Coach's Corner

by Fred Albrecht

We ended up breaking the 3 Million mark in May with your help on the last day of the month. From the time we sent our email at noon, we received close to $100,000.00 in sales and our order entry team stayed late to ensure that those orders were all booked. We ended the month at $3,057,000.00, an 80% increase over May of 2013.

 

Thanks to the planning in place with the investment in additional staff in 2013 and early 2014, we were able to manage the growth without a hitch in our overall service and meeting our commitments for timely order entry and billing. It was truly an unbelievable month. June is jumping off to a great start as well. We appreciate the great work by all of our awesome sales reps and employees for working so hard to make our growth possible.

 

We just received the Proforma Convention itinerary. In addition to over 90 education sessions, over 150 vendors will attend including our most valuable promotional, print, packaging, multimedia and technology suppliers. I thought I would send along this itinerary to let you get a glimpse of the outside speakers that will conduct sessions. In addition, Rick Tapio will be participating in a Calendar Training Session, Josh Frey will be presenting about Niche selling and On Line Marketing and I will be presenting a session for owners on leveraging our vendor relationships for recruiting. Tim Andrews of ASI will address our team at lunch. These are just a few of the benefits of combing our event with the Proforma convention.

 

Please note, we are finalizing our "personal" touches for the events as well which will include our private "Welcome" reception on Sunday Night, our awards banquet on Monday Night, Networking Dinners on Tuesday Night, a special Wednesday lunch, and our own sales rep round tables during the afternoon on Wednesday. It will be action packed all the way through the Texas style barbeque on Wednesday evening. Most reps have scheduled their arrivals for between 10:00 Am and 2:00 PM on Sunday and will depart Thursday morning to take full advantage of the entire event.

 

Now that the Proforma agenda is out, which you can view at the link shown below, we will be publishing more details on our "Special Events" exclusive to the Proforma Albrecht team.


Dream Big, Plan and Execute Even Bigger,

Fred


TAKE A SNEAK PEEK INTO THE PRODUCTION OF BEYOND 2014: PROFORMA'S CONVENTION & FAMILY REUNION!  

Your Convention Team is working hard to make this year's production of BEYOND 2014: Proforma's Annual Convention & Family Reunion better than any show you've been to yet! View this "director's cut"; where Deanna Castello, Chief Marketing Officer, gives you a sneak peek into the stars of this year's Convention.

 

FEATURED SPEAKERS: A Behind-the-Scenes Look at BEYOND 2014!
FEATURED SPEAKERS:
A Behind-the-Scenes Look at BEYOND 2014!

 

Your all-star cast includes:  

Eric Lofholm, Master Sales Trainer and author of The System

Sunday, 1:00 - 3:00 PM - Workshop: The System - 3 Keys to Elevating Your Sales Results

Monday, 8:30 - 10:00 AM - Think BEYOND 2014: Keynote Presentation with Greg Muzzillo

Monday, 11:30 AM - 12:30 PM - The Art of Persuasion - Advanced Sales Presentation Skills

Monday, 2:00 - 3:00 PM - How to Structure an Effective Close

Tuesday, 9:30 - 10:30 AM - Productivity Secrets of Sales Super Achievers. Exclusively for Members of the Proforma Million Dollar Club   

Mike Lindell, Founder of MyPillow®

Wednesday, 12:30 - 1:30 PM - NEW Industry Product Offering From the Founder of MyPillow: Proforma Exclusive   

Tim Andrews, President of ASI

Tuesday, 11:30 AM - 1:00 PM - Vendor Awards Luncheon    

Dave Fellman, International Sales Trainer 

Sunday, 3:00 - 4:00 PM - BE PREPARED: Dave Fellman Uses Scripting to Master the Art of Not Talking Too Much

Monday, 10:00 - 11:00 AM - Identify the FIVE Avenues to Increased Sales and Profits with Dave Fellman

Monday, 3:00 - 4:30 PM - How Full and Strong is Your Pipeline with Danny Kane and Dave Fellman

 

Lisa Leitch, MVPLP Teneo Results, Sales Strategist, Coach and Trainer

Monday, 11:30 AM - 12:30 PM - Millionaire Makers Coaching

Monday, 3:00 - 4:00 PM - Profile Hiring Assessments with Lisa Leitch

Monday, 4:30 - 5:30 PM Sales Rep Sales Playbook Program Launch

 

And many more! View the full Agenda here!

