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Wednesday
July 28, 2010 Log On and Fan the WorldFiled under: Community, News About ASI, Research Half a billion people worldwide now use the social networking site Facebook to stay connected. If Facebook was its own country, it would be the third most populous nation in the world, according to PC World. Here at ASI, we’re doing our part. I routinely blog, Tweet – you name it – along with numerous other employees. Our ASICentral.com team alone already has 2,130 fans, and counting. If you’re not actively using these free online tools to generate interest in your company, it’s time to jump on the bandwagon. Facebook says half of its active users log on to the site on any given day. So I was happy to answer some questions for Promo35, a Facebook forum for young industry professionals. The group is the brainchild of Charley Johnson of SnugZ/USA (asi/88060), who routinely posts interviews with industry leaders and movers and shakers. Recently, Johnson turned his eye to me. Here’s our exchange: 1. Are you cautiously optimistic about the 2nd half of the year or do you see it getting even better than the 1st half of 2010? TA: Industry revenue, as measured by distributor sales, was up about 11% in the first quarter, according to our research at ASI. I expect the second quarter was up high single digits. But, that’s against a very weak 2009. If sales were to grow 5% annually, it would take about six years to get back to 2008 sales levels. So it’s going to be a slow climb out of a deep hole. I think 2010 will be up 5%-6% when the dust settles. 2. Are we out of the woods with the economy or do you see a “double dip” recession headed our way? TA: My degree is in economics, which probably makes me the least qualified person to answer this question! But I don’t see a double-dip recession. I think we’ll have a slow growth period, with frequent fits and starts. Don’t get scared – but don’t get cocky, either. 3. Have customers become easier or more difficult to deal with due to everything that is going on in the world? TA: It seems to me that people have gotten smarter – they expect you to deliver what you promise, and to prove what you say. That helps us because our magazines have an audited circulation (several in the industry aren’t audited), so advertisers can be certain we deliver what we say in terms of readership; we marry print and digital circulation (if you’re advertising in an all-digital magazine, ask for proof of readership); and we provide more metrics than anyone on digital advertising and usage. 4. Do you see yourself changing the way you advertise in the future? TA: We deliver advertising messages in print (magazines, directories, catalogs, faxes), digitally (online, email) and in person (ASI Shows, Advantages Roadshows, Stitches Roadshows and regional association shows). Only a mix works, balanced for the types of people you’re trying to reach and ensuring they see the messages multiple times in multiples places. No successful brand only uses one form of media. 5. What question do you have in your mind that you would like people in the industry to respond to? TA: ESP Orders would save distributors 30 to 45 minutes per PO and help suppliers get accurate, complete orders without making calls on 50%-100% of all POs they receive. That would save millions of dollars in time that could be used to prospect for more customers. So my question is, how do we get more people to use it? Let me know how much time your business devotes to online networking by posting a comment or emailing me here. I’m also on Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube.
Wednesday
July 14, 2010 State of the Industry Sneak PeekFiled under: ASI Shows, Research Counselor’s State of the Industry issue – our largest and best-read issue of the year – is about to drop and I’m offering a preview in Tim’s Take, a video shot during the opening day of our Chicago show. Click here to watch. In the issue, we report that both distributors and suppliers are abundantly more optimistic about the health of the market in 2010 than they were in 2009. What that tells us is that growth is here, and more is on the way. Even further, 63% of distributors expect to increase their sales and profitability in 2010, which is a good indication of a solid year ahead for everyone in our industry. Our data comes from separate surveys returned by distributors and suppliers and analyzed by Larry Basinait, executive director of research services for ASI. As Counselor reveals, the top three sales categories are health, financial institutions and education. I’m happy to report that doctors and health-care organizations are promoting themselves more, which is helping offset the hit the sector took from legislative restrictions placed on Big Pharma. The growth of finance and education comes thanks to government education and retraining programs now available to the unemployed. So, if you haven’t started chasing your local educational market, now’s the time. And, there’s more. The issue also contains a Business Planning Guide, which provides strategies and tactics for distributors to plan for business growth over the immediate and long term. Broken up into four time-based sections (immediate, 2010 fourth quarter, 2011, and a long-term two-to-four-year horizon), the guide offers advice sure to invigorate and energize any organization. Let me know what you’re doing to recharge your business by posting a comment or emailing me here. I’m also on Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube.
Friday
May 28, 2010 Promo Products Save Taxpayers MillionsFiled under: Industry Initiatives, Research, Using Ad Specialties Don’t you love when the government saves us money – rather than spends it? If so, you’ll appreciate this: Using promotional items to remind people to mail back their census forms could save U.S. taxpayers up to $85 million. So far, more than 72% of the nation’s households have responded, which the Census Bureau says already surpasses the total response rate in 2000 of 67%. The massive awareness campaign was fueled in large part by promo products – everything from branded totes to pens, mugs and magnets – that reminded people to send in their info. And while census workers will still come knocking, thanks to the power of promo products, fewer are needed, which is where we all save money. Overall, the Census Bureau spent $340 million for advertising, targeting $140 million on television, print and Internet ads, and $22.7 million on promotional products. Guess which saved taxpayers more? Census promo items cost an estimated nickel per person while “mainstream media” ads cost roughly $1 per person. Talk about more bang for the buck! Numerous industry companies did their part to get the word out. Proforma Double Dog Dare in New Albany, Indiana provided the government with 50,000 travel totes, PromoShop (asi/300446) contracted with several U.S. cities and Halo/Lee Wayne (asi/356000) distributed products throughout Arkansas, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri and Oklahoma. It’s a critical message. The government relies on census data to help determine how to distribute more than $400 billion in federal funds to tribal, state and local governments each year. Halo/Lee Wayne Senior Account Executive Anita Daniels echoed the sentiments of many when she said she found this job particularly rewarding: “It gave me a great sense of pride knowing the government was helping me and I was helping some of my fellow American workers.” To read more about the industry’s Census efforts, click here. And let me know if your company conducted any Census-related work by posting a comment or emailing me here. I’m also on Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube.
