Training Seminars

Sign up for your Member Training Seminars on the Registration Form!

The is.D-Force II Training will only be held on Wednesday afternoon. All other seminars will be held on Friday afternoon and Saturday morning. The exact times for each session are not yet determined. They will be repeated as necessary to accommodate as many attendees as possible. You will receive your personal "class schedule" when you arrive at registration.

Wednesday Special Focus:
is.D-Force II Training

Wednesday, May 17, 2006
1:30 pm - 4:30 pm

On June 30, is.group will begin to switch is.D-Force member sites over to our brand new version, is.D-Force II. This class is a must attend class to learn what to expect in the conversion process. John Hauptstueck (Director of eBusiness) and Anthony Pezzanite (eBusiness Support Specialist) will guide you through the entire product and what changes are being made to help you compete with the big box eCommerce websites. Walk away with your complete conversion plan and all the tools you will need to prepare your customers for one of the best eCommerce sites built for independent dealers today.

Thursday Special Focus:
Sell Furniture Accessories for Greater Profits

Thursday, May 18, 2006
5:00 pm - 6:30 pm

Learn how to acquire more sales and profit from your existing furniture sales. Today, IS dealers sell desks and chairs - but what about the vast world of accessories and decor? Why allow the customer to go to a discount store or other retailer to complete the office "look"? Make the additional sale for their wastebaskets, chairmats, keyboards, plants, lamps, art for the walls. In this 90-minute seminar, you will learn how to fully service the furniture customer and make additional profits! This is not just order writing tips - this is how to actually make the sale on these unique non-traditional office products. Remember - they are going to buy these items from someone - why not you? Do your customer a favor and totally satisfy them while increasing your profits!

This class will be led by Roger Harrell, Sheena Crum, and Tom Brown from #89 Ponder's Office Plus.

Friday/Saturday Seminars

Cleaning Up in Jan/San 101

Here is an opportunity to expand your gross profit in a new way! Every customer you already have buys these products each and every month! You will want to attend this presentation and discussion on where, how and why to sell janitorial supplies and break room products, a newly added category to your RDCs. Listen to successful is.group dealers who have been benefitting from turning this niche category into a profit center for their dealerships. Learn how to stop just making deliveries of this product and make it a profit category for your own dealership. Take a break and clean up in a new way!

Buy Local and Benefit Our Community!

There are lots of studies on the cultural effects of community interaction, and how the mutual support of the individuals within a community affects the health and welfare of the entire community. That's all a bunch of big words to say something that's just plain common sense - buy locally, and use the profits locally, to keep the community thriving. The is.ThinkTank gang came up with the idea for this seminar, and we are certain you will want to attend! Learn from dealers who have taken big steps in their campaign to win the support of their local/neighborhood businesses. Find out who to contact in your community, and how to talk to them about the importance of keeping sales dollars in the local economy, not only for the livelihood of the business itself, but how the local business profits are used to support community projects that affect the local residents - charities, children's activities and teams, etc. You will leave this dealer-led seminar with some proven methods and ideas to use within your own community. Buy Local, and watch you and your community benefit!

Using is.group E-Services

Tim Horoho (eBusiness Support Specialist) will guide you through the latest and greatest methods and tips for using iStore and iReceivables. Learn what shortcuts you can use that will help you and your staff utilize the tools that make the RDC program easier. John Hauptstueck (Director of eBusiness) will hold an open discussion about data and the challenges it presents. Take home recommended data update and cleansing strategies to help your staff overcome the quarterly data obstacles. We will also touch on key current issues and communication of system solutions to our membership. Don't miss this informative class... Learn why we say "Data is Important".

DVI and the RDC - 6 Letters to Increased Profits

You won't want to miss this interactive session with your fellow dealers who have Changed Their Buying Habits based on their personal DVI visit. Hear what specifically they did to increase their direct buy and improve their bottom line! Take home first-hand examples of what steps to take within your own business so that you can realize the same benefits. Lower inventory dollars and more turns leading to a stronger cash position, more sku's bought direct leading to higher GP, easier ordering process and lower minimums for key lines - what's not to like about the RDC program?

DDMS Users Meeting

Plan to attend this very informative session with all your fellow DDMS users. DDMS training staff will address better ways to manage your direct buy purchasing and the data behind it. This key meeting will provide valuable information to help you streamline your current processes and help you integrate the RDCs into your daily routines.

Britannia Users Meeting

There is wealth to be found in your inventory.

The effective analysis of items that you should buy and stock can be a guessing game and time consuming pursuit. The Wealth Builder in the Britannia system allows dealers the luxury of quickly and easily identifying items that should or should not be stocked.

Wealth Builder will help the dealer immediately see the impact on the bottom line, the dollar investment required and the return on investment on the items that they sell. Furthermore, with a single key stroke, Wealth Builder will set up min/max stocking levels, reorder points, point the item to the preferred vendor, and set item stocking status.

At the Annual IS-Group gathering in Tampa, Fl in May, our Director of Product Management, Jeff Jones, will be presenting this very effective management tool at the Britannia Dealer Forum. The forum is open to both Britannia and non-Britannia dealers. This is your opportunity to find the wealth that is lurking in your inventory.

How to Effectively Sell Printers and Acquire Customers

Learn how to match current printing hardware to your customers' needs and then make sure they have the supplies and accessories necessary to complete the cycle - and you'll reap repeat sales and returning customers. Points of discussion in this session will include how to upgrade customers to newer printer models that can better accommodate their needs, how to communicate the value of in-house printing, key resources to help you sell such as web-based tools, and the latest is.group printer product offerings. Dealers that have successfully sold printers will share what they are doing to generate printer sales. Additionally, you will receive tips on getting your entire office products sales team interested in selling printers. You won't want to miss this class!

Do You Have A Plan? Disaster Recovery

A "Flood", "Hurricane", "Earthquake", "Fire" struck your business last night. It is the next morning and what's next, is your first question of the day. If you had a Disaster Recovery Plan you would know in advance what's next. If you fail to plan you plan to fail.

Visit with other dealers who have been through a disaster and learn what they did the next morning. There will be handouts for Disaster Recovery plans and places where you can get help to develop a plan.

Learn not only how you can develop a Disaster Recovery plan but also how you can sell to your customers the need for them to have a Disaster Recovery plan and products to help with this plan.

D2D - Dealer to Dealer - sessions will have is.group dealers participating in the presentations.