A couple of months back, my wife and I decided we needed a second car.
Running the boys to football, martial arts, swimming lessons. One car just wasn’t cutting it anymore.
We were running a taxi service with one vehicle and the stress of always rushing was doing my head in.
I only wanted a small runabout. Nothing fancy.
The 12-Week Wait That Cost Them the Sale
I narrowed it down to a few choices and started calling dealers.
“How soon can I get one?” I’d ask.
The responses were all the same:
“Well, we’re looking at 8-10 weeks minimum…”
“You’re probably looking at 12 weeks if you want that colour…”
TWELVE WEEKS?
By that time I’d have had a nervous breakdown from the constant time pressure.
I didn’t want it in 8-12 weeks. I wanted it NOW.
So what happened? Those dealers with the long lead times LOST THE SALE.
I ended up getting a Renault 5. The kids helped pick it – mainly because of the AI assistant that looks like a robot. Apparently having a car that talks back to you is “SO COOL!”
The dealer who got my business? He had one available IMMEDIATELY.
In an Amazon Prime World, Speed Wins
And that right there is the lesson every business needs to learn –
We live in an Amazon Prime world now. People want it NOW, not in a month’s time. And if you can’t deliver, someone else will.
The 17-Day Mug Quote
Which brings me to a phone call I got yesterday.
I’m talking to a new distributor – let’s call him Mark. He’s got a client wanting 504 white dye sub mugs for an upcoming event.
Mark called his usual supplier.
“17 days,” they tell him.
SEVENTEEN DAYS for a white dye sub mug.
Not 16 days. Not 18 days. EXACTLY 17 days — a weirdly specific time.
I could hear the defeat in Mark’s voice. “My client’s going to flip,” he said. “They need these in 5 days max, or they’re going with someone else.”
Long Lead Times Don’t Just Delay Orders — They Kill Deals
And that’s the issue here.
Your suppliers’ long lead times aren’t just annoying for you, they’re KILLING your deals before they even start.
Your client doesn’t care about your supplier’s production schedule.
They only care about THEIR event. THEIR deadline.
In promotional products, speed isn’t just an advantage, it’s the difference between you keeping a client for years, and them jumping ship to someone else.
When Mark told me about the 17-day quote, I laughed. Not at him – at the ridiculousness of it.
What Distributors Actually Need From a Supplier
“Mark,” I said, “I can have 500 white dye sub mugs at your door in 3 days.”
At Prince William Pottery, we built our entire operation around one thing: Distributors need suppliers who understand that time kills deals.
We’re like that Renault dealer who actually had cars in stock. Revolutionary concept, right?
Because we know that when your client calls with an urgent need, “17 days” isn’t an option. It’s a death sentence for the sale.
Ready to Win More Urgent Orders?
Ready to become the distributor who never has to say “sorry, that’ll take 3 weeks”?
Give me a call on 0151 259 1221 or email. Let’s talk about how fast we can deliver.
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