ASI® Launches ASI Mobile for Wireless Devices

Save Time Finding and Contacting Suppliers While On-the-Go

TREVOSE, PA – May 6, 2008 – Advertising Specialty Institute®, the largest media and marketing organization serving the advertising specialty industry, announced today that it launched ASI Mobile to provide supplier data over wireless devices.

ASI Mobile allows all distributor users of ESP Online with a PDA or the latest Web-enabled phone to search for suppliers, find supplier contact information, view supplier ratings, place a call to a supplier, email a supplier directly, and visit a supplier’s Website.

The new program saves distributors time on a sales call or while traveling, by providing a quick and convenient way to contact suppliers, see their ASI Supplier Rating and do business.

ASI is the first organization in the advertising specialty industry to provide mobile access to supplier information,” said Timothy M. Andrews, president and chief executive officer of ASI.  “It’s very powerful technology.  Imagine that you’re a distributor attending a trade show and a client calls to re-order shirts.  You can use a mobile device to look up the supplier who provided the shirts, find the phone number, click the link to place a call and place the order.”

“In another scenario, consider you’re a distributor in a new territory,” Andrews said.  “You’re on a sales call with a prospect who becomes interested in buying a cap.  You search for a supplier in the area, check for the best supplier star rating, and then call the company from your phone to get more product information and possibly close a deal on-the-spot.”

In addition to supplier contact information, users can also view supplier specials on banner ads that appear on the log-in screen.  When the ad is clicked, the distributor is taken directly to the supplier’s exclusive mobile Website to see the specials.

These banner ads also provide suppliers with the opportunity to target advertising to thousands of traveling sales representatives and these distributors now have an easier way to get in contact with them, from nearly anywhere in North America.    

Future upgrades to ASI Mobile will feature the ability to search suppliers’ products in ESP Online and the technology will also be available for LogoMall Websites.

To learn more about ASI Mobile, contact ASI Customer Service, at 1-800-546-1350 or at [email protected].     

About ASI
Advertising Specialty Institute is the largest media and marketing organization serving the advertising specialty industry, with a membership of over 25,000 distributor firms (sellers) and supplier firms (manufacturers) of advertising specialties.  Supplier firms use ASI print and electronic resources to market products to over 21,000 ASI distributor firms.  Distributor firms use ASI print and electronic resources, which contain nearly every product in the industry from more than 3,500 reputable suppliers, to locate supplier firms and to market services to buyers.  ASI provides catalogs, information directories, newsletters, magazines, websites and databases, and offers e-commerce, marketing and selling tools.  Visit www.asicentral.com.