When the Identity Group joined with three other independent manufacturers’ representative agencies to form the MLR Alliance, LLC, it’s evident that the organization had plans to maximize the use of technology in its marketing and sales efforts.

Whether it’s the constant references to technological tools in its business plan or a portion of the organization’s mission statement (“Providing an innovative new business model designed to expedite entrance into the Promotional Products Market through technology, expertise and relationships”), there’s no missing the point the important role that technology and its accompanying tools will play in the organization’s operation.

When Agency Sales last spoke with Identity’s Bob Black and Rick Tabone (July 2012), it was to learn about the Colleyville, Texas, agency’s efforts to take their lines of promotional products on the road in an effort to personalize contacts with customers. In the ensuing two years, The Identity Group, Inc. joined with Tony Pinto, Pinto Marketing; Bill Reisack, Reisack Sales and Marketing; and Tony Tuso, Tuso Marketing, to create the MLR Alliance, a multi-line rep organization specializing in the sale of promotional products to authorized distributors in the territories of Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Missouri, Arkansas, Colorado, New Mexico and Louisiana.

According to Black, the coming together of the four separate rep organizations “combines the strength of our independent groups allowing us greater/easier access to new lines and the ability to better serve our distributor customers.”

Black and Tabone have known the other three partners for years. “They’ve been multi-line reps for years and we’re well aware of their respective reputations for hard work,” explains Tabone.

Tabone continues that one of the major reasons for the organizations to come together is the fact that “The world is changing. If you don’t want to be left behind you’ve got to be willing to change with it. As Bob (Black) and I explored various ways to conduct business, it was our feeling that this alliance was the best way for us to move forward.”

Black emphasizes, “You’ve got to keep in mind that we’re still running our individual rep groups on our own. The thinking behind bringing all four of us together was to better serve our distributors and suppliers. We never changed our standard business model. It was just a matter of realizing that mergers were taking place, the industry was changing, and we needed a way to become larger, more dominant and effective in the marketplace. And, that’s what we’ve done.”

Moving Forward

If the decision was made that the alliance was the best way to move forward, it seems clear that the best way to facilitate that move forward is by embracing the technological tools that have become somewhat commonplace for independent representatives. As stated in the MLR business plan: “Our strategy is very simple — rely on well-established relationships while utilizing the newest technology available to effectively and efficiently build your brand.

“We will take advantage of all options available to enhance market exposure and brand acceptance while maintaining the highest levels of integrity.”

Tech Tools in Use

Among the many tools that the MLR Alliance makes use of are:

Website — “This serves as the very heart of our technological efforts,” explains Tabone. Designed on retainer by a web designer, the Alliance encourages distributors to use the site (www.mlralliance.com) as an additional tool for ideas, pricing and product applications. “Once a distributor goes to the site, he immediately recognizes the wealth of information that is contained there. We also encourage our suppliers to provide their marketing campaign materials for posting in order to ensure the maximum coverage of lines,” he explains. He adds that traffic to the site is naturally measured and statistics show that its use is rapidly growing.

MLRA Mobile — “As the result of the broad acceptance of SmartPhones, we expanded our communication reach by developing an ‘app’ that is available to all promotional product distributors,” explains Pinto. “Our MLRA Mobile app provides instant contact information, plus features promotions from each of our suppliers.”

As an example, Pinto explains, “Let’s assume one of our distributor customers is out making calls and they have a question on an order for 3M Post It notes. The distributor can simply click on the app, link to customer service, tap it, and they are speaking to a rep in seconds.” Another benefit of this app is that “specials” are regularly posted.

ZOOMcatalog — A third-party software company takes the Alliance’s suppliers’ catalogs and puts them online. All of the catalogs appear on the company’s website. This allows customers to search and find product and e-mail information to clients in a user-friendly manner. As Reisack describes it: “This feature-rich program has allowed us to create a search engine and complete digital library of our suppliers’ catalogs, all of which appear on our website.”

ACT Software — The Alliance ACT CRM program allows the entire team immediate account access. With continuous updates, the system provides client contact information and account activity. Scheduling, specific account communications and general sales activity in relation to each of the agency’s suppliers ensures optimal customer service. “We sync everything we do with our 550 distributor customers,” says Tuso.

MLR Alliance Magazine — Described as “one of our most aggressive marketing campaigns,” the comprehensive sales tool magazine is provided digitally online and in a printed version once each quarter. In general, the publication is designed to educate, and effectively update distributors on the Alliance’s promotions, industry news and points of interest with the market area.

