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Monday
January 5, 2009

ASI Show Orlando Posts Strong Attendance | Video

Filed 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.

There’s no way someone didn’t leave the two hours with Tony Robbins without having a positive outlook on their business and their life as we enter 2009.  Check out the crowd with him in this photo.

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.

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Monday
January 5, 2009

Fashion Show Photos, New Products Videos, ProfitMaker Integrates with ESP

Filed 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.


Also, click here watch my video of unique promotional products from the show floor, including:

  • Pens made from recycled currency and denim, from Shepenco, asi/86850
  • Knit fleece jacket, with fleece inside and a sweater outside, from Charles River Apparel, asi/44620
  • Mini video camcorder, from Hirsch Gift, asi/61005

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.

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.  

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.

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Sunday
January 4, 2009

ESP Upgrade and Photos From Distributor Choice Awards

Filed 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:

  • New end-buyer ordering, with an interactive CenterStageTM presentation that allows a customer to place an order for the products shown in the presentation. 
  • PromoCafe, which allows the 32,000 users of ESP Online to communicate with other members of the ESP Online community instantly via chat rooms and instant messages. At launch, this creates the largest online presence of distributors in the world.

For the full press release with many more new features, click here.

The show continued into the night with the Counselor Distributor Choice Awards, which is like the Viewers Choice Awards for our industry. 

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.

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Saturday
January 3, 2009

ASI Show Orlando | New Order Management System

Filed under: ASI Shows, Industry Initiatives, News About ASI

It’s hard to beat kicking off the New Year amid 70-degree weather at the ASI Show Orlando, taking place today through Monday at the Orange County Convention Center.

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.

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Wednesday
November 19, 2008

Changes to ’09 Shows All About You – Make Dollars Count

Filed under: ASI Shows, News About ASI

During the past few months, we’ve been reviewing our operations at ASI Show to determine what we need to do for you and for the industry in the face of an uncertain 2009.  Now, more than ever, it will be important to make every marketing dollar we spend, and that we ask you to spend, count.

Instead of accepting that 2009 will be a down year and there’s nothing we can do about it, we’ve decided to invest more to make sure we attract distributors — ones you want — to each of the five ASI Shows and that they’re fully engaged with you during the entire show, 24×7.

Beginning with Orlando, the first show of the year and the largest on the East Coast, here’s what we’ve done:

