PPB April 2021

M arch 13, 2020 was the day COVID-19 “arrived” in the U.S. and shut everything down. I had just come back from a client lunch meeting and a text came across my phone that said my kids’ schools were closing indefinitely. It was all over the news— business closings and shelter- in-place lockdowns were effective immediately for at least the next two months. Sound familiar? Within 48 hours all orders (and inquiries) stopped. My promo sales and book of business came to a screeching halt. No emails. No phone calls. All my projects in the pipeline were cancelled. I absolutely freaked not knowing if, or when, I would make another sale. Fortunately, I have a very supportive team and a wife (who can walk me back off the ledge when my freak flag starts to fly), plus with more than 25 years in the business and a few tricks up my sleeve, I knew we would be OK. But then I thought … what about those distributors in our industry who don’t have access to the resources and support network that I do? What about those who go month to month without a partner, community or coach/mentor to help them? None of us had ever been through a pandemic before and many of us were like deer in headlights. Something had to be done. Thirteen days later, we did something. On March 26, 2020, “ Distributors Helping Distributors ” was born. It is a webinar series my business partner Michael Mahoney and I host for distributors to help them stay positive and informed with expert guest panelists and best-practice sharing to help themmanage through the pandemic. We started off with 20 distributors joining us and today our community is close to 1,000 strong. We have helped each other not only navigate, but thrive, in these most KadirKARA / Shutterstock.com No matter what this year has in store, here are strategic ways to forge ahead and crush your 2021 promo sales. By Josh Frey Get Sales Rolling In 2021 56 | APRIL 2021 | GROW