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For the past decade, distributors have been working to automate their
sales forces. More have failed than have been successful. This article
examines why these projects have not delivered on the promise of
increased efficiency and sales rep effectiveness.
Read the Article
After reading your weekly ISA news, scroll past the yellow section
for more features.
Here are two of the education
sessions that will be presented at the conference and trade fair.
- Dave Kahle on Sales - During this session, sponsored by
the independent manufacturer representative members of ISA, Dave Kahle,
world-renowned sales trainer, will share his secrets of rep success. His
message has broad implications for anyone whose responsibilities include
managing a sales territory or running a sales organization. .
- Online Marketing - This session will provide you with a
practical roadmap for transforming your Web site into an Online
Marketing Machine. Learn how to harness the power of search engine
marketing, customer-focused Web site, email marketing and Web analytics
into an integrated marketing system to generate new business and
strengthen relationships with customers.
For more information, click here. Register for the Industrial Supply
Conference and Trade Fair online by clicking here.
REGISTER for the
Conference and Trade Fair by April 18, 2008, and you will be listed in
the full directory that is mailed to all attendees prior to the
conference along with advance badges. Any registrants after this date
will be included in the on-site supplemental registration list and will
have to pick up their programs and badges on-site.
REMINDER: The room blocks at our conference hotels are filling
up very fast. In order to take advantage of special ISA pricing for the
meetings, book now! Special ISA hotel pricing expires April 29, 2008, OR
when the ISA room block sells out, whichever comes first.
FREE - One of the most valuable member services you receive
is the opportunity to participate in the Profit Report.
EASY - Simply fill out the operational questions on the
survey and attach a copy of your income statement and balance sheet and
send it to the Profit Planning Group.
VALUE-ADDED BONUS – Dr. Al Bates, the Profit Planning
Group, has agreed to SPEAK with any member participant free of
charge for up to 15 minutes, on any topic of concern. Your
company must participate in the 2008 Profit Report to be eligible
for this free consultation.
Click here to participate in the 2008 Profit
Survey.
Last year on behalf of two
major industrial distribution associations, a study was conducted by
Bill McCleave on the Future Impact of Size and Value Content on the
Industrial Distribution Channel. In that study, respondents indicated
that the quest for human talent was a real challenge. As a followup to
that study, we would like about nine minutes of your time to see what
you believe the future people challenges will be and what solutions are
available. Your individual responses will be kept confidential. Please
click on the appropriate link below. Thank you!
Strong financial
management in a distribution company can be achieved when each employee
understands fundamental financial concepts. Volume 1 of Brent Grover's
three-volume Official Guide to Wholesaler-Distributor Financial Success
is required reading for new hires and employees with little experience
in business or wholesale distribution. ISA members qualify to pay the
price of an NAW member association. Click here to order the book from NAW today or for
more information.
TAG helps companies identify opportunities to reduce
their costs, whether they operate their own private fleets or utilize
third-party freight providers. TAG Logistics examines your entire
freight delivery system and makes recommendations to streamline
shipments to reduce cost, while satisfying customer delivery
expectations. To take advantage of this affinity program and learn more
about their products and services call (413) 565-4641. Be sure to check
out all of the other cost reduction programs ISA has to offer at isapartners.org.
The ISA eBusiness Committee announces availability of the ISA
eBusiness Implementation Guideline. Click here for more information.
April 18: Deadline to receive ISA Conference & Trade Fair Early Bird
Registration Fees and to be listed in the printed conference program.
The program will be mailed in advance.
April 15: Profit Report - Deadline to Participate
May 21: How to Find and Keep the Right Employees … Without
Stealing from the Competition Webinar Details
June 1-3: ISA Industrial Supply Conference & Trade Fair, Chicago, IL
Details
Sept. 10: Developing an Inventory State of Mind Webinar
Nov. 19-20: Save the Date: ISA EBusiness Conference
Dec. 2: The Telephone Doctor Webinar
For more information on upcoming ISA events, go to isapartners.org.
Send name, title, email address and company
name of each colleague to info@mdm.com. Only employees of ISA member companies
will be added to the list to receive this weekly association update.
