The Indoff Partner Program - Business Products

the PARTNER PROGRAM Indoff

Table of Contents

About Indoff

Indoff Advantages

Divisional Benefits

Line Card Sample

FAQ’s

Partner Testimonials

Retirement Programs

Indoff Marketing Tools

Indoff e-Marketing Tools

Technology

Partner Profile

Newsletter & Show Guide

“ I joined Indoff because the freedom and flexibility offered was unlike any other company. Indoff leaves you alone and let’s you do your thing.

- Darrin Wicks Evansville, IN 10 Years with Indoff

About Indoff

Indoff is headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri. We have developed solutions for our customers for the past 50 years. Today our divisions are capable of fulfilling almost any need a business may have. Our customers work in every B2B and B2C industry imaginable – distribution, healthcare, finance, education, legal, engineering, manufacturing, hospitality, government, and many more.

As an Indoff Partner, you’re free to focus on sales, marketing, and personalized customer service – the keys to growing your customer base.

Partners set their own schedule, pricing, and customer discounts and enjoy the freedom and support that come from partnering with a nationwide distributor with access to thousands of manufacturers.

Work When and Where You Want

Why Choose Indoff

Partner Advantages

Compensation

50% commission rate (60% in Promotional Products) on the gross profit of every sale (paid on invoice). Indoff Partners enjoy W-2 employee status with company 401K.

Freedom

Indoff Partners set their own hours, pricing, and profit margins. There are no call reports, sales meetings, micromanagement, house accounts, or non-competes. Indoff Partners have no restrictions on territory, and Indoff protects your account base. Check out the testimonials to see what our Partners have to say about the freedom Indoff offers.

Vendor Opportunities

Access to over 5,000 vendors nationwide, competitive pricing and discounting, and the ability to choose the right vendor for your customers’ needs.

Marketing & Technology Resources

Indoff provides an annual marketing budget, monthly e-marketing pieces, custom brochures and flyers, e-commerce websites, and industry advertising to help our Partners achieve sales success. In addition, Indoff Partners enjoy our streamlined order management system and 24/7 access to online reports.

National Sales Meeting

Every 18 months, Indoff hosts a National Sales Meeting and Vendor Show in St. Louis, MO. This event includes a full scale vendor expo with over 100 vendors exhibiting exclusively to Indoff Partners. In addition, Indoff University classes and round table discussions allow Partners, vendors, and corporate staff to share information and ideas. The highlight of the weekend is the Partner Appreciation Dinner, a celebratory awards banquet on Saturday evening.

Indoff

“

BUSINESS PRODUCTS

Indoff gave me an opportunity to have a flexible schedule and to go out and sell how I want. The lack of micromanagement allows me to be successful.

- Jermaine Stevens Business Products Poughkeepsie, NY

Indoff Business Products Partners enjoy the following benefits:

Compensation

50% commission on the gross profit of every sale paid on invoice. Commissions are paid at the end of the month following the month of the invoice - not when the customer pays.

W-2 status with company 401K

Vendor Opportunities

First call status with Essendent and SP Richards

Access to hundreds of manufacturers direct

You choose the product niches in which you wish to specialize

Access to Jan/San vendors

Marketing and Technology Resources

24/7 access to Indoff’s online order management system - Confluence

Annual marketing budget - purchase catalogs and promotional items - use as you see fit

Monthly e-marketing pieces

Online purchasing site for your customers

Cross Selling

Indoff’s multiple divisions provide a unique opportunity to expand offerings to your customers, and network with fellow Indoff Sales Partners.

