WEBVTT 00:00:02.329 --> 00:00:05.129 Welcome to the promo playbook, the podcast where 00:00:05.129 --> 00:00:07.650 suppliers come to win in the promotional products 00:00:07.650 --> 00:00:10.849 industry. We're your hosts, Lisa Faustek and 00:00:10.849 --> 00:00:13.910 Adrienne Barker, bringing you insider insights, 00:00:14.490 --> 00:00:17.170 expert strategies, and no fluff advice to help 00:00:17.170 --> 00:00:20.449 suppliers navigate the promo channel like pros. 00:00:21.250 --> 00:00:24.170 From marketing to distributors to mastering software 00:00:24.170 --> 00:00:27.390 onboarding, we cover it all. Whether you're new 00:00:27.390 --> 00:00:30.149 to the industry or ready to scale up, this is 00:00:30.149 --> 00:00:33.280 your playbook for success. Let's get started. 00:00:34.960 --> 00:00:37.939 Hello, everybody. Welcome to the fifth episode 00:00:37.939 --> 00:00:41.119 of the promo playbook podcast. Say that three 00:00:41.119 --> 00:00:44.780 times fast. Today, we're going to dive into the 00:00:44.780 --> 00:00:48.000 structure of the industry. This is a foundational 00:00:48.000 --> 00:00:51.280 segment that is really designed to give you an 00:00:51.280 --> 00:00:54.240 overview of how the industry functions. There's 00:00:54.240 --> 00:00:57.899 many, many layers and I love my food references. 00:00:58.140 --> 00:01:02.100 So I think of this as a multi -layered cake with 00:01:02.100 --> 00:01:05.379 many, many different layers and flavors in between 00:01:05.379 --> 00:01:09.439 each layer. So welcome Adrian and Kim to this 00:01:09.439 --> 00:01:13.659 episode. I think I'll start out with a high level 00:01:13.659 --> 00:01:17.260 overview and then we can sort of fill in each 00:01:17.260 --> 00:01:21.620 segment. So structure -wise, we have suppliers. 00:01:21.930 --> 00:01:24.329 Now, there's many different types of suppliers, 00:01:24.569 --> 00:01:28.409 which we'll dive into. Suppliers sell to distributors, 00:01:28.930 --> 00:01:31.989 which we will also dive into, and then distributors 00:01:31.989 --> 00:01:36.329 sell to end -user customers. That's the traditional 00:01:36.329 --> 00:01:40.769 original profile of the industry when ASI first 00:01:40.769 --> 00:01:46.849 started about 100 years ago. It has evolved dramatically 00:01:46.849 --> 00:01:51.060 since then. So let's take for our first topic, 00:01:51.400 --> 00:01:55.939 suppliers. Adrienne, let me put this over to 00:01:55.939 --> 00:01:59.200 you. Give us some bullet points of what types 00:01:59.200 --> 00:02:02.400 of suppliers you think are in the industry today. 00:02:02.920 --> 00:02:05.060 Oh, I love that. First, I have to say in the 00:02:05.060 --> 00:02:07.500 reference of your cake, when the supplier finally 00:02:07.500 --> 00:02:10.479 gets paid their invoice, that's a whipped cream. 00:02:10.740 --> 00:02:15.569 That's the topic. Definitely. So suppliers, I 00:02:15.569 --> 00:02:17.949 love that question because there is, first of 00:02:17.949 --> 00:02:20.810 all, the industry sells everything, including 00:02:20.810 --> 00:02:22.590 underwear. I just have to say it because you 00:02:22.590 --> 00:02:24.930 can print the back of an underwear, not a thong. 00:02:28.889 --> 00:02:31.650 Unless we're talking sandals. So in essence, 00:02:32.349 --> 00:02:36.009 anything that could be printed or even an incentive 00:02:36.009 --> 00:02:38.590 can come in the industry. And that's why we have 00:02:38.590 --> 00:02:41.270 over a million products in the industry. So that 00:02:41.270 --> 00:02:44.659 supplier could be the one man show, which we 00:02:44.659 --> 00:02:48.180 see often, also could be selling, you know, someone 00:02:48.180 --> 00:02:50.000 that's been in the industry for a long time that 00:02:50.000 --> 00:02:53.020 comes into the industry, like a Columbia, like 00:02:53.020 --> 00:02:55.960 an Under Armour, right? These suppliers already 00:02:55.960 --> 00:02:59.580 have proven product, proof of performance. Now 00:02:59.580 --> 00:03:01.819 they're bringing it into the industry. I think 00:03:01.819 --> 00:03:04.039 that that's one form of a supplier that's out 00:03:04.039 --> 00:03:08.439 there. The wholesaler that's doing just the wearables, 00:03:08.639 --> 00:03:12.150 and that's everything. from jerseys to jackets 00:03:12.150 --> 00:03:15.789 to wind shirts to polos to dress uniforms all 00:03:15.789 --> 00:03:18.229 of that we can dress you up like to look gold 00:03:18.229 --> 00:03:20.550 for your sales with a suit too if you wanted 00:03:20.550 --> 00:03:23.449 with your logo in the okay um and then we're 00:03:23.449 --> 00:03:25.550 talking about the suppliers that offer one minimum 00:03:25.550 --> 00:03:28.500 the suppliers that offer you have to have a large 00:03:28.500 --> 00:03:30.780 minimum. So I don't know if that's what we're 00:03:30.780 --> 00:03:32.639 looking for for the overview