What is a distributor onboarding brief?

A distributor onboarding brief is the internal and shared document that gets a newly signed distributor operationally ready to carry your product — item setup in their system, the order process (EDI, minimum order quantities, lead times), and the expectations both sides hold for the first 90 days. It exists to prevent the operational basics from being skipped in the excitement of a signed deal, since a distributor relationship's first quarter usually decides whether it builds trust or friction.

Do I need a fully signed agreement before using this?

Yes — this skill assumes the distribution deal itself is done and the relationship is now moving into execution. If you're still trying to win a distributor's interest, or the arrangement involves an international partner with a very different agreement structure, the terms and audience are different enough that this brief isn't the right starting point; it's built specifically for a domestic distributor who has already signed and now needs to get set up operationally.

Which AI models does this run on?

Any capable chat model — ChatGPT, Claude, or Google Gemini. The prompt is plain text and model-agnostic, so paste it into a chat, save it as a Custom GPT, or store it as a reusable skill so every new distributor relationship gets onboarded with the same checklist instead of relying on memory or a scattered email thread.

What if I don't have exact fill-rate targets or minimum order quantities yet?

Give it whatever terms you do have, even a partial deal summary, and it will build the brief around that, marking every unconfirmed number as a placeholder to verify directly with the distributor rather than guessing at typical industry figures. Treat the first output as a checklist of exactly which numbers you still need in writing before the first order ships, not as a finished document to send as-is.

Sales

Distributor Onboarding Brief

Brief a newly signed distributor on setup, ordering and expectations fast.

What is the Distributor Onboarding Brief?

The Distributor Onboarding Brief is a free AI skill that gets a newly signed distributor operationally ready to carry a food or beverage brand's range. You give it the distributor, your SKUs, whatever deal terms are already agreed, and your timeline; it returns an item-setup checklist for their system, the order process — EDI or manual, minimum order quantities, lead times, backorder protocol — expectations set in both directions, and a week-by-week first-90-days plan. It is built for sales operations and account teams who just signed a distribution deal and cannot afford to lose momentum to a missed EDI deadline or an unclear fill-rate expectation. Because most distributor relationships either build trust or start eroding it in the first quarter, the brief front-loads the operational basics that excitement about the signed deal tends to skip. Checking the launch timeline against live food and beverage demand data confirms the first order lands when the category is actually moving.

Who it's for

Sales operations managers onboarding a newly signed distributor
National account managers handing off a new distributor relationship
Founders managing their first distributor partnership
Regional sales directors standardizing onboarding across multiple distributors

What you get

An item-setup checklist for the distributor's system
A clear order process: EDI, MOQs, lead times and backorder protocol
Expectations defined in both directions
A week-by-week first-90-days plan
A named risk flag for the tightest part of the timeline
A list of open items that need real numbers before launch

How to use it

1Paste the prompt into ChatGPT, Claude or Gemini.
2Fill in the brackets (distributor, our range, deal terms, timeline).
3Answer its clarifying questions about what's already agreed.
4Ask it to turn the brief into a week-by-week checklist your ops team can run against.

See it in action

Example input

We just signed Cedar Hollow Distributors to carry our fictional 'Larkspur Provisions' pasta sauce line (12 SKUs) across 4 Midwest states, starting with natural and specialty grocery. First order is due in 3 weeks and they want EDI set up. We've never onboarded a distributor before and don't want to miss anything in the first 90 days.

Example output

Distributor onboarding brief — Larkspur Provisions × Cedar Hollow Distributors

Relationship snapshot
Cedar Hollow Distributors now carries all 12 Larkspur Provisions pasta sauce SKUs across Illinois, Wisconsin, Iowa and Missouri, selling into natural and specialty grocery. First order ships in 3 weeks. This brief covers what Cedar Hollow's team needs from us and what we need from them before that first order lands.

Item setup
- Confirm every SKU's UPC, case pack, case weight/dimensions and inner pack count are loaded into Cedar Hollow's system before the order window opens — mismatched case packs are the single most common cause of a delayed first shipment.
- Send updated cost sheets covering unit cost, case cost and suggested retail by SKU, plus any regional pricing variance across the four states.
- Confirm shelf life at time of shipment and any code-date rules Cedar Hollow enforces — many distributors won't accept inbound product under a minimum remaining shelf life, so get that threshold in writing now, not after a rejected pallet.
- Share current spec sheets, nutritional panels and any certifications (organic, non-GMO) their sales team will need for retailer conversations.

