Anything a company gives away, sells, or uses to promote their business....  from inexpensive giveaways (like bumper stickers, wooden nickels, and plastic key tags) to expensive executive gifts (like leather portfolios) to premium items (like an Igloo cooler with the purchase of a new refrigerator) to the giant advertising balloons on the tops of buildings or the printed hat and T-shirt the pizza delivery guy wears. 

They're the "imprinted" goodies we've all seen a thousand times....  the most common probably being pens and calendars.

Nearly every successful company uses promotional items of some kind....  and if they don't, they should, because it is the single most cost-effective form of advertising there is.

Why?

Because the success of an ad depends upon it being there at the exact moment when the person wants or needs what the ad is offering.  Every other form of advertising is here today, gone tomorrow (or gone in 30 seconds flat). 

Advertising Specialties find a permanent or semi-permanent home on refrigerators and walls.  They get worn.  They get carried in pockets and purses.  They get used every day.  Which means they get seen again....  and again....  and again. 

There is no question that they represent the best-remembered (which equals most-cost-effective) form of advertising available, and the industry continues to grow as more and more businesses earmark a higher percentage of their advertising budget for this type of promotion.

An example?

Funeral homes.  They represent one of the biggest users of specialty products.  And when the need arises, who will most people call? The "stranger" in the phone book....  or the "friend" who put the calendar magnet on their refrigerator?

WHAT MAKES K&B SPECIAL?

K&B's commission scale is the highest in the industry.  Each item in the catalogs is coded with a letter, which tells you the commission rate....  from 7% (quite rare) to 25%....  and this scale increases as your sales volume increases.

(It is important to understand that K&B is the "distributor." You are a "dealer" under K&B's distributorship.  K&B pays the highest of any distributor, but you are splitting the commission with them.  So when you look at an item in a manufacturer's catalog and the "discount code" is "A"....  the distributor (K&B) receives a 50% "discount" on the item, and they split that equally with their dealers, so you get 25%.  I didn't understand that the first time I went to a trade show, and it left me somewhat confused.)

Because K&B does such tremendous volume, in many cases they have been able to negotiate much higher discount rates, which they pass on to their dealers.  For example, one manufacturer provides a special "mini-catalog" for K&B dealers, with "end-quantity pricing" on every order.  This means that if the customer orders the minimum number of key tags (let's say 250), you can discount them all the way down to the "end-quantity price" (for example, 10,000).

There is an incentive program at EVERY level.

You own your business....  and you own your accounts.

K&B will not solicit your accounts.  If you choose to open a distributorship of your own, or if you go to work for another distributor, you are free to take your clients with you. 

There are tremendous advantages to being K&B's dealer rather than striking out on your own.  The obvious one is giving yourself time to learn the business inside and out before you take such a huge step (and such a huge risk).

Here are some of the less obvious ones.... 

The customer often expects to pay AFTER the order is delivered....  which means on your own (or with a company such as BASCO), you are limited to orders you can pay for up front (out of your own pocket).  This can effectively prevent you from working with large corporations (where the best money is) until you have the capital to back you.  And if your customer defaults, you lose your shirt.

K&B will finance ANY size order....  and as a dealer, you risk only your commission.

Another advantage is cash flow:

K&B pays commissions daily....  and as far as I know, they're the only distributor that ADVANCES commissions.  As soon as the order is processed (art work okayed, prices verified, the customer's credit approved, etc.), you receive your full commission. 

And here's a biggie:

K&B's Exclusive "Best Buys Catalog"....  a GREATselection of all types of promotional products filling about 130 pages, at "Killer Prices" designed to knock your customers' socks off.

You also receive another 40-or-so catalogs with your kit.  These are full-color manufacturer's catalogs.  (All you have to do is open one of these to see how LOW the "Best Buys" prices are!) You can get literally ANYTHING your customer wants through K&B....  if not from these catalogs, then from one of the other 120-or-so catalogs you have access to.  And if you don't find what you're looking for there....

K&B also has full computer-searching capabilities, and as ASI (Advertising Specialty Institute) members, they (which means YOU) can buy from any one of THOUSANDS of manufacturers.  In other words, you will never have to tell a customer you can't get the item they want....  which will happen time and time again if you're limited to one catalog.

K&B provides full support.  If you get in over your head (which you probably will a time or two), you can call for help, and they'll walk you through a transaction.  They encourage you to become "an idea person"....  a consultant who helps clients choose the right items and guides them through the entire promotion, from planning to actual distribution....  and they'll do everything they can to help you achieve this goal.

WHAT ABOUT COMPETITION?

There's tons of it. 

But this is a HUGE industry....  growing by leaps and bounds....  and K&B has less than 5% of the total market.  So theoretically, 95% of all companies currently buying advertising specialties are your potential customers.

So wherever you are, I believe it's possible to succeed in this business....  but there is one thing you must understand:....

It requires personal contact. 

Lots of it.

You can't put your products on the internet or drop off catalogs and expect to be bombarded with orders. It doesn't work that way. People are succeeding with both methods, but they require effort and know-how.

Face-to-face is still best -- including a willingness to do cold-calling, follow up every visit with a phone call, etc.

I couldn't get comfortable with it no matter how hard I tried.  I was MORE comfortable with K&B because I felt like a consultant rather than a peddler -- in other words, it had a more professional feel -- but "personal sales" turned out to be pure torture for me, and it never got any easier.  So I left it behind me and I'm now working exclusively on the internet, which I dearly love.