because there's 00:03:32.639 --> 00:03:35.219 so there's so many I know that Kim, you can go 00:03:35.219 --> 00:03:37.960 in a little deeper, you have more experience 00:03:37.960 --> 00:03:41.439 in under the supplier umbrella. But I also think 00:03:41.439 --> 00:03:43.219 of those suppliers that are smart enough. And 00:03:43.219 --> 00:03:46.979 if I'm going to name one Latour spice, because 00:03:46.979 --> 00:03:49.439 Brian from the tour to spice brought in really 00:03:49.439 --> 00:03:53.240 one one like line of like spices, and how he's 00:03:53.240 --> 00:03:55.819 grown it has been such a great and interesting 00:03:55.819 --> 00:03:57.840 way to like watch. you know, because he's getting 00:03:57.840 --> 00:04:00.560 success. So sometimes you start with one product 00:04:00.560 --> 00:04:03.379 and next thing you know, every year you're adding 00:04:03.379 --> 00:04:05.240 on more. So I'm going to end it there because 00:04:05.240 --> 00:04:08.280 I want to hear what you both say. Great. And 00:04:08.280 --> 00:04:11.580 Brian could be a great guest for us. So over 00:04:11.580 --> 00:04:14.419 to you, Kim, what are your thoughts on what are 00:04:14.419 --> 00:04:17.300 the types of suppliers that we have in the industry 00:04:17.300 --> 00:04:21.180 today? Yeah. I mean, I love this topic. And as 00:04:21.180 --> 00:04:23.519 we are prepping for this and going back through 00:04:23.519 --> 00:04:25.459 some of our podcasts, I was like, you know, we 00:04:25.459 --> 00:04:28.259 just need to get down to some basics, too, because 00:04:28.259 --> 00:04:30.160 every time we get on the phone with somebody, 00:04:30.459 --> 00:04:32.899 we're always doing the same thing, right? Describing 00:04:32.899 --> 00:04:35.939 the industry, how do you get to point A to B? 00:04:36.100 --> 00:04:38.860 Sometimes it's not the way, you know, from A 00:04:38.860 --> 00:04:42.300 to Z or A to M, you're like bypassing and you're 00:04:42.300 --> 00:04:46.259 hitting P before you get back. So I like love 00:04:46.259 --> 00:04:51.379 this topic. When we talk about suppliers, even 00:04:51.379 --> 00:04:54.600 before we dig deep into that at 10 ,000 feet, 00:04:54.920 --> 00:04:57.180 you have just promotional products in general. 00:04:57.560 --> 00:05:00.139 Well, what is that? Some people think it's just 00:05:00.139 --> 00:05:02.680 slapping a logo on a product and shipping it 00:05:02.680 --> 00:05:05.839 out, but that's only one segment. We're talking 00:05:05.839 --> 00:05:08.720 about our cake layers. That's one layer of the 00:05:08.720 --> 00:05:11.079 cake. It's probably the thickest layer, but it 00:05:11.079 --> 00:05:14.639 is one layer. And under that, you also have incentive 00:05:14.639 --> 00:05:18.259 companies, companies that just feed rewards programs, 00:05:18.579 --> 00:05:20.879 point programs. You have companies that focus 00:05:20.879 --> 00:05:24.620 on hospitality, for room drops, for trips. You 00:05:24.620 --> 00:05:28.420 have other companies that just focus on suites 00:05:28.420 --> 00:05:32.639 and gifting. And they're all different. And then 00:05:32.639 --> 00:05:35.259 not to mention the online gifting platforms. 00:05:35.899 --> 00:05:39.120 Then you have MOQs of one and it's literally 00:05:39.120 --> 00:05:43.420 alphabet soup out there. there's opportunity 00:05:43.420 --> 00:05:46.319 in all of them. So even when we talk about jumping 00:05:46.319 --> 00:05:49.579 into the promo product industry, sometimes it's 00:05:49.579 --> 00:05:52.100 not that thick as layer. Like that slap a logo 00:05:52.100 --> 00:05:55.160 on it and go is not always the best first step. 00:05:55.579 --> 00:05:59.079 Testing your product and building, figuring out 00:05:59.079 --> 00:06:02.600 all the, you know, taking orders in, shipping 00:06:02.600 --> 00:06:05.620 it out, all that fun stuff. You want to start 00:06:05.620 --> 00:06:08.540 small. And there are other segments, you know, 00:06:08.620 --> 00:06:11.899 thinner layers of that cake. to start to really 00:06:11.899 --> 00:06:15.540 understand what your company can do. When we 00:06:15.540 --> 00:06:18.759 talk about suppliers, I think even before we 00:06:18.759 --> 00:06:21.600 jump into that, we also need to look at where's 00:06:21.600 --> 00:06:25.720 the best place to start. It might not be that 00:06:25.720 --> 00:06:27.959 customization, it might not be that thickest 00:06:27.959 --> 00:06:31.160 layer. That's all good stuff, but today we're 00:06:31.160 --> 00:06:34.579 focusing on the overall structure. I want to 00:06:34.579 --> 00:06:36.720 bring it back to the structure of the industry 00:06:36.720 --> 00:06:40.279 related to suppliers. What are the types of suppliers 00:06:40.279 --> 00:06:42.480 that are out there? You touched on some of them. 00:06:42.800 --> 00:06:45.480 Traditional suppliers that supply products and 00:06:45.480 --> 