1) financial Resources; A financially string company needs middlemen less than one that is financially weak. A business with adequate finance can establish its own sales force, grant credits or warehouse it's own products. A financially weak firm would have to use middlemen who could provide their services.
2) Ability of Management; Channel decisions are affected by the marketing experience and ability of the firm's management. Many companies lack marketing know how , prefer to turn the distribution job over to middlemen.
3) Desire for Channel Control; Some producers establish short channels simply because they want to control the distribution of their products, even though the cost of the more direct channel may be higher. By controlling the channel, the producer can achieve more aggressive promotion and better control both for the freshness of merchandise stock and the retail prices of their products.
4) Services Provided by Sellers; Often, producers channel decision are influenced by the marketing services they can provide in relation to those demanded by the middlemen. For example, often a retail chain will not stock a given product unless it is presaged through heavy manufacture advertising.