But if you're an outgoing person and you're comfortable getting out there and meeting people, I don't believe you can do better than K&B.

One thing to remember, especially if you've been through the meat grinder like I have.... 

This isn't like struggling to get started in an MLM where everyone is skeptical (or downright hateful), they don't really want the products, and they sure don't want to pay inflated MLM prices.  These are great products at spectacular prices....  products whose value has been PROVEN time and time again. 

And when you explain to a potential customer exactly how EVERY BUSINESS can benefit by using advertising specialties....  your conscience is 100% clear.

I went to an all-day K&B training seminar, and I met people there who had been with K&B for as long as 14 years full time (and many more who did it part time).  They had nothing but good things to say.  I didn't hear one negative comment.  (I should also mention that they charged $25 for this very valuable experience, and that included lunch and a factory tour....  obviously not a big money-maker for them.)

HOW DO YOU GET STARTED AND WHAT DOES IT COST?

You can look at K&B one of two ways:.... 

No Investment and No Risk, or Low Investment and Low Risk. 

The "investment" is $85....  but you have a full 30 days to decide if the opportunity is for you, and if it isn't, you can return the kit for a full refund, no questions asked.  That makes it "No Risk."

But there is still some risk, because you may like what you see and not decide until six months down the road that it wasn't really for you after all....  in which case it turned out to be "Low Risk."

What about the "No Investment" part?

The $85 is a deposit.  After $1,500 in sales, you get it back, so it really is "No Investment" if you work the business and make sales.  For your $85, you get everything to you need to launch your business.

Obviously K&B can't send out a package of this value free to everyone who asks for it, so I believe the $85 is more than fair.  (Remember, you're looking for a company that makes their profit on products and not on the opportunity itself.)

Here's further proof that K&B qualifies according to the standards you learned in Scams 101:  (Like most of our links, this one will open a second browser window, so you can look around all you like without getting lost; just close the window when you're ready to come back here.)

If you are already in the advertising specialties industry and can document $1,500 in sales over the past year, they charge you ABSOLUTELY NOTHING to become a dealer and receive the 35-pound starter kit.

You're probably going to want to buy some "Best Buys" catalogs (or start cheap like I did by dismantling the one you get and putting it in sheet protectors in a binder to carry with you, then just leave the or "Best Buys flyer" with prospects).  Business cards are a must in any business.  And it's not a bad idea to have some promotional items of your own made, since this is the best way to demonstrate their value....  (and if you mention K&B anywhere on the imprint, you get them at cost).

But this is all strictly optional, when and if you're ready....  K&B never pushes you to spend another dime.

At the end of the year when you need to replace the catalogs in your binder, you can pay a $20 deposit to get the new ones (this fee is also refundable) -- or, with a minimum sales volume the previous year, you pay absolutely nothing.

(Still more evidence that K&B is NOT making their money by ripping off dealers.)

When you make your first sale, you become an "active dealer." You receive your dealer number, and you start receiving "The Windjammer" (K&B's newsletter) and special sale announcements in the mail.  And at that point, you are allowed to sign up other dealers if you choose to. 

The dealers who sign up under you are "full dealers" in every sense of the word, and they receive their commission....  so it would probably be more accurate to call this a referral program than a subdealer program.  As an active dealer, you receive an override of 20% on all commissions your "sub"dealers earn....  but that 20% does NOT come out of the subdealer's pocket.  It comes directly out of K&B's portion of the profit.

There is NO MLM involved here.  This override applies to direct referrals only.  K&B pays the referring dealer a 20% override on YOUR commissions....  but if you turn around and sign up 10 "sub"dealers, YOU get a 20% override on their commissions, and the dealer who referred you gets nothing.

This override policy is unique.  Most companies, if they pay you anything at all, will pay you a one-time "finder's fee."

WHAT DOES THE DEALER HAVE TO DO?

Sell the products.

Make sure the art work is squared away.

And write up the order.

That's it. 

K&B processes all orders, deals with the manufacturers, assumes all credit risks, and performs all delivering and collecting.  Because they're in a position to finance ANY order....  no matter how humongous....  you are free to take your business in any direction you want it to go.

WHAT ABOUT TRAINING?

There are comprehensive training tapes (generally four hours) available on a variety of specialty areas for around $39 each.  (Many of the top dealers specialize in one particular field.)

The "K&B Traveling University" goes around the country every year (that's the one I attended for $25).

And K&B will let you know about trade shows in your area where you can get tons of samples and catalogs and pick up wonderful new ideas from the manufacturers' reps running the booths.

Remember, all of this is strictly optional.  The basic manuals that come with your kit are more than enough to start making money.

A FINAL NOTE

If you're a person who is terrified of selling (like I am), then you need to consider this very carefully, because it probably isn't for you.  Some of the advertising specialty companies will tell you the products "sell themselves"....  and while it's true that most of your potential customers will already be using these products and recognize their value....  they will NOT sell themselves.

NO PRODUCT SELLS ITSELF.

You have to get out there and do it.  You can start with letters if you want....  but if you expect to succeed, you have to follow those letters up with personal contact.  There just isn't any way around it.

For more information, go to the Friends In Business Forum and ask Dennis Bevers to contact you. If he can't sponsor you himself, I'm sure he'll be glad to refer you to someone who can.

If you're "a people person," I honestly believe this one of the BEST opportunities you'll ever find.  But if the thought of personal sales makes you weak in the knees, think again.... and click here to find out what's finally working for me.