Indoff
From the CEO
WJim Malkus CEO
elcome spring! March brings plenty of good things – warmer temperatures, March Madness, Opening Day –just enough to offset the misery of allergy season which tags along this month as well…
Lately, I’ve focused on opportunities that Indoff Partners have – shop.indoff.com, Global Industrial products, Promo for All, Strategic Account assistance – but this newsletter, I want to talk about the responsibilities we share. None of us succeed without help from many others in the organization.
Corporate Staff – our job is to make sure Partners can do their jobs. From paying bills to filling out forms to invoicing, collecting, calculating and remitting sales taxes, preparing commissions and processing payroll – we do the cool stuff so others can sell. Our Marketing crew directly and indirectly supports the sales effort, Partner Support trains and provides answers, and recruiting is vital to keeping our Company growing into the future.
Partners – your primary responsibility is to your customers, providing them with the right solutions. This has deeper meaning, however:
• You should sell what you know and understand, or at a minimum, what you are able to get the support to understand. Our Partners are a great resource for knowledge and help; use them when you need to do so. This also speaks to our divisional structure – I don’t want a BP Partner selling pallet rack, and I don’t want an MH Partner selling a cubicle system. Utilize an expert – share the commission and dazzle your customer with Indoff’s full capabilities.
• Vendors don’t have to sell to us; treat them with respect. Vendors make mistakes, and they usually step up and fix them. If you’re struggling with a situation, reach out to Adam Heck; he may be able to help. Don’t threaten the vendor and make your one problem something that poisons the well for Indoff in total with a normally reliable vendor.
• Shop.indoff.com opens the door for customers to buy an awful lot of products from you that may be new to you; don’t hesitate to ask for help from an expert. If someone selects a specific SKU, that’s kind of on them if they made a mistake. If they ask you if it’s right and you don’t know, say so or say you will find out – your customer will appreciate the honesty.
All of Us – patience with one another, responsiveness to one another, respect for one another…what makes Indoff unique and great is the talent of our Partners and Staff combined with our kindness and support of one another.
Enjoy the season – stay safe, stay well and thank you all for all you do for Indoff!
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Steven Cazares
Casey Conrad
Riki Sulaiman Spencer Touchie
AI Sales Tips
IMichael Dormagen Marketing Director
n the midst of the exciting yet sometimes scary AI revolution, it’s easy to get lost in the hype. That said, let’s focus on how AI can directly enhance your sales efforts. Currently, AI functions as a powerful assistant, not a replacement, serving as a supercharged research analyst, a tireless content creator, and a readily available training partner. It offers immediate opportunities for today’s sales professionals even as its future continues to evolve.
Crafting Compelling Messages: We’ve all stared at a blank screen, struggling to find the right words for that crucial email, call script, or social media post. AI’s language models are a game-changer here. Simply provide a clear prompt, such as, “Create an email script for selling [product/service] to [target industry/company type].” AI will then generate a draft, giving you a solid foundation to work from. Remember, this is just a starting point and not the final product. Refine the language and inject your personality. Also, don’t hesitate to ask AI to rephrase, shorten, or change the tone. Experiment with prompts such as “Make this paragraph more concise” or “Focus more on the B2B benefits” to craft your perfect message.
Accelerating Research and Uncovering Opportunities: Instead of spending hours scouring websites and databases, ask targeted questions like, “What warehouse solutions does [company name] typically purchase?” or “What material handling solutions are common in the aerospace industry?” AI can highlight specific needs and trends, allowing you to tailor your approach and uncover hidden opportunities that you may not have thought of attempting to sell before. You can even ask it for associations or business groups in your area. While AI is powerful, you still need to use your critical-thinking skills and always double-check important information with trusted sources to ensure accuracy.
Continuous Sales Training and Skill Enhancement: Staying sharp is crucial in sales and AI can serve as your personal training partner, providing continuous learning opportunities. Ask AI to generate a list of typical sales objections for your product or service, then practice your responses. Create customized quizzes to test your product knowledge and identify areas for further training. For example, “Create an advanced test for someone selling warehouse racking” While they may not be the most in-depth answers and standardized industry tests, this lets you stay ahead of the curve and maintain a competitive edge while gaining confidence.
To maximize AI’s potential in your outbound sales, remember these crucial points: engage with it conversationally, treating it like a collaborative colleague by asking for clarifications and providing feedback to refine results. The key to unlocking its power is crafting specific and creative prompts. The more detailed your instructions, the more tailored and effective the output will be. Always review and verify the information that is provided. AI is still just a tool and not an all-knowing robotic god………. yet.
