Ed Gerald

Ed holds a Bachelors Degree in Business Administration from the University of Kentucky

PSDA, formerly DMIA, a trade organization for people in the business forms, printing and promotional product industry, holds smaller trade shows that travel around the country. These shows allow those who might not make it to the bigger show they hold annually to get in touch with new suppliers, learn more about the state of the industry, and just network with their fellow distributors.

PSDA, formerly DMIA, a trade organization for people in the business forms, printing and promotional product industry, holds this conference once per year. Each year Best Business Systems sends a contigent to keep abreast of the new technologies and applications that could help our customers. This year was no exception. In addition to meeting many other in our industries and sharing ideas, we were able to learn in a classroom setting about such things as what type of ink is best for the newer fabrics, building better relationships with our customers through e-commerce, and much more. In addition, we were treated to a special appearance by former Speaker of the House, Newt Gringrich, who spoke on the changing technology and how it will be affecting the economy as a whole and how to best keep up with these changes.

Sage is a software provider for the promotional products industry. This event is a small workshop that moves around the country that allows users of their software to gain additional expertise in a hands on environment.

This event is held over a three day span and is put on by the Advertising Specialty Institute, an organization that provides news, information, and assistance to the promotional products industry. Included in the show are individual classes on new products and trends, as well as a manufacturer exhibit that included over 1000 companies. The trade show allowed attendees to see first hand the products that are currently or soon will be available. The purpose of our visit was to learn more about the industry and look for new ideas to bring back for our customers. Attending these types of events allows us to stay on the cutting edge of the industry and to spot new trends as they begin.

DMIA, a trade organization for people in the business forms, printing and promotional product industry, holds this conference once per year. Each year Best Business Systems sends a contigent to keep abreast of the new technologies and applications that could help our customers. This year was no exception. In addition to meeting many other in our industries and sharing ideas, we were able to learn in a classroom setting about such things as what type of ink is best for the newer fabrics, building better relationships with our customers through e-commerce, and much more. In addition, we were treated to a special appearance by former Speaker of the House, Newt Gringrich, who spoke on the changing technology and how it will be affecting the economy as a whole and how to best keep up with these changes.

Manufacturers from across the country attended the 2006 show in order to show us the most current and new items, as well as introduce to popular products we may have forgotten. Many good connections were made as we all hit the show floor with the thought in our mind to find neat and unique sales tools for our customers.

The Promotional Products Association International (PPAI) is a not-for-profit trade organization for companies in the promotional products business. Each January they hold their annual show with thousands of attendees from around the country. Included in the show are individual classes on new products and trends, as well as a manufacturer exhibit that included over 1000 companies. Included in the educations sessions that we attended are classes on: Expanding Client Loyalty, Apparel Trends, Electronic Art, Utilizing Creativity, and Effective Time Savers, among others. The trade show allowed attendees to see first hand the products that are currently or soon will be available. The purpose of our visit was to learn more about the industry and look for new ideas to bring back for our customers. Attending these types of events allows us to stay on the cutting edge of the industry and to spot new trends as they begin.

The Document Management Industry Association (DMIA) is a trade organization of companies in the business forms and printing industry. Each year, they hold their annual trade show called Print Solutions. Covering a 4 day span, this event includes the industry’s largest trade show, allowing hundreds of manufacturers to connect with hundreds of distributors in a face to face meeting. A trade show such as this is an opportunity for us to find new suppliers that could help us improve service, turnaround time, or our ability to provide competitive pricing. In addition to the trade show, there are dozens of education sessions covering a wide range of topics. <p> This year, we attended sessions on E-Commerce, RFID Technology, Website Marketing, Determining Return on Investment, Business Process Improvement, Marketing and Marketing Tools, Variable Data Printing, Web-to-Print, and Solutions based selling. In addition, we enjoyed 2 separate receptions including music from a Beach Boys cover band and our own version of Survivor. We also were able to hear a speech from two printing industry veterans who also happened to have participating on the reality show 'Amazing Race.'