Options to Configure your Manufacturers

NOTE: This article details the options for Manufacturer data management.  To learn how Manufacturers connect with Agency-Managed versions of their company to receive orders, please see this article. For additional details on Manufacturer order delivery, please see here.

 

In the MarketTime system, Manufacturer data can be managed in one of four ways:

• Solely by the Manufacturer aka “Direct Connection”
• Solely by the Agency aka “No Connection”
• Shared responsibility between the Manufacturer & Agency aka “1:1 Connection”
• "Hybrid Connection”

In all of these scenarios, the Agency retains the ability to do the following:

• Supplement the Manufacturer's account with documents specific to their Agency
• Manage Manufacturer Top/Teaser Items for their B2B Website
• Manage Assignments related to the Manufacturer within their Agency (Territory, Division, Salesperson, etc.)
• Assign Price Codes to customers as needed (provided additional pricing exists)
• Assign Manufacturer Account Numbers as needed (if applicable)

In most cases, MarketTime recommends that Manufacturers take responsibility for their data through a “Direct Connection.” This includes timely updates of product files, images, catalogs, promos, etc. When this is done properly, any Agency connected to that Manufacturer will be immediately updated when a change has been made.

 

Guide to Data Management Icons

On the Manufacturer screen in the MarketTime system, different icons represent a Manufacturer's data management choice. See the table below for more details.

 

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"No Connection" - The Agency Manages the Manufacturer's Data

In this scenario, the Agency manages all the Manufacturer’s data. If multiple agencies are connected to this Manufacturer, each Agency would have a separate Agency-managed account for the Manufacturer.

 

HOW THE ACCOUNT IS IDENTIFIED IN MARKETTIME

In the Manufacturer screen, any Manufacturer whose data is being managed by the Agency will have their name and MarketTime number in the ‘Manufacturer Name’ column- no other icons. There will also be a pencil icon in the ‘Action’ column of the Manufacturer screen. This means that the account is editable by the Agency.

 

PROS

The Agency has full control of all aspects of the Manufacturer’s data (informational data, Products, Images, Catalogs, B2B-related assets (banners, logos, etc.), and Payment/Shipping terms.

 

CONS

Because the Agency is the sole manager of the account, they must obtain any new assets from the Manufacturer and upload all related data (Products, Images, Catalogs, B2B-related assets (product images, banners, logos, etc.), etc.

 

HOW TO SET UP

See the dedicated article on Adding a new Manufacturer for more information.

 

ADDITIONAL CONSIDERATIONS

• If an Agency has a Manufacturer account that moves from Agency-managed “No Connection” to Manufacturer-managed “Direct Connection”, the Agency will need to redo any salesperson assignments, transfer the order history from the Agency-managed account to the Manufacturer-managed account, and then set the Agency-managed account to Inactive.
• Any products or assets uploaded by an Agency when managing a Manufacturer account cannot later be transferred to a "Direct Connection" Manufacturer-managed account. In other words, if an Agency starts out by managing a Manufacturer's data using the "No Connection" method, and then the Manufacturer decides later to begin managing their own data (i.e, the "Direct Connection" method), the Manufacturer will not be able to utilize any of the products or assets previously uploaded by the Agency.

 

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"Direct Connection" - Manufacturer Manages Their Data & Shares the Account with Their Agencies

In this scenario, the Manufacturer manages their own data. Any Agency associated with the Manufacturer can request access to the Manufacturer’s account. Once approved, the Manufacturer’s data (images, product files, promotions, payment and shipping terms, catalogs) is populated into the Agency’s account for that Manufacturer. While the Agency cannot change or remove existing data, they can add complimentary pieces to the account: additional catalogs, etc.

 

HOW THIS ACCOUNT IS IDENTIFIED IN MARKETTIME

In the Manufacturer screen, there will be a chain link icon next to the manufacturer’s name in the ‘Manufacturer Name’ column. There will also be an eyeball icon in the ‘Action’ column. This means that the account is not editable by the agency.

PROS

The Manufacturer manages all their data including:

• Products
• Images
• Promotions
• Catalogs
• B2B-related assets (product images, banners, logos, etc.).
• Payment/Shipping Terms

Updates made in the Manufacturer account will show up immediately in all connected Agency accounts.

 

CONS

Because the connected Agencies cannot make edits to the Manufacturer’s existing data, they are dependent on the Manufacturer to update the account to access new product images, pricing, promos, catalogs, etc.

