ERA Member Services & Expert Access

The following list of suppliers provide services and benefits tailored to meet the needs of ERA members. These companies have partnered with ERA National and carry the Association's "Recognized Resource" logo.

See left column for Expert Access Consultants ...

AVIS

Enterprise Rent A Car

Your Hertz - Experimental Aircraft Association discount CDP# 70159 is the key to great savings. 

Go to Hertz.com for Hertz reservations, services and special offers. For phone reservations, call Hertz at 1-800-654-2200.

Be sure to include CDP# 70159 in all of your reservations.

We were founded to assist our clients in significantly improving their “Sales Force Effectiveness” as measured by

• Accelerated revenue growth
• Improved profit margins
• Reduced sales and marketing expenses as a percent of revenue

Introduction to Our Services
Here’s a listing of the services we provide. Please see our website or contact us for additional information.

• Assessment Audits
• Assist manufacturers (foreign or start-ups / spinoffs) in establishing an Americas sales organization
• Optimize Sales Channel - Direct, Manufacturers Representatives, or Hybrid sales team, what’s best for your organization
• Optimize your Distribution Channel
• Implement or optimize your Strategic Account Program
• Review and optimize Sales Force Compensation Plans
• Optimize your existing CRM / Project tracking system or as appropriate selecting and implementing new system
• Due diligence via assessment audits of acquisition candidates
• Assist Manufacturers Representatives and Distributors with supplier qualification audits

GROWTH DYNAMICS
Growth Dynamics provides non-traditional sales, sales management and general management training to manufacturer, distributors and manufacturers' rep agencies.

Growth Dynamics asks people to rethink many of the concepts they currently use in the business development process. Eliminating the insanity of "doing the same thing over and over while expecting a different result" is a core principle of the philosophies brought to the table by Growth Dynamics. Giving people the permission to "break the rules" and become more successful, allows for quantum leaps in results. Visit our web site at: http://www.growthdynamicsonline.com

ERA UNIVERSITY
This exciting new service offers ALL ERA member firm personnel (and families) HUNDREDS of ON-LINE courses to boost your knowledge, skills and professionalism. In partnership with ed2go, an affiliation of 1,500 U.S. educational institutions, ERA UNIVERSITY delivers ...

• Instructor-facilitated classes with live interaction to connect with both faculty and fellow students.
  
• Access to lessons when you choose, where you choose, any time, 24-7.
  
• A vast array of courses, covering sales and marketing, business skills, software training and technology, personal development and much, much more.
  
• Easy on-line registration ... with NO textbooks required ... and NO minimum or maximum class sizes.
  
• Certificate of completion for each course.

Most classes run for six weeks and include 12 two-hour lessons (that's 24 hours of instruction!) for just $79 per course To view the entire catalog ... read all the details about each class and instructor ... and then register, CLICK HERE ...

ERA WEBINARS
These live, one-hour, interactive educational seminars are designed for:

• rep firm owners, presidents and managers;
• rep firm salespeople; and
• manufacturing sales executives.

Here are the FAST FACTS.

• All that’s needed to participate is a telephone and a high-speed Internet connection.
• For just one LOW connection fee, MULTIPLE attendees can participate at the same location. Invite your staff or chapter members to attend a Webinar together!
• Registrants receive a FREE recording of each Webinar for reference or sharing.
• All Webinars will start at 11 a.m. Eastern Standard time and run for one hour.
• Time is alloted for attendees’ questions and interactive discussion with the speakers.
• On-lline registration is quick and easy via a link to ERA’s service provider, Confertel.
• Registrants will receive a toll-free dial-in number and their Webinar materials in advance.
• CPMRs and CSPs can earn .1 CEU for each Webinar.

CLICK HERE for the descriptions and schedule of ERA’s first series of Webinars. Then register yourself and your personnel TODAY!