Thursday
May 13, 2010 Let the Rebound Begin: 1st Quarter Sales ResultsFiled under: Research Anyone who knows me would rightly describe me as bullish on this industry. Even during the stormiest days of the economic crisis, I always looked ahead, knowing a rebound was as certain as the sun – even if the timing was uncertain. Now, it’s official. The results of ASI’s exclusive survey of first quarter industry sales show an 11.1%, year-over-year increase among ASI distributor members – the first increase in seven quarters. This translates to an increase in sales of $353 million over the first quarter of 2009. Total industry sales for the first quarter of 2010 were $3.5 billion. We released our early findings during the ASI Show New York and this week shared the news via Counselor PromoGram and www.ASICentral.com. The word on the streets is “cautiously optimistic.” While it’ll certainly take some time for the industry to fully rebound to pre-recession numbers – some economists are predicting four years to fully ease the strain – perhaps we can finally start to exhale. Here are some highlights from the survey:
To read the entire report, click here. I’d particularly like to thank the 53 members of our new panel, comprised of some of the biggest “Big Dogs” in the industry. Each quarter, they’ll allow us to tap their brains – and check their ledger balances – through their direct participation in the Sales Study, bringing an added level of consistency to our results. Of course, ASI will continue to survey a sample of our membership in deriving sales estimates. Our second quarter 2010 Sales Study Report will be published in July. Let me know your predictions for that report by posting a comment or emailing me here. I’m also on Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube.
Tuesday
April 13, 2010 The Start of Something Good: ESP Searches Up, Up, UpFiled under: ASI Shows, Research There’s something in the air besides spring. Call me an optimist, but I’m seeing the start of an industry turnaround. Instead of tulips, I’m counting the number of searches in ESP. And what I’m finding is giving me a real stirring of hope. From March 2009 to March 2010, the number of searches in the ASI product database increased nearly 9%. And from February 2010 to March 2010, that number jumped almost 21%. What that tells me is more people are searching for more products. More sales can’t be far behind. The most cautious of distributors tell me that while business remained relatively flat this first quarter, they no longer feel like they’re peering into the abyss. In addition to more confidence in the future, they’re reporting an uptick in inquiries and prospects. While no one’s uncorking the champagne quite yet, some businesses are reporting an increase in orders dating back six months, thanks in part to aggressive marketing efforts. Here at ASI, we’re counting down the days until ASI New York, May 4-6, the industry’s first and only major trade show in the Big Apple and the number one choice for a Northeast event in numerous member surveys. New York is also the site of our very first ASI Women’s Summit, May 4, with keynoter Barbara Corcoran – who’s almost as bullish on opportunity as me. I plan to toast the future at our annual Counselor Awards May 5 at New York’s venerable Plaza Hotel. Please tell me what signs of revival you’re seeing by posting a comment or emailing me here. I’m also on Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube.
Monday
March 8, 2010 Take the State of the Industry Survey TodayFiled under: Guest Blog, Research
So, why is it important? Because of the in-depth reports each year on key sales, marketing and operational metrics that industry practitioners can then use to build their businesses. Nowhere else do you get the scope of this detailed information about our industry. And, it’s free to ASI members. What do you have to do? All we ask is that you take 10 minutes to complete the survey. And you could win some great prizes just for participating. There are distributor winners chosen at random for cash prizes totaling $1,500, and suppliers can win one of three full-page ads in an ASI publication of their choice. If you’re a distributor, take the survey here. If you’re a supplier, take the survey here. If you’d rather take a paper version of the study, email me at lbasinait@asicentral.com and I’ll send you the PDF you can mail back to us. But hurry, the deadline is Friday, March 19. Thank you in advance for your participation in this important research. For additional research from ASI, click here. — Larry Larry Basinait is ASI‘s executive director of research services.
Monday
February 22, 2010 Industry Sales $15.9 Billion for 2009Filed under: Research We recently announced industry sales results that reflect what we’ve been saying for months: while the industry took a major hit in 2009, the worst appears to be behind us. ASI’s exclusive annual industry sales estimate shows promotional products sales were $15.9 billion, down 19.5% versus 2008. The annual estimate is adjusted for certain year-end information, including distributors that exited the industry during 2009 and distributors that have not been part of ASI for the last 12 months. While sales dropped, quarter-by-quarter declines throughout 2009 have slowed consistently. Fourth-quarter 2009 sales were off 9.7%, the lowest decline among the other three quarters. Results also indicate that economic turbulence may be easing, with 34% of respondents reporting a year-over-year increase in sales during the fourth quarter. That is the largest percentage of respondents whose sales were up since the third quarter of 2008. Better yet, there’s solid evidence promotional products remain a great value among all advertising mediums. Spending on ad specialties for full-year 2009 is about double what marketers spent on radio advertising, about 26% larger than Internet advertising, and nearly four times greater than outdoor ads. Click here to read the press release. The general consensus from distributors is that it’s time to seize the momentum we do have, increase marketing and grab market share. The pendulum will swing back — and we need to be ready when it does. I’d love to know what strategies you’ve employed in recent months and how you’re positioning your company for the future so post a comment or email me here. I’m also on Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube. |
Each year, ASI conducts the most comprehensive and important research about our industry, the Counselor State of the Industry.