Innovation Archives

Why Switch? How to Convert the Modern B2B End-User To Your Industrial Brand

https://vimeo.com/704676278 Why should an end-user switch to your brand over what they’re currently using? If your response draws attention to an innovative product feature or specification, then your selling proposition needs some retooling. Today’s buyer doesn’t care about your brand. They don’t care about your latest innovative product either. What they care about is in their facility. They care about the problems that their teams are experiencing. End-user buying behavior has changed through the COVID era and is continuing to evolve. Manufacturers and distributors need to evolve their sales and marketing [...]

Why Switch? How to Convert the Modern B2B End-User To Your Industrial BrandNeil Ruffolo2022-05-03T10:16:26-05:00

Catalyzing Growth: Unveiling the Strategic Pivots of Fastenal in a Digital Era

https://youtu.be/mmC2HHBK6TY Fastenal's success story is not just a case study. It's a blueprint for navigating the dynamic B2B landscape. From a B2B distributor with a branch in every city to a trailblazer in the digital era, Fastenal's strategic pivots are nothing short of revolutionary. In this episode of The MDM Podcast, John Gunderson and Tom Gale explore how Fastenal doubled sales from $3.33 billion to $6.98 billion in just a decade, defying industry norms. John Gunderson's three-part series on Fastenal's business transformation provides a captivating narrative of how the B2B distributor [...]

Catalyzing Growth: Unveiling the Strategic Pivots of Fastenal in a Digital EraJohn Gunderson2024-02-23T15:24:34-06:00

Using Active Category Management to Drive Profitability

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f8hcQLIK118 Many distributors have seen double-digit growth with historic profit levels over the past three years that are now moderating. So they are largely focused on shoring up profitability. Manufacturers have weathered severe supply chain challenges over the same period, have invested in automation and other efficiencies, and now are growth-oriented. How do you reconcile these opposing mindsets and goals? In a cycle with slowing demand and increased pricing pressure, James Dorn and Tom Gale outline Active Category Management as a timely year-end strategy. You can also listen to this episode [...]

Using Active Category Management to Drive ProfitabilityJames Dorn2023-11-27T11:26:55-06:00

Profitability Playbook: Using Enterprise Pricing Controls

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ePOwP23L1s With softening demand trends ahead, James Dorn and Tom Gale bust the myths of not being able to grow both top-line revenue and margin in challenging market conditions. Deeper customer-product segmentation and full leverage of your internal and external data resources are key to winning share today. You can also listen to this episode of The MDM Podcast now: James Dorn is a regular guest on The MDM Podcast. Listen on your favorite podcast platform. Thoughts? Questions? As always, feel free to reach out to talk in greater depth [...]

Profitability Playbook: Using Enterprise Pricing ControlsJames Dorn2023-10-18T16:17:25-05:00

Profitability Playbook: Data & Analytics

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8SovBK9GYFM This conversation between Dorn Group President & CEO James Dorn and MDM CEO Tom Gale centers on how data analytics will prove crucial to distributors’ profitability in the year ahead, as the inflation tide that lifted all boats has now left. Here are the elements of a distributor profitability playbook. You can also listen to this episode of The MDM Podcast now: James Dorn is a regular guest on The MDM Podcast. Listen on your favorite podcast platform. Thoughts? Questions? As always, feel free to reach out to talk [...]

Profitability Playbook: Data & AnalyticsJames Dorn2023-10-16T09:20:38-05:00