Key Takeaways:
- Implementing a distributor management software improves end-to-end visibility across primary, secondary, and tertiary sales.
- A robust DMS system provides real-time demand data. This reduces overstocking and stockouts.
- Integrating sales data into a distributor management software enables better promotions, logistics, and profit margins.
If you are the CEO, CFO, or CTO of a mid-size to large organization with a complicated sales and distribution network, you are already familiar with this pain: without complete visibility into your sales channels, it is impossible to plan effectively or make accurate forecasts. Though it’s only one aspect of the situation, primary sales from the company to the distributor are the focus of many organizations. When you comprehend primary, secondary, and tertiary sales collectively, you’ll gain the true insights.
The Biggest Challenge: Lack of End-to-End Sales Visibility
Why Poor Primary-Secondary-Tertiary Sales Data Hurts Demand Forecasting and Profit Margins
The obstacle that most businesses encounter is incomplete data.
While your logistics team handles secondary sales to dealers and your finance team may view primary sales numbers, what about tertiary sales to end users? Your projections of demand are blind without tertiary data.
This blind spot may result in:
Overstocking at the distributor level, tying up your working capital
Stock-outs at the retail level, losing potential sales
Poor allocation of marketing and trade schemes because you don’t know what’s truly moving off the shelves
In a 2021 McKinsey report, companies that failed to integrate secondary and tertiary sales data faced up to a 7% drop in margins. This drop was due to overproduction and poor promotions targeting.
That’s a huge hit, especially if you’re under pressure to optimize working capital and maximize return on every rupee spent.
The Solution: Real-Time Insights
A Distributor Management Software tracks primary to tertiary sales data to close this visibility gap. It helps you integrate data from your ERP, distributor portals, and retailer apps to give you one unified view of your supply chain.
Imagine this hypothetical example:
Your company launches a new SKU in multiple regions. Primary sales data shows healthy dispatches, so production keeps up. But tertiary sales data, tracked via your distributor management system, reveals slow movement at the retailer level in one region.
With this insight, your team can proactively:
Reroute inventory to high-demand areas
Adjust trade promotions
Optimize logistics to cut warehousing costs
That’s better demand forecasting in action, powered by real-time data. According to Gartner, companies that leverage real-time demand and sales data improve inventory accuracy by up to 25%.
Furthermore, it enables better collaboration across all your teams.
Your marketing team will plan promotions based on what actually sells.
Your finance team will reduce tied-up capital.
Your operations team will streamline procurement and distribution.
Your sales data should be actionable, not just a top-line figure. Monitoring primary, secondary, and tertiary sales increases your bottom line, reduces inefficiencies, and makes better decisions. Demand forecasting becomes a science rather than guesswork.
This is precisely where Nural Distributor Management Software comes in. Nural DMS ensures that you never lose sight of the big picture of sales. Furthermore, it helps you in making informed plans.
Know the entire sales landscape and adapt the competitive advantage that drives growth! Schedule a demo today!