JLH CONSULTING, INC.
Services for Manufacturers

* JLH CONSULTING offers consulting to domestic and foreign manufacturers who are interested in establishing the best sales and distribution networks in both North America and Latin America.

* JLH CONSULTING also provides an executive search capability focused on the electronic industry. The best candidate is quickly located, their experience is evaluated, and their background is thoroughly checked.

For details and a free telephone consultation, contact Jim Hartranft by phone at 262-945-9200; by e-mail at jlhconsultinginc@earthlink.net; or visit http://www.jlhconsult.com.

PERFORMANCE TECH ASSOCIATES
For Mfrs - Sales Rep & Disty Locator Services
For Mfrs & Reps - Sales & Marketing Services

www.OEM-Marketing.com

* We specialize in helping both non-U.S. and U.S. based manufacturers increase their sales in the by locating, interviewing, screening, qualifying, and signing the best Reps and Industrial Distributors for your company, markets, and products.

* We will find the best channels to increase your sales, market penetration, and design wins and help you develop the best sales team!

* We have contacts at over 1000 top-tier Reps & Distributors that sell into the OEM electronics market. Many would be interested in learning more about your company and your products.

* We will also write a Rep and / or Industrial Distributor Agreement for you (if you do not have one).

* This is a personalized service (not a web-based or automated database service)... we can do everything for you!

Other Services include... Market Research / Surveys, Lead Generation / Qualification / Interviews, Distributor Registration Programs / Sales Collateral / Marketing Tools, Website Review & Analysis / Partner Introductions / Strategic Business Planning / Employee Search / Procedures Writing / Technical Writing & Documentation / Policy Creation & Administration / AD Design & Placement

Contact John Schlatter at 831-338-1451 (schlatter@OEM-Marketing.com) or go to www.OEM-Marketing.com for more information

RAY HALL
Services for Reps, Manufacturers and Associations

ERA's CEO of 40 years, Ray Hall, offers presentations, programs and management counseling for rep firms, manufacturers and associations. For a free telephone consultation regarding your organization's needs, call 847-292-6688, or send e-mail to rhall@era.org.

a nonprofit organization:

• Dedicated to enhancing public awareness of the value of the independent multiple-line selling organization
• Dedicated to providing professional education for the representative community
• Dedicated to funding research concerning the representative function of business and
• Dedicated to providing information on the value of the function to the marketplace

Web site...

LifeLOCK
15 million Americans had their identities stolen last year. Will you be next?

You can protect yourself. With LifeLock - the only identity theft system of its kind. LifeLock blocks every possible avenue thieves could use to steal your identity and is backed with a $1 million guarantee. What LifeLock does:

• Prevents your identity from being stolen, guaranteed.
  
• Locks out thieves from using your personal identity.
  
• Stops pre-approved credit card offers and drastically reduces the junk mail you receive.
  
• Ensures a smooth process when applying for credit.

Because ERA cares about you, we have partnered with LifeLock to provide the tools necessary to protect your identity from this growing crime.

When you become a LifeLock member, ERA will receive 20 percent of the fee you pay for the first year of service. In subsequent years, for as long as you have LifeLock, ERA will receive 10 percent of your annual fee. This is an opportunity to benefit your association while protecting yourself and your family.

What have you got to lose? Only your identity.

PROBOP®

Business Owners' Package is available to ERA members at a discount. The package includes:

• Building and Business Personal Property
  
• Equipment Breakdown
  
• Business Income Protection
  
• Business Liability
  
• Fire Legal Liability
  
• Money and Securities
  
• Identity Recovery

Additional options or expansions to the basic Business Owners' Package include:

• Commercial Auto Coverage
• Workers Compensation

All coverage is provided through A+ rated insurance carriers.

For a FREE QUOTE, call MIMS International at 800-899-1399, and be sure to identify yourself as an ERA member. Visit our web site ...

