Due to the overwhelming success of the PMA Golf Classic last year, we have decided to repeat this prestigious winter event, now known as the John Noyes Classic Golf Day.

It's a great course and the weather is simply part of the challenge, although last years weather was close to perfect.

Sponsorship is an integral part of funding this event. This year all proceeds will go to MS Australia as chosen by Margaret Noyes.

Some of you may remember that we had many fantastic prizes last year, everything from printers to great bottles of wine, thanks to the generosity of many PMA members. We're NOT asking for major prizes this year, just small prizes so no one goes home empty handed.

We're also asking you to help make the 2011 PMA Winter Golf Day a great day. Simply fill in the attached sponsorship form with your payment. Not only will your company be acknowledged, your company name will appear on the banners all day.

Can you please contact Nicki Rogers on 03 9419 5247 if you have any queries. Please send prizes, clearly marked with your company name to Nicki Rogers 56 Easey St Collingwood, 3066.

Thanks for your support and I look forward to the challenge of playing golf with some of Victoria's best.

Regards, Jeff Crowley & Richard Robertson 

PMA VIC Committee

P.S. Don't forget to register your team download the brochure HERE!!

PMA continues to fight for fairer trading

The Fair Imports Alliance, comprised of PMA Australia, the Australian Retailers Association(ARA) and seven other retailer organizations, said statements made  recently about the retail industry demonstrate a lack of understanding and are nothing more than at an attempt to grab headlines.

Fair Imports Alliance Spokesperson Brad Kitschke said it was disappointing that commentary about the Productivity Commission Inquiry into the retail industry had become a 'bash the retailer' campaign.

"It would be more constructive for interested parties to work with the retail and wholesale sectors to lobby for reforms that would remove some of the barriers faced by Australian retailers. Retailers have always said from the outset that they are in favor of structural changes that will allow them to access goods at a reduced cost and offer lower prices to consumers. If you examine the pressures faced by Australian retailers - who are on the whole doing it tough - and look at the price points, it's easy to see how and why some products are more expensive in Australia," he said. "Take the example of the pair of shoes.  It isn't as simple as is made out.   Add a 10 percent Goods and Services Tax, add a five percent Custom duties and tariffs for footwear. Then take into consideration skyrocketing retail tenancy costs which are some of the highest in the world and to which the trader in the other country isn't subject. Then consider that many of the countries we are comparing with don't pay their staff the wages that retail workers in Australia receive. Rightly this country pays people properly. Then add on the additional charges imposed for freight and logistics in Australia, which are not efficient or as cost effective as offshore."

Kitschke said the public policy debate should be above removing structural barriers and not unfairly criticising retailers. "We are advocating for a removal of the GST threshold and no Custom Duties and Tariffs, for reform of retail tenancy laws and improvements to freight and logistic capabilities. Those are things all within the realm of responsibility of the
Commonwealth Government and are outside the control of the retail store operator,"   Kitschke added.

In other news on this front, the ARA, in its submission to the Productivity Commission Inquiry into the Economic Structure and Performance of the Australian Retail Industry,  said the power imbalance between landlord and retailer  had bricks and mortar retailers struggling to survive.

ARA Executive Director Russell Zimmerman said retail tenancy agreements and the oligopolistic nature of major shopping center ownership, which mostly bias landlords, were driving many retail busineses operators into the ground.

"While retail trade is flat, rents for bricks and mortar stores continue to increase driving up prices for consumers and ensuring a sustained retail exodus from the market.

The ARA has recommended key retail tenancy reforms to the PC in its submission, including:

1. Third party reporting of turnovers to avoid instances of predatory negotiations by landlords based on specified knowledge of business activity through an abuse of the "Turnover Rent" provisions.

2. First and last right of refusal for existing tenants in shopping centres to re-lease the premises prior to the landlord executing a lease to another tenant for the site.

3. An existing tenant should be able to seek an independent market rental valuation of their tenancy as a condition of entering into a new lease, particularly as there is not currently a market rate for commercial tenancies.

4. National registration of retail leases. The ARA said it believed a similar model to that of NSW should be adopted whereby a registration of retail leases is recorded with an appropriate regulator. Ideally, such a matter will be given appropriate powers to police non-compliance and would be harmonized across jurisdictions.

"As well as tenancy challenges, at a business level there are several more matters placing strain on retailers to successfully run a business in Australia. These include: the long-term ramifications of award harmonization; and the offshore online channels which present an inherent disadvantage to Australian retailers in terms of equitable competition. Indeed, these matters are placing strain on domestic retailers with many finding it increasingly difficult to successfully run a business in Australia," Zimmerman said.

You might have seen leaders who simply inspire and rally people around them and you might have also seen leaders who fail to get support. Good leaders give a really good reason for their followers to engage in a journey with them.

You don't have to be a leader to take advantage of this principle-everyone benefits from adopting this simple step of providing good reasons for the other person to fulfill your request.

Professor Robert Cialdini talked about this in his seminal work, Influence. He says that when we make a request to someone, we will be more successful, if we provide a reason. He specifically says that the word "because." In a simple experiment, he has a person who tries to jump the line to use the photocopy machine.

Here were the different requests:

Request 1: "Excuse me, I have five pages. May I use the Xerox machine because I am in a rush?"

Request 2: "Excuse me, I have five pages. May I use the Xerox machine?"

Request 3: "Excuse me, I have five pages. May I use the Xerox machine because I want to make some copies?"

The first request had a success rate of 94 percent. The second request had a success rate of 60 percent. The big surprise was the third request, as it had almost a meaningless reason stated after the word "because," this request had a success rate of 93 percent. That, is the power of "because."

I am suggesting you use "because" like the one in Request #1 rather than like the one in Request #3. It is tempting to make requests or give orders with an excuse that people will be given more details on a "need to know" basis. However, on the other end, the less they know the reason why the less they know the impact they're making.

Take a couple of quick tests because that will drive home the point:

Which of the following will get you a better response?

A. Please get me the report tomorrow.

B. Please get me the report tomorrow because it will help us get ready for the budget discussion on Monday.

How about this set of questions:

A. Can you please re-look at our sales campaign?

B. Can you please re-look at our sales campaign because with our current budget, we only have one shot at this?

Take a look at your sent items and browse through the e-mails you sent out last week. Was there a healthy dose of "because" in those emails? If yes, congratulations. If not, you have got your work cut out.

Image credit: a.Lo <3

Rajesh Setty is an entrepreneur, author and speaker based in Silicon Valley. He also creates and sells limited-edition prints at Sparktastic. You can follow him on Twitter @rajsetty.

• Abiding by a specific bedtime to ensure that I get 8 hours of sleep.  Nothing is more critical to the way I feel every day. If I'm flying somewhere  and know I'll arrive too late to get my 8 hours, I make it a priority to make  up the hours I need on the plane.
• Work out as soon as I wake up. I've long since learned it has a huge  impact all day long on how I feel, even if I don't initially feel like doing  it.
• Launching my work day by focusing first on whatever I've decided the night  before is the most important activity I can do that day. Then taking a break  after 90 minutes to refuel. Today - which happens to be a Sunday - this blog  was my priority. My break was playing tennis for an hour. During the week it  might be just to breathe for five minutes, or get something to eat.
• Immediately writing down on a list any idea or task that occurs to me over  the course of the day. Once it's on paper, it means I don't walk around  feeling preoccupied by it - or risk forgetting it.
• Asking myself the following question any time I feel triggered by someone  or something,: "What's the story I'm telling myself here and how could I tell  a more hopeful and empowering story about this same set of facts?" 

June 23^rd - 26^th                  PMA 2011 Imaging & Entertainment Expo