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Thursday
July 22, 2010 Keep Those Comments ComingFiled under: Members, News About ASI Being accountable to customers and responding to their concerns and suggestions is key to any business, which is why I encourage anyone reading this blog to comment on a post or email me. In the year or so it took to develop our revolutionary new ESP Web platform, for instance, we reviewed hundreds of your suggestions to make sure we delivered a product that would help you improve your business. Recently, we announced even more enhancements to ESP – and we’re not done yet. The ESP Web platform now features faster searches along with more than 20 other enhancements to help suppliers and distributors, including:
Sam Knox, vice president of Clever Advantage Inc., emailed us with an enthusiastic endorsement that we included in a recent press release, which you can read by clicking here. In short, Sam called the advanced search “awesome.” Thanks, Sam! This week, I also responded to an email from a less than enthusiastic reader who saw our press release on the ASI Show in Chicago, where we attracted over 4,100 distributors. In that release, we mentioned the team at Harry & David (asi/59710), the well-known consumer brand that selected ASI Chicago to make its inaugural appearance as an industry supplier. The reader was unhappy we promoted a supplier that sells through a direct retail channel, and I’d like to share my response, below: “Up to you on picking suppliers, but I wanted to let you know that we have worked carefully with Harry & David and they really understand the concerns you have. For instance, they have created specific products for our industry – including a partnership with Leed’s for specific bundling and packaging – that aren’t being offered direct. So your customers and prospects can’t do a direct compare. And they’ve also been thoughtful about making the ‘suggested retail’ for distributors no lower than comparable direct pricing, while providing 30 percent+ margins to distributors. As I said, I don’t mean to defend particularly, but they really are being thoughtful and methodical and I didn’t think it fair not to let you know.” If you have any more suggestions on our releases, ESP or anything else, please post a comment or email me here and I’ll respond as best I can. I’m also on Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube.
Thursday
July 15, 2010 Chicago Rocks!Filed under: ASI Shows, Members, News About ASI We just ended our show in Chicago and I’m delighted to share the news that we attracted 4,100 distributors, representing 1,755 firms – the most since 2007. The number of firms represents an increase over last year of 2.5% and is the second-highest number of unique firms that have ever attended ASI Chicago. The show at the McCormick Place Convention Center featured 630 exhibitors – including 137 that didn’t appear last year. To read more, please click here for our press release. There’s good reason we love the Windy City – it delivers. The show launched the key second half of the selling season with dozens of free education sessions, informative speakers and a show floor that was busy from the opening on Day One to the final reception on Day Two. That means distributors and suppliers are more prepared than ever to head into the crucial holiday season armed with the latest products, fresh leads and new ideas. Today we featured Tom Searcy, nationally renowned author, master sales motivator, CEO and founder of Hunt Big Sales, who delivered a high-energy keynote called “Your Biggest Deal Ever,” designed to help distributors land lucrative deals in highly competitive markets. The keynote was sponsored by Bullet (asi/42424). The best part is we received awesome feedback from participants. Here’s a sampling:
Distributors also left Chicago in “go” mode for upcoming holiday sales.
It’s never too early to register for the ASI Holiday Preview Show in Las Vegas September 13-14. Let me know if you enjoyed the show by posting a comment or emailing me here. I’m also on Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube.
Monday
June 21, 2010 Discount Credit Lines for Your Equipment NeedsFiled under: Industry Initiatives, Member Benefits, Members, News About ASI At a time when banks and credit card companies are tightening up lines of credit, ASI is smoothing the way for members to increase their cash flow while building their business through another new member benefit. The discount program – now available through ASI affiliate InteliLease – will save members an average of $800 on every $20,000 credit line used for new or upgraded equipment. That means any company, large or small, new or established, can apply for a line of credit at the lowest, most competitive rates available to lease everything from computers, furniture and phone systems to copiers, software (including ASI ProfitMaker) and more. Program features include:
ASI extensively researched numerous equipment leasing programs before selecting InteliLease for its low rates, personalized service and ease of application. For more information, click here to read our press release. And let me know your favorite ASI benefit by posting a comment or emailing me here. I’m also on Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube.
