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Welcome to the Tex Visions Blog
A place for our resellers. Talk about what matters most to you. Share your insights. Present us with your challenges. Learn about our team. Connect with us.
Meet The Team: Michael Sacks, Warehouse Team Leader
The ongoing series "Meet the Team," where we profile the people who drive the success of Tex Visions, continues.
In today's "Meet The Team" post, we meet Michael Sacks, the warehouse team leader for Tex Visions. Michael has been with the Tex Visions team for several years, during which time his his responsibilities have included everything from inventory management to ensuring that products ship out on time to coordinating with the marketing team so that we can show you up-to-date views on new products as they arrive.
What's your favorite Tex Visions product?
I would probably say the lightbox or any of our Tex 15 or 25 hardware. I like being able to make them. The mechanical aspect really appeals to me.
What do you like to do when not at work?
When I'm not at work here, I'm at work elsewhere. I also like to hang out with friends. I enjoy my football — I'm a huge Eagles fan. I've been an Eagles fan since I was born. My parents were born in Philly, so I bleed green.
I also enjoy just kicking back and relaxing or going kayaking and fishing. I go up to my cabin a lot — I have a house up in the Poconos.
Are you a coffee or tea person?
Coffee, hands down. I'd probably say a latte on top of that. I usually have an espresso shot with my coffee. I've got espresso machines, I've taken latte art classes and stuff like that. Out of the appliances in my kitchen, I have a microwave and four coffee makers: Keurig, pot and two espresso machines.
I'm a monster coffee person. I need it every morning. If they made coffee a religion, sign me up.
Would you rather cook or go to a great restaurant?
I do enjoy cooking, but nothing beats a nice, made meal. I dabble a bit, but nothing beats being able to go a restaurant and be served. But sometimes there's the fact that you just want to make it for yourself.
Do you have or want a pet?
I currently don't have a pet.
SUV or convertible?
I'm more of a sedan guy, myself. I enjoy the speed of a sports car, but I like the comfort of a sedan. I'm not a truck guy. I'm not an SUV guy. I'm not going to go rock climbing. I'm not a Jeep guy. I like my sedans: I like being able to go fast and be comfortable.
Mountains or beach?
I like both. Nothing beats the beach: enough said, it's the beach. But there's nothing better than the quiet calm of the mountains. The beach, the boardwalk, the whole atmosphere is great, but having a house up in the Poconos is great. I love the bonfire, love the calm, the tranquility of it all.
If you could have lunch with anyone, who would you choose and what would you ask?
I'd probably have lunch with God. The questions would be endless. One question would definitely be "What's the point?" Then it would go on from there.
What's the last book/movie that you read/watched?
I watched "Super Troopers 2" last night. It was not as good as the first one, so I'm kind of disappointed. But I would probably say, for this purpose, "Boondock Saints," because I saw it on Netflix over the weekend. That is a classic beyond classics. That movie I could watch over and over and over again.
They don't make them like that or act like that nowadays. Just classics.
It's one of my three go-tos. I've got "Boondock Saints" that I'll watch over and over again, "Bad Boys II" that I'll watch over and over again and "The Italian Job."
Check back regularly to meet the rest of the team at Tex Visions as we explore the wonders of printing. Feel free to send us your questions so we can incorporate them into the next interview. What do you want to know?
Meet The Team: Suzette Barnes, Production Sewing Associate
The ongoing series "Meet the Team," where we profile the people who drive the success of Tex Visions, continues.
In today's "Meet The Team" post, we meet Suzette Barnes, one of the sewing associates at Tex Visions. She ensures that our customers' orders are properly put together and that the stitching and sewing on our products is consistent with the quality that our customers have come to expect from Tex Visions.
What's your favorite Tex Visions product?
The cubes. I just think they're cool. You can sit on them or do whatever — they're so versatile.
What do you like to do when not at work?
I sew. I enjoy quilting. I'm very involved with my daughter — I'm an assistant cheer coach. I also help out with the band whenever I can.
Are you a coffee or tea person?
Both. Hot coffee, cold tea.
Would you rather cook or go to a great restaurant?
At this point, I'd rather go to any restaurant, great or not!
Do you have or want a pet?
We have a cat that we adopted from a shelter. Her name is BK.