ERA can now help you create user-friendly, electronic SURVEYS for ANY audience YOU choose (e.g., your customers, principals, distributors, employees) – all at an incredibly LOW COST.
Here's how this new service works.ERA's survey coordinator, Tess Hill, will help you develop, edit and finalize an on-line survey questionnaire. (Many question and answer formats are available, so your survey can be customized to your specific needs.)When the survey is ready to launch, you will be e-mailed a Web link which you can then transmit (via e-mail, letter or fax) to your targeted respondents with your personal invitation to participate. Your survey responses will be monitored over the time period you select, and you will receive a summary report of the results.IT'S THAT EASY! - BOTTOM LINE: You can now conduct effective electronic surveys – with expert help from ERA – all at a fraction of the cost of a survey service subscription alone (which typically costs $600 per year).
And ... your cost is based only on the number of questions in each survey. So once a survey is created, you can send it to as many people as you choose, at no added cost. The fee for each survey, payable by check or credit card, is:

• $200 for 1-5 questions$300 for 6-10 questions$400 for 11-15 questions
• $40 per question for 16 or more

There are so many options available through this new service from ERA that they cannot all be listed here. For all the details, contact Tess Hill (at 630-545-9101 or thill@era.org)

ERA CONFIDENTIAL MATCHMAKING SERVICE
Through ERA, members can place FREE advertisements to buy, sell or merge a rep firm, find a sub-rep, form an alliance with other rep firms, recruit new employees and/or distribute a resume when seeking employment. The member advertiser maintains confidentiality and chooses the target audience" for each ad which is e-mailed to the designated recipients. All responses are immediately forwarded to the advertiser. Assistance is also available to compose ad text. For details or to place an ad, contact Tess Hill at 630-545-9101 or thill@era.org)

Save BIG at FedEx Office
Members can also now save up to 20% on select FedEx OfficeSM copy and print services and 10% off other select services at more than 1,900 FedEx Office locations.* Enroll in the ERA FedEx Advantage® Program today to upload, print and ship all in one place!

Members receive the following discounts on select FedEx Office business services:

• Up to 20% on select printing and copying services
• Up to 10% on select signs and graphics production and on select finishing services
• Plus, you may be eligible for savings up to 70% depending on your specific printing quantities.

To find a FedEx Office location near you, click here to use the easy FedEx Office locator. It’s now even easier for you to save time and money with FedEx.

Start saving now. Click here and enter passcode HRZJ7C to enroll. For more information, call 1-800-MEMBERS, your dedicated shipping program administrator at 1.800.636.2377 (8 a.m.–6 p.m. EST, M-F).

ERA has teamed up with FedEx® to help boost your bottom line. Members are now eligible to receive valuable discounts of up to 26% on select FedEx® shipping services. There are no costs and no minimum shipping requirements to take advantage of this great new member benefit.

ERA members can save:

• Up to 26% on select FedEx Express® services
• Up to 12% on select FedEx Ground® services

For more information or to enroll, please go to www.1800members.com/ERA
or call 1-800-MEMBERS (1.800.636.2377, 8 a.m.–6 p.m. EST, M-F).

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Pennywise Office Products

It's a jungle out there! Pennywise Office Products has your
"Office Survival Kit" ready...

Empowering Systems AccountManager

Grow revenue
Increase customer satisfaction
Easily manage design wins, sales opportunities and commissions
Simplify reporting

The AccountManager and SalesAnalysis are powerful tools that track initial opportunity to final design win payment. It is designed specifically for sales organizations in the electronic component industry and is available in both manufacturer and representative editions.AccountManager Server, Hosted, or On-Demand we have the solution that will fit your business.

THE BEST PART IS ERA MEMBERS RECEIVE A SPECIAL DISCOUNT!

To receive a free demonstration CD-ROM click on Empowering Systems above to visit our web site or for a personal demonstration over the Internet contact Carroll Boysen 1-888-297-2750 x109.

RPMS

RPMS is the best-selling sales analysis, commission reconciliation, and sales force data exchange software for manufacturers' reps. Visit the web site ...