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Wednesday
July 13, 2011 ASI Launching Oracle-Powered Tech PlatformFiled under: Industry Initiatives, News About ASI ASI is in the midst of a very exciting technology launch, and I’d like to share some preliminary information – with much more to come as we prepare for the official fourth-quarter rollout. Following a decades-long tradition of providing business tools that help distributors, suppliers and decorators grow sales and manage profitability, ASI teamed up with tech giant Oracle to build an industry-specific technology platform. The next-generation sales-boosting tools will include cloud capabilities and software services tailored for the industry – and your business. Knowing how integral relationship-building is to this industry, we designed this platform to fundamentally change the way suppliers and distributors communicate, collaborate and nurture those relationships. And it comes at a perfect time – when the industry is shifting from cost-cutting to all-important revenue-building. The new offering will include comprehensive product sourcing powered by ESP, order management, reporting and business analysis and other functions. The R&D for this project took more than a year and represents a multimillion-dollar investment by ASI. From the beginning, we concentrated as much on safety and security as we did on the technology itself, and we have every confidence in Oracle, a worldwide database and software innovator with over 30 years experience and more than 370,000 customers – including 100 of the Fortune 100. In addition to the new Oracle-powered implementation, ASI initially invested $1 million to increase protection of data driving the industry and continues with annual investments of $500,000. There isn’t a single company in the industry spending more on product development and data integrity and security than ASI, and that long-standing commitment is something I and the Norman Cohn family are proud to have as our hallmark. ASI expects to announce general rollout plans in September, with initial availability anticipated for the fourth quarter. We can’t wait to make this safe, high-quality product a part of every member’s business. For more information, distributors may contact Dan O’Halloran, executive vice president of distributor services, at dan.ohalloran@asicentral.com or 215-953-3070; and suppliers may contact Rich Fairfield, publisher and executive vice president at rfairfield@asicentral.com or 215-953-3627. In the meantime, if you have any suggestions, ideas or comments, post a comment or e-mail me here. Stay tuned!
Tuesday
July 12, 2011 Get Your Motor Runnin’Filed under: ASICentral, Community, News About ASI Perhaps the greatest road trip book ever written is Jack Kerouac’s 1957 On the Road. And whether you’d vote for Thelma and Louise, Easy Rider or even The Wizard of Oz as greatest road trip movie of all time, I think you’d agree all these books and movies share a common love of the open road and a thirst for adventure. Those same themes will be thoroughly explored over the next week or so during Counselor’s 3,000 mile 2011 Summer Road Tour. Three Counselor editors are trucking cross-country on a mission to visit as many companies on the magazine’s upcoming Best Places to Work List as possible. You can follow every pit stop and diner drop by clicking here for tweets, blog posts, videos, photos and stories from the road. You can also follow Andy Cohen, Melinda Ligos and Joe Haley (the Tin Man, Lion and Scarecrow?) via a live map tracking their stops at more than a dozen industry companies across the country. Their mission is to discover why they’re great places to work, find out what makes a winning corporate culture and take part in whatever summer craziness comes their way. The road crew left this morning in a rented SUV packed with cold drinks, trip T-shirts and road tunes loaded on the iPod. Today’s stops: Maryland, Virginia and North Carolina. Let me know what you think of the trip as it unfolds – and what your all-time favorite road trip book or movie is – by posting a comment or e-mailing me here. I’m also on Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube.
Thursday
July 7, 2011 Celebrating a New CatalogFiled under: News About ASI, Using Ad Specialties Launching a new catalog like the 2011 Spectrum Celebration is a really big deal. We forged ahead for two key reasons: because it provides distributors with a catalog featuring the newest products from top suppliers, and it helps them boost sales during the all-important second half of the selling year. As Dan Brown, our executive director of distributor services puts it, “Clients are always looking for what’s new and now, distributors have the answer.” To view sample pages of Spectrum Celebration and to order online, click here. For more information, contact Dan at dbrown@asicentral.com or at 800-546-1350. Spectrum Celebration is available in this brand new summer/fall edition with a special “select” section featuring the top-rated suppliers everyone wants. But jump on it now before it’s too late. Guaranteed circulation is 200,000 and we’ve already received pre-orders totaling nearly 41,000 copies. The catalog contains over 200 products from over 50 suppliers, in all price ranges, and of course comes with full-color imprinting for distributor logos on the front cover. Other features include:
If you have any suggestions or comments, post a comment or e-mail me here. I’m also on Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube.