Oh, by the way, this article was written by Gemini, Google’s AI Tool. Sure, I had to do the initial research, provide my talking points and tone, and ask it to combine paragraphs and fine-tune answers, but this article is indeed AI-generated. I hope you enjoyed it!
Promo for All
Maximize Your Income with Promo for All!
PCourtney Brazell Vice President, Partner Support & Programs
romo for All has achieved a record year with 25% growth! This success is attributed to Margaret’s dedication to collaborating with Partners, securing numerous Promotional Product orders, and generating a 40% commission for them. The exceptional customer service provided by Margaret has resulted in high client satisfaction and repeat business.
The process is designed to be effortless for Partners. Simply connect Margaret with your clients who have promotional or branding needs. Margaret will then handle everything, from sourcing apparel and hard goods to providing quotes with virtuals, placing orders in Confluence under the Partner’s name, emailing proofs for approval, and tracking shipments. She also cultivates lasting client relationships, ensuring ongoing orders and commissions while working with the customer’s budget.
The benefits of the program extend beyond just Promotional Product orders. One Partner’s contact at a large technology company transitioned to another company but remained in contact with Margaret. This led to multiple orders from the new company and provided the Partner with an opportunity to engage with the new company through his primary selling division. The replacement at the initial company continued to work with Margaret and later moved to an Engineering Plastics Company, which is now also ordering through Margaret and is another point of contact for the Partner. In essence, a single contact has resulted in three companies ordering Promotional Products and has opened doors for the Partner’s primary selling division.
Promo for All is a valuable resource for Partners to increase their earnings with a 40% commission. Margaret is available to assist you in growing your orders and maximizing your income.
Contact Margaret today and begin promoting tomorrow!
Margaret Wiggemansen E: Margaret@indoff.com P: 800-486-7867 x1401
President’s Message
Grow with our Strategic Accounts Team
It has been a great first quarter as President of Indoff, LLC; I appreciate everyone’s support and words of encouragement. Our Partners will always be key to our success, and I have had the chance to work with more Partners in these past 3 months than during my prior 13 years with Indoff. It’s been great, and I look forward to working more with each of you.
My core responsibility is to help each of you grow your business through improvements and new tools that help you do what you do best - providing solutions to customers.
Last October we added a significant new resource - Rob Gallant, VP of Strategic Sales. Rob is here to help our Partners grow with their significant customers and prospects. I first met Rob in 2016 when he became our contact at Carrier Enterprise. Rob has over 40 years in sales experience at major distributors - Carrier, MSC and Office Max. He specializes in discovering and developing major account opportunities in tandem with sales.
Rob has already worked with many of you, making progress in expanding opportunities with current customers and working to connect Partners with new customer relationships. I am confident that Rob can help you increase the amount of business that you are doing with even your most tenured customers by uncovering opportunities that you are not currently servicing or aware of – reach out to him today to open a dialog. Thank you. If I can be a resource to any of you, please feel
Thursday April 10, 2025
11am – 12pm (CST )
Steve Bloom
Christine Davis
Ron Weber
John Hollern, TAS
Brad Anderson
Chris Koeneman
$1,745,297
$339,446
$182,206
$98,696
$73,426
$257,646
JANUARY
Don Compton
Melyssa Evans
Darrell Reed
Keith Harris, TAS
Chris Koeneman
Anniversaries
$630,407
$815,907
FEBRUARY
Ken Martinez
Melyssa Evans
Deanna Lies
Keith Harris, TAS
Chris Koeneman
$388,285
$738,791
$135,282 $64,540
$318,354
Congratulations to the following Partners who are celebrating their Employment Anniversaries with us in the months of January, February and March 2024:
Tamora (Stevens) Nagel 3/13 25 Years Ken Hebert 1/10
Frank Horner
Chris Hammon
Jim Dixon
Diane Stegall
Lucy Quintanilla
Congratulations to the following Corporate/CSR employees who are celebrating their Employment Anniversaries with us:
Maureen Maxwell
Dan Massman 1/1 1/12 20 Years
Courtney Brazell 3/8
Linda Smith 2/16
My Resource Library (MRL) and Indoff have teamed up to offer our partners a very special annual rate of just $250 per year for all the perks and capabilities that come with being an MRL Pro Dealer!
MRL is a virtual library that gives you access to all the resources needed for finding product solutions and specifying all in one place. MRL is the most comprehensive compilation of 300+ digital binders from some of the best vendors in the market today.
The best part? You can use your Indoff marketing funds to cover it.
MRL PRO DEALER INCLUDES:
Custom Library Shelf
Sub-Libraries
Full Product Library
Enhanced Search
Inspiration Gallery
Project Tool / Pro Notify
Website Integration
Mobile Access
