How do you market to the big boys-Costco, Sams, Walmart, etc

UltimateDealerButton

Do any of you have experience marketing and selling to the
big market distributors like Costco, Sams, Walmart, etc

I would like to see if they would be interested in selling my product.

www.ultimatedealerbutton.com

Thanks for the feedback!

iouone2

Hey Brian,
Thanks. That was great. (the link)

davenny

Dear Grant,
Great question, I have an associate who designs and manufactures products that sell in target, etc.  From talking with him and my own personal experience to I have two key tips.
One: You call them, they do not call you!,  You have to get on the phone and start the slow process finding the right person to talk to.  Your goal is to setup a meeting to have someone review your product.  (Almost every new product in wal-mart has to go through this process).
Two: Tradeshows, my associate goes to every retail trade show there is, the big one is once a year in Las Vegas, I believe at one of these tradeshows is where he got a direct contact with a wal-mart buy and then setup a meeting.
Good luck, and get on the phone today!!!!
 

David

davenny nailed it on the money.  You don`t market to distributors.  They either won`t notice or care about ads you place in trade or industry publications or even most word-of-mouth.  It`s like trying to charm a 800-pound gorilla.
Try to make contacts in the distributor you want to deal with and do your utmost to seek a face-to-face appointment with their buyers.  A large company has hundreds or thousands of people who all do different and specific things.  There`s little point in convincing an accountant at Walmart to buy your dealer chip invention.
UltimateDealerButton, I think you`re definitely setting your sights on the wrong target for a distribution channel however.  Try more specialized distributors and resellers who will have a much larger incentive for evaluating and carrying the button.  It`s like marketing to a demographic.  Target those with a need.  As an example, try talking to outfits such as Pokersupply or Ragshop.

StartupnationKB

You might want to forget about Walmart.
All you have to do is watch the Frontline documentary "Is Walmart Good for America".  id=189530&strkid=1338331077_8_0
After watching it, you`ll see why I said forget about them. 

Liez

It's probably gonna be a long shot because they're very much established businesses and would require a lot from you to prove to them that you're deserving of a slot in their stores.
Good luck!

Cheers,
Liz
http://www.jtcasinogames.com

zelc

It is a long shot because they're very much established businesses Maybe you can actually invite the bigwigs to a <a href="http://www.jtcasinogames.com">beer pong</a> match and see if you can sway their minds after they've had one drink too many during the match. Of course, I'm kidding. But who knows? Just put your best foot forward and present your business to the bigwigs the best way you can. You can do it!