Page 26 - The Edge - Spring 2021

VENDOR/BUYER CONFERENCE

BY DON HARRIS
Erica Gentile Lisa Folsom
Vendors Have Strategies for Connecting with Clients

If school business officials face challenges working from presentation February 9, Erica Gentile, Sales Operations
home, consider what it’s like for vendors. Manager for ICM Document Solutions, and Lisa Folsom,
who oversees business development for Sunland Asphalt
Representatives of two companies that provide products & Construction and is AASBO Vendor Representative,
and services for schools identified some of the obstacles told what their business experiences have been like in the
they face during the COVID-19 pandemic and offered past year – and it’s not all bad.
colleagues with tips on how to deal with widespread
closures. In a Vendor/Buyer Conference virtual “What a year,” Gentile proclaimed, and quickly added
that part of her day still consists of making phone
calls, researching her accounts and sending emails.
But instead of driving to her office, fighting traffic
for 30-to-40 minutes, she rolls out of bed, gets
the kids off to school, and is ready for work. She
admitted that “nap times are more tempting during
the day.”

“The whole environment has changed,” Gentile
said. “Phone calls have changed, because a lot
of the people I’m trying to call are also working
at home. Not everyone has forwarded their work
phone to their personal phone. I get a lot of voice
messages, and I don’t have a cell or home phone
for everybody. It becomes challenging.”

Gentile notes that many of her contacts have
staggered work schedules, so she’s not sure
whether they’re in their office or working remotely.
“Sometimes I reach them, sometimes I don’t,” she
said. “I don’t typically leave voice mails.”

The trend is toward more digital marketing,
including press releases, blogs, and maybe social
media, Gentile said. She also recommended
relying more on customer referrals.

Folsom said she never had to deal with not being
able to see her clients. She said she has perfected
what she calls “the sneak attack,” by dropping in

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26 THE EDGE SPRING 2021