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Friday
June 11, 2010

Tip of the Day - 6 Questions To Ask Yourself Before A Market Analysis

Filed under: Tip of the Day

Mark Ziskind, COO of Caliendo Savio Enterprises (asi/155807), says distributors need to ask themselves the following questions before they perform an analysis of their local market:

  1. What industries play to your strengths? “Understand who you are, what your strengths are, and then chase the clients that would be the most productive for you as a client,” Ziskind says. “I think the tough thing about this industry is that everybody calls on everybody, regardless of how effectively they can service them, and I think that’s not good for the industry.”
  2. In what industries are you underdeveloped? Ziskind says a review of industry standards can help distributors to determine the local industries that they should pursue. “If you’re underdeveloped in health care, maybe go and pursue them because you’re missing some clients there,” he says. 
  3. Are there non-compete clauses with clients? “We have some clients that, due to the sensitive nature of their business in terms of the speed that they introduce technology, don’t allow you to work with competitors,” he says. “Don’t have your sales team call your competitors’ clients if you can’t do it.”
  4. Where is your sweet spot, and who is more prone to need those services? “Really, what is your true core competency, and what do you do best?” he says. “If it’s creativity, find out which clients are really clamoring for that. I think for new distributors, their sweet spot is relationships, personalized services, and the ability to service the smaller accounts until they develop an identity in the marketplace and get some more infrastructure.”
  5. What is the target size of the optimal new client? “Every company probably has a different threshold,” Ziskind says. “Obviously, the optimal client is going to vary based on what your ability to serve is and what your line of credit is from the bank. A two-person operation might have a different definition of an optimal client than we might.”
  6. What characteristics of a client make them more (or less) profitable? “Obviously, what you want to do is chase the most profitable clients that fit your business model,” he says. “Internet utilization is huge for us, but it might not be as big for someone who just got into the marketplace. So, we might find someone that utilizes that technology.” –  Shane Dale

From Counselor’s June 2010 issue.

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Tuesday
April 6, 2010

Tip of the Day - How To Improve Cash Flow

Filed under: Tip of the Day

Did the check come in today? This is a common question for distributors these days, as they wait for payments from clients on jobs they’ve already paid suppliers for. And maintaining a strong cash-flow position has only gotten trickier since the economic downturn.

“With the way the economy has been, there have been a lot of suppliers in the industry – suppliers we’ve had credit with for four years – now requiring us to prepay,” says Marty Stanchfield, president of Realm Promotions (asi/305338).

To stay one step ahead of costs, Stanchfield has actually transferred these shorter turnaround times from suppliers back onto his clients, tightening payment terms from net 30 to net 15.

“We thought that going to net 15 would lose customers,” says Stanchfield. “But just explaining that we’re in business for them and explaining that we’re just doing this to stay healthy and keep offering our services – we haven’t had any backlash at all.”

When that argument is not compelling enough, Stanchfield says that speaking to the client’s desire to save money is almost always an effective strategy. He’s currently offering a major client a cash discount if their invoice is processed early, so Realm’s check is ready immediately after the order is received.

Jon Lyles, account manager for Fire Sign Inc. (asi/194443), has done something similar, offering a 1% discount to clients who pay net 15 or less. “It gives you a little bit faster cash flow, and that 1% makes a big difference for them,” he says.

Another strategy Lyles uses is to require a partial payment or half-down deposit from clients, which keeps a steadier cash flow coming in. Should a new business opportunity come up, this also allows Fire Sign to be in a better position to approach its local credit union or bank about a loan.

Since getting financing from banks can be a challenge for small businesses right now, another option is to look at accounts receivable financing companies. Promotional Capital (asi/820128) offers both up-front funds to pay suppliers and advance funds on open invoices for clients that may be running late on their payment.

“We’re trying to fill this gap,” says John Herman, president and CEO of Promotional Capital, who was previously a distributor himself. “In our program it’s potentially possible that distributors are not going to have any need for their cash to process an order.”

Herman emphasizes that good cash flow often means ensuring clients have good credit. “It’s imperative that you get credit applications from your clients,” he says. “It used to be very lax, nobody got those, but today a distributor has to get those applications and they’ve got to follow up on those applications and do their own due diligence.” – AP

From Counselor’s April Marketwise.

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Monday
April 5, 2010

Nominate Your Company For The Best Places To Work Contest

Filed under: General

For the third year in a row, Counselor is setting out to identify the industry companies that employees simply love to work for. These are the distributors and suppliers that have a loyal work force and that provide a work environment which employees want to go to every morning.

Counselor will be unveiling its second-annual Best Places To Work issue in September, and it will undoubtedly include an elite list of industry companies. Do you want your company to be considered? Getting involved is easy – and it’s completely free to participate. The only necessary qualification is that a company has at least 10 employees. To nominate your company, or any others in the market that you think deserve to be recognized, simply click here. Also, there’s no risk to participating. Only the honorees – those companies with the best scores from the survey – will be published in Counselor. 

So, don’t delay. Click here to register your company to be considered for one of the most exclusive lists in the ad specialty market: Counselor’s Best Places To Work. 

For prior winners from 2009 and 2008, click here.

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Wednesday
October 22, 2008

Third Quarter Industry Sales Revealed

Filed under: site updates

This just in! The results of Counselor’s recent industry survey show that 2008 third quarter distributor sales are down 1.56% vs. 2007 third quarter figures. So that doesn’t sound too bad, what with the current economy and all, right? But that 1.56% equals a net decrease of $79 million vs. the same quarter one year ago…and $79 million down sounds really bad. But then again, 40% of distributors surveyed reported an increase in sales this quarter vs. 37% who reported a decrease, and I’d say that’s pretty much a draw.

If you ask me, everything boils down to your personal efforts in your business. Like the insanely fluctuating stock market, industry sales are going to go up and down, and there’s nothing any of us can do about that, try as we might. But the old cliché still applies: you get out of something what you put into it (or something like that). Even if your clients have smaller budgets than in the past, they still need to appeal to and advertise to and reward their clients, which means they still need you. If you’re there for your buyers and offer them creative, exciting, brilliant products and marketing ideas, you’ll find yourself part of that successful 40% in the fourth quarter - I guarantee it.*

*Note: Not a guarantee.

-KB

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Wednesday
October 8, 2008

Attention New Distributors!

Filed under: site updates

"Open for Business" seriesIf you’re just starting a distributorship, you have to go to our Education section right now (well, finish reading this blog post first). We’re featuring a fantastic series that Counselor magazine is running all year long, following 3 brand-spanking-new distributors through their first year in business.

Check it out for tips and advice, and maybe some warnings, that will help you succeed in YOUR business.

-KB

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Friday
October 3, 2008

Check Out the Redesigned Counselor Web Page!

Filed under: site updates

We’re proud to announce the new online face of Counselor magazine. Thanks to Steve and Craig’s outstanding design skills, it’s the next best thing to a hard copy of the magazine! The new design makes it easy to find your favorite Counselor sections and columns, along with new weekly polls, PromoGram videos, lists of award winners (are you on there??) and a whole lot more.

So click around till your finger’s sore, then let us know what you think! Just post a comment here or email us at feedback@aiscentral.com.

-KB

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