3M

BUSINESS PRODUCTS

Indoff

Here is a small preview of our available vendors, with hundreds to choose from:

Acco Brands

Ammex

Avery

Bic

Brother

Canon

Clorox

Colgate/Palmolive

Dart

Dawn Professional

Dial

Domtar

Duracell

Dyson Essendant Fellowes

Georgia Pacific

Global Industrial

GOJO

Green Mountain

Hammermill

Hewlett Packard

Hon

Karcher

Kimberly Clark

Lexmark

Libman

Lysol

M&A Matting

Nestle

Nilfisk

Proctor & Gamble

Purell

R3/Bunzl

Rubbermaid

SC Johnson

Smead

SP Richards

Suncast

Tork/Essity

TST Impreso

FAQ’s Indoff

When are commissions paid?

Commissions are paid at the end of the month following when the sale is invoiced. For example, if your sale is invoiced in January, then you are paid commission on that sale at the end of February. Commissions are paid based on invoice - not when the customer pays.

Does Indoff make their Partners sign a non-compete agreement?

No, Indoff does not believe in non-competes.

Does Indoff pay a base salary?

No. To pay a base salary would require us to monitor your sales activity and this is not what we do. You bring the true value to the sale, and this is why we prefer to pay the industry’s highest commission rate, rather than a base salary.

How is gross profit calculated?

Gross profit equals total sale (material, labor, freight, design - if applicable) minus total costs (material, labor, freight, design). There is no load, overhead factor, or other fees added. You know your commission when you quote a job.

Is there a required franchise fee to become a Partner?

Indoff is not a franchise organization. You will be an employee of Indoff. Does Indoff assign me a sales territory?

Indoff does not have territory restrictions.

Will I be an independent contractor?

As a W-2 employee of Indoff, you are eligible to participate in our benefits program. You will also be covered by our liability and workman’s compensation insurance. Are leads provided?

Our growing web presence generates project and account leads for our Partners. We also e-market on our Partners’ behalf to generate leads and customer inquiries.

How do I know the commission rate won’t change?

Our commission rate has not changed since the inception of the Partner program in 1991just ask any of our Partners.

Will I work out of my home?

The vast majority of our Partners work from their homes; however, some Partners choose to rent their own office space.

Are marketing materials available?

Indoff will supply you with an annual marketing budget, business cards and stationery, the opportunity to build a custom website, and will e-market to your customers to create leads. We also provide custom slicks, case studies, brochures, and presentations.

“ See what our Partners are saying! Indoff

““When people ask me what its like to work for Indoff, and why did I decide to join, I tell them that Indoff is the best way to run your own business without the financial risk of owning your own business.”

“Indoff allows you to be your own boss, work at your own pace and on your own time. If you want to earn a lot and have a flexible work schedule, Indoff is the place for you!”

“The Indoff business model works. Indoff provides the Sales Partners everything they need to their own business efficiently and lets them run with it. Indoff takes care of the behind the scenes admin work that bogs sales people down. When you factor in 50% commission, you can’t go wrong- it’s a wonderful company to work for!”

“I have been with Indoff for 20 years after many years at a traditional dealer. The best part about Indoff, In addition to the freedom, is the commission structure stays the same, its paid every month and I know exactly what I am being paid.”

Bill Jacobson RENO, NV

20 Years with Indoff

Jeff Garlock Buffalo, NY

11 Years with Indoff

Mary Ann Torres-Co Plano, TX

12 Years with Indoff

Beth Ocker Glendale, AZ 7 Years with Indoff

Retirement Programs Indoff

Do you have a transition plan for winding down your business or career? With Indoff, we have three options for you to benefit from the business you have built over your lifetime in the industry, while you transition into retirement.

New Hire Program

Find and help hire a qualified replacement, and earn significant overrides on your accounts after you retire.

Mentor Program

Hire and train a replacement new to the industry, and share commissions on your customer base after you retire. Several Partners have introduced a family member or friend to the Indoff family, then trained and turned accounts over to them. This approach helps with that process.

Partnership Agreement

Sell your accounts at retirement to an existing Partner; split commissions on your customer base after you retire. This has been successfully done by many Partners over the years.

“

It’s a wonderful thing that indoff gives us an opportunity to involve a mentee who will take over our business when we retire.

