If you run a food or beverage CPG brand, you’ll probably already know that getting on the good side of distributors can be the path to big opportunities.
But with so many other brands vying for their attention (and distribution capacity), how can you make yours stand out?
In today’s digital world, it all begins with your virtual shop window: your website. Just like your customers, any distributor looking to learn a little more about you will always start with your website.
If you’re looking to improve your website for CPG distributors, the following guidelines should be a great place to start.
3 ways to improve a website — for CPG distributors to notice you
1: Figure out what distributors already like about your products
Assuming that you already have some level of distribution footprint with existing distributors, you might have some valuable insights to hand already.
If so, one tip is to dig into your reporting and distribution history and start asking questions of the data.
You should be able to pull reports on sales volumes through specific distributors, or even reach out to them directly if you’re on friendly terms. From there, here are a few of the questions you might consider asking:
- What are your best-performing SKUs with existing CPG distributors in terms of raw sales numbers?
- Which of your SKUs offer the best per-unit and total profit margin for distributors?
- Do you have any tangential assets which might appeal to distributors? For example, a large social media following.
- What is the impact of inventory and stocking for your products? Put another way, how much work will it be for a distributor to take your product lines and get them to retailer shelves?
2: Create a page targeted at distributors, then push them in your funnel
As the old saying goes, “don’t ask, don’t get”.
When it comes to improving your website for CPG distributors, this concept essentially means creating dedicated content which answers the questions they may have about your brand.
You can do this in a number of ways, but one of the most effective is to simply have a dedicated “Distributors” page on your CPG brand’s website. This will naturally catch the attention of potential distributors and is a good place to begin.
From there, it’s all about creating a page that generates interest and gets the distributors into your funnel.
It’s a good idea to start at the end here by thinking about the final goal of the page. In most cases, that’ll be to get the distributor to reach out to you, either through a contact form, email, or phone call.
Now, actually encouraging them to want to contact you is the job of the rest of the page. You’re free to include whatever you like here, but some good talking points for CPG distributors might be:
- A nicely presented summary of the key metrics. These are essentially the points we covered in point 1 above. Remember that distributors are mainly going to be interested in the same things: volumes, inventory levels, and profit margins. By presenting them with your numbers up front like this, you’re giving yourself the best chance of encouraging them to reach out.
- Do your research on what CPG distributors want. While your specific numbers will be compelling, it’s also a smart idea to consider what else CPG distributors will be looking for in a brand like yours, then tailoring your content to appeal to and answer those questions.
3: Create compelling click-through actions to encourage distributors to reach out
Over and above the dedicated page we discussed above, there are plenty of other tactics you can deploy to improve your website for CPG distributors.
This tip is all about creating opportunities for distributors to interact with your brand and discover the information they might want quickly without friction.
Imagine you were considering working with a brand but had so many options that you didn’t know where to start. This is how it can feel for CPG distributors, so anything you can do to make their decision-making process easier — and prove your product — the better your chances of landing that lead.
So, in addition to the dedicated page, here are some other click-through actions or opportunities you should spend some time nurturing:
- Develop an active social media presence so potential distributors can find you and click through to your website.
- Make your key metrics easier to access, such as with a downloadable PDF available in a single click from your website.
- Make your CTA (Call To Action) opportunities big, bold, and impossible to miss. When a distributor lands on your site, you want to make it effortless for them to reach out to you — and an unmissable CTA will help make this happen.
Bonus tip: Analyze, analyze, analyze!
Before we wrap up this guide to optimizing your website for CPG distributors, here’s one final tip: make the most of website analytics.
After all, now that you’ve spent so much time tweaking your web presence to appeal to CPG distributors, it makes sense to track how well it’s working for you.
By implementing a web analytics system (like the free Google Analytics), you’ll be able to track the activity of users on your website — especially on your dedicated CPG distributors landing page. This will help you in a few different ways, but primarily it’ll allow you to understand if the page is too long, too short, not detailed enough, or lacking in the CTA department. Armed with analytics, you’ll have everything you need to further optimize your site for CPG distributor conversions.
Supercharge your reach with Buffalo Market
Now that you’re familiar with how to charm those CPG distributors, it’s surely a matter of time before your products are flying off the shelves.
But don’t forget that you can do some manual outreach, too. Here at Buffalo Market, we’re always looking to engage with fresh, forward-thinking CPG brands who share our mission-driven approach to commerce.
To learn more about how our direct store delivery and merchandising services could help grow your brand’s reach, just say hello today.
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