SUV or convertible?
That's a hard choice, but we want to do a lot of traveling, so the SUV would be the better choice.
Mountains or beach?
Gotta have both. We go to Colorado on vacation and that's fabulous, but I don't think I could live there full time because I would miss the beach.
If you could have lunch with anyone, who would you choose and what would you ask?
My dad. I really don't have anything that I'd like to ask. But he's been gone about 10 years now and it would just be great to see him again.
What's the last book/movie that you read/watched?
"The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo". It was a little slow at first, but now it's getting more interesting. Usually I'm a Stephen King fan, but I'm all caught up.
Check back regularly to meet the rest of the team at Tex Visions as we explore the wonders of printing. Feel free to send us your questions so we can incorporate them into the next interview. What do you want to know?
Meet The Team: Alexis Finkenbinder, National Accounts Manager
The ongoing series "Meet the Team," where we profile the people who drive the success of Tex Visions, continues.
In today's "Meet The Team" post, we meet Alexis Finkenbinder. Alexis is the national account manager for Tex Visions. She oversees many of the large reseller accounts that Tex Visions works with and acts as a point of contact when issues arise with orders.
What's your favorite Tex Visions product?
The foam displays. Super cool-looking and you can still sit on them because they're the hard foam.
What do you like to do when not at work?
I like to spend time with my husband, my two kids and my pets.
Are you a coffee or tea person?
Coffee. I need it to wake up. And I think it tastes better.
Would you rather cook or go to a great restaurant?
I'd rather cook with my husband — we make a ton of different things. We like to experiment.
Do you have or want a pet?
I have four pets: two cats, Jack and Starfire and two dogs, Sandy and Blaze.
SUV or convertible?
SUV. Technically, I love minivans and that's the closest thing to my minivan.
Mountains or beach?
Beach. I love the sound of the waves.
If you could have lunch with anyone, who would you choose and what would you ask?
Angela Lansbury. Most people don't know who she is. I'd probably just ask her about her whole life. She's very fascinating. She lived through the war [World War II] and her daughter was part of Charles Manson's crew, so I'd ask her about that. And "Murder, She Wrote" is one of my favorite shows.
What's the last book/movie that you read/watched?
Well, the last movie I watched was "Trolls", with my daughter. The last book I read — am reading — is "Velvet Angel."
Check back regularly to meet the rest of the team at Tex Visions as we explore the wonders of printing. Feel free to send us your questions so we can incorporate them into the next interview. What do you want to know?
Meet The Team: Jonathan Canankamp, Application Developer
The ongoing series "Meet the Team," where we profile the people who drive the success of Tex Visions, continues.
Today we meet Jonathan Canankamp, one of the software developers on the Tex Visions team. Jonathan has been with the Tex Visions team for over two years. His responsibilities include the development of internal and external services and features, such as the webstore and company intranet.
What's your favorite Tex Visions product?
Tablecloths. I love the different tablecloth options that we have available and the sheer number of things you can do with them.
What do you like to do when not at work?
Right now, we just bought a house. We were remodeling it — we just moved in, so it's fixing up all the little things that still need done. And then I'm getting married in a couple weeks, so I'm trying to finish that planning.
When I'm not doing all of that, video games — a little bit of everything. I used to do sports games, but I've kind of fallen off of them, so pretty much everything else.
Are you a coffee or tea person?
Iced tea. I'm not a big fan of hot drinks. I don't drink hot tea or coffee, but I'll drink iced tea.
Would you rather cook or go to a great restaurant?
Restaurant. I don't have to do the dishes. I don't mind cooking, but I hate doing the dishes.
Do you have or want a pet?
We don't have one. But since we just moved into our house, we can do whatever we want. So we're in the process of looking for a dog. I like larger dogs — I always wanted a golden retriever, but my fiancee's allergic to certain breeds of dogs, so we're just looking for pretty much anything.
SUV or convertible?
SUV. You get a little more utility out of an SUV than a convertible. More storage space. Four-wheel drive. I live out in the boonies a little bit, so when winter comes, four-wheel drive would be real nice.
Mountains or beach?
Beach. I've always liked the beach a little bit more. The ocean, sand and sun.
If you could have lunch with anyone, who would you choose and what would you ask?
