Coach's Corner

by Fred Albrecht

Great Day to All. March ended with a bang allowing us to reach the $2.2 Million mark for bookings and up over 18% for the month and 7.5% for the first quarter. We are definitely heading in the right direction with lots of work to do in order to break a $3 Million dollar month and achieve our $25 Million dollar goal. As I was preparing to write this week's coach's corner, our good friend and rep, Wayne Lineberry sent me a very nice "nugget", that I thought I would share with you. We like to think of ourselves as "Eagles" but occasionally we all get in that "Complaining Rut", everyone knows I have "grumped" about our Winter long enough. So, Wayne, thanks for the inspiration and reminder for us all.

Quit Quacking and Start Soaring.

Fred 

Harvey Mackay, tells a wonderful story about a cab driver ...

He was waiting in line for a ride at the airport. When a cab pulled up, the first thing Harvey noticed was that the taxi was polished to a bright shine. Smartly dressed in a white shirt, black tie, and freshly pressed black slacks, the cab driver jumped out and rounded the car to open the back passenger door for Harvey.

He handed my friend a laminated card and said: 'I'm Wally, your driver. While I'm loading your bags in the trunk I'd like you to read my mission statement.'

Taken aback, Harvey read the card. It said: Wally's Mission Statement:

To get my customers to their destination in the quickest, safest and cheapest way possible in a friendly environment.

This blew Harvey away. Especially when he noticed that the inside of the cab matched the outside. Spotlessly clean!

As he slid behind the wheel, Wally said, 'Would you like a cup of coffee? I have a thermos of regular and one of decaf.'

My friend said jokingly, 'No, I'd prefer a soft drink.'

Wally smiled and said, 'No problem. I have a cooler up front with regular and Diet Coke, water and orange juice.'

Almost stuttering, Harvey said, 'I'll take a Diet Coke.'

Handing him his drink, Wally said, 'If you'd like something to read, I have The Wall Street Journal, Time, Sports Illustrated and USA Today.'

As they were pulling away, Wally handed my friend another laminated card, 'These are the stations I get and the music they play, if you'd like to listen to the radio.'

And as if that weren't enough, Wally told Harvey that he had the air conditioning on and asked if the temperature was comfortable for him.

Then he advised Harvey of the best route to his destination for that time of day. He also let him know that he'd be happy to chat and tell him about some of the sights or, if Harvey preferred, to leave him with his own thoughts.
 

'Tell me, Wally,' my amazed friend asked the driver,
'have you always served customers like this?'
 

Wally smiled into the rear view mirror. 'No, not always. In fact, it's only been in the last two years. My first five years driving, I spent most of my time complaining like all the rest of the cabbies do. Then I heard the personal growth guru, Wayne Dyer, on the radio one day. He had just written a book called You'll See It When You Believe It . Dyer said that if you get up in the morning expecting to have a bad day, you'll rarely disappoint yourself. He said, 'Stop complaining! Differentiate yourself from your competition. Don't be a duck. Be an eagle. Ducks quack and complain. Eagles soar above the crowd.'
 




 

'That hit me right between the eyes,' said Wally.

'Dyer was really talking about me. I was always quacking and complaining, so I decided to change my attitude and become an eagle. I looked around at the other cabs and their drivers. The cabs were dirty, the drivers were unfriendly, and the customers were unhappy. So I decided to make some changes. I put in a few at a time. When my customers responded well, I did more.'
 

'I take it that has paid off for you,' Harvey said.
 

'It sure has,' Wally replied. 'My first year as an eagle, I doubled my income from the previous year. This year I'll probably quadruple it. You were lucky to get me today. I don't sit at cabstands anymore. My customers call me for appointments on my cell phone or leave a message on my answering machine. If I can't pick them up myself, I get a reliable cabbie friend to do it and I take a piece of the action.'
 

Wally was phenomenal. He was running a limo service out of a Yellow Cab. I've probably told that story to more than fifty cab drivers over the years, and only two took the idea and ran with it. Whenever I go to their cities, I give them a call. The rest of the drivers quacked like ducks and told me all the reasons they couldn't do any of what I was suggesting.

