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EgripsŪ Finds Major Acceptance with Insurance Agents
Hello everyone, this is our first post ... hope you like it.
Insurance is one of those “products” for which there is an ever present need: a new policy, a policy renewal, an additional policy, and the policy review. Insurance agents want to be “ever present” with their customers and prospects.
egripsŪ Custom Non-Slip Strips stay on their customer's phones 365 Days a Year, putting their Name, Phone Number, Website, and even a Photo in their customers hand 24/7!
Re: EgripsŪ Finds Major Acceptance with Insurance Agents
Does your brand name get printed on each item?.....If you search the archives you will find quite a split between folks that will sell items marked this way versus items that are not marked...Good luck.....
Re: EgripsŪ Finds Major Acceptance with Insurance Agents
Over 70% of the distributors who inquire about our product tell us that their customer got one as a promo item and are asking for it by name (egrips).
By having our brand on the product, it differentiates our non-slip strip from the other poor quality knockoffs in the marketplace and has generated untold thousands of inquiries and orders that distributors would not otherwise receive. We can also provide a list of distributors to whom we have given business from direct inquiries that we've received; orders ranging from 250 to over 100,000.
We feel there is no better way for a supplier to sell his product: Create a great brand AND do not take business direct!
Re: EgripsŪ Finds Major Acceptance with Insurance Agents
I understand what it does for you, however, it allows end users to "shop around".....That is enough of concern to me that I will not show a line like yours unless I am asked for it....There are 5,000 plus suppliers out there and I only have to present enough ideas to my clients to solve their problem and use up all the budget they have....If I can do that with items that are not emblazoned with a supplier's name that will always be my 1st choice......That is why Bic pens sell for pennies these days.....
Re: EgripsŪ Finds Major Acceptance with Insurance Agents
I think you all have a great product, but like Royce - I will always market a product that offers me a better ROI. I NEVER push Bic or any other brand name. I don't like selling on 10% margins like some of these people do. When people want to compare apples to apples, I like to throw them an orange.
I hope your model works well for you, but I believe there are better ways.
Good luck, and welcome to the site!
__________________
Chris Miller, GMAS
(Grand Master Advertising Specialist)
Re: EgripsŪ Finds Major Acceptance with Insurance Agents
Matt just curious how my email address got on your list....I have no recollection of opting in to your list....Or did you just harvest email addresses you found on DT?....Did anyone else get this email?....Do they consider it SPAM?....
Re: EgripsŪ Finds Major Acceptance with Insurance Agents
I am sure my email address is out there but an "ethical" supplier would never SPAM a list they bought somewhere.....And I just got a 2nd copy at another address I use....
Re: EgripsŪ Finds Major Acceptance with Insurance Agents
It was not done through a "blast"service so as far as I can tell it was not an "opt-in" list....I have signed up at several "blast" services and many suppliers but this is not one of them....
Re: EgripsŪ Finds Major Acceptance with Insurance Agents
Royce, there are folks out there that sell suppliers email lists & then the supplier does their own blasts. I see no problem with that, assuming the supplier adheres to the law & gives you an opportunity to opt out from their blasts... just like a "regular" blast service.
I will state that I have heard from others that at least one of these folks selling lists are not following the opt out law. I personally choose to stick with the blast services for this reason.
Re: EgripsŪ Finds Major Acceptance with Insurance Agents
WOW ... Thanks for your input guys ... we've received several positive phone inquiries and DT messages from this, so thanks for the thread activity!
Royce, the last email we sent was the first week of May. I wouldn't even know how to harvest emails from DT and hope that's not even possible! All I did was post this thread. We're certainly not sending an email right now, so who is the email coming from? Please forward it to matt @egrips.com ... very curious! What do you mean by "his source"?
Like Jim says, people try to sell us lists too, but we focus on actively attending tradeshows to build our relationships and gather leads. We do use the ASI and PPAI services that send emails for us, to distributors, before tradeshows. I send them the content and they handle the rest. We also get lists from PPAI and SAAC of pre and post show leads.
All marketing emails I send always have an Unsubscribe link at the bottom, along with our address and phone number ... both in the HTML and Text versions. We are a very accessible company ... if you'd like to talk to me, just call our number and press 1.
Re: EgripsŪ Finds Major Acceptance with Insurance Agents
I understand the argument about clients being able to shop branded items...however if they are going to shop they are going to shop...even for an unbranded item. All apparel fall into the branded category (unless you go private label). I have no problem offering such an item but if I feel it is "over priced" simply because of the brand I'll offer another similar item as an option during the quote/presentation process.
Re: EgripsŪ Finds Major Acceptance with Insurance Agents
If Distributors have such "Direct-A-Phobia", than you need to explore other ways of doing business with Suppliers.
I suggest becoming a Factory Direct Representative.
Great commission structure, obliviously 100% protection with your client, you work directly for the factory independently. No worries about out bidding, you sell at NET Price and still make around 20-30 points, and best of all... no worries of financing.
This is the future of promotional product selling in today's economic times, and I encourage you to explore this unique, innovative, and unconventional opportunity with our company U.S. Branding Group. (www.theusbgroup.com).
Re: EgripsŪ Finds Major Acceptance with Insurance Agents
Cory this is not a discussion about suppliers selling direct....This is about suppliers who think it is more important to serve their own needs by branding the stuff they sell rather than doing all they can to serve their distributor clients....
Re: EgripsŪ Finds Major Acceptance with Insurance Agents
Suppliers have the right to market, and you have the right to sell period.
If you prevent branding, than you can't certify or label the quality of the item being sold. End-users must know they are getting the best, and not being sold cheap, low quality sourced products from their "trusted distributor" .
About selling direct, we are not selling direct ... you are! You'll be selling directly with us. It's a new concept. Take the typically distributor model -- that has worked for years for IPromoteU / Kaiser & Blair ... ect... and bring it to a supplier level. It's genius. Independent sales reps will love it.
EgripsŪ Finds Major Acceptance with Insurance Agents
Re: EgripsŪ Finds Major Acceptance with Insurance Agents
