The Company

Termination Technology, formed in 1999, is a long-established, market-leading supplier of cable accessories to the electrical wholesaler sector. With a turnover of approximately £14 million, the company’s Commercial Director, Steve Parry, oversees all commercial operations and sales.

Rebates have grown significantly and are now a key driver for Term Tech. Where pricing and delivery were once the main factors, commercial agreements have become increasingly complex. Customers now expect high and intricate rebate structures, moving away from simple percentage discounts to layered incentives and growth targets.

Using Rebates to Increase Sales

The primary goal of rebates is to drive sales, particularly at the head office level. Many of Termination Technology’s customers operate hundreds of branches, so influencing decision-makers at regional and corporate offices is crucial. While local-level agreements remain straightforward—spend a certain amount to receive a set rebate—head offices now play a larger role in coordinating spending across multiple locations to maximize overall returns.

Steve explains, "What we want is for head offices to say, ‘You’ve spent that—but keep spending, because if we all spend, we’ll get this.’” Encouraging collective spending across branches helps customers unlock greater incentives, making rebate strategies an essential part of business growth.

The Challenges

Manual Spreadsheets

All rebate programs were previously managed in Excel spreadsheets, making the process prone to errors. While spreadsheets can be useful, manually transferring data into the Sage system introduced the risk of mistakes. This inefficiency made tracking and managing rebates more challenging.  

Complex Rebates

Termination Technology faced challenges managing complex rebate structures due to a highly manual process. "We wanted to be a little more flexible with our rebates," says Steve. "For example, if you buy this, you get X. If you buy these products, you get Y. And if you buy both, you get X and Y plus Z." Previously, structuring rebates this way was almost impossible, but with the right tools, it has now become much easier to implement.

Preventing Overpayments

One of the key reasons for implementing Enable was to prevent costly rebate errors. A few years ago, Termination Technology accidentally paid a customer rebate twice—an £80K mistake. Fortunately, the customer was honest and returned the money. However, a similar error nearly occurred again this year, with a £53K overpayment. "Enable flagged the issue before it happened," explains Steve. "We realized we had accidentally added the same account to two different rebate agreements. Having clear, real-time data helped us catch the mistake before it became costly."

Creating 500 Agreements Manually

Previously, the sales team manually wrote out 500 rebate agreements using Microsoft Word. These documents were stored on individual desktops, and sales representatives had to visit each customer in person to get them signed. There was no efficient way to send agreements in bulk, leading to numerous customer questions—sometimes 20 or 30 inquiries per agreement. Thanks to Enable, the process has been streamlined, allowing agreements to be managed and distributed far more efficiently. "I don’t think we’ve had any questions this year," Steven otes, highlighting the impact of automation.

Transaction Errors

One of the challenges Termination Technology faced before Enable was handling transactions when customers moved between buying groups. "We’d miss data or forget to update dates, so at the end of each year I’d have to go through paper records to make corrections," explains Steve. "With Enable, it’s seamless. The system ensures everything is updated on the exact right day, which has cleaned up our processes."

He adds, "The possibility for errors has been almost entirely removed. We no longer risk paying the wrong buying group or double-paying turnover to two groups. Enable forces us to follow the correct process every time, and I really appreciate that."

The Platform

Why Enable

Before implementing Enable, Steve spoke to several users who were already using the platform, and it quickly became clear that Enable had everything Termination Technology needed in a rebate tool—and more. "When the team came down and showed us what it could do, it was a no-brainer," says Steve. "The price was far outweighed by the savings, and we knew right away it was the right choice. It did everything we needed and then some."

Fantastic Onboarding and Support

"The customer success team was absolutely brilliant," says Steve. "We had a couple of different teams working with us during the onboarding process, and they were fantastic. Every question we asked was met with helpful, thorough answers. Both teams went above and beyond, and we couldn’t have asked for more. I honestly couldn’t fault anything—they did an exceptional job."

