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ASI Enhances ESP+ To Support Distributor Profitability Amid Tariff Challenges

TREVOSE, PA – May 1, 2025

The Advertising Specialty Institute® (ASI), the foremost global authority in the $26.6 billion promotional products industry, announces major enhancements to its ESP+ technology platform. The upgrades help distributors improve profit margins by offering full credit card fee visibility and verified “Made in USA” products – two critical tools amid rising tariffs and cost pressures for the industry.

Responding to distributor feedback about undisclosed credit card costs, ASI certified detailed fee disclosures from over 1,000 suppliers, with hundreds more being certified each day. At the same time, ASI is delivering real-time updates to product pricing and tariff information. Most pricing changes appear on ESP+ and ESP Web within 15-30 minutes.

“With this level of transparency, distributors can make more informed financial decisions,” said Timothy M. Andrews, ASI president and chief executive officer. “ASI’s proactive approach addresses a significant pain point for distributors who often discover credit card fees only after invoices are issued. Our solution helps eliminate uncertainty.”

In response to new tariffs of 145% on Chinese imports – impacting a market where more than 90% of promo products hard goods originate overseas – ASI has strengthened verification of “Made in the USA” classifications in ESP+. Suppliers must now specifically confirm that each product marked as U.S.-sourced meets new stricter criteria to appear with that designation in ESP+.

Reflecting distributor interest, keyword searches for “Made in the USA” in ESP+ are already up about 12% in Q1 2025 compared with Q1 2024. “Distributors can use ESP+ to filter for verified ‘Made in USA’ products, allowing them to mitigate tariff-related risks, control costs and offer more reliable sourcing options to clients,” Andrews said.

Key ESP+ Enhancements Supporting Distributors:

Credit card fee transparency

  • Out of 1,077 suppliers reporting credit card fee information in ESP+ to date, 533 stated they don’t charge fees, while 544 provided detailed fee disclosures. To give distributors the latest product data, ASI’s data team is in constant communication with nearly 3,000 ASI suppliers, pushing for timely updates and more detailed data.
  • Of the Counselor Top 40 suppliers, 37 shared credit card policies – including Hit Promotional Products (asi/61125), Koozie Group (asi/40480) and PCNA (asi/66887) – with 21 confirming they don’t charge credit card fees.

Instant supplier access

  • ESP+ provides direct URL links to over 650,000 products on the websites of 1,420 suppliers, enabling distributors to instantly verify pricing, shipping and specifications without delays or extra searches.

Verified “Made in the USA” filtering

  • Distributors using ESP+ can:
    • Identify fully U.S.-manufactured products
    • Find options less vulnerable to tariff fluctuations
    • Offer clients tariff-resistant alternatives

ASI’s May 8 tariffs webinar

  • Register now for ASI’s “Tariff Impacts & U.S.-Made Momentum” webinar, Thursday, May 8, at 2 p.m. ET, hosted by Tim Andrews. Learn firsthand how industry leaders are navigating tariffs and boosting U.S.-made product offerings. The webinar will feature Mary Dobsch, president of supplier The Chest (asi/44830); Lance Stier, CEO of Counselor Top 40 supplier NC Custom (asi/44900); Ann Vidro, co-owner & CFO of MI-based distributor Creative Studio Promotions (asi/170976); and Mitch Cahn, founder and president of supplier Unionwear (asi/73775).

ESP+ is the industry standard for product discovery, order management and supplier connection in the promotional products sector. More than just a search tool, ESP+ is a fully integrated technology platform that streamlines operations, reduces manual effort and enhances distributor-supplier collaboration.

About ASI
The Advertising Specialty Institute (ASI®, asicentral.com) serves a network of 25,000 suppliers, distributors and decorators in the $26.6 billion promotional products industry. The company’s flagship product, the technology platform ESP®, manages the industry’s entire supply and marketing chain. ASI also produces award-winning digital and print content, live events and educational programs that enable companies in 48 countries to be more efficient, productive and profitable. The ASI media and research operation provides the most authoritative business content in the industry, and the ASI Certification Program features 200+ live and online education courses for industry professionals. The company, family-owned since 1962, is proud to have been consistently ranked among the “Best Places to Work” in Philadelphia and Bucks County, PA.