  • Growing attendance.  ASI Orlando and ASI Dallas pre-registration are both up about 10% from this time last year and continue to build.  While lots can happen in two months, we’re confident our marketing is providing compelling reasons to attend.  We’ve scheduled Tony Robbins as our keynote in Orlando, simplified rules around some of our distributor incentive programs, added valued-priced hotels and announced an Orlando fashion show to hold attendees until the end of the first exhibition day.
  • Attracting the right distributors.  Rather than just quantity, we’re using our internal information on distributor quality — creditworthiness from ASI CreditConnect and salesperson affiliations — to make sure we’re focusing on the right people and that they’re choosing ASI Orlando and ASI Dallas over early 2009 alternatives.  We’ve added staff at ASI to work with national distributor networks, as well as smaller, faster-growing distributors, to host national and regional sales meetings at ASI Shows.  We’ve already confirmed 40 meetings for 2009 shows – 14 in Orlando alone, and in Dallas one distributor is bringing more than 300 salespeople.
  • Delivering exclusive distributors.  Our research shows that, based on our incentive and marketing programs, we expect that more than 90% of ASI Show attendees in 2009 won’t participate in any other industry event (including PPAI Expo) and more salespeople from Top 40 companies will attend our shows than any other collection.
  • New information on the distributors you meet.  In addition to the typical contact information on distributors you scan in your booth, we’re adding additional information, including the ASI CreditConnect risk level (to help you assess creditworthiness), job function and title, and how long the attendee’s firm has been an ASI member.
  •  More ways for you to interact with distributors.  We’re putting in place “24×7 Networking” — coming up with ways you can get to know distributors and introduce them to your products and unique capabilities during the shows, and also outside normal show hours.  You’ll hear more about this as each show draws near, but here’s an example:  Suppliers who exhibit at all five ASI Shows will now receive complimentary tickets to the gala event at every show, giving you several more hours to socialize and get to know your customers and prospects — at no cost to you.
  •  Easier to do business with ASI Show.  For 2009, we’ve simplified doing business with us and created comprehensive marketing material with key facts about every show to help you make exhibition decisions.  All exhibitor manuals, show and education registration, and hotel websites are open months earlier than ever before, and we’re eliminating half the show-related deadlines so you can keep things straight (and so can we!).  We’re also holding 2009 pricing for 2010 through mid-February 2009, giving you more opportunities to make plans for 2010 without financial penalty.
  • Relevant education for suppliers and distributors.  We’ve overhauled education, creating a special all-day session to prepare new distributors to more effectively work with you and adding an invitation-only education track for people who do at least $1 million a year in sales.  Exclusively for suppliers, we’ve added “Supplier Clinics” designed to provide specific, actionable examples of how to manage your business in a challenging and changing environment.  The sessions are free, and they’re scheduled during times you aren’t setting up or staffing your booth.
  •  Marketing opportunities that use technology.  We’re replacing the Show Daily paper with a HUGE video display outside the exhibit hall of every show.  This new initiative will give you a low-cost way to advertise your products and show specials via video, driving traffic and education in an innovative, eye-catching way.  (Your Show account executive can provide details.)  ASI Radio, our 30-minute weekly web-based industry show, will be broadcast at every ASI Show in 2009, providing an opportunity to reach distributors who are listening to the show with your marketing message through sponsorships and, if your news is truly worthy, editorial coverage.
  • New registration area.  Instead of the familiar red and black ASI Show you’ve come to expect, we’ve adopted new individual branding for each of the five shows, and upgraded the technology used in the registration area.  As a supplier, you will be able to receive your credentials more quickly, be able to make last-minute changes yourself at kiosks, and get onto the floor quickly on setup day.  For distributors, the new registration area is not only brighter and more accessible, we’ve designed it to be faster with shorter lines so people can get to the show faster.


We’re committed to creating a selling environment that works for you and that provides a clear, superior return on your trade show investment.  I’m proud of the changes we’re planning, the early response from distributors and suppliers, and the excitement that’s building among major distributors to co-locate their sales gatherings with ASI in 2009 and beyond.

Please let me know anything else we can do to make your show experience better.  My personal email address is tim.andrews@asicentral.com.  For general information about ASI Shows, or to register, visit asishow.com or call 1-877-274-7469 (ASI-SHOW). 

I look forward to seeing you at a show in 2009.

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Thursday
November 13, 2008

Video About Incentivizing Top Reps

Filed under: Education, Industry Initiatives, News About ASI

Keeping sales reps motivated to reach peak performance is a challenge for nearly every industry company and is a hot topic among peers and in our publications. 

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:

  • Hiring millenials and interns and providing motivating training for them.
  • Recruiting new reps from the pharma and real estate industries.
  • Provide service levels that aren’t just product-focused, but also service-focused. 

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.

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Tuesday
November 11, 2008

ASI Power Summit Video of Distributor-Supplier Roundtable, New Power 50

Filed under: Education, Industry Initiatives, News About ASI

 At the ASI Power Summit we just announced the third annual Counselor Power 50 ranking of the most influential leaders in the advertising specialty industry. 

You might be surprised who’s near the top of the list – especially since there are 13 newcomers – and can find out who’s on the complete ranking at asicentral.com/power50.  Check out an upcoming issue of Counselor for stories behind these dynamic movers and shakers and knowledge you can use for your business.

Also, watch a video with ideas and action items that emerged from the “Distributor & Supplier Roundtable” session, an open discussion focusing on issues affecting distributors, suppliers and end-buyers, including:

  • Views on putting prices in printed catalogs
  • Whether order sizes are going up or down and price increases
  • What level distributors and suppliers feel they’re knowledgeable about compliance (90% of distributors said they’re not)

To watch the video with perhaps surprising results to these questions, click here.

In addition, check out photos from the ASI Power Summit anytime, at asicentral.com/powersummit.  Tell me what you think – post now on the blog or email me at tim.andrews@asicentral.com.

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