Referrals remain the top source for new business.

That’s according to ASI Research, which found that among both Canadian and U.S. distributors, word-of-mouth marketing and references is their most lucrative method of gaining new sales, cited by 87% of Canadians and 84% of Americans. Meanwhile, 30% of Canadians say they get new business from their website, compared to only 23% of U.S. distributors.

While average gross profit margin was about the same in both countries, more Canadians are concerned about staying profitable under pressure to cut prices – though they were able to retain 81% of clients in both 2021 and 2022.

Allen Stern, marketing solutions specialist at Proforma Allen Stern Marketing (asi/491730) in Thornhill, ON, says his company retained 90% of clients between 2021 and 2022, averages a 35% gross profit margin and gets most of its new business from referrals.

“A top business concern for us is logistics, mainly inventory levels and on-time delivery,” he says. “We’re also concerned with increasing our customer base and customer spend, as well as with clients shopping around.”

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