Q.What are the services offered by retailers to wholesalers and consumers?

Services to wholesalers and manufacturers:

• Help in distribution — making goods available to scattered consumers (place utility).
• Personal selling — relieving producers of the selling effort.
• Enabling large-scale operations — handling small individual sales so producers can operate on a large scale.
• Collecting market information on customers' tastes and attitudes.
• Help in promotion — taking part in coupons, gifts and sales contests.

Services to consumers:

• Regular availability of products.
• New-product information through display and personal selling.
• Convenience in buying (nearby, long hours, small quantities). …

A retailer connects producers and final consumers, and provides useful services to both. These fall into two groups.

A. Services to manufacturers and wholesalers:

• Help in distribution of goods: The retailer's most important service is making products available to final consumers, who may be scattered over a large area — thereby providing place utility.
• Personal selling: Most consumer goods need some personal-selling effort. By taking this on, retailers relieve producers of the task and help convert prospects into actual sales.
• Enabling large-scale operations: Because retailers handle the small individual sales to consumers, manufacturers and wholesalers are freed from that trouble and can operate on a relatively large scale, concentrating on their own activities.
• Collecting market information: Being in direct and constant touch with buyers, retailers are an important source of information on customers' tastes, preferences and attitudes, useful for marketing decisions.
• Help in promotion: Manufacturers and distributors run promotions — advertising and incentives such as coupons, free gifts and sales contests. Retailers take part and thereby help promote sales.

B. Services to consumers:

• Regular availability of products: Retailers keep the products of different manufacturers regularly available, so customers can buy as and when needed.
• New-product information: Through effective display and personal-selling effort, retailers inform customers about the arrival and features of new products.
• Convenience in buying: They buy in large quantities and sell in small quantities to suit customers; being close to residential areas and open for long hours, they offer great convenience. …