26 replies to this topic

[BarbC]

From Promo Leads -

Supplier Conference Call - This Wed 1pm Eastern

Our last conference call with distributors was a huge success and there was one clear message - Distributors want suppliers to use PromoLeads! Since then we?ve given distributors some tools to help suppliers get on board. This week we?re having a conference call for suppliers - to talk about how to use PromoLeads to grow your business.

• When: Wednesday October 22 - 1:00 pm Eastern
  
• Where: Call 888-617-3400 and enter Passcode: 124904 #

All suppliers are Welcome. Looking forward to speaking with you then.

If you would like more information on how it all works view www.promoleads.com
and/or call Dave Beaudreau at 800-860-4996. Thank you.

___________________________________________________________

Note from Barbara: I do not work for them. I am now one of the 290 + distributors that are getting leads with this great tool for suppliers. Check it out and see the success for your company.

Thank you.
Barbara

[Chianinyc]

I just signed up Barb. THANKS

I also told on you. lol meaning I told them you referred me and your responsible for my actions now

[BarbC]

Hi Chris,

Thank YOU for taking the time to learn about Promo Leads. You will love being part of Promo Leads.

I really believe in this model of doing business. We know the end users are finding your websites and now you will have the tools to pass those end users right to your dist. companies electronically. It all works as a win - win and all ethical in this business. You are in control of the lead and we work as a team through the whole sales process.

Feel free to contact Dave at Pin Line who has received over 1400 leads from his Promo Leads websites and 7% of them have closed and sold. That adds up to almost 100 new orders for his company. By now it may be over 100 orders as leads come in everyday!

All the best,

Barbara

[pinline]

Hi Barbara - Hi Chris. Happy to answer any questions I can. Im planning to be on the conference call too. If you want a laugh - check out this promotional video I did for them back in the summer.

<object width="425" height="344">

<embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/fMetU9FfzQ0&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></object>

The whole time - all I could think about was the guy who does the Oxy Clean commercials. Suprisingly I did do it in one take!

[BarbC]

Hi Dave,

No Laughing! I thought you did a great job on the video with so much good information for suppliers. Your ears must ring because I tell everyone about your success with Promo Leads. I pray for the day we can get rid of every email Blast Company and have suppliers support the Promo Leads model.

The call will be a great tool for suppliers. Glad you will be there!

Take Care.

Barbara

[royster13]

Barb I must be missing something.....Because I think the system sucks....
http://www.distribut...ead.php?t=10643 has some more discussion.....

PS.....I love email blasts and magazines filled to the brim with ads.....

[PromoLeads]

Hi Royce,

As a unique entity in the Promotional products industry looking to improve and grow we are always looking for feed back. We are genuinely interested in what facets of the system you dislike. Is it the functionality part of things or just the concept in general you find dissatisfaction with? If so, what specific aspects of suppliers sending end user referrals to distributors do you not like?

Thanks in advance for any constructive criticism you can provide.

[royster13]

Chris I just do not like the idea of supplier handing out leads...I work hard to promote certain lines and ideas....I do not want some random PPD that has not put in the effort to get the "gold"...And I think the suppliers may want to question their distributors and see what they think...For example, Pinline might give out leads to a select few and that will bother the ones that get nothing....The ones that get nothing may be inclined to take their business elsewhere and the loss of those folks may outweigh the gains made....So I guess my objection is the concept...

[Chianinyc]

Chris -

If a distributor told a customer to go to my site and find something they wanted to purchase, the last thing the end user should find is a link to send me there info so I pass it off to another distributor.

I would rather have a request more info button on my site that ONLY distributors can access by entering industry affiliation numbers. This way a supplier like myself can establish a relationship with a new distributor with no worries of taking away from ANY distributors end user management system.

SO- Can you setup something in Promoleads so that distributors can contact or digitally meet new Suppliers that they are not aware exist. Adding your product line to an existing distributor is the only hope some of us suppliers have. I would imagine a similar lead form like the one's you have currently for end users but more directed at distributors.

Perhaps offering a medium for suppliers to meet new distributors will not only increase the website usage but also create a more comfortable platform for distributors to feel they are creating mutually beneficial relationships on your site.
The only reason I ask is due to the fact that we DO NOT deal with end users as a supplier, so in our efforts to maintain this distributor / supplier relationship everyone loves, we eliminate ourselves from ever being able to utilize a tool like Promoleads.

We may not have end user information to pass on to distributors, but we would like distributors that do not know we exist to find us or to request more info from us in a similar fashion.

[pinline]

Hi Royce - Im not going to speak for Chris - but since you used me as an example - I'll chime in here.

royster13 said:

Chris I just do not like the idea of supplier handing out leads...I work hard to promote certain lines and ideas....I do not want some random PPD that has not put in the effort to get the "gold"....