00:06:50.060 decorate them. Think your HPG, PCNA, Gemline, 00:06:50.540 --> 00:06:54.019 the big companies hit promotional products. Those 00:06:54.019 --> 00:06:57.139 folks that have a variety of thousands of products 00:06:57.139 --> 00:07:00.240 to Adrian's awesome stat. There's over a million 00:07:00.240 --> 00:07:03.779 products in the industry, right? And to support 00:07:03.779 --> 00:07:07.060 Kim's thought process. How do we layer that cake 00:07:07.060 --> 00:07:09.579 to deliver all of those products effectively 00:07:09.579 --> 00:07:12.939 on time and imprinted correctly? And we will 00:07:12.939 --> 00:07:16.120 have other segments on that. But today, we really 00:07:16.120 --> 00:07:18.379 want to just give our audience this overview 00:07:18.379 --> 00:07:21.560 of how the industry functions. So we have those 00:07:21.560 --> 00:07:24.660 traditional suppliers. Then we have wholesalers 00:07:24.660 --> 00:07:29.600 like Sanmar, S &S Activewear, even on a smaller 00:07:29.600 --> 00:07:33.139 scale, Charles River Apparel, Vantage. They ship 00:07:33.139 --> 00:07:37.360 blanks. And those blanks are decorated by contract 00:07:37.360 --> 00:07:40.540 decorators. Now, lines are blurring. You know, 00:07:40.860 --> 00:07:44.800 some suppliers like that sell blanks and decorated 00:07:44.800 --> 00:07:49.759 merch. We also have retail brands that are functioning 00:07:49.759 --> 00:07:52.500 in the industry that might sell through another 00:07:52.500 --> 00:07:56.519 supplier or sell on their own and decorate on 00:07:56.519 --> 00:08:00.199 their own or have their blank sent to a contract 00:08:00.199 --> 00:08:04.199 decorator. Incentive companies that you both 00:08:04.199 --> 00:08:07.879 so mentioned beautifully. How do they fit in? 00:08:08.220 --> 00:08:10.819 And then print on demand, Kim, that you also 00:08:10.819 --> 00:08:14.779 mentioned. So just really on a high level overview. 00:08:15.019 --> 00:08:17.660 And that's not all of them. I'm sure I'm missing 00:08:17.660 --> 00:08:21.500 some. And if our audience has any insight to 00:08:21.500 --> 00:08:24.540 what we don't have on our list, please put it 00:08:24.540 --> 00:08:28.670 in the chat. Contact us. We'd love to hear. So 00:08:28.670 --> 00:08:31.050 whereas in the beginning, there might have only 00:08:31.050 --> 00:08:35.269 been wholesalers and contract decorators and 00:08:35.269 --> 00:08:38.389 companies that actually hyper -focused on products 00:08:38.389 --> 00:08:42.509 like Hub Pen for pens, Gemline originally for 00:08:42.509 --> 00:08:47.190 bags, Leeds used to do mostly portfolios, and 00:08:47.190 --> 00:08:51.490 now look at where they are today. So that's one 00:08:51.490 --> 00:08:54.629 aspect of the industry as our suppliers. I'm 00:08:54.629 --> 00:08:58.049 going to switch our grain space. to types of 00:08:58.049 --> 00:09:01.889 distributors. And Adrienne, I know this is an 00:09:01.889 --> 00:09:05.669 area where you really excel. I'm just going to 00:09:05.669 --> 00:09:08.769 say the list up front and then we can add some 00:09:08.769 --> 00:09:12.409 context and then re -mention it at the end. So 00:09:12.409 --> 00:09:15.850 types of distributors that sell to end user customers. 00:09:16.590 --> 00:09:20.490 Originally used to be a traditional distributor. 00:09:20.789 --> 00:09:23.889 It might be a one single person office. They 00:09:23.889 --> 00:09:26.490 might have multiple salespeople, but basically 00:09:26.490 --> 00:09:30.110 they bought products from suppliers that they 00:09:30.110 --> 00:09:32.889 sold to their end user customers and build them. 00:09:33.649 --> 00:09:36.629 That has evolved into national organizations 00:09:36.629 --> 00:09:40.090 like Geiger, Kaiser and Blair, Halo to name a 00:09:40.090 --> 00:09:44.309 few. Franchise companies like Proforma and Fully 00:09:44.309 --> 00:09:48.340 Promoted. buying groups like Premier, Reciprocity 00:09:48.340 --> 00:09:52.279 Road. Again, I'm only naming a few here. E -commerce 00:09:52.279 --> 00:09:55.779 companies like, of course, 4imprint, Anypromo, 00:09:56.059 --> 00:10:00.899 iPromo, Epromos, big list there. And gifting 00:10:00.899 --> 00:10:03.519 and sending platforms, which are really just 00:10:03.519 --> 00:10:07.220 coming into the scene since COVID, people like 00:10:07.220 --> 00:10:11.129 ReachDesk and Sendoso. and also folks in the 00:10:11.129 --> 00:10:14.490 industry like Corporate Gift who do both. So 00:10:14.490 --> 00:10:18.409 there's a lot of ingredients in those layers 00:10:18.409 --> 00:10:21.750 of the cake. So Kim, I'll start with you this 00:10:21.750 --> 00:10:26.149 time. What are your thoughts on that? On the 00:10:26.149 --> 00:10:29.649 distributors, I mean, it's, God, I have so many 00:10:29.649 --> 00:10:32.889 thoughts and I'm trying to focus. I know it's 00:10:32.889 --> 00:10:37.169 a lot. In what area? You know, I do think that 00:10:37.120 --> 00:10:40.120 The distributor world, as you mentioned, is is 00:10:40.120 --> 00:10:43.740 blurry, right? I mean, there are that traditional 00:10:43.740 --> 00:10:49.500 go only go to one or, you know, like your halos. 