Page 18 - BOSS Today Issue 15

THE
BOSS
Award winner
INDUSTRY Award winner
AWARDS
2012

WORKING HARDER FOR
MEMBERS

The Office Friendly Dealer Association’s new marketing package was a
worthy winner of this year’s Reseller Marketing Excellence Award

he Office Friendly Dealer he says, many members were as well – and hence bring in
TAssociation (OFDA) can just printing out their own extra revenue for OFDA. While
proudly boast of 18 months of separate price lists which were the team is focused on helping
hard work it had to go through then inserted into a standard members, it also currently does
to win the Reseller Marketing catalogue. Now using the some work for manufacturers,
Excellence Award at this year’s Maxepromo system, these can be and even for companies which
BOSS Awards. incorporated to fit in seamlessly have no direct link with office
Eighteen months ago was with the rest of the marketing supplies.
the moment when managing material. Harrop says the whole
director Steve Harrop sat down Maxepromo has also been marketing package was not
with his management team at designed to sync in with OFDA’s something put together on
the co-operatively run dealer The team from OFDA existing e-marketing product the spur of the moment. “All
receiving their award
group and began to think about known at Maxemail. “With usually this has come about through
how they could reposition his members with “marketing just one click our members can us researching the market and
themselves. collateral” they can really send a PDF of the catalogue finding out what dealers really
They quickly realised that to differentiate themselves with. they have just produced in wanted, and looking at what they
gain an edge on the competition The first of these is Maxepromo and send it out to all were doing,” he says.
they would have to evolve to Maxepromo, a system which their customers,” says Harrop. But the response has been
become more than just a buying allows members to put together Having gone through the phenomenal. “Since we launched
group. The organisation was their own unique marketing process of putting together in May we have done over 300
already offering ancillary services, material and catalogues that no their own marketing material, if mailings,” he says. “And some
but everyone felt it needed to go one would ever guess had been members then feel they haven’t 82 dealers have taken on the
further down that road. sourced from a centrally shared got the resources to make use product, which is two thirds of
Steve also knew from his own database. of the information they glean, our members.”
experience that many of his “I had actually been intending help is at hand there too. OFDA He insists that the whole
members were, as he says, “time- to do something with our has invested £80,000 in building enterprise is not taking power
and resource-poor”. He also knew catalogue for years and years,” he up a telemarketing team of four away from individual members.
that their expertise mainly lay in says. “Previously our members who can prospect for individual Quite the opposite, in fact –
what most independent retailers were only able to put together members. Harrop says bringing it is giving them the power
are good at: building great small catalogues of their own, such a team in-house, rather than to make a mark of their own.
customer relationships, running or use the same wholesalers’ outsourcing such activity to an And now he hopes that with
delivery services effectively, and catalogue, and that meant they agency, was important. For one this award win, the momentum
generally excelling at operational were all using the same content. thing, it means that the team will increase. “We are not serial
management. Marketing and its This allows them to do their own can rightly boast to be industry- award entrants,” he says, “but
finer intricacies was something thing. They can choose their own specific. Just as importantly, getting this award means we can
they were perhaps less confident colours, put in their own logo, it means that the team can go to other people and say this
about. even change the prices.” build up enough expertise and is what we are doing and it has
So Harrop spotted a gap to be In fact the price list is one knowledge of the marketing been recognised by an industry
filled – and filled it with a suite of area where there is a really industry in general to be able to body.” A strong endorsement
products which he says provide tangible difference. Previously, offer its services to other parties indeed.

18 BOSS TODAY | December 2012/January 2013

boss awards OFDA.indd 2 30/11/2012 14:35