WOULD YOU LIKE TO HEAR YOUR CUSTOMERS SAY...

"I can't afford NOT to purchase my capital equipment in 2008! (Thanks to the newly passed Economic Stimulus Package...)"

Col-Met Spray Booths wants you to know the potential benefits of the recently-passed law that contains provisions that support capital investment. Highlights to share with your current or potential customers include:

Companies that purchase less than $800,000 worth of capital assets in a year can expense the first $250,000 of capital investments made in 2008.
They may be able to take the first-year bonus/accelerated depreciation or 50% of the cost of the investment. (The remainder can be depreciated under regular depreciation rules.) To qualify, the equipment must be purchased and placed into service in 2008.
Some companies can take advantage of the $250,000 deduction AND the 50% expense allowance.

Click here to read an informative fact sheet on the economic stimulus package.

REINVENTING THE ART OF SELLING

The 1/28 issue of the Wall Street Journal included an interview with Ram Charan, a leading Strategic Planning and Management Consulting guru. Charan, who has worked with the likes of General Electric, Sherwin-Williams and Verizon Communications feels "companies need to 'reinvent' the way they sell, to focus on their customers rather than product features." Selling used to be connecting with the customer, knowing the products, and beating the competition on price. The world has changed. "Copying a product has become very quick. You now have competition on the Internet to beat down prices. It has become very hard to differentiate yourselves in the eyes of the customer..." Charan's tips for better (commercial B2B) sales:

Know how the customer makes money.
Learn the customer's decision making process.
Build many relationships with the customer, not just through sales.
Focus on the customer's business needs, not product features or price.
Show how your offerings meet customer needs.

"Going forward," he says, "the salesperson must build trust with the customer's people that's deeper than before and sustained over time. You cannot design a solution without information from the customer. And if the customer does not trust you, he or she will not give you information."

You can read the interview at: http://online.wsj.com/ad/article/oracle_reinvention.html

EDITORIAL OPPORTUNITIES & CASE STUDIES

Col-Met frequently gets approached by editors and others in the trade media about participating in feature stories, product reviews, etc. - but one area that we really need your help with is case studies (customer reviews or success stories). We understand that these are relationships you've worked hard to foster and grow, and Col-Met would greatly appreciate partnering with any of you in the development of these types of editorial opportunities. If there are some customers who would be willing to share their experiences of working with you, as a Col-Met distributor, and with using our spray booths or other finishing products - then let us know by e-mailing Billy at broche@colmetsb.com and let's start exploring what can be done together.

Info Links For You

Economic Stimulus (PDF)

ATR Price List - Effective November 2007 (PDF)

Contact Us

Calendar

Mid-America
Truck Show
Booth #86100
With Outcast Kustoms from Trick My Truck!
Mar 27 - 29

New England
Woodworking Expo
Booth #TBD
May 2 - 3

IWF
Booth #4918
Aug 20 - 23

Issue Number 8