Whether you’re a distributor, supplier, or multi-line rep in the promotional products industry, here are some out-of-the-box ideas to create unique and useful websites. Staying top of mind to your customers is becoming increasingly difficult, but these unique websites will become tools that your customers will enjoy using.
Unique Website Idea for Distributors – Presentation Websites
Why send your customers a boring PowerPoint or PDF when presenting them with product ideas? Instead, create a Presentation Website! An interactive Presentation Website provides your customers the browsing experience they are used to. Quickly personalize your site to give the impression you spent hours on it by adding your customers’ logo, color scheme, and a personalized sub-domain.
In a matter of minutes, you can create and send a free DistributorCentral presentation website to your customer. The presentation website comes loaded with our Top Sellers catalog to brainstorm product ideas. If your customer has expressed more specific ideas, further customize your Presentation Website by adding Product Lists for your customer.
An added bonus of using a Presentation Website for pitching product ideas to your customer is all the analytics and reporting! In your DistributorCentral account, you can see what products your customer has viewed and when. Like an ace up your sleeve, you can be prepped on the products that your customer clicked on before following up with them.
For you power users, turn on the ecommerce shopping cart and payment processing to allow your customers to seal the deal and complete the purchase right then and there!
Unique Website Idea for Suppliers – Sales Rep Websites
A personalized website for an outside sales rep allows for more creative freedom than your company’s main website. The main website speaks to your company’s overall brand, while your sales rep’s site can speak to how that rep is keeping your company’s brand promise in their own voice and personality.
Since these websites are distributor-focused, they don’t have to play the same end-user friendly rules. Some tips on how to personalize the website:
- Add pictures and contact information for the outside sales rep and any inside staff that can help the customer on something urgent if the outside rep is unavailable.
- Link to your rep’s social media channels for customers to further connect with them.
- Add a bio page to give increased credibility explaining why your sales rep is the expert that your customers can rely on.
- Add a product ribbon on the homepage highlighting your rep’s favorite new and seasonal products that receive lots questions and quote requests.
- Include a calendar of events or areas they’ll be visiting so local customers can visit them at the event or request an office visit.
Sales Rep Websites can be heavily focused on marketing. Showcase all the current and upcoming specials, email blasts, and sales sheets on the hot products. This gives both your customers and sales reps an easy location to find them. Include feeds of your blog and top social media channel to help keep it fresh with current content.
Easily incorporate all your company’s products to provide your customers a fast way to find ideas by using DistributorCentral’s intelligent product search.
Unique Website Idea for Multi-Line Reps –Website with Your Suppliers’ Products
Don’t settle for a bare bones website that only includes some contact information and links to your suppliers’ websites. Give your distributor a tool they will use. Tap into DistributorCentral’s website platform and intelligent product search. You can showcase all your suppliers’ products and virtual catalogs directly on your website.
Other ways to make your MLR website more interesting and useful:
- For each of the reps in your organization, include a picture, bio, territory, contact information, and their preferred social media channels
- Maintain a page of upcoming events and trade shows you’ll be exhibiting at.
- Set up a form for distributors to request an appointment for the next time you’re in the area.
- Create a section to post downloadable sales flyers from your supplier lines.
- Ask your supplier lines to give you some great images for your homepage to create an eye-catching carousel.
Pump up the information on your About Us page with your history in the promotional products industry and why suppliers should hire you to represent their product lines.