Order process
- EDI setup: confirm which EDI standard Cedar Hollow uses and assign an owner on our side for order-fulfillment integration; budget 2-3 weeks for testing, which is tight against the 3-week first-order deadline — flag this as the single biggest risk to the timeline.
- Minimum order quantity and standard order cadence: get this in writing per SKU, not just as a portfolio total.
- Lead time from PO to ship date, and who confirms inventory availability on our side before Cedar Hollow commits a ship date to their retail customers.
- Backorder and short-ship protocol: agree now how Cedar Hollow wants to be notified if an order can't be filled in full.

Expectations, both directions
- What we expect from Cedar Hollow: sell-through reporting monthly at minimum, a named account contact, and visibility into which retail banners they're placing us with in the first 90 days.
- What Cedar Hollow will expect from us: fill rate above [insert target, commonly 95-98%], responsive customer service on order issues, and marketing or trade support to help their reps sell the line in.
- Agree a 30/60/90-day check-in cadence — the first 90 days is where most distributor relationships either build trust or start to erode it.

First 90 days, week by week
Weeks 1-2: item setup and EDI testing complete; cost sheets and specs delivered.
Week 3: first order ships; confirm receipt and any discrepancies within 48 hours.
Weeks 4-8: monitor fill rate and first sell-through data; resolve any order or delivery issues immediately, since early friction sets the tone for the whole relationship.
Weeks 9-12: first formal check-in — review sell-through by SKU and state, agree any assortment or support adjustments.

Open items needing your numbers
[Insert the actual fill-rate commitment, MOQ per SKU and shelf-life-at-shipment threshold — these need to be confirmed with Cedar Hollow directly, not assumed.]

Risk flag
The EDI testing timeline is the tightest constraint here — a 3-week deadline to first order barely covers standard EDI onboarding. Consider asking Cedar Hollow whether the first order can go by phone or manual PO while EDI testing continues in parallel, so the relationship doesn't start with a missed date.

Want this turned into a one-page checklist your ops team can run against week by week?

The prompt

Here's the start of the prompt. Download the free bundle for the full, ready-to-paste version — plus the installable Claude Skill and Custom-GPT instructions.

# Role
You are a senior sales operations lead who has onboarded dozens of new distributors for food & beverage brands. You know the first 90 days decide whether a distributor relationship builds trust or starts to erode it, and you never let excitement about a signed deal skip the operational basics.

# Context I'll provide
- Distributor: [DISTRIBUTOR — name, region/states covered, channel they sell into]
- Our brand and range: [BRAND + SKUS — how many, category]
- Deal terms already agreed: [TERMS — if known, e.g. pricing, exclusivity, any minimums]
- Timeline: [TIMELINE — when the first order is due]
- What we don't have yet: [GAPS — e.g. no EDI experience, no dedicated ops contact]

# Your task
1. If the distributor, our range, or the timeline are missing or vague, ask up to 3 clarifying questions BEFORE writing anything.

Frequently asked questions

What is a distributor onboarding brief?: A distributor onboarding brief is the internal and shared document that gets a newly signed distributor operationally ready to carry your product — item setup in their system, the order process (EDI, minimum order quantities, lead times), and the expectations both sides hold for the first 90 days. It exists to prevent the operational basics from being skipped in the excitement of a signed deal, since a distributor relationship's first quarter usually decides whether it builds trust or friction.
Do I need a fully signed agreement before using this?: Yes — this skill assumes the distribution deal itself is done and the relationship is now moving into execution. If you're still trying to win a distributor's interest, or the arrangement involves an international partner with a very different agreement structure, the terms and audience are different enough that this brief isn't the right starting point; it's built specifically for a domestic distributor who has already signed and now needs to get set up operationally.
Which AI models does this run on?: Any capable chat model — ChatGPT, Claude, or Google Gemini. The prompt is plain text and model-agnostic, so paste it into a chat, save it as a Custom GPT, or store it as a reusable skill so every new distributor relationship gets onboarded with the same checklist instead of relying on memory or a scattered email thread.
What if I don't have exact fill-rate targets or minimum order quantities yet?: Give it whatever terms you do have, even a partial deal summary, and it will build the brief around that, marking every unconfirmed number as a placeholder to verify directly with the distributor rather than guessing at typical industry figures. Treat the first output as a checklist of exactly which numbers you still need in writing before the first order ships, not as a finished document to send as-is.

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