TREVOSE, PA – August 17, 2009 – The Advertising Specialty Institute®, the largest media and marketing organization serving the advertising specialty industry, today announced it will host a second free virtual trade show on Wednesday, August 19 in response to strong industry demand.

The all-day online event will feature more than 20 top suppliers, including Fields Manufacturing Inc. (asi/54100), Tri-Mountain Inc. (asi/92125) and Maple Ridge Farms Inc. (asi/68680).  Distributors can participate in ASI Education sessions online, and distributors, suppliers and decorators can network and sell in real-time through interactive multimedia booths.

The second ASI virtual trade show was launched based on the success of the first event that took place on May 20, 2009, which attracted over 2,000 distributors and averaged more than 1,300 visitors per booth. 

“On the heels of our well-attended inaugural show, we’re once again providing another smart opportunity for distributors, suppliers and decorators to connect, sell and build market share,” said Timothy M. Andrews, president and chief executive officer of ASI.  “We have several suppliers exhibiting that are new to the second show and more educational opportunities than ever before.”

Reactions from ASI’s first virtual trade show attendees were positive.

“Norwood was very pleased with booth traffic during the ASI Virtual Trade Show,” said Margit Fawbush, marketing manager for Norwood Promotional Products, Inc. (asi/63110).  “We saw a big bump in norwood.com web traffic as a result of the links from our booth as well.  All in all, an excellent experience.”

“The ASI virtual trade show was awesome,” said Ashley L. Wagner, sales representative for Consolidated Printing (asi/166952).  “At the touch of my fingertips were all of my suppliers with great information and I never had to leave my desk.  I am definitely attending all future virtual shows!”

“The day I received the reminder to the virtual trade show, I sent the email to our 23 alliance members and invited them to join in,” said Carmen Kohn, operations manager for Flagship Promotional Services, LLC (asi/376500).  “From my perspective, it is an outstanding, innovative and fun format.”

“This was one of the best methods for a show in all my days in sales and marketing, so I applaud and say thank you for including me in such,” said Hank Bezrucik, advertising specialty manager for Office Resource Center (asi/351451).  “To be able to scan through the vendors’ booths who participated was a wonderful experience for me.”

Many of the useful features available during the show include:

• Exhibit Hall.  Visit booths from top suppliers and see product demonstrations and request catalogs and samples.  Distributors and suppliers can chat online inside each booth.       

• Networking Café.  Provides distributors with a way to chat online outside of the exhibit hall and share success stories. 

• Education Center.  Distributors can turn challenges into opportunities with a variety of leading education sessions and ASI’s latest industry tips and techniques to expand business.  

• Catalog and Information Room.  One-stop shopping for catalogs and white papers from suppliers, which are all accessible in a PDF format that can be viewed and saved. 

• ASI Information Desk.  Where to visit with any questions regarding the show.  

Registration for the ASI Virtual Trade Show is available to distributors for free.  When distributors register, they will receive a free download of ASI’s new Distributor Success System – worth over $299 – with tips and proven strategies to spur business.  Attendees have a chance to win over $17,000 in cash and prizes, just by visiting and interacting with suppliers in the Exhibit Hall.

The ASI Virtual Trade Show hours are 10:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m. Eastern Time, and the show will be available to stream for several months following the live event.

To register for the ASI Virtual Trade Show, click here.  For more information or to become an exhibitor, contact Dan Dienna, advertising director for catalogs and electronics, at ddienna@asicentral.com.    

About ASI
Advertising Specialty Institute is the largest media and marketing organization serving the advertising specialty industry, with a membership of over 26,000 distributor firms (sellers) and supplier firms (manufacturers) of advertising specialties.  Supplier firms use ASI print and electronic resources to market products to over 22,000 ASI distributor firms.  Distributor firms use ASI print and electronic resources, which contain nearly every product in the industry from more than 3,500 reputable suppliers, to locate supplier firms and to market services to buyers.  ASI provides catalogs, information directories, newsletters, magazines, websites and databases, and offers e-commerce, marketing and selling tools.  Visit asicentral.com.    

Contact

Dawn Marie,
Executive director of corporate communications

Email industry news and press releases to Chris Ruvo, Digital News Director and Promogram Editor at cruvo@asicentral.com

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