Meet dealers and distributors who fit your channel objective

Define the customer, territory and operating role you need, then distinguish a worthwhile channel Introduction from commercial agreement.

Start with the channel gap#

If you want to meet dealers or distributors, explain the gap the relationship would fill. That might be reaching a particular customer group in a territory, adding a complementary product line or exploring a service-capable channel for your equipment.

Kite can help identify relevant people and get qualified phone or video meetings booked. An Introduction gives you a reason to talk and the context to continue. Your business handles evaluation, commercial terms and any appointment after the handoff.

For this guide, work through an equipment supplier seeking a conversation with an established channel business in a defined territory. Replace the product and territory with your real offer, while retaining the distinction between fit, willingness and agreement.

Prepare a channel brief#

Write down what you need the relationship to do and what you can actually support. “Find distributors everywhere” gives little direction for choosing people or judging a handoff.

Part of the brief	Useful detail	Business decision to keep explicit
Product	The equipment or product family, intended use and accurate capability information	Claims, certifications and availability you have actually confirmed
Customer	The type of organisation or end user the product serves	Whether a proposed channel reaches that customer group
Territory	A named area or market you want to explore	Existing rights, coverage conflicts and delivery feasibility
Channel role	Selling, stocking, supplying other sellers, servicing or another agreed function	What responsibilities each party would accept
Your support	The documentation, training and service information you can provide	Pricing, stock, warranty and support commitments still needing confirmation
First conversation	What you want to evaluate together	The evidence needed before taking a commercial next step

Do not infer responsibilities from the label “dealer” or “distributor.” Ask how the business reaches customers, fulfils orders and supports the product. A company can perform more than one role.

Evaluate compatibility in layers#

Start with customer, product and territory relevance. Then identify operational questions that matter for this particular product.

The International Trade Administration's representative checklist considers territory, product compatibility, customer profile and service capability. It addresses foreign representatives; the questions here adapt that relationship reasoning to your chosen channel objective. They do not establish market-entry eligibility or appoint a representative.

Layer	Question worth asking	Evidence boundary
Customer access	Does this business serve the customer group we want to reach?	A website claim or broad category needs relevant supporting detail
Product compatibility	Is our product useful alongside its current lines?	Similar products may complement or conflict; check rather than assume
Territory fit	Does the actual area served match our chosen direction?	A headquarters address does not establish coverage everywhere
Operating capability	Does the proposed role need stocking, installation, training or service?	Make an essential capability required; record unknown facts to confirm on the call
Relationship responsibility	Who evaluates a new line or supplier relationship?	A salesperson may need to route the discussion to another colleague
Reason to engage	Why would the person explore this particular line or relationship?	Apparent fit alone does not establish willingness to talk

If your product requires local servicing before any relationship is useful, make that capability explicit. If the first meeting is to explore a possible sales-only arrangement, do not silently add a service requirement. Choose the standard from the objective.

Set a worthwhile Introduction standard#

For a new-line exploration conversation, a starting standard could include:

The business serves the relevant customer group in the territory being explored.
The proposed product or channel role has a credible connection to its business.
The person is relevant to evaluating the relationship, or is the agreed route to that discussion.
They have expressed interest in discussing the specific opportunity and agreed to be connected.
Every additional condition you marked required has supporting evidence.

Keep full commercial diligence separate. Sales forecasts, minimum orders, margins, credit terms, exclusivity and warranty arrangements can be questions for the business conversation. For an essential required fact, a recorded failure rules the person out. An unconfirmed fact stays visible to confirm on the call.

An interested channel business does not have to place an order to qualify for an Introduction. It also does not become an appointed dealer because a call is booked.

Prepare the mission in Kite#

Choose Create your own when you want to enter this brief directly. The mission builder follows the five stages below; recommendations are another starting route.

Use the mission setup guide and apply the channel brief to the current five stages:

Describe: state the territory/customer gap and select your accurate product information. You can ask Kite to help work out suitable profiles and locations if the audience is still uncertain.
Decision-makers: review relevant company types, relationship roles and geography. Include existing channel partners, coverage conflicts and unsuitable product categories as exclusions where needed.
Qualify: separate required Introduction evidence from preferences and later diligence.
Execution: review a truthful message about evaluating the line or relationship. Keep unsupported stock, margin and exclusivity promises out of it. Confirm the sending identity and saved permissions.
Review: check the saved direction, criteria, campaign, handoff choice and Reach allocation. Resolve the readiness issues shown before choosing to start.

The screenshot shows the audience step. Choose roles and locations because they serve the channel objective, rather than treating the largest available list as the best market.

One unique person sourced into a mission consumes one Reach. A headquarters match, a discovered company or a relevant product catalogue is not proof of interest. Follow Reach guidance for allocation and counting.