 

Stay tuned for more "trailers" highlighting the sessions you have to look forward to at this year's production of BEYOND 2014: Proforma's Annual Convention & Family Reunion.

 

Register for Convention today at www.ProformaAlbrechtConvention.com so you don't miss the chance to learn these new strategies for success.

 



Trimark Powered by Leed's Sales Tool: Product Features Chart

Another Solution for time savings!!!  YAY!  The TPL Product Features Chart lists all of the TPL pieces, organized by category. The chart highlights product features for each garment as well as what decoration methods are available on each piece. It's a great reference if you want to see, for example, what items can be decorated with Deboss or which ones are moisture wicking. This chart will continue to grow as new styles are launched and as new methods are created. We will be sure to provide the updated version as it becomes available.

 

Click the image above to view and download the TPL Product Features Chart.

Promotional T Shirts of the Future? Smart Shirts or just another invasion of our privacy?

Thanks to Rick Tapio for sharing this article. Click the photo to go to the video.

 


Intel Shows Off 'Smart' Wearable Shirt

By NICK BILTON    
 May 28, 2014 6:42 pm  1 Comments     

In my column this week, I wrote about my new T-shirt, which is connected to the Internet. The shirt, made by the Canadian company OMsignal, can track my exercise, or tell me to take a breath and relax if I'm stressed.

Now it looks as if I can add another piece of wearable computerlike clothing to my wardrobe. On Wednesday, Intel unzipped its new smart shirt at the Code conference in Southern California.

To start, Intel is making its product specifically for people who exercise. The shirt comes with conductive fibers that can track your heart rate and will be able to deliver information to a smartphone.

The new shirt was designed in a partnership with AIQ, a company based in Taiwan that specializes in merging electronics and textiles to create functional, and sometimes fashionable, smart clothing. The shirt uses Intel's new Edison micro-computer to stream heart-rate information over Bluetooth and Wi-Fi to a smartphone or computer.

In a video posted on ReCode, Mike Bell, Intel's head of new devices, said the shirt could eventually include a 3G chip, similar to the chip in a mobile phone, that would enable it to stream data to the cloud as someone exercises.

"The idea with our platform is that we've produced the hardware and software for partners to go off and build stuff with it," Mr. Bell said. "You can imagine shirts for kids, for parents to be able to monitor them, or for the elderly and for people that need to be monitored on a 24-by-7 basis."

The electronics in the shirt are relatively hidden, Mr. Bell said, as the shirt uses embedded sensors that are made from conductive fiber.

The electronics are stuffed into a shirt in a small box that attaches to a little side pouch. The main computer can then be unplugged when you need to wash it. Intel's chief executive, Brian Krzanich, said that the company would eventually build smart clothing that could be completely immersed in water.

When I spoke to Stéphane Marceau, co-founder of OMsignal, he was adamant that the wearable computer of the future would not be a wristband or a pedometer, but the clothes we all wear on a daily basis. "Smart clothing is easy because it's the only wearable medium you've already been wearing your whole life," he told me.

It seems as if Intel has a similar belief, too.

June Specials from Gemline

The new June specials are attached.  All the prices on this flyer are on an R code except for the Brookstone and Igloo items which are on S code.

Click on the image for the full 8 page downloadable pdf.
HumphreyLine Specials!
Hello EQP Distributors!

Hot summer days turn into hot summer nights, and that means good times & fun!  Whether your next party is on the beach, at the club or in your backyard, HumphreyLine has the right drinkware for your event.  Here's something to toast, sale pricing for drink pails has been extended through July 31st!

