The Mheda Journal

Well, tomorrow morning we leave for Marco Island for MHEDA’s 55th Annual Convention & Exhibitors’ Showcase.

Just a reminder that I will be, for the first time ever, blogging and tweeting live from the show, as will my colleague, Dan Vest, editor of MHEDA Edge, the monthly e-zine for young professionals. Dan often has a different perspective than I do, so be sure to check out his blog postings and tweets as well.

Another new feature this year will be a daily Convention newsletter that will review the previous day’s activities and preview each day’s agenda items. MHEDA members, both attendees and non-attendees alike, will receive a daily morning e-mail with a newsletter that looks eerily similar to The MHEDA Connection e-newsletter you’ve all come to know and love. Dan and I will be seeking attendees’ commentary, so don’t run away from us if you see us. We’ll take good care of you and your quotes. We won’t be able to do it without your help!

I can’t wait to get down there and start putting faces with names!

With MHIA’s NA 2010 getting underway in Cleveland, OH, today (anyone out there attending? I’d love to hear how it’s going!), it’s a reminder that there’s only five more days until we leave for MHEDA’s 55th Annual Convention and Exhibitors’ Showcase, to be held May 1-5 in Marco Island, FL. It will make a busy week for some who are traveling straight from one to the other, I’m sure.

Even though we’re not attending in Cleveland, we will be in Marco Island in full force. For the first time ever, we will be producing a daily newsletter at the Convention, recapping previous day’s events and previewing what’s to come. MHEDA members, both attendees and non-attendees alike, will receive a daily morning e-mail with a newsletter that looks eerily similar to The MHEDA Connection e-newsletter you’ve all come to know and love. So if you see me (see the picture, below right) or my colleague Dan Vest in the hotel hallway, feel free to introduce yourself and give us a comment for the newsletter. You’ll be a rock star in no time!

There’s a lot happening in Marco Island, beginning Saturday, May 1. I hope to see you there!

At long last, the Second Quarter (April) issue of The MHEDA Journal is back from the printer and being distributed to MHEDA members. Those of you traveling to upcoming material handling equipment trade shows can also pick up a copy at NA2010 in Cleveland in two weeks or at the MHEDA Annual Convention & Exhibitors’ Showcase next month.

This issue plays off the MHEDA Convention’s theme of “The Rules Have Changed,” and is chock-full of articles from distributors about how they’re changing the rules at their companies to drive profits. See how M & G Materials Handling (East Providence, RI) President Ken MacDonald has improved productivity by implementing 5s procedures. Read how Bill Rowan, president of Sunbelt Industrial Trucks (Dallas, TX), has instituted more strict credit policies to ensure better cash flow. Learn what Ted Springer, president of Springer Equipment Company (Birmingham, AL), is doing to diversify his product mix, and many more!

This issue also features articles from speakers at the Annual Convention, on topics from marketing to sales intelligence to thinking creatively and more. So even if you can’t make it to Marco Island, you can still receive some of the benefit by taking a look at this quarter’s issue.

It’s all available online now and is being mailed to subscribers this week. I’d love to hear your feedback. Leave a comment here or send an e-mail to editor@TheMhedaJournal.org. Thanks for reading!

I can’t believe how fast time flies. It seems like it wasn’t very long ago that I was leaving Palm Desert, CA, after last year’s MHEDA Convention.

Now, it’s only three and a half weeks until the 55th installment of MHEDA’s Annual Convention and Exhibitors’ Showcase. It takes place May 1-5 in Marco Island, FL. MHEDA has been to Marco Island several times, most recently in 2005. That was my first visit, and I’m excited to be heading back. What a great locale!

Beyond that, this year’s Convention should prove to be a valuable one thanks to the strong speaker lineup and networking opportunities. With the industry taking a hit over the last few years, the MHEDA Convention is a great way to re-introduce yourself to suppliers, distributors and customers that you may not have heard from in a while. All the material handling industry’s heavy hitters will be there!

This year’s theme is The Rules Have Changed, a nod to the changing environment that we’ve endured this past several months. Speakers will present on topics ranging from marketing your business to profitability improvement, from to strategic planning to sales intelligence.

My colleagues and I will be there documenting the event. If you want your name and photo in The MHEDA Connection daily newsletter that’s going to be published there, seek us out! (I hope I didn’t scare everyone away!) I look forward to seeing you there!

Over the weekend, we passed the official first day of Spring (March 20). In addition to the long-awaited warmer weather and longer days, that also means it’s time for the Spring issue of The MHEDA Journal. It won’t be distributed until April 15, but we’re wrapping up production in the next few days and it’s fresh in my head.

This issue takes MHEDA’s Convention theme, “The Rules Have Changed” and runs with it. Eight distributors give in-depth descriptions of things they’re doing at their companies to illustrate how the Rules Have Changed and how they’re responding.

Bill Rowan of Sunbelt Industrial Trucks (Dallas, TX) talks about the tighter credit policies he’s implemented. Ken MacDonald of M&G Materials Handling (East Providence, RI) discusses the lean initiatives he’s installed at his company. Audie Burgan of J.M. Equipment (Manteca, CA) explains why they’ve decided to move into a larger facility in this economic environment. 

These are only a few of the headlines…keep reading the blog up through publication day to find out more ways that MHEDA Distributors are changing the standard rules of business.