 

HOW TO SET UP

To add a new ‘Direct Connection’ Manufacturer to the agency account, use the ‘New’ button found on the Manufacturers screen:

When adding a new Manufacturer, search for their name in the Search field and confirm the Manufacturer ID that appears next to it. The Manufacturer ID should be provided to you by the Manufacturer. If the Manufacturer you're adding is already a member of MarketTime, they will appear as an option to select when searching. If you do not see the Manufacturer listed, reach out to support@markettime.com to have them assist in linking the Manufacturer to your Agency.

 

 

Select the appropriate Manufacturer in the drop-down to add them to the list of connected Agency Manufacturers. Adding them will send a request to the Manufacturer. A "Not Approved" tag will appear next to the Manufacturer’s name until they have approved the request to link. This prevents unauthorized use of the Manufacturer’s data.

From the Manufacturer’s side, a pop-up will appear in their account showing the Agency’s request to link and asking that the Manufacturer approve or deny the request.

NOTE: The Manufacturer must log into MarketTime and approve this request before an Agency will be able to see the Manufacturer’s data.

Once the approval is made, Manufacturer information including Address, Minimum Order Amounts, Email for Orders, Payment/Shipping Terms, Promotions, Digital Assets / Shoppable Catalogs, Products Details, and Product Images will become available for use by the approved Agency.

 

ADDITIONAL CONSIDERATIONS

• If an Agency is moving from "No Connection" aka Agency-managed version to a "Direct Connection" aka a Manufacturer-managed account, orders and salesperson assignments will not automatically flow from one type of account management to another. To transfer order history from the Agency-managed account into the Manufacturer-managed account, please follow the steps in this guide https://support.markettime.com/hc/en-us/articles/7368565974811-Transferring-Manufacturer-Order-History.
• For Salespeople to place orders using the 'new'/merged account, you must make sure that a Division is listed under the Manufacturer's merged account. See the article, HERE for more information on assigning a Division.  
• Any products or assets uploaded by an Agency when managing a Manufacturer account cannot later be transferred to a "Direct Connection" Manufacturer-managed account. In other words, if an Agency starts out by managing a Manufacturer's data using the "No Connection" method, and then the Manufacturer decides later to begin managing their own data (i.e, the "Direct Connection" method), the Manufacturer will not be able to utilize any of the products or assets previously uploaded by the Agency.

 

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"1-1 Connection" - Agency and Manufacturer Share Responsibility of Managing the Manufacturer's Data

In this scenario, the Manufacturer has a direct relationship with only one sales Agency. Both the Manufacturer and the Agency are set up to share management of the Manufacturer’s data, each having full control over editing, deleting, and uploading assets. If another Agency is added to the mix, the “1:1 Connection” will automatically change to a “Direct Connection” and access will be removed from the original Agency. For this reason, “1:1 Connections” are not often recommended.

 

HOW THIS ACCOUNT IS IDENTIFIED IN MARKETTIME

Similar to the "Direct Connection" scenario above, Manufacturers using a “1:1 Connection” have a chain link next to their name in the ‘Manufacturer Name’ column. That said “1:1 Connection” Manufacturers also have a 1:1 icon in that column indicating the shared management of data with a single Agency. To designate that Agency’s ability to edit, there is also a pencil icon in the “Action” column.

 

PROS

In this scenario, both the Manufacturer and Agency share the responsibility of managing the Manufacturer’s assets: Products, Promotions,  Images, Catalogs, B2B-related assets (banners, logos, etc.), and Payment/Shipping terms.

 

CONS

When other Agencies, or the Manufacturer themselves (as order writers), connect to the account, the Agency that originally shared the account, loses their access and the account reverts to the "Direct Connection" scenario noted above. In other words, this setup is only available when an Agency is the only one directly connected to the Manufacturer.

 

Unless the Agency is very confident that it will be the only representative in the MarketTime ecosystem for the Manufacturer for the foreseeable future; the Agency may do a lot of the work to populate the account, but then lose the shared control.

 

HOW TO SET UP

The setup of this scenario is the same as the "Direct Connection" scenario noted above. 

 

ADDITIONAL CONSIDERATIONS

The original Agency will NOT be notified if the Manufacturer approves another Agency's request to link directly. The 1:1 icon will disappear leaving only the chain link and indicating that the Manufacturer account has become a “Direct Connection.” The pencil icon will also be replaced by an eyeball indicating that the account is no longer editable.

