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Monday
January 12, 2009 New Order Management System a Hit, Orlando Fashion ShowFiled under: ASI Shows, Education, Industry Initiatives, Using Ad Specialties People have been responding to news of our multimillion-dollar initiative to create a seamless order management system for the industry, so I wanted to make sure that everyone has an opportunity to learn more about this. The new system, announced at the ASI Show in Orlando, links distributors, suppliers and industry service providers across ASI’s full product suite and is designed to make you more efficient and save time and money in 2009. Click here for the press release with more benefits of the initiative. Designed based on continuing industry feedback, our effort has been under way for about a year, and in the test phase distributors placed over $10 million in orders with suppliers. So far, the results have been phenomenal and have provided consistent order structure, content integrity and order delivery. To learn more, check out the media release here. Additional elements of the initiative that we demonstrated in Orlando include:
The initiative is projected to include the launch of additional key components throughout 2009 and into 2010. Also, click here to see the latest trends in corporate and casual apparel for your clients in coverage of our Fashion Show in Orlando. There are many featured styles from leading apparel companies, including Dunbrooke, Global Traders and Suppliers Inc., Hanes/Outer Banks, Perry Ellis International, Charles River Apparel and Reebok. I also have a video from Orlando featuring products you can sell to your clients, including pens made from recycled currency and denim, a knit fleece jacket/sweater, a mini video camcorder, and more. Click here to watch. As always, I welcome your input anytime. Post a comment now or email me at tim.andrews@asicentral.com.
Monday
January 5, 2009 ASI Show Orlando Posts Strong Attendance | VideoFiled under: ASI Shows, Industry Initiatives, News About ASI This has been a strong show, with preliminary attendance of about 5,200, equivalent to last year, from more than 2,000 distributor firms. Click here to watch a video wrap-up that also features a new notebook made from elephant poo from Spector & Co. No joke. In addition to education, networking and entertainment, attendees were energized by a two-hour business and personal coaching session by Tony Robbins, who has worked with the most successful entertainment, sports and business and political leaders in the world. The 1,200-seat auditorium was packed and much of the session was spent with distributors and suppliers on their feet interacting with each other and Tony Robbins, as he explained how to capture market share, grow your business and flourish in challenging personal and business times.
Jeanne Slack, of JS Promotions, said this: “The best gift ASI could have given the industry was Tony Robbins. I noticed a big change in people’s attitudes today as opposed to yesterday’s show – shifting from being focused on a weak fourth quarter to how strong they can perform in 2009.” Click here for the full press release on our attendance. We also broke news today about a time-saving integration for ProfitMaker that pulls products and pricing information directly from ESP Online right into ProfitMaker. Distributors and suppliers got a chance to road test this integration, along with a new look and feel for the program. Click here for the full press release on the new and improved ProfitMaker. Last night, we enjoyed two really exciting events: the ASI Fashion Show, featuring the season’s hottest new looks in casual wear, and the ASI Show Gala Celebration at Universal Studios. In a word, the thrill rides, food and entertainment were outrageous. I met a number of real characters – and not all of them were in costume! I am really sorry this show has come to an end. But we’re geared up and ready for Dallas in February. Click here for our fashion show photos. As we leave Orlando, I’m sure many of us will be putting into action the advice given today by business guru Tony Robbins, who inspired us to command peak performance from ourselves and our employees. As always, I welcome your input. Post a comment on the blog now or email me at tim.andrews@asicentral.com.
Monday
January 5, 2009 Fashion Show Photos, New Products Videos, ProfitMaker Integrates with ESPFiled under: ASI Shows, Industry Initiatives, News About ASI, Using Ad Specialties All good things must come to a close and today is the final day for ASI Show Orlando. What an incredible three days we’ve had previewing the best the industry has to offer and getting charged up for selling this year. Last night, we enjoyed two really exciting events: the ASI Fashion Show, featuring the season’s hottest new looks in casual wear, and the ASI Show Gala Celebration at Universal Studios. In a word, the thrill rides, food and entertainment were outrageous. I met a number of real characters – and not all of them were in costume! Click here for Sunday’s Fashion Show photos.
I also stopped by Norwood’s booth for more new products for your clients, and click here for a video of some new wine accessories and a solar-powered rotating globe. And, at Leed’s, the supplier of the year, I discovered a new line of heavy-duty, highly colorful Scripto pens – watch here. In breaking news, ASI announced that ProfitMaker, a business management system offered by ASI Computer, now provides integration with ESP Online. The integration electronically links suppliers and distributors and streamlines order flow.