Wally the Cab Driver made a different choice. He decided to stop quacking like ducks and start soaring like eagles.


How about us?

Ducks Quack, Eagles Soar....

Have A Nice Day !!


 

If you believe the doubts in your mind  
you won't achieve the dreams in your heart.

 

NEW TO THE OWNER STORE! VIEWFINDER DIRECT MAILING PROGRAM 

Demonstrate your capabilities and warm prospects with this memorable introduction mailer. The card's message is "Do you sometimes feel like...(look inside magic viewfinder)." Handwrite your own personalized note on the back of the card, then follow up with a phone call. Each kit includes one viewfinder, one box, one mailing label, two insert reels (life before Proforma, life after Proforma) and one insert card. Postage is not included.

If you have questions regarding the program, please contact Danny Trizio (DTrizio@Proforma.com or ext. 3009) at your Support Center.

PACIFIC WESTERN SALES ANNOUNCES EXCLUSIVE PROFORMA SALES PROMOTION 
MVPLP, Pacific Western Sales (PWS) is giving you the chance to win a $500 American Express gift card! The Proforma Owner that places the largest order with PWS, exceeding $1,200 net, in the second quarter will win the $500 gift card. The contest begins April 1st and ends June 30th. Both stock and custom orders apply. The winner will be announced on July 14th.
Click here to view more contest details. PWS specializes in bags, backpacks, coolers, drinkware and writing utensils. They offer Proforma Owners EQP less 5% on their entire line, free virtual samples, free product samples and more. To learn more about PWS and their exclusive offers for Proforma Owners view their MVPLP video on the iNET (Vendor Development > MVPLP Videos > Second Quarter Promo Special).

For more information, contact your PWS Account Manager, Ray Jimenez (ray@gopwsproducts.com or or your Promotional Products Specialist, Matt Stein (MStein@Proforma.com ) at your Support Center.

BE AWARE OF SCAM TARGETING OFFICE SUPPLY PROVIDERS
  
The FBI has uncovered a new scam targeting office supply providers. The scammers are posing as school officials and purchasing large amounts of office supply merchandise using fraudulently obtained lines of credit. Please use caution in dealing with promotional product requests from suspicious persons or companies.

Click here to learn more about this scam. 

Before working with a company, please be sure to verify their business, contact person or payment information. For more information, please contact Bob Kimble (BKimble@Proforma.com or ext. 2259) at your Support Center.

Proforma Campaign Updates

Closing Today! 
Second Quarter Promo Mailer Campaign

Stay top-of-mind with prospects and customers with the new quarterly Promotional Mailers. Each quarter's mailer will feature topics relevant to the coming months' promotional opportunities. Mailers include a personalized 12-page mini-catalog and a die-cut envelope and are mailed directly to your contacts.
Assign contacts to the Campaign (via Cory Short) by TODAY, Friday, April 4th by 11:59PM EST. The campaign mails on Friday, April 25th. The cost per contact to participate in the 2Q Promo Mailer campaign is $1.75 each.

Additionally, a follow-up email will be generated on Friday, May 2nd for all contacts assigned to the campaign who have a valid email address in ProSMART/PROvision.
 
 
Closing Monday! May Sales Automation 
Meet Phil, the newest member of the Sales Automation Program! Phil was introduced at Convention, and can help get your foot in the door with prospects to help you reach new levels of success. Since being implemented as the face of the Sales Automation program, Phil has garnered nearly a 10% appointment rate.
New to the campaign is Support Center Team Member, Stephanie Novacek, who is focused entirely on list verification.
To participate in the next Sales Automation Campaign, enroll at www.Proforma.com/SalesAutomation. The campaign closes on Monday, April 7th at 11:59 PM EDT.

Click the image for a full size pdf with complete details. 
New Tech Products from AZX Sport!
Check out these cool new products from AZX Sport. Click on these thumbnails for full size images.