00:10:50.159 --> 00:10:54.220 Their focus is also evolving, right? So they 00:10:54.220 --> 00:10:57.940 are now not only putting your logo and looking 00:10:57.940 --> 00:11:00.139 at your traditional, but they're looking at how 00:11:00.139 --> 00:11:03.220 are they able to work with those gifting platforms? 00:11:03.399 --> 00:11:07.169 I think, you know, they're also looking at How 00:11:07.169 --> 00:11:10.450 can they enhance what they're already doing to 00:11:10.450 --> 00:11:14.669 take advantage of some of those trends? I think 00:11:14.669 --> 00:11:17.289 there's confusion out there and I know I certainly 00:11:17.289 --> 00:11:19.830 have it. What is the difference between a national 00:11:19.830 --> 00:11:23.169 and a franchise and a buying group? How do I 00:11:23.169 --> 00:11:27.470 know? I just know the orders coming in from XYZ 00:11:27.470 --> 00:11:32.490 distributor. Does my pricing need to change in 00:11:32.490 --> 00:11:37.460 that? What is that? do I need to be concerned 00:11:37.460 --> 00:11:41.559 as the supplier, right? Whether you are person 00:11:41.559 --> 00:11:43.840 entering, if they're a national, if they're a 00:11:43.840 --> 00:11:46.740 franchise, if they're gifting, does it really 00:11:46.740 --> 00:11:50.460 matter to me or is that more, you know, more 00:11:50.460 --> 00:11:55.360 of interest to the end user, right? So I think 00:11:55.360 --> 00:11:59.860 those... Great point. I think it's very important 00:11:59.860 --> 00:12:02.700 to any new supplier to understand the differences 00:12:02.700 --> 00:12:05.659 between those types of distributors and That's 00:12:05.659 --> 00:12:08.500 what we in the promo playbook help you with to 00:12:08.500 --> 00:12:11.759 sort of identify who's a good target within that 00:12:11.759 --> 00:12:15.320 conversation because they all require different 00:12:15.320 --> 00:12:19.620 levels of support and pricing that Kim's mentioning 00:12:19.620 --> 00:12:23.879 and how do we support those distributor types 00:12:23.879 --> 00:12:27.820 and just a little stat. There's over 13 ,000 00:12:27.820 --> 00:12:30.460 distributor companies in the industry with over 00:12:30.460 --> 00:12:34.720 55 ,000 individual sales reps. So as a supplier, 00:12:35.019 --> 00:12:38.220 sort of get your head around those numbers. And 00:12:38.220 --> 00:12:40.399 depending on where you're at in the development 00:12:40.399 --> 00:12:43.779 of your company, what is your bandwidth to service 00:12:43.779 --> 00:12:46.919 the different types of distributors that are 00:12:46.919 --> 00:12:51.820 out there? So Adrienne, comments to add to Kim's 00:12:51.820 --> 00:12:55.200 insights? Yes. Yes. First of all, I want to say 00:12:55.200 --> 00:12:56.960 that, you know, if you're coming into the industry, 00:12:57.320 --> 00:12:58.740 you should not think that you're going to sell 00:12:58.740 --> 00:13:01.379 to every distributor because not every distributor 00:13:01.379 --> 00:13:03.779 is going to be perfect for you. I think if it 00:13:03.779 --> 00:13:06.519 was me, I was coming into the industry and I 00:13:06.519 --> 00:13:10.480 had a product, I would consider all of the niche 00:13:10.480 --> 00:13:13.679 niches that that product could be sold to. Right. 00:13:13.919 --> 00:13:17.559 So if it was a book bag, maybe I would have colleges 00:13:17.559 --> 00:13:20.200 and universities. And so I would kind of create 00:13:20.200 --> 00:13:22.480 that in my mind and then I would go to the distributors 00:13:22.480 --> 00:13:25.039 that actually are selling to those niche markets. 00:13:25.200 --> 00:13:27.299 So if I had a product that would be an amazing 00:13:27.299 --> 00:13:30.919 NASCAR, then maybe I would go and focus on that. 00:13:30.940 --> 00:13:32.759 So there are distributors that focus on, you 00:13:32.759 --> 00:13:34.539 know, different verticals. I think that's important 00:13:34.539 --> 00:13:38.519 to know. Also, if I had an eco product, then 00:13:38.519 --> 00:13:41.220 I want to focus on distributors that are eco 00:13:41.220 --> 00:13:44.049 known for their eco and sustainability. So I 00:13:44.049 --> 00:13:46.169 love that you brought up the online first distributors. 00:13:46.330 --> 00:13:49.169 I think that's important. Um, we did kind of 00:13:49.169 --> 00:13:51.409 not really, did we really mention this? I just 00:13:51.409 --> 00:13:53.009 want to make sure those distributors that are 00:13:53.009 --> 00:13:55.629 full service years ago will be the distributor 00:13:55.629 --> 00:13:57.529 would say, you know, I'm a distributor, but I 00:13:57.529 --> 00:14:00.509 also act as an ad agency, right? So, you know, 00:14:00.509 --> 00:14:02.529 what's really the difference between us and ad 00:14:02.529 --> 00:14:04.850 agency, except that we understand logo and branded 00:14:04.850 --> 00:14:07.350 merchandise more than they do. So there are these, 00:14:07.350 --> 00:14:10.629 uh, full service that provides. Excellent. Excellent. 