 

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"Hybrid Connection" - Agency keeps linked Manufacturer Inactive

In this scenario, the Agency is directly connected to the Manufacturer as shown in the "Direct Connection" scenario above, with one major difference: 

After directly linking with the Manufacturer, the Manufacturer is then set as INACTIVE and the Agency continues to manage their own version of the Manufacturer's account. This is most commonly used when the Manufacturer is actively managing their data in MarketTime, but an Agency requires a slightly different data or presentation of it. Being directly connected to the Manufacturer, allows the Agency to temporarily set the Manufacturer as ACTIVE, navigate to the Import/Export screen, and export products/images to upload into the Agency-managed version, then set the Manufacturer-managed version as INACTIVE again.

 

PROS

For Agencies who need control of the Manufacturer's data for company-specific needs, but still want the benefit of the Manufacturer's engagement. This allows passive access to the products, images, and promotions the Manufacturer is uploading.

 

CONS

It requires the additional steps of activating the Manufacturer, exporting their data, importing it into the secondary instance of the Manufacturer, and inactivating it as often as needed. This could be considered additional work depending on the engagement of the Manufacturer, and the needs of the Agency.

 

HOW TO SET UP

The setup of this scenario is the same as the "Direct Connection" scenario above, but the Agency will set the Manufacturer as Inactive once connected, and ensure no Salespeople are assigned to it. This secondary account would only exist for Admin users to interact with.

The Agency’s primary account for the Manufacturer would be the Agency-managed version. Then when the Agency needs to update any data, they would take the following steps:

1. Navigate to the Manufacturers screen and filter by INACTIVE:

2. Open the appropriate Manufacturer and set them to ACTIVE:

3. Navigate to the Import/Export screen (Maintenance  > Import & Export Items), select the Manufacturer, and export the products/images as needed:

4. On the same screen, switch to the Agency-managed version of this Manufacturer (as noted by the "pencil" icon in the drop-down list) and upload the data:

5. Navigate back to the Manufacturers screen, open the linked, Manufacturer-managed version (as noted by the "chain-link icon", and mark it as INACTIVE again.

 

ADDITIONAL CONSIDERATIONS

During the time the Manufacturer-managed account is ACTIVE, the Agency may also access Promotions and Catalogs to export and re-enter/re-upload into the Agency-managed version. It's also important to remember to manage Payment/Shipping Terms to ensure the Agency-managed and Manufacturer-managed accounts match.

 

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Consolidating Manufacturer Listings - FOR AGENCY ADMINS

Once an Agency has added a Manufacturer according to one of the related scenarios above, there will likely be two listings in the Agency's Manufacturers screen. MarketTime recommends consolidating them to remove the unneeded record.

NOTE: This should not be done for a "Hybrid Connection," as you will need both Agency-managed and Manufacturer-managed to maintain an up-to-date account.

 

On the Manufacturers page, begin by clicking on the Transfer button above your Manufacturer list:

In the resulting window, you will choose which Manufacturer version the data will be coming from and which it will be going to. 

 

Checking the Transfer Account Numbers checkbox will also move any Bill To/Ship To account numbers for any associated customers.

 

To continue, click the Transfer button.

 

You will be asked to confirm the transfer.

Once the transfer is complete, you will have three options to choose from.

• Keep Both- This will leave the "from" version of the Manufacturer account, but with no order history in your Manufacturer list.
• Delete & Close- This will delete the "from" version of the Manufacturer account aka the version from which you've removed the order history. THIS ACTION CAN NOT BE UNDONE!
• Deactivate & Close- This will deactivate the "from" version of the Manufacturer account, but leave it in your list of Manufacturers.

MarketTime recommends "Keep Both" or "Deactivate and Close" options in this step, which will keep the "from" version of the Manufacturer account and allow you to access and manually move any untransferred data to the new or "to" version of the Manufacturer Account.

 

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Notes for Transitioned or Transitioning Companies

• When an Agency transitions from Brandwise to MarketTime, the Manufacturer accounts associated will be migrated to MarketTime using the Agency-managed (or “No Connection”) scenario. This method is chosen so that the initial bulk transfer of product data, images, etc. for each Manufacturer comes over with the Agency’s account.
  • Manufacturers who may already be on MarketTime or wish to manage their own data may still create and/or manage their own accounts.
  • At the end of an Agency’s transition, any Manufacturer accounts that are desired to be “Direct Connection” (Manufacturer-managed) can be merged with the “No Connection” (Agency-managed) counterpart.
• If an Agency has a Manufacturer that they desire to move from Agency-managed “No Connection” to Manufacturer-managed “Direct Connection”, the Agency will need to transfer the order history from the Agency-managed account to the Manufacturer-managed account, assign the relevant Division(s) to the new Manufacturer-managed account,  and then set the Agency-managed account to Inactive. Please see this article for more details.