According to Tabone, there is one version for distributors and another for end users. The publication contains case studies describing how end-user customers use various products. “Bob and I write most of the publication,” says Tabone. Once written, a graphic artist puts it together.

The organization’s business plan says that “Unlike standard catalogs or advertising-exclusive mediums, our magazine provides solid case studies to enhance sales opportunities by providing insight into product applications. We include current supplier specials and will be expanding into territory-specific promotions to better track the effectiveness of this publication. Potential coupon insertions have been discussed to add further value.”

Voice Mail Campaigns — MLR’s voice mail campaigns have been limited so far to event announcements, but the positive feedback has given the company reason to leverage this application to a greater degree. Generally, 30 seconds of information are provided with directives back to the company website for further information.

E-blast campaigns — Described by Tuso as the “best constant contact tool there is, e-blasts allow the company to get information out in the field in the quickest possible manner.” He continues that “We have been fortunate to secure a high open/read percentage due to our very clean and comprehensive database, in addition to the level of trust that we have established with our customers. We encourage suppliers to have us send broadcasts on their behalf due to the recognition factor we have developed with our customers.”

Podcasts and Webinars — As the popularity of these media grows, they will be used to a greater degree. “Prior to a presentation, we’ll send out an e-blast announcing a presentation next week, for instance,” says Tabone. “In general we average from 20 to 40 participants. Usually Bob and I will take the lead, but we try to have a guest speaker from the factory speaking about the benefits of his product.”

Line List and Easy Reference guide — The MLR Alliance line list appears online on the company’s website. The list comes complete with all product and contact information. It is regularly updated and can easily be downloaded.

Social Media — Whether it’s Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIn, the Alliance social media efforts are geared strictly for business — no personal communications. “That doesn’t mean we don’t try to have a little fun,” explains Reisack. “We’ll send out information on an upcoming event or special program, and it’s amazing the response we get. For instance, we’ll have a promotion and the first 10 people who respond get a free set of luggage. This approach has been extremely effective for us.”

High Touch Still Important

If a variety of technological tools have proved effective for the MLR Alliance, Black admits that while it’s worked for him and his agency, everything they’ve done wouldn’t necessarily be as effective for others. “Consider, for instance, if you’ve been selling products the old-fashioned way out of the back seat of a car and you’re doing a million dollars annually. There may be no need to change. But for us, we saw the world was changing and we decided to change with it. Remember, it’s all about being savvy and knowing what’s out there and being first to market.

“No matter what we’ve done or what tools we employ, what the independent representative has to do is to be out there on a personal basis with customers and serving them in a professional manner. It doesn’t matter how high-tech the tools are that we employ, it’s all about knowing your customer niche.”

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Steps to a Successful Career as a Professional Manufacturers’ Agent

MANA Resources to Help You Take These Steps and Leverage Technology to Maximize Productivity

As the articles on the MLR Alliance and Gerrard & Associates in this issue of Agency Sales show, technology should play a huge part in how professional manufacturers’ agents operate their businesses. As a professional manufacturers’ agent, you need to use technology to maximize the time you spend with customers. Use technology to track quotes, orders and commissions. Use it to manage all your valuable customer contacts. Professional manufacturers’ agents create professional websites.

You also want to use technology as a sales tool. The introduction of iPads and tablets revolutionized how salespeople make presentations to customers. What about social media? Professional manufacturers’ agents leverage technology to maximize productivity.

In addition to the many articles that have appeared in this publication, MANA continues to be an invaluable resource when it comes to tapping into the benefits of technological tools. See some of the resources that follow:

CRM Providers for Manufacturers’ Agents

• Dynamacs — www.dynamacs.com
• Eyond — www.eyond.net
• Empowering Systems — www.empoweringsystems.com
• Interep Systems — www.interepsystems.com
• NEMRA — www.nemra.org/NEMRA-Network.aspx
• Roves & Sivert (EZ Rep) — www.ezrep.com
• RPMS — www.rpms.com
• Selltis — www.selltis.com
• Telenotes — www.telenotes.net

Website Design

There is a list of web designers recommended by MANA members in Step 8 of the Steps to Rep Professionalism Program in the member area of the MANA website — www.MANAonline.org.

MANA welcomes your comments on this article. Write to us at [email protected].