Welcome back to The Brand Data Revolution. We’re glad you’re here and hope that we’ve been providing you valuable tips and tactical guidance throughout your time with us.
Often, our content is geared towards traditional MAP content, helping brands to make the most of their monitoring and enforcement efforts, but in a recent conversation with a Head of eCom at an internationally recognized electronics brand we heard, “I want to talk about things other than pricing inside our walls…we look too narrowly at what online compliance means…why is MAP always seen as a pricing issue?”
That was a breath of fresh air for us. The reality is that MAP enforcement and brand protection are much more nuanced than just pricing issues. When done correctly, MAP compliance isn’t just about identifying violations and living in a reactive world; it’s about preventing them before they happen. And while most brands point the finger at pricing teams or marketplace dynamics, one of the most overlooked causes of MAP chaos lies further upstream: the supply chain.
From excess inventory slipping out the backdoor to inconsistent labeling, diverted goods, or misaligned distribution agreements, many MAP violations begin long before a product shows up on Google Shopping, Walmart or Amazon. If your logistics foundation is leaking, no amount of enforcement will stop the flood.
The Supply Chain’s Hidden Influence on MAP
Every time a product leaves your warehouse or a 3PL facility, it’s carrying more than just your logo; it’s carrying your pricing reputation and your brand image. If you don’t know exactly where all of it is going, or who’s receiving it, you’re handing over control of your brand to the unknown.
Here’s how the supply chain directly contributes to MAP breakdowns:
- Over-distribution: PO’s fulfilled with loose vetting often end up with unauthorized resellers.
- Diversion: Products sold to one region or distributor show up in another, where they’re not supposed to.
- Inconsistent labeling: SKUs mislabeled or bundled differently confuse sellers, systems, and enforcement.
- Bulk liquidation: Inventory glut either from over-purchasing or driven by an inability to sell can lead to offloading at discounts, eventually surfacing on marketplaces.
Each of these factors creates openings for unauthorized sellers to list below your MAP threshold and – even worse – for them to appear legitimate while doing it.
Most brands that we speak to know these paths exist and can sometimes get a sense of which gap is hurting them the most, but often don’t know the root cause.
Let’s take a deeper look at what could be happening.
MAP Blind Spots in Fulfillment and Logistics
Here are five of the most common operational oversights that brands experience, that could be quietly fueling your MAP headaches:
- No traceability at the SKU or shipment level If your team can’t track where specific SKUs were sold and to whom, you’re playing a guessing game every time a violation appears.
- No centralized enforcement of geography or channel limits Distributors sometimes get a bad rap and that’s not always fair. Many have the best of intentions and could be honoring their pricing terms, but then reselling to parties who don’t.
- Mismatch between marketing and supply timelines When inventory is delayed or oversupplied, sellers improvise to recover, often at the expense of your price floor.
- Inadequate monitoring of 3PLs and DTC partners Fulfillment centers can unknowingly support grey market activity if your MAP guardrails aren’t clearly and concisely baked into agreements.
- Lack of proactive forecasting and sell-through discipline When teams push too much inventory without a realistic and data-backed sell-through plan, the liquidation pressure becomes someone else’s pricing problem.
So, now that we’ve looked at some of the root causes, what can be done to tighten up your supply chain and shore up any gaps you might be experiencing?
Make Supply Chain an Ally to MAP
The good news is: You don’t have to completely overhaul operations overnight; that would be a bad use of everyone’s time and effort and would likely be a drain on resources. However, over time, better discipline around aligning MAP goals with supply chain strategy unlocks real gains. For brands, looking to start this process, we’d recommend the following:
- Ship-to-know relationships: Restrict shipments to vetted resellers and track where goods land. Yes, sometimes fewer partners and channels is a good thing, contrary to what you might have been told.
- Channel-specific SKUs: Make grey market diversion harder by encoding products by distribution path. Common methods include product barcoding, QR codes, and unique product identifiers such as GTINs (Global Trade Item Numbers) to gain better visibility into what’s happening post-sale. These codes can help your team track products from manufacturing all the way through to the end consumer, ensuring efficiency is at the core of your distribution and sales strategy.
- Performance-linked pricing: Reward partners who stay compliant, not just those who buy in bulk. We have written a lot about this idea of leading with the carrot and not the stick. Humans are wired to respond to the dopamine that comes from being rewarded and business partners are no different.
- Collaborative audits: Perform regular internal reviews with Ops, Logistics, and Sales to trace violations to their source. Make it a scheduled, frequent and consistent company exercise to get the most out of everyone’s efforts. Compliance is a company effort, not just one team’s job.
MAP Success Starts at the Dock Door
The best MAP programs aren’t just responsive; they’re preventative. And that means tightening the pipes before leaks show up on Amazon or – even worse – everywhere.
When your logistics and MAP teams operate in silos, the result is one of reacting to fires and assuming the role of firefighter, more often than not. But when they’re aligned, you gain a strategic advantage: fewer violators, more confident partners, and a stronger presence on the digital shelf.
Final Thoughts
Hopefully this has helped you understand why MAP is no longer just a pricing issue – it’s a supply chain performance issue the correction of which can start inside your company walls, and brands that treat it that way are already a step ahead.
If you’d like to discuss how Pervasive Mind can help with many of your MAP challenges, please reach out. 📩 We’re here to help.
