John Wolz

Instead of eliminating salespeople, the Internet can assist the sales effort, an e-commerce expert told the New England Fastener Distributors Association.
�You really aren�t losing the personal contact,� Shari Worthington remarked. The customer looks at your web site first, and then the salesperson comes in. It saves customers time to �sort through the first level and see if they really need you.�
�Do you really love cold calling?� Worthington asked.
�Salespeople will always be needed,� the president of Telesian Technology reasoned. �We are human after all, and we need human contact.�
Since potential customers are looking at web sites first and sending initial questions by e-mail, it is vital to �develop a personality in how you write. A lot of people are very bad at that.�
�I do this silly thing at the end of my e-mail,� Worthington explained. �I sign off �Toodles,� and everyone who gets an e-mail from me remembers it. It is a quirky thing.�
One site has a live webcast of the order fulfillment center that gives the potential customer �a feel for the company.�
�Just handing a catalog to a customer ain�t going to cut it,� Worthington emphasized.
She even suggested using the Internet to allow your customers to talk to each other.
Give customers an order tracking number to refer to when necessary, she suggested.
A good web site puts products and tutorials up front. �The web is all about information. Help people walk through the selection process.�
If the web site is informative and easy, the potential customer will call the salesperson. Give pricing ranges, inventory, lead time and whatever they need to know initially.
Web sites allow sellers to �know everything about your customer. The tools are available now.�
Value Added vs. Online Price
Many are concerned that online buyers are just looking for the lowest price, Worthington acknowledged. �Distributors need to promote the value they add on their web sites,� she emphasized.
�If all you are doing is taking orders, get out of the business now while you have some money,� she advised.
Web sites should not just pitch, but �provide them with information. Figure out how to differentiate yourself.�
�If you don�t add value and don�t have a way to differentiate yourself � Internet or no Internet � you�re in trouble,� Worthington warned. �It�s all about service.�
Worthington cited the example of Dell Computers selling directly online. Dell found distributors and dealers were just stocking standard inventory and weren�t adding value. Dell created online selling with custom order forms. Now computers and accessories are packed and shipped according to exactly what the customer orders.
Distributors must sell value added to both customers and vendors, she noted.
Should you be selling online?
�You are all going to get involved in the next couple years,� Worthington told the New England distributors.
�Even if you don�t purchase or sell online, you need to approach it as a phenomenal educational tool,� she advised. A web site can provide information, diagrams and pricing �so people can quickly get to what they need.�

� The Internet opens opportunities for global collaborations. Companies can develop new products by sharing designs online. The companies can complete designs by e-mail, sharing files, web meetings and virtual conferencing.
The Internet opens the possibility of group purchasing.

� The Internet changes the manufacturing process itself. �The equipment on the plant floor that is making your nuts and bolts is becoming quite intelligent,� she explained. �Web browser-based systems can communicate with each other.�
A manufacturer can easily send information on delivery times to the distributor, trucking company and customer on the web.

� With security �firewalls� information can be shared with partners, suppliers and key customers.

� EDI is a �dead man walking,� Worthington declared. �The Internet replaces EDI. If anyone tries to sell you an EDI system, run away screaming.�

� The Internet �allows you to react very quickly to opportunities,� Worthington said. �Sometimes at an insane pace.�
�I don�t have to wait six weeks to get customer information. I can get it now.�
With the Internet, a company can react to such changes as market forecasts and pricing based on delivery from suppliers, she pointed out. �It allows you to be a more flexible organization.�
�We can update so much faster. We don�t have to wait two weeks for the marketing department.�
Of course, it creates higher expectations by customers. �People act differently when they get online,� Worthington noted. �They have little patience. It is a �give it to me now� instant gratification kind of mode, and that in turn spreads to expectations about product delivery.�
�Ordering things that are going to take six weeks to deliver just doesn�t cut it anymore, unless they are a highly developed, customer product � and even then people just don�t have the patience.

� The Internet can help with customer problems. �Instead of playing phone tag, you can instantly get information, find out what the problem is and get them in touch with the right people,� Worthington explained. �You can resolve it right now, before it turns into a nightmare of a problem.