So - in this scenario an end user finds a widget they want to buy on a suppliers site. They've searched high and low and finally found the item that fits their needs. What do you suggest should happen at that point? Should that end user be told to go away - we don't want you here. In that scenario - the opportunity is lost for everyone. Or should the supplier have their own form on the site (as many do - up to 2/3 by some counts) or worse yet an email address or phone number. Then you as a PPD not have any idea what happens to that info? How else can we capture the opportunity but keep our commitments to our distributors?

royster13 said:

Pinline might give out leads to a select few and that will bother the ones that get nothing

FYI - I go through a lot of effort to distribute leads as widely as I can. My objective with every lead is to get face time with a PPD. Having sent out over 1000 leads - our business with first-time customers is at an all time high. That's my personal objective - to reach more of you guys. When I assign a lead to someone, it gives me the opportunity to talk to them about my line in detail. They have a vested interest (e.g. a better ability to close the lead) in listening to my schpiel. I just don't get that sort of attention from PPD's through any other vehicle.

royster13 said:

The ones that get nothing may be inclined to take their business elsewhere

;)So a PPD wuold not use a supplier because that supplier is not sending them leads?? Hmmm - now Im confused. I thought you didn't want us to send you leads?

[PromoLeads]

Hi Chris,

Thanks for your comments on PromoLeads, we appreciate your thoughts and concerns regarding the system.

Chianinyc said:

If a distributor told a customer to go to my site and find something they wanted to purchase, the last thing the end user should find is a link to send me there info so I pass it off to another distributor.

This is a valid concern (although we have not actually encountered this problem yet that I?m aware of) and its one with an easy fix for today, and a permanent fix we are working on from a software perspective. The easy fix for today if your concerned about this is to not put the form on the site your distributors use. Instead use alternative sites that are engineered for driving leads, and not for servicing your distributors. Interestingly enough, it does not appear as though your distributors even go to; www.chocolateinn.com as it instantly redirects to; http://www.promoxml....iteid=chocolate perhaps you could separate the two, or build small product specific sites.

The permanent solution to this problem we are working on will have a software and ?cookie? element to it that would allow the system to identify that end user, as having come from a certain distributor, thus looping them right back to that distributor.

Chianinyc said:

Perhaps offering a medium for suppliers to meet new distributors will not only increase the website usage but also create a more comfortable platform for distributors to feel they are creating mutually beneficial relationships on your site.

There is nothing you will do to meet new distributors that will ever be as cost effective and immediate as sending them a sales lead. The response suppliers get from distributors who receive a lead has been almost instant, and mutually beneficial; at that moment you have their total attention and can discuss your products with them. Contrast this with the expense, time and lack of identifiable results you endure doing trade shows, or print ads, or other means? PromoLeads is a medium for suppliers to meet and work with new distributors and old; that?s exactly what it has been designed to do.

Chianinyc said:

The only reason I ask is due to the fact that we DO NOT deal with end users as a supplier, so in our efforts to maintain this distributor / supplier relationship everyone loves, we eliminate ourselves from ever being able to utilize a tool like Promoleads.

This is exactly the beauty of PromoLeads, it solves this problem in a way that strengthens the distributor/supplier relationship. Why take a person interested in the very products you sell and essentially tell them to go away? Why wouldn?t you want to meet their needs by referring them onto a distributor who can help them?

PromoLeads offers all kinds of unique ways for you to grow your business, engage new distributors and focus on some products you really want to sell. For example perhaps you have seasonal products you want to ramp up for, or a new product no distributors know about. With PromoLeads you could drive leads specifically for those products, and then send those leads on to distributors. The fastest way I can think of to get distributors thinking about a new product you have, is to refer someone to them that wants to buy it now.

At the core of PromoLeads is the traditional supplier/distributor relationship; without it there is no point in PromoLeads. It?s purpose is to allow everyone to do more business together.

I hope you could fine the time to participate in the conference call, I do believe you will find it to be enlightening about what PromoLeads is and what it can do for your business.

[BarbC]

Hi All,

From a distributor perspective here. I came to Promo Leads because I knew that the suppliers signed up with the system were willing to extend themselves to work the new model and I was ready to embrace it too. When I joined I did not know anything about all the lines offered from PinLine and some other suppliers too. Promo Leads has a place where we can view all suppliers and link to their websites to learn more about them. They have the supplier email address so we can send them a note to indroduce ourselves to them. I value that list like gold because I want to use those suppliers that support the Promo Leads way of doing business.

There are over 290 PPD on the system so you can count on other dist. companies to view new suppliers that they may never have worked with before. It is all a win- win- win for all..... PPD win, suppliers win and the end users win too!

I am sick and tired of seeing LIVE Contact us links or LIVE join our newsletter signup links or Email us for more information links on suppliers sites that are NOT with Promo Leads. I do NOT know where those leads go but I do know where the Promo Leads propects go.

Right now there is no support or guidlelines from PPAI, ASI or Regionals on this
Suppliers selling direct issue. They say PPD have the right to choose what suppliers we want to work with and will not get involved with suppliers that sell direct to end users. There are suppliers that advertise in national magazines that all end users read. End users can google ASI numbers and find those suppliers in a few seconds.
This is all very sad to me. I love this industry and with Promo Leads we have a new way of doing business that is fair and ethical. Do not knock it until you try it for yourself.