Wednesday
July 6, 2011 2012 Keynotes AnnouncedFiled under: ASI Shows, Community, News About ASI Can you imagine gaining exclusive access to some of the greatest business thinkers and social commentators of our time – for free? Look no further than ASI’s 2012 lineup of keynote speakers. We spent months surveying the industry and researching new programs to offer next year, and I have every confidence this unprecedented lineup will score, especially since it’s a unique balance of education, motivation, information and debate. The ASI team that plans our shows has really put together an incredibly powerful set of keynotes, activities and entertainment at shows in Orlando, Dallas, San Diego, New York and Chicago. Dan O’Halloran, our executive VP of distributor services, tells me several Top 40 distributors have already committed to bringing 700+ salespeople to ASI Orlando alone. Expect full details soon. The list of scheduled programs includes:
In addition to education and inspiration, The ASI Shows feature world-class entertainment for ASI members:
Online registration is now open for the five 2012 ASI Shows, including Orlando (Jan. 16-18), Dallas (Feb. 1-3), San Diego (April 2-4), New York (May 8-10) and Chicago (July 17-19). Visit www.asishow.com for complete details on The ASI Show and to make your hotel reservations. Discounted hotel rates are available through the official ASI Show housing bureau, Travel Planners. Each ASI Show features a three-day schedule, with a full day of ASI Education and two exhibit days. ASI distributor and decorator members receive free admission and qualify for a free hotel room. Call 877-ASI-SHOW with any questions. To learn more about exhibiting or sponsorship opportunities, please contact Karen DiTomasso, VP of sales, at kditomasso@asicentral.com. Let me know what you think of our line-up – and if you have any suggestions or comments post a comment or e-mail me here. I’m also on Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube.
Monday
June 27, 2011 Crazy, Hazy Days of SummerFiled under: Members, News About ASI, Using Ad Specialties I love learning about new crazes. It gives me something to talk about at a party or while stuck in line at the DMV. Recently, Joe “The Joe Show” Haley turned me on to disc golf, which is a game played much like traditional golf. Instead of a ball and clubs, players use a flying disc. The object is to complete each hole in the fewest number of throws, instead of strokes. Joe discovered this newest sports fad sweeping college campuses and the burbs while researching products for our annual list of sizzling summer products. Par One (asi/75912) makes the discs, which come with a great grip and a large imprint area to promote everything from beach resorts and golf outings to company picnics and swim clubs. Since there are just 92 days in summer, I’m sure you’re working hard to take advantage of every one. If you have any products you think we should feature, send on a sample to Joe here at ASI. You never know when it’ll hit a list like the one below. The Top 10 List of Sizzling Summer Products:
Click here to watch a Joe Show demo of the products. Click here for more photos and complete product descriptions. And if you have any super summer promotions planned, post a comment or email me here. I’m also on Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube.
Wednesday
June 22, 2011 That Championship SeasonFiled under: News About ASI I always wonder how champions feel right after a major win. Do they immediately start thinking of the next year, the next game, the next big trophy? I’m betting ASI’s latest winners – our editorial team – are already planning their next triumph. But first they’ll certainly celebrate winning a total of 18 awards for writing, editing, research, design and photography from the American Society of Business Publication Editors. I’m half expecting them to come to my office and pour gatorade over my head during a victory lap! All told, ASI publications have won an incredible 57 editorial awards in recent years, including three Jesse H. Neal Awards, considered the Pulitzer Prize of the business press. I give a lot of credit to Melinda Ligos, ASI’s editor in chief and senior vice president of professional development, and to Rich Fairfield, our executive vice president and publisher, for guiding editorial to so many championship seasons. ASBPE is the professional association for full-time and freelance editors and writers employed in the business, trade and specialty press. The organization is widely known for its annual Awards of Excellence competition, which recognizes the best in editorial, design and online achievement. Every year, ASI’s five magazines are up against heavy hitters like BusinessWeek – and usually end up mopping the floor with the competition. For their efforts, the national Azbee Award winners will be honored at a banquet in Chicago August 4. Northeastern regional winners will be feted at a banquet in New York City on July 27. I’m sure you’ll recognize a lot of the award-winning stories, photos and designs, so here’s a list of the national awards:
And here’s a list of regional awards:
Please join me in congratulating everyone involved. I’m sure they’re already hard at work on the next big batch of award winners. If your organization has been recognized recently, let me know by posting a comment or emailing me here. I’m also on Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube.
Thursday
June 16, 2011 Time to Read, Write and SellFiled under: News About ASI Kids across the nation are singing “No more pencils/No more books/No more teacher’s dirty looks” as they exit school for summer. While I wish I could join them at the mall or in the pool, instead I’m thinking about upcoming fall promotions while flipping through our 2011 schools edition of the Idea Showcase catalog. We’ve already sold 200,000 copies of the pocket-size catalog, which comes with a money-saving coupon section and slides perfectly into a No. 10 envelope. Whether you’re looking for a reliable standard like a pen or stress ball or something far out like rally hair or glowing ice cubes, Idea Showcase offers plenty of campaign ideas. Features include:
In addition, each copy of Idea Showcase can be imprinted with a distributor’s full-color logo and contact information on the cover any time throughout the year. To order Idea Showcase online or to see sample pages, click here. For more information, contact Dan Brown, executive director of distributor services, at dbrown@asicentral.com or at 800-546-1350. Distributors receive free shipping on orders placed by July 15. Now if I can just get Alice Cooper’s classic June anthem “School’s Out for Summer” out of my head, I’ll head back to work. Let me know what you’re planning for summer by posting a comment or emailing me here. I’m also on Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube. |
