We came, we saw, we talked

Special Markets Dialogues was last weekend. It was my fifth time in the Facilitator's chair and even though we had fewer people than in prior years (chalk it up to the economy) the discussion was livelier than ever.

Here's the "Cliff's Notes" version of what we discussed:

1) Things are bad--real bad. In particular, the promotional products market is in a world of hurt and there may be a serious shakeout once the new year arrives. Many suppliers and distributors stayed in business in hope of a rebound. It isn't coming. After the first of the year many will merge, or sell, or close.

2) But as bad as things are, there's reason for cautious optimism. Employees are "keeping score", taking stock of how their companies are treating them. When (notice I said "when", not "if") the jobs picture improves there may be an exodus from those companies that do not appreciate their achievers.

3) This year's way of doing things isn't gonna cut it next year. Get out the clean sheets of paper, kids, because there will be more people chasing fewer dollars in 2010. The Innovative Bird catches the Worm.

4) The market needs to speak to our stakeholders with a common voice. We are being buffeted by different forces over which we have no control as individuals and precious little as a group. Between grandstanding Congresspeople trying to legislate us out of existence to trade associations seeing us as "collateral damage" (as the pharmaceutical companies did with promotional products), we're under siege. We cannot continue to whisper as individuals--we need to shout as a group.

Lots of other things as well, from the future of the independent rep (tenuous) to the future of the Special Markets Manager at Branded products companies (endangered) to the need to find new customers and/or new ways of selling current ones (essential).

A great conversation and hopefully the attendees are going back into their organizations, and to the associations they serve, with a renewed sense of urgency and purpose. Now, more than ever, Benjamin Franklin's words are true--"we must all hang together or surely we will all hang separately".


Pete

PS: I did it. I signed up for Twitter. It's @peteincent and I'm not sure who wants to hear about me but I've decided that if my idol Paul Bellantone of PPAI can tweet, then by God so can I...

The Week that Was

They say God made the universe in seven days (with a union-mandated day off). The last seven days, while not universe-scaled, were eventful to a material degree. To wit:

· A group of market luminaries went to Washington, DC to speak with members of Congress (or, more appropriately, their staffs) about how to possibly incentivize corporations to offer wellness initiatives (with appropriate rewards) to their employees. By all accounts it went well and we are “on the radar” on Capitol Hill.
· Another leader in our market left us. Gary Slavonic, a Partner in Texas-based rep firm Premier Incentives is leaving the market to get a “real” job, with benefits and all that. His reasons are valid and are the best for his family, but it makes me profoundly sad that he’s no longer going to be engaged in our business.
· A rumor is in the market that Maritz has acknowledged that its acquisition of Cascade (a rep firm/distributor hybrid in CA) hasn’t worked out as well as they’d hoped. What might have been a trend has become an outlier, at least for the moment.
· Special Markets Dialogues was held, and despite the current environment there was optimism. Real optimism, not the manufactured kind. Yes, there are “issues” and yes, there are “challenges” but as in any other downturn the companies that realize how to adjust and embrace the changes will succeed. Those that don’t will not.

It excites me that so much is going on--even if all of it doesn't apply to me directly or if some of it may even be "bad". I've heard it said that no publicity is bad as long as they spell your name right. After our Summer of Discontent I'll take anything that stimulates discussion and attention to our business.

And, God Forbid, there's been an uptick in activity. Nothing to shake the whatnots off the shelf, but enough to be noticeable. This is also a fundamentally good thing.

I don't think a "recovery" is in the offing anytime soon. I also don't think the market returns to 2008 levels in the next 2 years unless you find new products to sell or new customers to sell your old stuff to, or both.

But in downturns it's the companies willing to take risks that will be best positioned to succeed when things DO turn. What used to work isn't gonna work anymore--time to bring out the White Sheets of Paper and start doodling...


Pete

"De-Demonizing" us

I've been invited to a soiree next week in Washington, DC. The Incentive Federation is sponsoring a Symposium to speak to key members of Congress about what we do and why it's not the coming of the Antichrist.

I'm guessing the goal is to put a "face" to the business, to find a way to show the 535 members of the House and Senate that not all corporate meetings or incentives are Boondoggles. And this is a good thing.

It's an amazing path we've taken to get here. Corporate incentives or travel used to be a great way to cement relationships and recognize those stakeholders who made a difference in our organizations. Giving awards and/or tokens of appreciation showed that corporations "cared" about customers and/or employees.

But in less than a year (and amazingly enough, it hasn't even BEEN a year yet) the business in which I make my living has been Demonized. Corporate Events have become Evil--they violate some ethical code and therefore should be discouraged.

And the notion of rewarding or recognizing achievers has become "wasteful" or "excessive". Some have practiced demagoguery by taking extreme cases and extrapolating them onto every program. Others have focused on the pennies (corporate events) while ignoring the dollars (poor management decisions and onerous regulation).

So here we are, almost one year into the severest downturn our market has ever seen (and remember, "downturn" and "our market" were NEVER spoken in the same sentence until this year) we find ourselves heading for Capitol Hill. We seek to remove our Devil Horns and show Congress that there are human consequences for all this railing over Corporate Excess.

Who'd have thunk it?

I'm putting on my tie and shining my shoes--we must look our best while we make our case that indeed we are not the Four Horsemen, but rather just the stable hands looking after the animals...


Pete

What keeps me awake (Part 2)

Haley Joel Osment and I have something in common--we see "dead" people.

Not "dead" in the clinical sense, but "dead" in the figurative sense. People who were once "alive" in the market are no longer so.

Over there is Kim Westhoff, late of Sony, Godiva, and Mrs. Fields. Look--there's Kathy LaRocco, ex of Seiko. And today I learned that Matt Siegel, long-time distributor in upstate New York is returning to his roots in the University business.

Great for him, lousy for us. Every time someone like Kim, or Kathy, or Matt exit the market, for whatever reason, we all "die" a little. We lose the experience and passion for the business that in hard times keeps it moving forward. We lose valuable knowledge that is the foundation of a professional marketplace and serves as an inspiration to younger people seeking to make a career in our channel.

The current downturn has created a "killing spree" of distributors, suppliers, and others in our market. And those who aren't "dead" are "incapacitated", or working below the level of their gifts. And nobody I've spoken to tells me this is over yet-not by a long shot.

Just this week two of my reps lost long-term employees--the principal had to make hard decisions to keep the business going. Two more Dearly Departed to add to the list.

Now where'd I put that Ambien?


Pete