People normally pick famous people, but I would say my Nan. She was a pretty big influence on my life, but she passed away when I was 12. So just being able to talk to her as an adult would be nice. Having an adult conversation with her instead of the normal kid/adult conversation would be nice.
What's the last book/movie that you read/watched?
I'm currently reading "Metro 2033". The last movie I watched would be "Avengers: Infinity War". I liked that movie. I got sad at the end but I'm interested to see where they go from there after killing off half the cast. I didn't care about a good many of them, but Spider-Man hurt.
Check back regularly to meet the rest of the team at Tex Visions as we explore the wonders of printing. Feel free to send us your questions so we can incorporate them into the next interview. What do you want to know?
How Good Design Drives A Company’s Marketing
When it comes to selling products as a reseller, you have double the competition compared to normal companies. Not only do you have to compete with other resellers, but you also have to compete with other companies who build the same the products in-house and send them straight to the end user.
So how do you compete?
First and foremost, go beyond your branding package. Many companies have resisted investing in their in-person advertising because they think that all they need is a recognizable logo and a branding package to go with it. In today's day and age, when people can order so easily online, you need more than just an online store and some nice advertising – you need the human touch of good design.
Here's the bottom line: there's one factor that is common across all design disciplines. No matter what kind of design you're doing – whether it's industrial design, graphic design or digital design, you should be driven by the fact that you're trying to make your customers' lives easier. This is one of the only ways you can deliver long-term value to your customers. People want to buy products that make their lives easier.
How does this relate to advertising as a reseller? The fact that you're trying to make your customers' lives easier should be a cornerstone of the way you advertise products to your customers. Remember that as a reseller, you're selling people products that they're going to use to sell people products in turn.
There are a couple places that "good design" comes into the mix here:
- Good website design. Your customers should be able to easily navigate your website to find the products they need to fit their advertising goals.
- Advertising and copy design. The copy and advertising on your product pages should clearly tell a customer what a product is, why they'd use it, and provide example use cases – best showcased in the form of product pictures.
- Bundle frequently-purchased products together. When it comes to offering useful products or services to your customers, one of the best things you can do is to see what customers are frequently buying together and offer it as a bundle package or simply nudge the customer in the direction of those items – something that companies like Amazon do quite well.
Having a good customer experience – whether it's at a trade show or on your website – is key to executing an omni-channel brand.
Collaboration Builds Brands
When it comes to building a product brand for your company to showcase, all of your departments – tech, marketing, design, product research, etc – need to collaborate. You should be looking at all of the different ways your users tell you about their experience – user stories, user personas, reviews, comments. When you share these items between teams, it helps you build a brand strategy that puts the customer first.
There are a couple of ways to foster that collaborative environment:
- Set a goal for your advertising. What do you want the ad to do? What metrics can you leverage to ensure that your advertising is meeting its goals? Ensure that everyone in all the departments is aware of these metrics and how they interlock.
- Know the members of your teams and use that knowledge to build cohesion. Different team members have had different experiences and have different skill sets and personalities because of it. Discuss likes and dislikes, preferred methods of communication and preferred ways to complete tasks. This way you can better communicate workflows to avoid duplication of tasks and ensure team members can redirect their efforts when needed.
- Create a can-do atmosphere. Foster creativity within your team(s). Let team members brainstorm and come to each other (and you) with questions. Encourage them to ask why (or why not) on a regular basis.
Don't Be Afraid To Innovate
Part of the reason I brought up building a can-do atmosphere in the previous section is that it creates a team that isn't afraid to ask questions and innovate. That's what you need to do when you're putting together your advertising – after all, that's what your competition is going to be doing. But how do you innovate? Start with the message, which we've covered in the previous sections. Once you have your message down pat, it's time to move on to the technology of the message – that is, how it's displayed and what it's displayed on.
As a reseller, you're uniquely positioned in this regard. You can try out new technologies before your customers even touch them, using them in your own advertising so that you have solid knowledge of the products you're selling, including the potential use cases. Knowing these use cases is a great step toward innovating – it lets you fill gaps in your lineup so that you edge out the competition while at the same time increasing your own market share.
Looking for some innovative technology to bring to your customers' attention? Check out some of our advertising innovations like our air tents or display foam seating arrangements.