Growing the Business by 20%

Termination Technology grew its business by over 20% last year, and a significant part of that success can be attributed to Enable’s platform. Managing an increasing number of rebate offerings and agreements would have been much more challenging without it. "Without Enable, we probably would’ve struggled to manage that growth," says Steve. "As the business scales and customer spend increases, having the controls, processes, and automation that Enable provides has been crucial in making it happen."

Increasing Customers and Branches

Over the past year, Termination Technology has expanded its reach within their customer network, adding 300 new branches. While it’s difficult to pinpoint the exact reasons for this growth—especially given the downturn in the electrical market—Steve acknowledges that Enable has played a role.

He explains, "We’ve looked at the numbers, and it’s possible that Enable is driving our customers to spend more. While market conditions always play a part, having a robust rebate management system in place appears to support and accelerate growth.”

Improved Tracking of Increased Spend

More customers are now using Enable to monitor their spending and ensure they hit their rebate targets. "What we're finding is that customers can now see exactly where they are in terms of spending and what they need to achieve their next rebate level," says Steve. Previously, this was a manual process, requiring him to review numbers towards the end of the rebate period and notify customers of shortfalls. Now, just a couple of months into the year, customers are proactively tracking their progress, making the process far more efficient.

Gaining a Month Back of Time

Steve used to spend weeks in November and December manually checking customer numbers and chasing them to hit targets. "That used to consume my time from mid-November to mid-December. This year, I barely had to do any of that."

With fewer manual tracking tasks, Steve has effectively gained back an entire month of productive work. "Normally, I’d spend a whole month just chasing numbers. Now, I can focus on how we can drive more spend, refine our rebate offerings, and be more strategic." The shift has allowed him to concentrate on sales, which he sees as the true priority.

"For me, sales is what it's all about, and Enable has become another string to our bow," he says. "It’s freed up my time so I can be out talking to customers, which is where I should be—not stuck at my desk for weeks."

Steve highlights the importance of time savings: "Time is our biggest challenge here. We don’t struggle to get more business; we struggle to find that extra day each week. Enable is definitely working towards giving us that time back."

Accuracy and Precision

Steve recalls a remarkable achievement in the first year of using Enable. "We did something like £5.5 million worth of turnover on rebates, and when we double-checked everything, there was only a penny’s difference between our calculations and what Enable had." He continues, "We were amazed when we saw it—it was our first year using the platform, so we wanted to double-check every single figure, not just the overall total. To have such an exact match was incredible."

Steve is confident that Enable was correct, remarking, "I’m pretty sure Enable was right, not us." This experience was a clear indicator of the platform’s accuracy, and it gave the team confidence moving forward. "Next year, we won’t need to double-check everything like we did this time. It's that precise."

Creating and Signing Off Agreements in a Timely Manner

Using Enable has significantly streamlined the agreement process, making it "a bit of a dream," according to Steve. In the past, Termination Technology had to manually manage over 500 rebate agreements using spreadsheets, often leading to errors.  

What used to take Steve weeks of work has been reduced to just two days of double-checking entries. "Setting up rebate agreements used to take a fair amount of time, but now they can do it in a day," Steve tells us.

With Enable, agreements are now easily generated, and with the click of a button, they’re sent out to customers. "Within minutes, we were starting to get people accepting and signing off agreements," Steve notes. "It’s simplified the process, and I can’t explain how much time it’s saved or how much stress it’s removed from the whole manual situation."

Changing the Mindset of Customers

One of the key shifts has been helping customers realize the benefits of using Enable—not just for checking their own agreements but for seeing all their partners who are also using the platform. "We've had one buying group that was initially very resistant," says Steve. "They didn’t want to use Enable and insisted on sticking with the old way of doing things. They were concerned about having to manage 20 different logins."

Steve addressed their concerns by showing them the simplicity of the system: "I told them, 'You don’t need 20 different logins. You can just have one. When you log in, you’ll see us and all the others who are using it.'" After experiencing the ease of use, the buying group changed their perspective. "Now, they love it."

Building Mutually Beneficial Relationships

When two customers or trading partners are both connected through the Enable platform, it acts as a catalyst for stronger, mutually beneficial relationships. The platform fosters greater transparency and visibility, enabling both parties to track their agreements, performance, and rebate earnings with clarity.