Tuesday
May 18, 2010 ASI Boards Tackle Industry ChallengesFiled under: Guest Blog, Industry Initiatives, Members The ASI Advisory Board held its second official meeting at the ASI Show New York, where we tackled two very important topics – expanding the industry and selling direct. While acknowledging there’s always room for industry growth, we also addressed the need for greater diversity. As our recent Women’s Summit showed, women are now a significant industry force. But on the whole, the industry doesn’t properly reflect America’s diversity. We all agreed more needs to be done to make the industry more inclusive. ASI’s CEO, Tim Andrews, led a discussion on the many ways ASI attracts new suppliers and distributors to the industry. Afterward, one board member said to me, “If you told me we would have unanimous support for bringing in more distributors, I would have told you that you were crazy.” But in fact, we unanimously support the idea because the board is open to all the challenges the industry faces – including broadening membership scope and reach. We also debated a hot topic some might say has been done to death: selling direct. The prickliest questions included:
We intentionally avoided discussing pricing policies or specific companies, and in coming months we’ll formally review all recommendations and implement action plans. In the end, the board made numerous recommendations to ASI, including doing a better job advising members on ways to be even more active in order to contribute to the industry’s overall success. On June 4, we’ll open nominations for the 2011-2013 ASI advisory boards, and I urge you to nominate yourself or anyone else who could help advance the promotional products industry. Voting will take place in September and the new board members will be announced at the annual ASI Power Summit this November. The four ASI advisory boards that help guide ASI and the industry are:
All four boards are very active, and we have already begun acting on some recommendations. At the ASI Show Chicago, July 13-15, we hope to share an exciting new benefit for ASI members that will directly address another pressing industry issue, so please stay tuned. In the meantime, we’d love your feedback. Please comment on this blog post. We want to hear your take on the issues related to selling direct or other issues you think the ASI advisory boards should be tackling. (One important note: Please refrain from naming any names or we will be required to remove your post, which we hate to do.) – Dale Dale Denham is ASI’s senior vice president. Reach him at dale.denham@asicentral.com.
Tuesday
May 11, 2010 Savvy Solutions Provide Keys to SuccessFiled under: ASI Shows, Members, News About ASI, Using Ad Specialties I recently put MediaTree President Rob Watson on the “Hot Seat” at our New York Show to discuss how his company rode the Internet wave to become one of the world’s leading digital advertising agencies exclusive to the promo products industry. In my Tim’s Take video, which you can watch by clicking here, Rob describes MediaTree as hip and cool, and I have to agree. I met up with Rob and MediaTree CEO Bill Grassmyer at last week’s Counselor Awards, when Bill was named Supplier Entrepreneur of the Year. Barely 30, Rob was named MediaTree’s president in April 2008 after enjoying major success as the company’s director of marketing. Since starting up 15 years ago, MediaTree has developed online solutions for brands and Fortune 500 companies from Agway, Bayer and Coca-Cola to ReMax, United Airlines and Whirlpool. It works like this: MediaTree partners with select promotional product distributors to develop customized promotional and incentive programs. Having exclusive relationships with the most recognized online content providers, MediaTree offers virtually unlimited content and content combinations. Knowing the savviest distributors are now selling full, turnkey solutions, MediaTree took that same model and is now the solution provider for the online part of the equation. In my interview, I asked Rob about the credit quandary some distributors are reporting in this economy and he said the best solution is for distributors to develop as strong a relationship as possible with suppliers in order to obtain the best possible terms. His company further stokes those relationships by making sure company reps have superior sales sheets and PowerPoint presentations to take on sales calls to entice potential clients. Let me know what solutions your company is providing that set you apart by posting a comment or emailing me here. I’m also on Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube.
Wednesday
March 17, 2010 The Secret to Success: Do What You LoveFiled under: Community, Members, News About ASI In a recent radio interview, I was asked about my early goals and how they helped me realize my dreams. In short, I live by a pretty simple guiding rule: do what you love.
As I told radio show host Herb Cohen, my family was on food stamps when I was young. But, that never stopped me from pursuing ambitious goals. After college, I left the great Midwest for New York City, starting out as a national copyreader for Dow Jones News Service – and ending up president and chief executive of Dow Jones Reuters Business Interactive. Under my management, Dow Jones was one of the first companies to provide business information to corporate desktops over the Internet. Today, I head a company that’s equally ambitious and forward-thinking. Here at ASI, digital products now make up 70% of our service lineup, up from 20% just a few short years ago. Our emphasis on cutting-edge technology – and an investment in the people who drive that technology – sets ASI apart and keeps us finely attuned to business today and the future. In a real sense, I’m still following the same dream I had as a kid: doing what I love. You can hear what I had to say about our industry during the Executive Leaders Radio interview, a weekly roundtable with executives and CEOs, live this Friday from 8-9 a.m., on WWDB Radio. Just click here to listen to the live stream of the show during that hour. Let me know your secrets to success by posting a comment or emailing me here. I’m also on Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube.
Tuesday
February 16, 2010 Educating End-Buyers Through Media: CBS TVFiled under: Media Coverage, Members, News About ASI The media stampede continues, with Orlando’s CBS station featuring five promotional products for Valentine’s Day from ASI member companies.
Click here to watch the video. No matter what the calendar says, you can make every day Valentine’s Day with products like Sexy Water, the Bling Travel Mug, the Romantic Evening Intimacy Kit, a Contrast Color Thong, Chocolate Lips, Tangle Love Keychain, Little Black Book of Sexy Secrets, Sex on the Beach Kit, a Red Heart USB Drive and the Silhouette Girl Flashing Pin. For photos of each product and more purchasing information on ASICentral, click here. I’d love to know what products you enjoyed most, so post a comment or email me here. I’m also on Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube. |
