreed with the other bean-counters. I was sent out to fire all our reps, which I did reluctantly after a couple of arguments where it became very clear that I was going to be fired if I did not comply. So, in one miserable whirlwind tour of terror, we went out and fired all five rep firms in just three days. It was awful.

The next year our sales dropped by 25%; we lost many customers and much money. At the end of the year the bean-counters talked about the loss of money, blaming it on a lack of sales, I asked them if they still had all the money they said they were going to save now that they did not have to pay reps. Needless to say, they didn’t think that was so funny.

I’m sure this is not the first time many of you have heard a story like this and it won’t be the last. Let me lay out the ways you can make sure that your reps will not only love you, but will work their butts off for you and your company:

1. Value your reps. Understand and appreciate that they can get you new customers and increase your business. Think of this one simple phrase: “We did not have this customer before the rep came, and he got us into that account, so all the money we make from that customer is because the rep works for us.” That’s it; remember that. 
2. Respect your reps. Reps work hard to bring you business. They are professionals who know how to win business. They know companies you want to get into and they help you win those accounts. Treat them with the same respect with which you would want to be treated.
3. Pay them. Most of you have a clause in your rep contract that states that the rep will be paid when you are paid, so, theoretically, when you get that check from your customer, the rep’s commission is due him right out of that check. Do not separate those two things. When you get that check take out the rep’s portion and send it to him or her right away. 
4. Take your reps seriously. Let them know that you believe in them and that they are doing something you cannot do for yourself. They are performing a valuable service, so treat it as such. 
5. Work at making the relationship a success. That means investing in your reps. Bring them into the fold, make sure they understand what you sell, and offer to train them in your technology. If you believe in your reps, they will perform for you. The more you can get them to trust you, the better your relationship will be. 
6. Work to keep them around. Once you have established a great relationship with your reps, extend their contracts so they will have security with your company. Make sure that if you do have a termination clause (you should have one), it features a stipulation that you will have to sit down and have a face-to-face talk before you part ways. Make termination the last resort. In other words, try to work things out before you end the relationship.

Make sure you become familiar with these rules, and make them a part of your everyday dealings with reps and all your associates.

One more thing to remember: Success breeds success. The happier your reps are--and the better you treat them--the easier it will be for you to bring on other good reps. In many cases, your happy reps will vouch for you, saying you are a great principal to work with. It’s only common sense.