Distributing Ideas, The NAW Blog
Robotics, Industrial Connectivity – Wholesale Distribution Trends #11
One offshoot of the Internet of Things (IoT) is the rise in the implementation and use of connected robotics as companies look for ways to gain efficiency and cut costs on the customer’s factory floor, in the warehouse, and elsewhere. This is a growing opportunity for wholesaler-distributors to keep manufacturing-customer plants running without interruption, especially as many firms consider [...]
The Internet of Things for Wholesaler-Distributors – Wholesale Distribution Trends #10
The Internet of Things (IoT) is the network of physical objects, embedded with sensors and electronic components, which gathers, stores, and analyzes data. Forecasts project that there will be more than 20 billion connected things in use worldwide by 2020. The IoT is one of the greatest technologies shaping the business world today because of its power to collect and deliver information that [...]
Cloud Computing for the Wholesaler-Distributor – Wholesale Distribution Trends #9
The amount of data being produced today is increasing exponentially, and technology is allowing companies to analyze massive amounts of that data to garner new insights about customers and themselves. In many cases, the analysis and insights can be used to generate new forms of differentiation that can be used to disrupt existing markets, and cloud computing is enabling these [...]
Analytics for the Wholesaler-Distributor – Wholesale Distribution Trends #8
The amount of data being produced today is increasing exponentially, and technology is allowing companies to analyze massive amounts of that data to garner new insights about customers and themselves. In many cases, the analysis and insights can be used to generate new forms of differentiation that can be used to disrupt existing markets. For example, Amazon has gained a patent for what it calls [...]
Digital Commerce – Wholesale Distribution Trends #7
In many ways, technology is at the center of our business and personal lives as software and devices become less expensive, easier to access, and more necessary for a wide range of functions. We start our days with devices that monitor our steps and track our caloric intake, phones that keep track of appointments, and the list goes on. It is no different for wholesaler-distributors, for whom [...]
Leveraging the Changing Workforce – Wholesale Distribution Trends #6
Many business leaders assume that the difference between the Millennial and Baby Boomer generations is an unbridgeable chasm thanks to differences in technology acceptance, personal values, workplace expectations, and work–life experience. In between these generations sit the Gen Xers, who represent the upcoming leadership generation. These three forces are converging to create one of the most [...]
Using Mergers and Acquisitions as a Disruptive Force – Wholesale Distribution Trends #5
In today’s disruptive world, providing great service and understanding customers are critical to avoiding disruption. But if a business wants to avoid becoming irrelevant or marginalized, it can’t stand still, nor can it assume that its competition is doing so. A strong business will constantly assess its competitors’ capabilities and value propositions, asking what those companies are [...]
Leveraging Relationships in a Customer-Centric World – Wholesale Distribution Trends #4
Some of the most turbulent seas wholesaler-distributors encounter today come from their relationships with customers and suppliers. The disruptive forces discussed in previous blogs permeate these relationships, contributing to the changing face of the industry. Although this discussion primarily focuses on customer relationships, many of its tenets apply to supplier interactions as well. [...]
Branding and Image: Distributors as Service Providers – Wholesale Distribution Trends #3
When a customer, prospect, or supplier hears your company’s name, what is the first thought that enters his or her mind? How well does it match what you would like it to be? In general, the wholesale distribution industry has spent less time and effort in developing brand awareness than retailers, consumer packaged goods companies, manufacturers, and banks. However, this trend is [...]
Unpacking the 6 Disruptive Forces in Wholesale Distribution – Wholesale Distribution Trends #2
In the first article of the Wholesale Distribution Trends series, six disruptive forces that are shaping the wholesale distribution marketplace were introduced: business disruption process disruption people disruption technology disruption mergers and acquisitions disruption government regulations disruption. Understanding how these forces may affect wholesale distribution [...]
