Just because buyers are accessible on more channels than ever doesn’t mean this process is easy. In this module, we review the best practices for reaching out to new buyers and where to find them.
The best place to start out is on the retailer’s website. Most retailers will have a new vendor portal or page that you can access to see how they prefer you reach out. It is important that this is simply a preferred suggestion by the retailer and not necessarily the only way to get in touch with them.
In the simplest terms, RangeMe is a discovery platform for buyers to discover new potential brands. The issue is that RangeMe has over 200,000 brands on the platform, so the likelihood of getting discovered by a new retail buyers is fairly low. We do suggest that brands join the RangeMe free tier and still submit through the platform when requested by buyers, but you want to couple that with a more direct and aggressive approach.
Linkedin is the best way to find who the correct buyer is for your product and there are a lot of buyers who are active and welcoming on Linkedin. With that being said, you most likely don’t want to spam the buyer on Linkedin since it can often be off-putting to that buyer. Your best bet is to use Linkedin to identify the buyer and then, once equipped with their name, use a tool like
You want your cold email to a buyer to be short, captivating, and have a clear call to action:
“Hello Anne,
I am the founder of Cameron’s Coconuts. We are the only coconut water bottled at the source and have seen tremendous growth since launching in 2020.
Our internal data shows that a high density of our customers are “Retailer A” shoppers which is why I wanted to reach out.
I would be happy to send samples, but I would prefer to send samples and find a day/time that works for you to walk through the samples together and why we feel Cameron’s Coconuts are a perfect fit for your stores.
I have attached a sales deck to this email which paints a clear picture on how Cameron’s Coconuts can help increase sales for your category and drive new consumers into your stores.
I look forward to hearing from you and please let me know if you have any questions.”
Short, sweet, and to the point. This is just the start though. You are going to want to make sure you are following up consistently. It is also important to understand if that buyer operates under a category review schedule. You might be trying to sell them popsicles in July when the review isn’t until December.
Lastly, you want to do the research into what trade shows are best for your brand. See which one’s your target buyers are attending and when you do attend, make sure you are emailing them ahead of time to set up meetings. Trade shows can be a great opportunity to meet new buyers, but also a waste of time and money if you’re not intentional with your approach.
Now that you understand how to reach out and target chain buyers, let’s move to how to pitch them.
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Chain Store Outreach