00:14:10.629 --> 00:14:14.230 Thank you for the list agencies. Yes, so they 00:14:14.230 --> 00:14:16.610 provide strategy, the kidding, the fulfillment, 00:14:16.950 --> 00:14:19.750 the corporate programs. They're doing the whole 00:14:19.750 --> 00:14:22.509 thing. Another new distributor out there that's 00:14:22.509 --> 00:14:27.309 interesting is Snappy. or mailbox power, where 00:14:27.309 --> 00:14:29.750 that distribution is often like an automated 00:14:29.750 --> 00:14:32.610 solution of setting up a campaign. I want to 00:14:32.610 --> 00:14:34.970 get in the door of this large insurance company 00:14:34.970 --> 00:14:37.450 in my community. I want to set up a campaign 00:14:37.450 --> 00:14:39.230 where every month they're getting something from 00:14:39.230 --> 00:14:42.029 me. We used to do it ourselves, right? I want 00:14:42.029 --> 00:14:44.870 to shoe stress reliever so I can send a mailing 00:14:44.870 --> 00:14:47.879 and put my foot in your door. So those are really 00:14:47.879 --> 00:14:49.799 important. And then we have the boutique or creative 00:14:49.799 --> 00:14:52.700 agencies. They focus on the full custom campaigns, 00:14:53.019 --> 00:14:56.500 the high design packaging of the, the experience 00:14:56.500 --> 00:14:59.000 based gifting. Like that's what they do. You 00:14:59.000 --> 00:15:00.840 mentioned the franchise or buying groups. So 00:15:00.840 --> 00:15:03.200 no, I think that is really good. I think if I 00:15:03.200 --> 00:15:05.940 was a supplier, I'd want to kind of hit the independent 00:15:05.940 --> 00:15:08.580 distributor. I would look at, is there room for 00:15:08.580 --> 00:15:11.039 me in the big box distributors and would the 00:15:11.039 --> 00:15:13.600 niche distributors work better for me? That is 00:15:13.600 --> 00:15:18.029 my thoughts. Okay, great. So That is all really 00:15:18.029 --> 00:15:21.029 amazing insight. And I think what I pull out 00:15:21.029 --> 00:15:24.870 of that for our listeners is, do your research, 00:15:25.330 --> 00:15:27.870 understand the profile of the distributor that 00:15:27.870 --> 00:15:30.610 you're targeting. We can help you with that. 00:15:31.090 --> 00:15:34.210 And know your customer. Help your distributor. 00:15:34.570 --> 00:15:36.990 figure out if it's a niche that they're targeting, 00:15:37.110 --> 00:15:39.850 how can you play in that space with them? So 00:15:39.850 --> 00:15:42.509 just to review the types of distributors that 00:15:42.509 --> 00:15:47.049 you can potentially sell to. And, you know, don't 00:15:47.049 --> 00:15:49.250 get overwhelmed. It's like drinking from a fire 00:15:49.250 --> 00:15:53.330 hose. Traditional distributors at all levels 00:15:53.330 --> 00:15:58.110 of sales, national organizations, franchise companies, 00:15:58.730 --> 00:16:02.590 buying groups, e -commerce players. gifting and 00:16:02.590 --> 00:16:06.090 sending platforms, and I'm adding ad and creative 00:16:06.090 --> 00:16:09.730 agencies, print companies, which we didn't really 00:16:09.730 --> 00:16:13.950 touch on, and contract decorators are also often 00:16:13.950 --> 00:16:18.370 distributors. So just to recap, that's the list 00:16:18.370 --> 00:16:21.250 of the types of distributors that you could potentially 00:16:21.250 --> 00:16:24.149 be selling to. So we're going to move on a little 00:16:24.149 --> 00:16:29.830 bit to sort of the idea of software. and the 00:16:29.830 --> 00:16:32.570 evolution of technology. And this is kind of 00:16:32.570 --> 00:16:36.529 a mixed bag too. I'm not sure I have the right 00:16:36.529 --> 00:16:40.509 label on it, but we have things in the industry. 00:16:40.700 --> 00:16:43.659 as we said, gifting and sending platforms that 00:16:43.659 --> 00:16:47.539 offer automated gifting solutions. We have print 00:16:47.539 --> 00:16:50.820 on demand suppliers and distributors that are 00:16:50.820 --> 00:16:55.539 now one or the other or doing both. Many different 00:16:55.539 --> 00:16:58.360 ways print on demand folks are going to market 00:16:58.360 --> 00:17:02.289 in and outside of promo. Some of those folks 00:17:02.289 --> 00:17:05.670 aren't even in promo as official suppliers or 00:17:05.670 --> 00:17:08.490 distributors. So we need to be aware of that, 00:17:08.509 --> 00:17:11.069 that that's a really big trend that's affecting 00:17:11.069 --> 00:17:14.710 our industry right now. And then software providers. 