**Choose the right people**
Decision-makers step with selectable roles for your mission.

Practise three handoff decisions#

Read these responses against the starting standard. Keep the person's stated interest separate from assumptions about commercial commitment.

Response	What is supported	Next decision
“We sell equipment. Send your catalogue.”	Broad relevance and a request for information	Confirm customer/territory fit and willingness to discuss this relationship; the request alone is insufficient
“I evaluate new lines for our company. We serve the territory you described and would like to discuss this product family; please connect me with your team.”	Relevant responsibility, territory information, specific interest and agreement to connect	Check the remaining required evidence, then the actual handoff and next step
“We'll talk if you guarantee exclusivity and a margin you haven't approved.”	Interest conditional on unapproved terms	Bring the business decision to your team; do not claim those terms are available or that willingness is unconditional

The walkthrough below shows how to review the conversation and qualification context. Use the actual required conditions from your mission; keep unsupported statements visible as unknowns.

32 sec · Captioned, no audio

Review the first Introduction

Turn the Introduction into an evaluation conversation#

Before the meeting, prepare current product documentation, the questions still open and a clear owner for the business follow-through. Share only material you are authorised to share.

Use the conversation to establish:

Which customers and territory the business actually serves.
How the product would sit alongside its existing lines and any potential conflict.
Who would sell, stock, install or service it under the proposed arrangement.
What information each side needs to assess a relationship.
Which pricing, delivery, training or support questions require your team's decision.
A next step both sides agree to, with a responsible person.

That next step might be reviewing technical information, involving a service colleague or continuing commercial diligence. Do not imply an order, signed agreement or exclusive appointment before it exists. Kite does not negotiate or approve those commitments through this lesson.

Recover from a channel mismatch#

What you observe	Likely question to resolve	Useful correction
The business sells similar products to a different customer group	Whether the audience really matches the channel gap	Refine customer relevance instead of relying on category similarity
A company is in the right location but serves another territory	Actual market coverage	Correct the geographic assumption and confirm the relevant evidence
The person lacks responsibility for a new line	Who owns supplier evaluation	Use the permitted conversation to identify the appropriate route; do not invent a colleague's agreement
A needed service or stocking capability is unclear	Which required facts remain unknown for the call	Keep unconfirmed required facts visible for the call; a recorded failure rules the person out
Interest depends on unapproved terms	Whether your business wants to offer those terms	Escalate the decision and avoid unsupported promises

For a mission start or activity issue, use recovery guidance. Adjusting the audience does not restore used Reach, ignore suppression or approve new commercial terms.

Work with your agent#

Give your agent the channel brief and the actual product information. It can compare audience hypotheses, make an evidence table and prepare questions for your meeting. The task below keeps appointments, pricing and other business commitments under your control.

Work with your agent

A clear task to copy

Use the meet-dealers-and-distributors University guide and my accurate product information to prepare a channel Introduction brief. If University retrieval is available, retrieve the current guide and cite its version and relevant section URLs. Ask which customer group, territory and operating role the relationship would serve. Build a table of customer relevance, compatible lines, actual coverage, responsibility for supplier evaluation, necessary operating capability, exclusions, required evidence and unknowns. Treat category and headquarters matches as incomplete evidence. Separate essential pre-handoff requirements from later stocking, service, pricing, minimum-order, margin, warranty, credit and exclusivity decisions. Test a catalogue-only reply, an interested relevant line-evaluation contact and interest conditional on unapproved terms. Do not invent demand, credentials, inventory, rights or financial commitments. Prepare guidance only: do not source people, import contacts, reveal paid data, create or start work, change settings, appoint a dealer, negotiate commitments, send messages, connect accounts or spend money. If I ask for live account evidence, use current authenticated tool discovery and returned IDs and keep unavailable facts unknown. Finish with the brief and business questions I should review in Kite.

This prepares guidance. Use the controls in your Kite workspace for account changes and starting work.

Build your brief#

Use the worksheet to describe one product family, customer group and territory. In the criteria field, distinguish essential conditions from optional diligence. Keep unconfirmed required facts visible for the call. The worksheet stays in this browser and does not create or activate work.

Your introduction brief

A practical worksheet you can take into Kite.

Try it

What do you want to achieve?

Who could help you achieve it?

What must be true?

Loading saved brief…

This worksheet stays in your browser. Review and start your mission in Kite.

Check your next step#

Review the mission when the channel gap, truthful product information, relevant roles and essential conditions are clear. After an Introduction, use handoff review and next-step preparation to continue the evaluation.

Your readiness check

0 of 5 checked

The channel gap names a product, customer group and territoryI distinguish actual coverage from a headquarters locationRequired conditions fit the relationship we want to exploreCommercial terms and appointments remain business decisionsMy team has the evidence and questions for the next conversationThese checks stay in this browser. These are your notes; Kite’s actual account state and start checks decide readiness.