Replace POS Nomination Spreadsheets with Automated On-Trade Distribution

Manual POS nomination is one of the most time-consuming and error-prone processes in drinks brand marketing. Experience This replaces it with an automated, data-driven workflow that gets the right POS to the right outlets — every time.

Written by Michelle Golding

June 2026

Replace POS Nomination Spreadsheet

How most drinks brands manage POS nomination today

POS (point of sale) nomination is a fundamental part of on-trade brand marketing — getting the right physical and digital brand assets into the right venues at the right time. But for most FMCG and drinks brands, the process of nominating venues and managing POS distribution is still almost entirely manual.

Here’s what it typically looks like:

The nomination spreadsheet Reps fill out a nomination spreadsheet — manually copying in venue details like name, address and client number, along with what they want to order. It’s a painstaking process. As a result, most reps take shortcuts: copying last year’s list, applying a simple filter to their call file, or nominating the same outlets they always nominate — without considering who actually wants POS, what they need, whether they activated last time, or whether it even performed well when they did.

Nomination spreadsheets are also notorious for poor data — misspelled venue names, outdated addresses, incorrect postcodes in the wrong format, missing contact details — all of which create problems downstream when the agency tries to fulfil the order.

Collation and ordering Customer marketing teams then manually collate all the individual nomination spreadsheets and consolidate them into order forms to send to the fulfilment agency. This is a significant admin task — especially across large field sales teams — and errors are common.

Fixed kits To simplify the process, most brands use fixed POS kits — everyone gets the same thing. The result is POS that’s either too much or too little for the outlet, or inappropriate for the space. A large pub gets the same kit as a small bar. High-performing venues get the same allocation as venues that didn’t activate last time.

Missing digital assets Digital assets — screen content, instruction videos, social materials — tend to be handled separately, via email or shared drives. They rarely make it to the right people at the right time, and are frequently missed entirely.

No feedback loop When a kit gets turned away or goes unused, that information rarely makes it back to the system. Next year, the same venue gets nominated again. The same mistakes get repeated because the data was never captured or centralised.

How Experience This manages POS nomination

Experience This replaces the entire manual nomination process with an automated, data-driven workflow — from campaign setup through to delivery, feedback and measurement.

1. Campaign setup and safeguards The brand creates the POS campaign in Experience This — setting all the parameters upfront. This includes targeting rules (only these segments, only these locations), recommended and restricted venues, and allocation settings at outlet, regional, rep or territory level.

Allocations can be as simple or as granular as needed:

  • Simple kit allocations — each nominated outlet gets one kit
  • Item-level allocations — 100 of these, 200 of these, by outlet or region
  • Flexible kit guidelines — must include minimum 2 of X, maximum 5 of Y, these items are optional add-ons

Digital assets are included in the same campaign — screen content, instruction videos, printable materials — all in one place rather than being handled separately.

More effective brand execution and insights with segmentation targeting

2. Reps nominate quickly and accurately When the campaign goes live, reps can see immediately which outlets are recommended, targeted or flagged as not suitable — for example, venues that cancelled last time or didn’t perform. Rather than working from a blank spreadsheet, they’re working from a pre-filtered, data-driven list.

Nomination is fast — tick, tick, tick — selecting outlets in bulk rather than entering details manually. The system pre-loads outlet details (address, contact information) automatically, so reps just confirm or adjust rather than retyping everything from scratch.

For reps who prefer spreadsheets, Experience This can generate a pre-populated template with all outlet details loaded — they fill in their selections and upload it back. The best of both worlds.

Replace POS Nomination Spreadsheet

Tailor kits in line with guidelines Where the campaign allows flexible kits, reps can tailor their nomination in line with the execution guidelines set by the brand — choosing from the available items within the defined parameters. For example, selecting the optional add-ons most relevant to that outlet’s size or format, or adjusting quantities within the permitted range. The guidelines ensure the rep has creative flexibility to match the POS to the outlet — without going outside what the brand has approved. A large venue with outdoor space can get a different configuration to a small bar, while both stay within the brand’s defined boundaries.

Tailor Kits POS Nominations

3. Approval and agency fulfilment Once submitted, nominations can go through an internal approval flow if needed, or go straight to the fulfilment agency. The agency receives a clean, consolidated order — no collation required from the customer marketing team.

Experience This pre-loads outlet data from a centralised, maintained database, so the agency receives clean, correctly formatted delivery information every time. Reps can flag and update incorrect details as they go, meaning the data gets better with every campaign cycle rather than degrading over time.

4. Delivery tracking and rejection flags If a kit is turned away by an outlet, the rep cancels it on the system — automatically flagging that venue so it’s deprioritised next time. That data doesn’t get lost in an email chain. It’s there the next time a rep goes to nominate the same outlet.

Automated POS Delivery

5. Measurement Once activated, Experience This captures sales uplift, feedback and photos automatically — connecting POS distribution directly to ROI measurement.

See how Experience This tracks on-trade activation ROI →

What this replaces

  • Manual nomination spreadsheets copied from last year ✓
  • Venue details entered by hand ✓
  • Customer marketing collating individual spreadsheets into order forms ✓
  • Fixed kits that don’t match outlet needs ✓
  • Digital assets handled separately and frequently missed ✓
  • No record of outlets that rejected or underperformed ✓
  • Same mistakes repeated campaign after campaign ✓

See how we replace spreadsheets generally with automated brand activation →

Manual POS Nominations

The result

Faster nomination, more accurate targeting, tailored POS that matches each outlet’s needs, and a feedback loop that means every campaign builds on the last. Customer marketing teams spend significantly less time on admin — and field sales teams spend significantly less time filling in spreadsheets.

Due to the commercially sensitive nature of our clients’ data, we are unable to share specific figures publicly. To see how Experience This manages POS nomination for your brand, request a demo and we’ll walk you through real examples.

See how Experience This compares to other brand execution tools →

Ready to replace POS nomination spreadsheets?