00:17:14.990 --> 00:17:18.750 We have people like Order My Gear, Chipley. Adrian 00:17:18.750 --> 00:17:21.750 mentions that Snappy Store is powered by Cover 00:17:21.750 --> 00:17:26.470 .io, which is an AI -driven solution. So we have 00:17:26.470 --> 00:17:29.940 software. And then I'm going to tag onto that 00:17:29.940 --> 00:17:33.059 search engines. So if you're going to go the 00:17:33.059 --> 00:17:36.799 more traditional route, you have to review search 00:17:36.799 --> 00:17:39.420 engines that are available to you as a distributor, 00:17:39.660 --> 00:17:44.500 as a, I'm sorry, as a supplier, ASI, Sage, Distributor 00:17:44.500 --> 00:17:48.779 Central. Common SKU is a search engine of sorts. 00:17:49.920 --> 00:17:52.880 So, you know, navigating this layered, layered, 00:17:53.079 --> 00:17:55.779 layered, beautiful, delicious cake that you want 00:17:55.779 --> 00:18:00.690 a big slice of. can be complicated. So I'll turn 00:18:00.690 --> 00:18:04.029 this over to Kim for a hot minute. On any of 00:18:04.029 --> 00:18:08.849 these topics, platforms, print -on -demand software, 00:18:08.930 --> 00:18:10.990 and search engines, take one of those and give 00:18:10.990 --> 00:18:15.190 us a couple brain nuggets. Yeah. Well, I'm wrapping 00:18:15.190 --> 00:18:21.430 it all into technology. I think that technology 00:18:21.430 --> 00:18:25.569 has evolved so much in the past five years in 00:18:25.569 --> 00:18:29.829 the industry. that we're also trying to figure 00:18:29.829 --> 00:18:36.250 out how to play. But I think that you have so 00:18:36.250 --> 00:18:38.269 many self -service, I shouldn't say so many, 00:18:38.450 --> 00:18:41.690 you have more and more self -service that are 00:18:41.690 --> 00:18:45.569 taking away the role of the distributor. So as 00:18:45.569 --> 00:18:51.390 a supplier, the challenge is how do you leverage 00:18:51.390 --> 00:18:54.490 both? You don't want to kill or cut off your 00:18:54.490 --> 00:18:57.380 distributor. I mean, that's how you're making 00:18:57.380 --> 00:19:00.619 money. But at the same time, there is a market 00:19:00.619 --> 00:19:03.980 to be able to, if you can do it, because that's 00:19:03.980 --> 00:19:06.160 a whole other backend discussion for another 00:19:06.160 --> 00:19:10.180 podcast. But if you can work with these online 00:19:10.180 --> 00:19:13.940 platforms like a Snappy, which is perfect example, 00:19:14.299 --> 00:19:16.960 right? With a company like a Snappy, you can 00:19:16.960 --> 00:19:20.420 do blank product. If you're a retail brand, it 00:19:20.420 --> 00:19:23.200 could be your fun fashion, out it goes. You're 00:19:23.200 --> 00:19:27.000 doing drop ship. but they also do the big bulk 00:19:27.000 --> 00:19:30.180 corporate put, you know, put a logo on it, right? 00:19:30.380 --> 00:19:33.980 So being able to understand A, that there are 00:19:33.980 --> 00:19:36.079 things, that there are platforms like a Snappy 00:19:36.079 --> 00:19:39.420 that exist, understanding that you can leverage 00:19:39.420 --> 00:19:43.420 not only, you can leverage sometimes a broader 00:19:43.420 --> 00:19:46.700 product line with those that are leveraging blank, 00:19:47.259 --> 00:19:51.400 but then they're also blending over into that 00:19:51.400 --> 00:19:55.539 mass bulk customization market, which is really 00:19:55.539 --> 00:19:59.559 the sweet spot of your distributor, again, it 00:19:59.559 --> 00:20:02.859 gets blurred. But I think there's a lot of opportunity 00:20:02.859 --> 00:20:08.440 in the technology with a reach desk, with a snappy, 00:20:09.039 --> 00:20:13.440 with an order my gear that focuses so much on 00:20:13.440 --> 00:20:19.119 company stores. I went down a rabbit hole going 00:20:19.119 --> 00:20:21.829 through the layers earlier. That's just another 00:20:21.829 --> 00:20:25.910 layer where the technology is playing that your 00:20:25.910 --> 00:20:28.670 traditional distributor didn't always play in 00:20:28.670 --> 00:20:32.849 that space. That was a fabulous, you know, synopsis. 00:20:33.210 --> 00:20:35.730 And I do want to just spin out the snappy thing 00:20:35.730 --> 00:20:39.950 now powered by company stores, now AI powered 00:20:39.950 --> 00:20:43.319 by cover. That's something to watch for our audience. 00:20:43.640 --> 00:20:46.119 That's really cool. And others are doing it. 00:20:46.740 --> 00:20:50.440 But that's the next evolution regarding technology 00:20:50.440 --> 00:20:55.859 is AI -driven population of our stores, catalogs, 00:20:55.859 --> 00:20:58.779 things like that. But we don't want to make anyone's 00:20:58.779 --> 00:21:00.920 head hurt today thinking too much about that. 00:21:01.380 --> 00:21:04.259 But that's a great teaser, Kim, that that technology 00:21:04.259 --> 00:21:09.930 is where it's at. Adrian, any? frosting to put 00:21:09.930 --> 00:21:14.250 on that discussion? Yes. Yes. It's funny. So, 00:21:14.269 --> 00:21:16.250 you know, I do some work with splash brands and 00:21:16.250 --> 00:21:18.569 splash brands is unique as a company store because 00:21:18.569 --> 00:21:21.250 they actually bring in over a thousand merchandise. 