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MDM NEWS UPDATE: March 20, 2008
(Click headline
to view)
While Wolseley revenues for the
six months ended Jan. 31, 2008, increased 2% to £8.02 billion
(US$16 billion at current exchange rates), profit fell 23.1% for the
period, primarily due to losses at Stock Building Supply in the U.S. In
the first half, Wolseley cut 4,000 employees, excluding acquisitions. In
the past 18 months, headcount has been reduced by 10% - or around
10,000. In the U.S., the group reduced headcount by 5,250, about
one-third of the work force. At Ferguson, headcount was reduced by
2,700, or about 12%.
“Where Stock is concerned, the market has deteriorated
considerably,” said Wolseley CEO Chip Hornsby. “It's beyond
anything that we've experienced, in my view, since World War II. If you
look at housing starts, they've dropped from 2.2 million to under 1
million. We're in a situation where we've made significant headcount and
cost reductions. Now we've got to be able to begin to anticipate what's
going to happen next, particularly where that organization is concerned.
So we've begun to look at it more from a strategic standpoint and
surgically, region by region, to determine exactly, not only what our
objectives are in the short term, but also longer term. There are
markets that we really don't think will return to any level of normal
housing starts even beyond this cycle.”
More...
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MDM Publisher Tom Gale was
surprised (happily) at the vitality of this construction and fluid power
show last week in Las Vegas that drew a record 142,000 attendees. People
were buying and shopping hard. The two biggest impressions he came away
with were the quantity of international attendees (19%), and the
increased focus of energy-efficient and hybrid technology, both on the
construction side as well as hydraulic and motion control products. More…
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What are the Benchmarks for Success in Distribution?
A successful benchmarking
effort begins with an understanding of common performance metrics. The
Annual Census of Distribution conducted by the MPI Group identifies
current performance levels for key technologies and processes—from
radio-frequency identification (RFID) to Six Sigma—in distribution
centers and warehouse operations. Learn how savvy distributors are using
benchmark metrics and adopting best practices to stay one step ahead of
the competition. Click here to read the Annual Distribution
Executive Summary.
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If you have a showroom,
here’s a good checklist to test what you’re doing and find a
few ideas. This article from Supply House Times offers 50 best practices
to run a successful showroom, including tips on marketing, staffing and
financials. For example: Treat the showroom as an independent profit
center. Know whether it is making or losing money. Know what the return
on your investment is. Generate monthly and annual financial statements
for the showroom. Study them and react to them. They are your report
card on how well the showroom is performing. On staffing: Develop a
detailed, written training program. Conduct at least two staff meetings
a month to accomplish training and to communicate with employees on all
items of importance.
More...
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Thanks to increasing
oil sands production and record high oil prices, profits in Canada's oil
extraction industry are expected to increase by almost 18% to nearly $23
billion in 2008, according to the Conference Board's Canadian Industrial
Outlook: Canada's Oil Extraction Industry – Winter 2008.
Investment in upgrading projects and oil sands mines are finally
paying off, reports Machinery and Equipment MRO Magazine, as
non-conventional production is set to accelerate rapidly. In fact,
non-conventional oil production will be the main driver behind gains in
domestic crude production for the foreseeable future, as conventional
production continues to decline steadily. Total crude production will
increase by 9.2% this year and is expected to grow steadily over the
forecast period.
More...
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Original Equipment Manufacturer
customers are increasingly picking distributors that can provide value
engineering across all products, even mature ones, to reduce cost and
gain efficiencies. While the focus used to be on new product
introductions, that’s changed, according to this article at
Purchasing.com. "Our customers are looking for us to come in and meet
their maturing engineering group and figure out ways to design in new
components that will have a longer lifecycle and a better cost point,"
says Marc Gsand, Avnet’s vice president of marketing. Many
customers are running lean and focusing the efforts of staff engineers
on new product development.
More...
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visit the ISA Research Center.
ABOUT ISA ADVISOR
ISA Advisor is a weekly news and industry update provided as a member
service of the Industrial Supply Association. More information about ISA
member benefits and services is available at the web site of the Industrial Supply
Association.
ISA Advisor is published weekly by Gale Media, Inc., publisher of Modern Distribution
Management, on behalf of the Industrial Supply Association. 100
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