In my last post, I told you about a MHEDA Convention speaker who will be talking about promoting your dealership. Well, that’s only one of many topcis that will be covered at this year’s Convention, taking place May 1-5 in Marco Island, Florida. It’s still two months away, but I wanted to let folks know some more about it to allow ample time to make travel arrangements if you desire.

One of this year’s keynote speakers will be Peter McLaughlin, whose speech is title “Break Through The Monkey Traps.” If you’re like me, that title confused you at first. But let me clear things up for you. In the upcoming issue of The MHEDA Journal, McLaughlin writes in an article of the same title about the value of thinking creatively to break through the “monkey traps” that businesses get caught in.

Statements like, “There’s not much we can do until the economy turns around,” and “That’s not the way we do things around here,” are monkey-trap phrases. Often, we’re in a rut and don’t know it. A rut is just like a monkey trap—nothing is keeping us stuck except our inability to recognize that we’ve trapped ourselves. To change, we must start with ourselves. As Pogo once said in the famous comic, “We have met the enemy, and they are us.”

Still confused? Here’s some context:

In Southeast Asia, the natives have concocted a rather ingenious way of capturing monkeys, according to author Robert Persig in his book Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance. “A monkey trap consists of a hollowed-out coconut chained to a stake. The coconut has some rice inside, which can be grabbed through a small hole. The hole is big enough so the monkey’s hand can go in, but too small for his fist with rice to come out. The monkey reaches in and is suddenly trapped—by nothing more than his own rigidity. He can’t revalue the rice. He cannot see that freedom without rice is more valuable than capture with it.”

In other words, in business, as with the monkeys, it pays to see things beyond the short-term. The reward does not always outweigh the risk.  

It’s a bit abstract, but I, for one, am looking forward to hearing more from Mr. McLaughlin at the MHEDA Convention. Hope you’re there to join me.

In the next issue of The MHEDA Journal, we feature several articles from speakers at the upcoming MHEDA Convention (May 1-5 in Marco Island, FL). One such article is from MHEDA Member Barry Lauterwasser, president of Symbion Marketing, who has some interesting ideas about promoting of small distribution companies. Lauterwasser previously worked at a forklift distributor before venturing out on his own, and has some pretty interesting ideas about how to market a small business.

He says:

Often times, promotion has been viewed as an expense—some would say, “I spent $5,000 on a direct mail program and nothing happened.” That’s the equivalent of spending a day in the gym and assuming exercise is a waste of time because you didn’t lose weight. Products in our business are bought, not sold. You have to be there when a product or service is needed, or at least close to being needed. No one buys a lift truck simply because you have it on sale. There has to be a need for one, and if you’re continually pounding your messages home, you are much more likely to get that call, that opportunity, once the need arises (the payback).

To me, this was interesting. “Nobody buys a lift truck just because you have it on sale.” I’m guessing the same is true with any similar large capital investment, i.e. a conveyor system or large racking installation. That’s why marketing is more important than ever. You want to be on the tip of the buyer’s tongue as the go-to provider of a certain product.

Over the years, I’ve talked to many distributors who struggle with this issue. What is the right marketing mix? How much should they spend? What media is the best? What’s a good ROI? I certainly don’t know the answers to these questions, but you can find out at the MHEDA Convention.

Earlier this week, I posted a query on LinkedIn and Twitter which said: “Let me know if you have any insight: The Rules Have Changed for Material Handling Distributors. What does this mean to you?” I was hoping to generate some content for the next issue of The MHEDA Journal, which will be coming out in April and then distributed at MHEDA’s annual convention in Marco Island, FL, May 1-5. This year’s Convention theme is “The Rules Have Changed,” meaning that the recession forced material handling distributors to look at business differently and implement a host of new procedures and policies.

In reply to my LinkedIn question, George Keen of Currie Management Consultants posted, “The rules have not changed. They are still the same! Take care of your customers, employees and make money. What has changed is volume.”

What say you?

The theme for the MHEDA Convention (being held May 1-5, 2010, in Marco Island, Florida) is “The Rules Have Changed.” Basically what that means is, the recession that has impacted the industry over the last two-plus years has made certain “rules” of business obsolete and created a “new normal.” For example, a new rule of business might include “embracing social media because it’s an inexpensive form of marketing your company.”

For the second quarter issue of the magazine, I am looking for examples like this from distributors. What traditional rules of business are you breaking at your company to survive the recession? What new “rules” are you implementing? Leave a comment to let me know what you come up with!

On this last day of 2009, let me say a quick thank you to all who have contributed material and/or left feedback for this space. I appreciate it.

2009 was a busy year in material handling, despite the economic slowdown that greatly impacted the industry. A somewhat bleak outlook from many at the start of the year had many material handlers playing it safe, and trying to Powerfully Position themselves to survive the downturn.

One way many companies found was to learn and master new technologies and new marketing platforms. These companies decided that Braving the Digital World with Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube, e-commerce sites, wikiMHEDA, software solutions and more was a path to success.

The year wasn’t all bad, as many distributors and manufacturers strengthened their partnerships with each other and wrote their own Sales Success Stories.

Philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche said, “That which does not kill us makes us stronger.” Many MHEDA members will attest that 2009 was one of those years. 2009, and the ’00s decade for that matter, is over (and many people are not shedding any tears about that, I’m sure).

Have a Happy New Year holiday and celebrate responsibly. See you in 2010!