CAN EVERY CARRIER HAVE IT ALL?

No. But, every provider of wireless services can create an agenda that defines how it will make the most out of its Retail, Indirect, & Business-to-Business Channels. I wrote this book as an introduction and a guide to such ends. It considers not how carriers usually operate but how they can best operate. It describes the principles of distribution and its various aspects based on observations I've made, working as a consultant with major wireless companies, as well as my own experience in electronics sales since 1971.

Since the subject is so challenging, I have made my recommendations as simple as possible. You will find no discussions of engineering, marketing research, human resources, or financial planning, as worthy as these subjects might be. Instead you will find:

- 15 Ways to Grow Your Retail Distribution

- 24 Ways to Grow Your Indirect Channel Distribution

- 11 Ways to Grow Your Business-to-Business Distribution

- 332 Questions to Analyze Your Distribution Strategies

You may want to read this book, and enjoy it as a mild stimulant. At the same time, if you look beyond its deceptive simplicity, you may find it profitable to study the ideas presented. You may want to think through the questions provided, and dig down deep to come up with concrete answers. In this way you may be able to bring unity to the sometimes fragmented business of driving wireless sales through diverse channels of distribution.

ORDER OR CHAOS

Think about your Retail, Indirect, and Business-to-Business Channels as if they were the waters of an Olympic pool. The waters are combined & contained in one large area, but they're organized by lanes. To win, (1) you've got to get in the water, and (2) you've got to stay in your lane.

(1) A mix of elements, but no order
(2) A mix of elements, with some order
(3) A mix of elements, with better order
(4) The same elements as No. 1, but organized to create meaning

To create an integrated and organized strategy, you may want to ask yourself: How might the differences between retail, indirect, and business-to-business distribution demand diòerent ways that I should go about the business of selling wireless within each channel?

I wish there was one right answer. If there is one, you won't find it in the pages that follow. But you will find a number of ideas, organized by channel, that will help you make the most of your wireless distribution opportunities.

In this second edition, I've revised the content to reflect the latest changes in the industry.

-EDMOND H. LEGUM