Door Opener
Since the inception of the promotional products industry, distributors have been looking for ways to differentiate themselves from the competition. From product selection and services offered to prompt delivery, distributors have developed their individual strengths and gone to market in ways as unique as they are.
Today's conversations between distributors and their clients are much different. Whether it's a legislative update or a product recall, product safety is consistently in the headlines—and buyers are paying attention. They want to know where and how the goods they purchase are manufactured, and they want assurances that the products are safe and compliant with domestic and international laws. While having the right supplier partners has always been a crucial part of the mix, it's even more important now.
And product safety isn't the only issue affecting our industry. Environmental sustainability and corporate responsibility also are playing a leading role. End-buyers have changed their expectations of what the promotional products industry must deliver, and it's essential practitioners respond in order to satisfy client demand, ensure their own continued success and keep our overall advertising medium healthy.
Unfortunately, some believe the increased regulation negatively impacts the industry. It is true some monetary investment will be necessary to comply with the laws and, consequently, costs may go up. But the slight percentage increase per item is miniscule compared to the fines of noncompliance that could ultimately drive a distributor out of business.
What once may have been perceived as a negative could be just the positive influence a distributor's business needs to differentiate itself from the field, create a measurable competitive advantage and win even more orders. Compliance can separate distributors from the pack, and QCA-accredited suppliers are leading the way.
Creating a Defined Industry Standard
In July 2008, 14 forward-thinking firms formed the Quality Certification Alliance (QCA) for the purpose of addressing the growing concern regarding product safety and quality, environmental sustainability and social responsibility. For the next year, the founders worked to build a comprehensive accreditation program and test the system they created. After all the pieces were in place in July 2009, QCA expanded applicants beyond the original founders as interest and momentum grew.
Today, QCA has more than doubled in size. Thirteen companies have achieved QCA accreditation, the second generation of applicants is finishing the requirements and is nearing certification and the third generation of applicants has begun its journey toward accreditation.
Becoming QCA certified is not simple. The requirements are rigorous, and the standards are high. (See sidebar for details on the process.) The U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Federal Communications Commission, Consumer Product Safety Commission, Federal Trade Commission and the Department of Transportation are just a few of the agencies providing regulatory guidance. It can take a company six to 18 months to complete the program, and not every company that applies will actually meet the criteria to become accredited.
Benefiting the Bottom Line
For those who do achieve QCA certification, the payoff is huge—and distributors and end-buyers reap the dividends. How? For starters, ease of process through a standardized, proactive response system, and the resulting cost savings from such a system, are two valued benefits of working with certified companies.
Sure, distributors can work with their suppliers on those large orders with longer lead times to do required testing and auditing. But these acts are merely components of a compliance program, not a complete compliance program in and of themselves.
And, those big import deals are just a sliver of all the orders sold. What about the small quantity, short lead-time jobs upon which the industry is built? QCA accreditation is the only proactive solution available to ensure the processes and procedures are in place to deliver safe product. And unlike self-certification, QCA-certified suppliers have the documentation to prove it.
"One area where we have seen a dramatic change is where distributors pick up on how much their clients value the solutions and ease of process that working with QCA-accredited suppliers can offer," said Bonni Shevin-Sandy, vice president of Evanston, Illinois-based Dard Products. "We see our QCA accreditation becoming even more important in the future as more and more clients and distributors become aware of how this accreditation proactively addresses needs that, in general, are being poorly met by our industry."
Pleasanton, California-based MadeToOrder is a distributor aware of the benefits of using compliance as a differentiator. "In addition to doing the right thing for consumers, the QCA initiative is an opportunity to achieve a number of gains," said Rod Brown, MadeToOrder CFO. "Selling safe and compliant products through QCA-accredited suppliers is a way to distinguish oneself from competitors, and there is significant opportunity for increased market share and greater revenue. At MadeToOrder, we are focused not only on selling quality products but also on being a quality company. The QCA initiative is one of the most important areas of focus for our company in the next year."
Gaining Traction
As with any new organization, creating awareness about the cause takes time. Although the subject of compliance is complex, most industry practitioners agree that delivering safe and compliant product should have been happening all along. But in order for the organization to gain traction, it comes down to the simple economic principle of supply and demand—and end-buyers have begun demanding a proactive solution to deliver safe and compliant product, regardless of order size or turnaround time.
"The demand for safe and compliant products actually originates with end-buyers. QCA-accredited suppliers are proactively addressing this demand, and distributors continue learning how to best present compliance solutions to their clients," said Brent Stone, QCA executive director, operations. "As a result, QCA is gaining traction. Distributors are moving from understanding the science of compliance to applying compliance in a way that positively impacts their business by creating efficiency, building trust, increasing market share and opening doors."
Shevin-Sandy agrees and has experienced it firsthand. "I've worked with a number of distributor account managers who have presented QCA to their clients and been able to get in front of people they normally would not have had access to because of this message," she said. "Some distributor account managers have even brought me along to help them explain compliance and the lengths we go through to deliver safe product. These people are winning orders because of their use of QCA-accredited suppliers."
Because many more end-buyers are paying attention to compliance and making it a necessary part of winning the business, there is much opportunity for growth for both suppliers who engage in creating a comprehensive compliance program as well as distributors who partner with these QCA-accredited companies.
"Because there is a growing awareness among end-buyers that product safety, social compliance and environmental stewardship are all important in safeguarding their brands, more and more suppliers are interested in engaging with QCA," said Len Hornstein, CEO of Parsippany, New Jersey-based Avaline. "Ultimately, everyone wins; distributors can focus on selling because we suppliers are focused on compliance, and the clients get safer, more compliant products and have the peace of mind that they can use promotional products without jeopardizing the sanctity of their brand."
(This article originally was published in the Promo Marketing Responsibility Issue. For more information, visit www.promomarketing.com.)
About the Author:
Lisa Horn, CAS, is president of Irving, Texas-based Spark!, a boutique strategic communications agency that helps suppliers, distributors and other promotional products organizations, such as QCA, build their brands, position themselves in the marketplace and get the publicity they desire. A 16-year industry veteran, she is the former editor of PPB magazine. Contact her at lisa_k_horn@hotmail.com or (214) 674-8400.
Since 1998, Lisa Horn, CAS, (a.k.a. The Publicity Gal) has been reporting on the issues that matter most to the promotional products industry. Currently, she writes about brand safety and responsible sourcing on behalf of Quality Certification Alliance (QCA). Reach her at lisa@lisakhorn.com.