Need something else to celebrate?  Due to popular demand, HumphreyLine has extended sale pricing on lip balms & hand sanitizers through the END OF THE YEAR!!!  Taking a day trip?  Maybe a mini-vacation?  Lip balms & sanitizers are great for travel, keeping your lips moisturized and hands clean along the way!

Need selling ideas or a virtual for your next presentation?  Just let me know!  At HumphreyLine, we strive to make your marketing program a success.

Good Selling!

~ Rondi 
Rondi Vetter 
Inside Sales 
HumphreyLine
 

 

JournalBooks
2014 Preferred Distributor Benefits

Here's a Journalbooks flyer that has the Proforma Albrecht Benefits on it as well as the contacts at the bottom. Find out more information on EQP pricing, self promos, spec samples, virtuals, random samples and more.

Click on the image to download the PDF.
Ash City alphabroder Integration Update

June 2, 2014

To our Valued Customer Partners,

Staying true to our commitment to keep you informed of progress around the alphabroder and Ash City integration, we wanted to get a quick note out updating you on progress to date and our near-term next steps.

Well, we are pleased to report that in less than 100 days after the announcement of alphabroder and Ash City coming together, we were able to successfully add Gildan, Jerzees and Alternative Apparel to the Ash City Canadian portfolio. We will continue adding brands such as American Apparel, on an exclusive Canadian basis, Bella+Canvas and Econscious to the Ash City portfolio during the Summer and Fall. By October alphabroder Canada/Ash City will have the product assortment needed to create a true one-stop shop solution in the Canadian market. We'd like to thank our Canadian customers for their support and feedback during this first phase of integration. Your involvement in this process is making us better.

Our next phase of integration focuses on bringing the Ash City product portfolio to our US customer base by extending the availability of Ash City products across our US nation-wide distribution platform. We are excited to inform you that this will be happening in October, 2014. This will dramatically increase your choice of products and styles, as well as offering the depth of Ash City inventory available in a one-day ship location. This further demonstrates our commitment to the alphabroder 'Choice Advantage' and provides more options for you to better serve your customers with a unique and differentiated product offering. Keep this in mind as you are looking at your new Fall programs and replenishments.

While we are pretty busy and very excited about our progress, there are two points on which we want to be very clear:

1. We commit to maintaining the overall integrity of the Ash City brands and products. The quality, style and technology that you've come to expect from Ash City products will not change.

2. We want to ensure you that we haven't lost sight of the 'guiding principle' around this integration.

 
We will maintain and exceed the delivery and customer service levels you've been accustomed to.

So, please let us know if you see or experience any delivery issues or disruptions. We need your help and feedback to ensure our level of service continues to exceed your needs. Please send any comments you have to: feedback@ashcity.com or feedback@alphabroder.com.

And as always thank you for your continued support and business.

Thanks,

Norm Hullinger
CEO
alphabroder

Internet Security Part 1: Passwords 
Internet Security Part 1: Passwords

Internet Security Part 1: Creating a Good Password

With recent internet security breaches like Heartbleed becoming more common nowadays, password protection is something that everyone should be concerned with. More and more commerce is moving online, which means that more and more data is protected by only a few keystrokes.

So with that said, what makes a good password? Check out the video for my recommendation to create unique passwords that are easy to remember, and keep your accounts protected.

Just do me a favor, don't use 'password', 'welcome' or 'letmein' for your password. It blows my mind how often I find out that someone's password is their child's name, or something else that would be easy for anyone to guess, let alone be uncovered in a brute force attack from a hacker. Do yourself a favor and protect your passwords. Don't write them down either - if you really need a way to keep track of them, find an App like Keyring Free to keep those passwords organized and secure. Also, remember to change your passwords every 6 to 12 months.

In reality though, password protection is just a small piece of a large puzzle: Identity Theft. That's really the biggest threat of having your passwords cracked. Stay tuned for my next post, as part two in this series will cover the different types of identity theft.

While you're waiting, be sure to tweet at me @TheRealTomZobel, and let me know what you think.

Until next time,

-Tom Zobel



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.
Give us a call today!

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