True Story:
I was on the bus at Promotions East last June and met a great supplier and started to learn about his business. Sounded like great products and service and then I asked "what do you do with leads that come from your site"? He told me that his brother set up a dist. company and he feeds those leads to him. Well Bless Him and Change me. That was my awakening to search suppliers sites for this live contact stuff going on and drop everyone that has it and works end user leads. This is going on right under us everyday with hundreds if not thousands of suppliers.

Kudos to SAGE because they have taken off suppliers that sell direct to end users when it is proven from us dist. and they support us on this. The suppliers that have been taken out of the SAGE system have real sister or brother companies linked right to them. Real companies with the same address, weblinks and so on. We know who you are and you cannot hide too long from us.

Royce ~ Take a look at your top supplier list and see if they have those items I listed above on their sites? If so find out where those leads go? Rumor has it that one of your top suppliers has someone in the office that has a family member with a dist. company....do those leads that come in go to you or that inside family who is a PPD? Think about it how many leads do you get from your top suppliers? You know they get them so where are they? With their friends or family who is a PPD??

If you are a supplier and reading this we support you to look at Promo Leads new model of doing business for your company. Myself and 290 others are ready and willing to work with you to close the deals, to service new clients and guide them through the process. You and I work together on the process and success is right around the corner for us both! Hope you will look at the system and use it to the max for your company.

All the best,
Barbara

[Cyncor]

I receive the PromoLeads and a lot of them come from Dave. When I get them, I feel this rush of "omg I should jump on this and get the order'....though I have never acted on any of them. Mostly because I dont even have an account with PinLine, dont have their catalogues and have not spent the time it takes to learn their line so I can be proficient in the sale. So I pass at this stage of the game.

The concept is a good one. I have not had time to really look at the details of it so I do appreciate this discussion thread.

My real reaction is three-fold: 1. We are too busy with our current clients to 'jump' on these leads. 2. They are probably American anyway so why bother. 3. I really work closely with Foamworx and Opus/Marketex because they send specific leads direct to US...not to a multitude of distributors. It's their way of thanking us for our loyalty.

So I guess my question is, does a supplier feel bad when a lead comes in from Arizona and you have a PPD in that state that is loyal and works hard to promote your line for you, yet you put the lead out to everyone "first come first serve"?

Just wondering.

Cynthia

[twistededge]

Are the leads sent out to everyone or do you choose a distributor and give it to them? It sounds like Cynthia gets a lot, but everyone else gets the same ones. In that case, it's like the State bid program where they send out an e-mail to everyone in the world and the one with the best price wins. If I were an end user I sure wouldn't want 10 distributors trying to sell me a product that I'm already ready to buy.

[Chris Miller]

I just find it interesting that every viable question I have posted about the PromoLeads system has been ignored. To date there are 2 suppliers on board who are dishing out leads. I know what it would take to make the thing uber-successful but no one wants to listen. So I stopped talking and now I am just waiting to see what happens.

The numbers speak for themselves. The industry does not support the concept. Change it up some and it will do well.....

[pinline]

Hi Chris - what questions? Please give me a link to the posts and I'll try to answer them for you.
Thanks
Dave

[Cyncor]

Chris Miller said:

I just find it interesting that every viable question I have posted about the PromoLeads system has been ignored. To date there are 2 suppliers on board who are dishing out leads. I know what it would take to make the thing uber-successful but no one wants to listen. So I stopped talking and now I am just waiting to see what happens.

The numbers speak for themselves. The industry does not support the concept. Change it up some and it will do well.....

Im lost on what you are saying as well, Chris. Where is your question? Did I miss something?

[Chris Miller]

This is a good thread:

http://www.distribut...ight=promoleads

I have also tagged all threads regarding PromoLeads...

http://www.distribut...?tag=promoleads

The big question I have, is "Who is Chris Pearson?" and why is he the best man in the industry to oversee and manage all leads coming in from supplier websites? How do we know he's going to distribute these leads in an ethical manor? Is this a for profit business? If so, how does it make money? If not, how does it make money? Something about the concept concerns me... many things in fact.

I am not totally against it... but apparently the industry is. In fact I challenge PromoLeads to show us how good it works. We get thousands of hits each month from end users. Lets add a PromoLeads form to DT and get our members in on some of the action!

[Cyncor]

Okay, now I am curious. The next time a lead comes in....which WILL be over the weekend and pretty much every day, I am going to take the time to log in and see what happens.

I am not informed enough to answer these questions. All I do know, is that I currently prefer a supplier who supports us by sending us direct LOCAL leads. Is it wrong to say we are busy enough because I need 3 more full time employees to handle the order we HAVE, nevermind filter requested leads.

I will put this to the test.

[Chris Miller]

P.S. : Chris - Please don't take this personally. You should have seen the questions that popped up about DC when it launched... you are not alone. The fact is, you're managing some sensitive data, and dealing with a sensitive issue. Your character will come into question.... just like mine, Tom Mertz and many others.