- Marsha Olinghouse 27 Years with Indoff Altoona, IA

Marketing Tools Indoff

Corporate Brochures and Presentations

Indoff creates dynamic marketing slicks and line cards to illustrate the variety of products and services Indoff Sales Partners provide. All corporate slicks/brochures are intended for Partners to pass on to their customers. We also create presentations, case studies, online idea books, and are available to provide marketing advice and support.

Partner Marketing Sites

Customizable sites are offered to Sales Partners so they can pursue business online. Partner Marketing Sites serve three primary functions: 1) increased web presence, 2) lead generation, and 3) generation of direct online sales (via credit card). Customer engagement sites also contain custom catalogs, allowing Partners to highlight products and services in which they specialize. Indoff provides training to help you launch and maintain your site - such as blogging tips, catalog maintenance, and site preferences.

Company Store Sites

Company stores work well for customers with standards programs or frequent repeat orders. Company store sites feature customizable catalogs, as well as blogging capabilities. A company store allows a multi-location customer to streamline and standardize purchasing of seating, filing, shelving, carts - whatever they may currently be spending valuable time and effort on sourcing over and over again - and allows the Partner to get credit for repeat business without keying in orders.

Indoff Company Store

Indoff has a virtual company store that allows Partners to order Indoff-branded items such as apparel, drinkware, business cards, golf items, calendars, desk items, etc. Items from the company store help greatly in self-promotion, and provide options for customers.

Email Marketing

Indoff e-marketing pieces serve as a “touch piece,” to keep the Partner and Indoff top of mind with your customers. Indoff ’s e-marketing is easy to use, and has a track record for initiating orders from customers. See next slick for more program info.

Intranet

The intranet is a centralized & secure way of sharing information among our Sales Partners. Marketing assets are stored and organized on the intranet so that Partners can quickly find and access collateral that will help them with their sales efforts. “

e-Marketing Tools

Indoff maintains a corporate email marketing program that keeps Sales Partners in front of customers, and highlights the products we offer.

Indoff has a marketing department dedicated to creating and sending out email marketing pieces. Partners simply have to submit a list of customers and we send them 4-8 targeted emails a month, track the open rates, and pass on any leads directly to the Partners. Emails appear as if they are being sent by you directly because your name appears in the “From” field. Your contact info will be added to each email that goes out to your customers so they can easily respond to you. We highlight a wide variety of products that Indoff Partners can offer to customers, create themed pieces - warehouse safety, spring cleaning, back-toschool, and holiday pieces. We take Partner suggestions and you have the ability to opt out of that email if you wish. You simply send us a list and we take it from there.

Indoff

Technology

As an Indoff Partner you have access to state-of-theart order technology.

Confluence

Indoff ’s order management system is designed to help Indoff Sales Partners manage their business efficiently. Confluence is web-based and scaled to work with desktop, laptop, or mobile devices - no matter where you are, you can process and research any order. Confluence is your order management system - you can set up customers and vendors, run reports, place sales orders, view order history, add contacts, and process returns.

Discussion Boards

Indoff ’s electronic Discussion Boards are a platform for Partners to communicate questions, concerns, suggestions, etc. from any location, at any hour of the day. We recognize the value of working knowledge developed over years of experience, and encourage our Sales Partners to share this knowledge with one another.

Data Security

Indoff is Ariba capable, PCI compliant to ensure data security, and has a remote backup data center in the event our corporate data center goes offline. These tools allow our Partners to work with customers of any size and security requirements.

Intranet

Includes the company directory, access to applications you need to do your job (customer/vendor setup, job problem notifications or expense reports) as well as access to the Partner Intranet - a single repository for company documents, procedural manuals and marketing materials.

“ One of the best things about being an Indoff Partner

is our discussion boards which feed us information through our email system. We are able to send a question out to a group of 100+ experienced sales people in our same industry and immediately get answers and support.

-