Distribution mapping tool

Click here for free tools and know-how materials from the Mud Valley™ strategy & brand marketing community.

Question - how do I identify under-exploited routes to market for my products & services?

Answer - this is what this tool is designed to do. It also helps you assess the strengths & weaknesses of your current channel relationships.

Key action points

The distribution mapping tool is designed for you to run a quick analysis of whether you are in the right channels of distribution for your products & services, and how secure you are in those channels.

If you sell your products & services exclusively directly to the customer today, it may indicate what you are missing. If you sell through distribution, it may even suggest that you should put more resources behind direct sales.

The tool is designed to be simple, but you can re-run it to test different scenarios, e.g. the situation today vs. a guesstimate for the future, or for different product or service categories.

It has two components:

1. an analysis of how products & services reach customers in your market, and how that matches to your actual sales pattern
2. an analysis of the extent to which you have a fit with known distributors: do you meet their requirements, and do they meet yours?

In more detail .........

The aim of this tool is to help you identify any gaps or weaknesses in your reach into the market via distribution.

1. analysing your "weighted distribution"
2. analysing your fit with individual distributors - how much you meet their needs, and they yours

For simplicity, this tool provides an overview. However, you can repeat the exercise by:

• point in time, e.g. now & in two years' time
• product/service category

To complete the model:

1. allocate the share of total market sales of the product & service by individual brand / distributor. This may leave a part of the market unserved

2. allocate your actual sales. This will identify major gaps (other brands' direct sales, & competitive distributors being obvious ones)
3. insert your "fit" criteria for the relationship between you and channel partners, i.e. what they require from you, and what you require from them

4. allocate the relative importance of each distributor and the "fit" criteria
5. score each distributor according to how well you fit their needs
6. score each distributor according to how well they fit your needs

The Analysis and Charts spreadsheets give you the results:

• how could you increase your reach into your market?
• how could you secure your reach into your market?

• Belgium tel: +32 (0)2 747 0945
• France tel: +33 (0)1 76 63 74 09
• UK tel: +44 (0)208 099 7385

or by e-mail at enquiries@mudvalley.co.uk.

© 2006, Mud Valley ™ brand marketing community.

Related answers