Contact Adam Kelly 
AZX Sport 
AdamK@aztex.com
800-558-4836 ext 262
800-111
     
 
Up Close & Personal

Greg Bruey 
Business Development Manager

WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT ME:
I help Owners... grow their businesses through the Appointment Setting and Lead Generation Services here at the Support Center. I oversee the team of Appointment Setters who make the initial cold calls and help Owners get in the door to have their first appointments with their top prospects.
Owners should contact me when...they are looking for prospecting solutions with leads, appointments and scripting.

WHAT YOU PROBABLY DON'T KNOW ABOUT ME:
What city were you born in? Trumbull, CT
Do you have any pets? McCoy, who is an 18-pound Maine Coon cat.
Favorite food: Pizza with bacon and broccoli
Favorite color: Blue
Favorite sports team: The University of Connecticut (UConn) Huskies
Hobbies: Golfing poorly, going to Tribe (Cleveland Indians) baseball games with
my wife and yard work. Lots of yard work.
Proudest Accomplishment: My goal at the start of 2013 was to buy a house and start a family. I accomplished both of those things and doubled up on the family. My wife and I just welcomed our twin boys, Alexander and William.
How many years have you worked at Proforma? More than seven years.
What's your favorite part of your job? Working with the team here, and knowing
that our efforts are contributing to Owners' profits and helping them achieve their
goals and dreams.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Please contact Greg Bruey
(GBruey@Proforma.com or ext. 3284) at
your Support Center for more information
about the Appointment Setting Program.

 

Success Stories

Kevin Montecalvo Leverages Vendor Relationships to Earn $82,000 Sale

Spencer Technologies contacts Proforma InMotion Owner Kevin Montecalvo of Byfield, MA annually for help with creating a tradeshow booth they display at a technology show in New York City, and this year, Kevin was able to penetrate the account by partnering with Orbus Exhibit and Display Group and other Vendor Partners to deliver a solution worth $82,000!

Click the image for the whole story!

  

April Specials from Cutter & Buck

 
It's time for the Cutter & Buck Albrecht Apparel of the Month for April. As you will see in the attached, I have chosen our Beacon Full Zip Windjacket for Men and Women.

You will find that this is a perfect piece to be pushing this time of year. It is a versatile, lightweight, water resistant piece. This is a new item for 2014, and you will see that we have added some very nice reflective accents to this.  It gives the product a lot of style.

As before, the pricing (including 7K stitches of embroidery) is coded on a B. This is based on a 24 piece order.

Please don't hesitate to contact me with any questions or projects that I can be of assistance on. Internal Albrecht Folks, please ensure to share this with your external partners to ensure no one is missed.

Have a fantastic weekend!

Geoff Vejsicky 
Ohio Valley Marketing
740-9 geoff@ohiovalleymarketing.com

Click the image for the downloadable pdf. 
 

Spector & Co. is Having a Sales Contest!

Here's your chance to win an iPad4.
Every qualifying order between now and June 30th, 2014 will receive one entry.

Click the image for complete details.
Gemline April Specials 
   
Check out this month's specials from Gemline.

The flyer is end-user friendly. Please note all the prices on the flyer are on an R code except for any brand items (Igloo, Brookstone & Bobble) which are on an S code.



Click the image for a full 8-page downloadable pdf.
 

Environmental Group Finds Toxic Chemicals in University Promotional Items.   
   
Michigan might be a divided house when it comes to college sports but the in-state rivalry might be more toxic than fans know.

Both University of Michigan and Michigan State University fan gear contained varying levels of potentially toxic chemicals, according to a recent study by the Ecology Center, an Ann Arbor-based nonprofit environmental organization.

The study examined 65 products for 19 universities bought from prominent retail stores around the country, environmental health campaign director Rebecca Meuninck said. Most University of Michigan products were purchased from a Walgreens in Ann Arbor and most Michigan State University products were purchased from a Kroger in East Lansing.

Click here for the complete story: 
 
If you would like to review any of our past issues, we now have them archived.
Click Here for the archive page.

Fred Albrecht

513-753-2580


Proforma Albrecht & Co.


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