One of the biggest mistakes newer brands make is not planning for what happens AFTER you get your product on a retailer’s shelves. That first part is hard, don’t get me wrong. Getting on the shelf is a solid goal for new brands. But that cannot (and should not) be the final goal. That’s why an integrated sales and marketing calendar should be in your sales presentation.  

You owe it to yourself — and your product — to keep the good vibes going. What do I mean by that? You need to be figuring out ways to help get the product back OFF the shelf and into people’s carts. That’s both to drive sales and to extend the livelihood of your product. Retailers, on average, can only afford to give a product less than twelve months to meet sales expectations. If your product doesn’t sell, it could be discontinued.  

An integrated sales and marketing calendar consists of two parts: 

1. The promotional calendar outlines when you are offering a sale price (via an allowance to the retailer) and what the suggested retail sale price should be. Price promotion is a great way to get customers to be aware of and try your product, but it cannot be the only way.  
2. The marketing calendar outlines what creative activities you are going to support over and above your price promotions. This would include social media shoutouts announcing availability at Retailer XYZ with a video, public relations campaigns focusing on specific retail partners and your products, etc. This is where your creativity needs to shine. Whatever excitement you can come up with in the form of consumer marketing that will help your retailer partner sell more product — swag giveaways, contests, partnerships, etc. — will help them visualize success with your product.  

Having an integrated calendar in your presentation will tell your audience that you have a plan to support your brand after it hits shelves to ensure its success. This takes a lot of the guesswork out of the process for the retailer. And, at a minimum, it tells your retailer partners that you are worth partnering with.