Happy (Digital) New Year

Well, it’s 2021 and I think it’s safe to say that we have all experienced a seismic shift in how we research and purchase products for our everyday production needs. Speaking from a manufacturer’s point of view, it certainly has changed the way we sell. With business travel being scaled back, face-to-face selling being largely shut down, and IMTS 2020 having been cancelled… the relationship between seller and purchaser has never experienced a greater challenge. Having been in sales for 20 years now, 15 of which spent in leadership roles, I have found that when the relationship between seller and purchaser is working well, the consultative nature of exchanging ideas about production challenges and effective solutions can be deeply productive, generating cost savings, increased capacity, reduced scrap, and many other benefits. So, does this new rift in the face-to-face communication hinder productivity? How does the seller effectively communicate the features and benefits of their products, and how does the purchaser communicate production challenges that require solutions?

One very popular work around is to embark on a robust digital presence so solutions become easier to find for purchasers and communicating product specifics and benefits is more straighforward for the sellers. But this is really hard on relationships and that collaborative approach that can be so effective! One of our solution to this is hosting ZOOM meetings a different way, communicating through short, succinct live product demonstrations via webinar where we don’t stay tied to a script or hide behind a coma inducing PowerPoint presentation. We can answer questions and demonstrate various product features on request in real time. The feedback that we have received so far is that these sessions are far more engaging and beneficial and if there is a need for more information, we are happy to go deeper in an off-line session. Our team has decades of experience in bringing real, tangible revenue generating solutions to our end users. Finding practical ways to bring this experience to our customers in a digital format has been daunting, but well worth the effort.

So, if you’re reading this you have found another way that ARNO USA has chosen to meet the challenges of this new way of selling. Even before the pandemic began, we started to develop a new, enhanced digital strategy to help connect end users who are experiencing every day production challenges with our well-engineered and proven solutions. Phase one of our US market website was launched in December after many months of painstaking effort. We plan on rolling out phase two in the first quarter which will feature more functionality. You may have also found our videos on YouTube or discovered our Facebook page. If you have, just know that it is very important to us that the confidence we have in our products is conveyed effectively, without (too much) hype, and it’s our sincere hope that we can help you solve a problem, or increase productivity, or better yet… increase revenue. All without the privilege of shaking your hand.

Whether this blog post found you, or you found it… I hope it finds you well. Happy New Year from everyone at Team ARNO USA