Why Can Sales and Distribution Create a Monopoly?

David Senra, reading Peter Thiel and Blake Masters, says superior sales and distribution by itself can create a monopoly, even with no product differentiation. The converse is not true. Invent something new without an effective way to sell it and the result is a bad business, no matter how good the product. Distribution is part of the design of the product. Customers will not come just because it was built.

Most people underrate sales, and Silicon Valley underrates it more than most. The work is hidden on purpose. People who sell advertising are called account executives. People who sell customers work in business development. People who sell companies are investment bankers. People who sell themselves are called politicians. Distribution follows a power law of its own. Most businesses get zero distribution channels to work. Poor sales rather than a bad product is the most common cause of failure. One distribution channel that works is enough for a great business.