00:21:21.390 --> 00:21:24.390 They have all the decorations in house. So literally 00:21:24.390 --> 00:21:27.529 they could pull a javelina pen and print it one 00:21:27.529 --> 00:21:30.670 for you. Right. But I noticed that a lot of distributors 00:21:30.670 --> 00:21:32.549 think to themselves, well, we have a company 00:21:32.549 --> 00:21:35.069 store. program, but they don't really understand 00:21:35.069 --> 00:21:38.029 the difference between software as a service. 00:21:38.150 --> 00:21:39.710 And so maybe you have the software, but you're 00:21:39.710 --> 00:21:42.009 pulling it from other people and doing something 00:21:42.009 --> 00:21:45.950 unique. Overall, this just, again, makes me realize 00:21:45.950 --> 00:21:48.730 how much knowledge and how much research you 00:21:48.730 --> 00:21:51.089 have to have, which never is going to stop. So 00:21:51.089 --> 00:21:53.509 if you're going into this industry, whether you're 00:21:53.509 --> 00:21:55.509 a distributor looking at suppliers or suppliers 00:21:55.509 --> 00:21:59.089 looking at distributor, your number one, let's 00:21:59.089 --> 00:22:01.730 just put the elephant in the room, is money. 00:22:02.480 --> 00:22:04.740 And what's your credit like? Because if you're 00:22:04.740 --> 00:22:06.660 a supplier and you're thinking you're gonna sell 00:22:06.660 --> 00:22:09.980 to like the halos of the world, you have to be 00:22:09.980 --> 00:22:12.940 able to hold an invoice for about 45 days, right? 00:22:12.940 --> 00:22:15.160 So like when I think about right away, I think, 00:22:15.220 --> 00:22:17.220 okay, you really need to match yourself with 00:22:17.220 --> 00:22:19.759 the correct supplier and what that looks like. 00:22:19.799 --> 00:22:22.380 And a lot of times that is looking at the software. 00:22:22.660 --> 00:22:25.960 And for those of you that are not using our field, 00:22:25.960 --> 00:22:28.880 like a Sage or an ASI, you know, promo mall, 00:22:28.960 --> 00:22:30.759 any of the ones that are being offered by the 00:22:30.759 --> 00:22:34.059 industry, is too expensive. I think it's actually 00:22:34.059 --> 00:22:37.480 probably more of a money dump by using an outside 00:22:37.480 --> 00:22:40.119 program and trying to have it work in because 00:22:40.119 --> 00:22:43.039 software is a solution for a distributor is really, 00:22:43.299 --> 00:22:45.759 it's very expensive. You have to have everything. 00:22:45.980 --> 00:22:48.660 And a lot of the distributors don't even have 00:22:48.660 --> 00:22:50.740 the software, right? They're not even having 00:22:50.740 --> 00:22:53.740 a CRM program. So as a supplier, you have to 00:22:53.740 --> 00:22:56.420 really have it all. And so the distributor could 00:22:56.420 --> 00:22:59.579 get away with being cheap. The supplier cannot 00:22:59.579 --> 00:23:01.759 get away with being cheap. So let me just double 00:23:01.759 --> 00:23:04.539 check my notes. Those are important because at 00:23:04.539 --> 00:23:06.359 the end of the day, it is on the whipped cream 00:23:06.359 --> 00:23:09.500 that the money. Great. So awesome insight. You 00:23:09.500 --> 00:23:11.859 always bring in that financial accountability 00:23:11.859 --> 00:23:16.170 piece, which I love. Be a lifelong learner. I'm 00:23:16.170 --> 00:23:18.430 taking that away from your comments, Adrian. 00:23:18.970 --> 00:23:21.210 You know, I think the three of us will have a 00:23:21.210 --> 00:23:25.410 segment specifically on credit in terms and financial 00:23:25.410 --> 00:23:28.970 fitness for entering the industry as a supplier. 00:23:29.390 --> 00:23:33.089 All amazing points, Adrian, and I'm so glad you 00:23:33.089 --> 00:23:36.809 brought those up. Related to software, there's 00:23:36.809 --> 00:23:39.529 also promo standards, which floats around in 00:23:39.529 --> 00:23:42.420 the background of the industry, which Not everybody 00:23:42.420 --> 00:23:45.039 can take advantage of that. Not everybody has 00:23:45.039 --> 00:23:49.240 the finances as a supplier to be on promo standards. 