Steve explains, “With Enable, there’s full transparency, so both sides know exactly where they stand. It takes away the guesswork and allows us to work more collaboratively with our customers.”

Transforming our Rebate Strategy

Enable has transformed the way we approach our rebate strategy and structure. "It’s allowed us to be much more proactive with our rebates," says Steve. "Instead of just offering a 10% rebate, which is essentially just giving away money with little impact, Enable has shifted the focus."

With Enable, rebates are now framed as incentives, creating more value and driving business growth. "We’re no longer just handing out money. We’ve restructured our approach so that rebates are tied to specific incentives, which in turn generates more business," Steve explains.

The platform has made the process much simpler and more transparent. "All the data is now right in front of us, making our lives much easier," Steve adds. What's more, customers are starting to take notice. "Now, customers are actively asking us about our rebate programs and how they can engage with them."

Sales Team Using Time Saved to Drive Rebate Strategy

Previously, the sales team would spend a significant amount of time visiting customers to finalize rebate agreements, often pushing those discussions into June. Now, thanks to Enable, rebate agreements are completed before the sales reps even meet with customers. "They still visit all 500 customers, but they don’t need to worry about getting agreements signed during the visit," explains Steve.

This shift allows the sales team to focus more on selling products and building relationships with customers. Instead of getting bogged down in administrative tasks, they can focus on driving strategic goals and increasing spend. "Now, when they go in, they’re discussing product-driven rebate deals, not chasing signatures for agreements," Steve adds. For example, the team now offers monthly spot reviews where customers can earn rebates for purchasing specific product ranges. "We could never do that before due to the complexity and lack of time."

With all rebate agreements in place before customer meetings, the sales team has more room to strategize. "Instead of saying, ‘Can you sign my agreement?’, they’re now saying, ‘Let’s create an agreement based on a product or overspend for the month.’" This approach has opened up new opportunities and allowed for more personalized, product-focused deals.

Steve calls this a "game-changer." Now, the sales team is not just selling products—they’re offering a service. "Our customers see us as being at the forefront of the industry, showing them what we can do with Enable," he says.

Simplicity of Progress Tracker

The Progress Tracker tool in Enable is incredibly simple to use, making it another game-changer for Steve and his team. "It doesn't require me to do much," he explains. "We used to rely on a standalone system for our sales team, which was a dynamic Excel report. Importing millions of transactions was slow and clunky."

With Enable, everything is streamlined. "Now, I can log in and find all the information I need. If my MD walks in and asks how much we owe in rebates this year, I can tell him exactly, down to the penny," says Steve. "The simplicity and ease of use of the Progress Tracker is a real godsend."

Meeting ISO Standards

The implementation of Enable has also supported Termination Technology's adherence to ISO standards. "When we took on ISO, it really changed the way we operate," Steve shares. "Enable has done the same. It’s made us much more precise and reactive, ensuring we do things at the right time and in the right way."

Enable's impact is even visible during audits. "Now that we use Enable for rebate management, the data is all there, ready to be handled with ease. When we had our recent audit, it was a relief to be able to pull up the data instantly—it’s made a huge difference for us."

Future Plans

Streamlining Rebate Settlements

"Before Enable, we spent two full days after Christmas manually calculating rebate credits," says Steve. "Now thanks to the settlements feature, we will simply press a button, and it works everything out for you." He continues, "By typing out credits manually, it was easy to slip up, like adding a note at the end of something by mistake. With Enable, all of that is automated, saving us significant time and reducing errors."

Integration with Sage

"Sage ERP will feed Enable every night with the figures for the next day, so it’s always up-to-date," says Steve Steve. "Once the settlement app is fully integrated, it will allow Enable to communicate directly back to Sage, which will be a huge improvement."

For Term Tech, one of the biggest benefits will be automating the quarterly rebate process. "Right now, it’s a manual process—we have to check Enable to see what's due for payment," explains Steve. "But once the AI tools and settlement app are in place, it will automatically raise those credits for us, eliminating another manual step."