Click here for the full press release with many more new features. Post a comment on the blog now or email me at tim.andrews@asicentral.com.
Sunday
January 4, 2009 ESP Upgrade and Photos From Distributor Choice AwardsFiled under: ASI Shows, Industry Initiatives, News About ASI It’s Day 2 of the ASI Show Orlando, featuring non-stop activities and opportunities for distributors and suppliers to network with each other, learn more so they can sell more and position themselves for 2009. In breaking news, we announced an upgrade to ESP Online that allows suppliers and distributors to network online with peers and communicate more rapidly with customers. Highlights of the upgrade include:
For the full press release with many more new features, click here.
Competition for these awards is intense, since balloting from among the 22,000 distributor firms in the ASI network represents what the industry really thinks of suppliers in individual categories. Also, the nominations lead to the ultimate prize, the Supplier of the Year, which is Leed’s. Click here for photos and to see the list of winners. Post a comment now or email me anytime at tim.andrews@asicentral.com.
Saturday
January 3, 2009 ASI Show Orlando | New Order Management SystemFiled under: ASI Shows, Industry Initiatives, News About ASI
The show’s buzzing with news we’ve a new multimillion-dollar initiative to create a seamless order management system linking distributors, suppliers and industry service providers across ASI’s full product suite – a system designed to save you time and money. Designed based on continuing industry feedback, our effort has been under way for about a year, and in the test phase distributors placed over $10 million in orders with suppliers. So far, the results have been phenomenal and have provided consistent order structure, content integrity and order delivery. Click here for the full press release with more benefits of the initiative. Tonight I’m heading to Hard Rock Live at Universal Studios for the Counselor Distributor Choice Awards, which recognizes the industry’s top-performing ASI suppliers and names the Supplier of the Year. Check back on the blog for a link to the photos and exclusive list of winners. As always, I welcome your input. Post a comment on the blog or email me at tim.andrews@asicentral.com.
Monday
December 8, 2008 Media Agrees That Promo Products Work, Now Grow Your SalesFiled under: Education, Guest Blog, Industry Initiatives, Media Coverage, Research, Using Ad Specialties From Scott Fuhr, director of corporate communications at ASI: Results from the effectiveness of advertising specialties study from ASI have appeared in multiple outlets over the last several weeks, and Newsday in New York also published an article about how companies should continue investing in corporate gift-giving. Readers of these stories were likely surprised to learn that:
Below are links to some of the stories. I recommend that you forward them to your clients and prospects so that they understand that their message will reach more people when they use promo products. If you have ideas for stories for the media, or know reporters who enjoy covering the advertising business or promotional products, email me at sfuhr@asicentral.com. Watch TV clips of products from ASI Shows, by clicking here.
Thursday
November 13, 2008 Video About Incentivizing Top RepsFiled under: Education, Industry Initiatives, News About ASI
On the final day of our ASI Power Summit we featured a panelist session about this – ‘What Motivates Me”: Incentivizing Top Reps’- with industry experts, top reps and successful executives who manage them all discussing what truly motivates these hard-driving salespeople to perform again and again. Watch a video providing some key action items and ideas that surfaced that you can apply at your company to improve performance and retain the best reps including:
It’s all in the video – watch now. During the session, we laid out the most effective compensation methods for top performers, explored key retention strategies and learned about the leadership styles that work best for motivating – and retaining – this elite group. Panelists included Pat Cavanaugh, of Cavanaugh Marketing Network; Dan Welborne, of WorkflowOne; Greg Muzzillo, of Proforma; Ira Neaman, from Vantage Apparel; and myself as the moderator. Watch for more information from these sessions in upcoming issues of Counselor magazine and our other magazines. Tell me what you think anytime – post now on the blog or email me at tim.andrews@asicentral.com. Also, you can see pictures from the ASI Power Summit at www.asicentral.com/powersummit. |
The new time-saving features allow distributors who use ProfitMaker to access ESP Online’s product images and pricing information and to import the information directly into ProfitMaker. These features are available at no additional cost for ProfitMaker users who are ESP Online subscribers, and a low-cost subscription is available for ProfitMaker users without ESP Online. 