00:23:49.700 --> 00:23:54.039 So, you know, all of these things are complex 00:23:54.039 --> 00:23:57.880 layered and worth spending the time to learn 00:23:57.880 --> 00:24:01.799 about it. Educate yourself. Reach out to us. 00:24:01.799 --> 00:24:08.680 We can help. Just as a quick thought around blurred 00:24:08.680 --> 00:24:12.299 lines of suppliers and distributors. That is 00:24:12.299 --> 00:24:15.259 happening more and more in the industry. And 00:24:15.259 --> 00:24:18.779 some of those folks, Discount Mugs and Bell Promo, 00:24:18.880 --> 00:24:21.839 they've been around for years doing this. Now, 00:24:22.039 --> 00:24:25.559 at one point, Bell Promo was ostracized because 00:24:25.559 --> 00:24:29.339 they were affiliated with Discount Mugs. Now, 00:24:29.519 --> 00:24:32.579 Bell Promo has reinvented itself as a trusted 00:24:32.579 --> 00:24:36.809 supplier. Trust is key. If you want to build 00:24:36.809 --> 00:24:39.410 a supplier company in the industry, you have 00:24:39.410 --> 00:24:42.890 to be dependable, trustworthy, show up, deliver 00:24:42.890 --> 00:24:46.589 all the specific things that a distributor needs 00:24:46.589 --> 00:24:50.269 to place an order with you. Splash Friends, you 00:24:50.269 --> 00:24:54.029 already brought up Adrian, great example of a 00:24:54.029 --> 00:24:57.910 combined supplier, distributor, decorator. She 00:24:57.910 --> 00:25:01.349 does it all, right? And software, she does it 00:25:01.349 --> 00:25:04.650 all. She's my hero. She's really nailed the whole, 00:25:04.650 --> 00:25:07.670 you know, full picture of how to bring all the 00:25:07.670 --> 00:25:10.210 ingredients in the industry into a profitable 00:25:10.210 --> 00:25:13.650 business. So congratulations to slash brands. 00:25:14.150 --> 00:25:18.269 And, you know, as the print on demand space develops, 00:25:19.089 --> 00:25:21.730 buckle up promo, you know, this is really going 00:25:21.730 --> 00:25:24.650 to have to revolutionize the way we go to market. 00:25:26.190 --> 00:25:31.190 So that was really the focus of today was to 00:25:31.190 --> 00:25:33.890 help our listeners who are new to the industry 00:25:33.890 --> 00:25:37.809 understand how it works. So just to go back to 00:25:37.809 --> 00:25:41.630 a quick high level overview, we have suppliers 00:25:41.630 --> 00:25:45.250 who sell products to distributors, distributors 00:25:45.250 --> 00:25:48.990 sell products to end users. In between there 00:25:48.990 --> 00:25:51.549 are all different types of distributors, all 00:25:51.549 --> 00:25:54.740 different types of suppliers. sprinkle in some 00:25:54.740 --> 00:25:59.200 software, and there you have your ingredients 00:25:59.200 --> 00:26:02.740 for being successful in the industry. Any last 00:26:02.740 --> 00:26:05.519 thoughts, Kim and Adrienne, that you'd like to 00:26:05.519 --> 00:26:08.980 add to the structure of the industry that I might 00:26:08.980 --> 00:26:11.599 be missing? I'm just going to say this was a 00:26:11.599 --> 00:26:15.140 great episode, amazing, and I put my shoes into 00:26:15.140 --> 00:26:17.380 being a supplier and I would love to listen to 00:26:17.380 --> 00:26:19.839 this and even as a distributor. So kudos to Kim 00:26:19.839 --> 00:26:23.160 and Lisa. Yeah, I now need to go out and buy 00:26:23.160 --> 00:26:26.700 a really big layered chocolate cake for the discussion 00:26:26.700 --> 00:26:31.599 Yeah, good good stuff, you know and and we I 00:26:31.599 --> 00:26:35.000 we are the experts audience like between the 00:26:35.000 --> 00:26:37.819 three of us We've lived all of it. We're lifelong 00:26:37.819 --> 00:26:40.000 learners. We're on the cutting edge of what's 00:26:40.000 --> 00:26:43.480 happening So you have questions you want to chat 00:26:43.480 --> 00:26:46.619 give one of us a call shoot us an email. We're 00:26:46.619 --> 00:26:50.460 available We look forward to helping you be successful 00:26:50.569 --> 00:26:53.009 and build your own cake in the promo industry. 00:26:54.230 --> 00:26:57.329 We'll see you on the next episode. Adrian. One 00:26:57.329 --> 00:26:59.789 last thing. Everyone that we mentioned will be 00:26:59.789 --> 00:27:01.930 in the show notes. If you're listening, don't 00:27:01.930 --> 00:27:03.130 worry about taking notes. I should have told 00:27:03.130 --> 00:27:04.549 you in the beginning, but you can look at the 00:27:04.549 --> 00:27:06.450 show notes for more of everyone that we mentioned. 00:27:06.650 --> 00:27:08.809 Thank you. Yeah. We shared a lot of names that 00:27:08.809 --> 00:27:11.369 you can research and that'll give you an even 00:27:11.369 --> 00:27:14.230 clearer picture or maybe murkier picture, I don't 00:27:14.230 --> 00:27:17.190 know, of how the industry's structured because 00:27:17.190 --> 00:27:20.849 it is changing daily. Exciting stuff though. 00:27:21.049 --> 00:27:23.690 Getting in on the ground floor now and riding 00:27:23.690 --> 00:27:26.769 this wave, wow, what a thrill. It's really going 00:27:26.769 --> 00:27:30.009 to be an amazing next five to 10 years. So see 00:27:30.009 --> 00:27:34.750 you on the next podcast. Thanks for tuning into 00:27:34.750 --> 00:27:38.089 the promo playbook. If you found value in today's 00:27:38.089 --> 00:27:40.869 episode, be sure to subscribe and leave us a 00:27:40.869 --> 00:27:44.250 review. Got a topic you'd love us to cover? Connect 00:27:44.250 --> 00:27:46.609 with us on LinkedIn. We want to hear from you. 00:27:47.099 --> 00:27:50.819 Until next time, stay smart, stay strategic, 00:27:51.099 --> 00:27:53.099 and keep growing your supplier's success.