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VIEWPOINT
Exploring the new frontier of social media I
BY MARY JO MARTIN Editorial director
t’s no secret that I’m not exactly adept at mastering new technology. In fact, it downright scares me. I remain convinced that one wrong keystroke and I’m
going to wipe out the entire contents of my laptop. But that said, I also realize how valuable it is and that
there is a seemlingless endless list of benefits from all of these new innovations in technology. It’s almost mind-boggling to think of the painstaking way that mag- azines and newspapers were published when I first got
into journalism — and how publishing continues to evolve and change. From a layout and production standpoint, our issues are now put together totally electron- ically and very efficiently, saving a tremendous amount of time and resources. And from a value-add perspective, in addition to our presence on Twitter, The Wholesaler’s website now offers a fantastic new digital edition that is easy to nav- igate, along with daily news updates, weekly video blogs from yours truly, and “On the Road” videos from all my industry-related travels. I’m not going to fib — there was a bit of a learning curve and fear factor in-
volved with branching out into video. Anytime you try something new, it takes a bit of getting used to. The best advice I received was from a dear friend in TV broadcasting who told me to just be myself and not fret about being perfect. Easier said than done, but once I got past my jitters, it became a lot of fun. It’s really opened up a whole new way to communicate with and personalize our relationship with readers and advertisers. Technology offerings for distribution firms have undergone incredible changes
as well. And certainly, this can bring challenges within an organization — not only fromthe logistical standpoint, but with employee buy-in. But the efficiencies, accuracy and greater profitability distributors realize far outweigh the initial challenges. I had the pleasure of attending the Activant Summit last month, which drew
nearly 2,000 of their software users to the Gaylord Palms in Orlando. One of the highlights during Summit was the kick-off presentation by Kevin Roach, executive vice president and general manager of Activant’s Wholesale Distribution division. In addition to introducing some of its newest rollouts — DynaChange™ Rules is profiled on page 18, and we’ll be be sharing more information about other new offerings in future issues of The Wholesaler— Roach outlined the collaborative potential that social media presents alongside ERP systems. Following are some excerpts from Roach’s presentation:
Advertisers Index
Activant.........................................22
www.activant.com Anderson Metals.............................6
www.andersonmetals.com
A.Y. McDonald.............................61
www.aymcdonald.com
Bavco............................................48
www.bavco.com
Bootz.............................................44
www.bootz.com Bradford White .............................57
www.bradfordwhite.com Bradley..........................................10
www.bradleycorp.com
Briggs............................................51
www.briggsindustries.com C&C Industries.............................31
www.candcvalve.com CBM Sales....................................49
www.cbmsales.com CD Sales .......................................55
www.centraldistributionsales.com Clearwater.....................................30
www.scaleblaster.com Contrac..........................................69
www.contrac.ca
Core Pipe ......................................21
www.corepipe.com DDI System ..................................29
www.ddisys.com Dormont........................................34
www.dormont.com
ESCO............................................26
www.escousa.net Eternal Hybrid Water Heater ........63
www.eternalwaterheater.com
Forgings, Flanges & Fittings .......40
www.onestoppvf.com Franklin Electric ...........................53
www.franklin-electric.com/lg General Pipe Cleaners, a div. of General Wire Spring............11, 68
www.drainbrain.com Global Stainless ............................41
www.onestoppvf.com
Halsey Taylor................................20
www.halseytaylor.com HeatingHelp.com..........................60
www.heatinghelp.com InSinkErator............................18, 19
www.insinkerator.com
JMF...............................................14
www.jmfcompany.com
•THE WHOLESALER® —APRIL 2011
“If there is anything we should have learned by now, it’s that we’re much better
looking back at transformations than realizing we’re in one. We’re all wrestling with how this suite of social media will transform business operations. Technology is re-shaping the way we work, tools we use, speed of transactions and simplicity. “Our access to information makes us more productive, connected and informed
than any other generation in history. It empowers us. Transactions are easier, faster and more reliable. It has also given us added context to make smarter decisions. “Enterprise IT hasn’t fully embraced social media. Only 32% of B2B firms en-
gage in social media on a daily basis, while 56% of B2C firms do. We think that’s all going to change. Much of the problem is that firms don’t understand yet how to monetize these technologies in their current form. “The term social media really doesn’t do justice to what we’re talking about.
The last tech revolution was all about digitizing paperwork. This generation will transform how we communicate, collaborate and coordinate. It will be about how, when and why we engage, helping maximize the way we deal with customers on a daily basis. “Many are still skeptical about social media and I get it. But you should be thinking about where this train is headed and its ample possibilities. Leverage it to deliver more accuracy, speed, choices, flexibility and support. And more en- gagements. If we only focus on transactional ease, etc., we’ll miss an important point. We need to be engaged with our associates, customers and suppliers. “Envision new possibilities. Having virtual conversations throughout the cus-
tomer process can be meaningful. Knowledge is power and it’s often limited to a select few gatekeepers. The process of getting a job done involves a series of com- munications and questions. “If we can agree on anything, it’s that we really don’t know how these tech- nologies are going to manifest themselves, but the possibilities are huge. At Acti- vant, we’ll be looking at what we can do to evolve our current platforms to a broader series of engagement.” In closing, we are just beginning to see the value of social media. We’ll be cov-
ering this topic much more in future issues of The Wholesaler. If your company has found a way to leverage social media/networking opportunities, please contact me. I’d love to learn more about what you are doing. In the meantime, I encourage you to visit
www.thewholesaler.com regularly to
see what is new. And please consider following The Wholesaler on Twitter, or send- ing me a Facebook friend request to follow my adventures as I represent The Whole- saler at events around the country. Let’s navigate this new frontier together! n Mary Jo Martin is editorial director of The Wholesaler. she can be reached at 972/315-9803 or
editor@thewholesaler.com.
Legend Valve ..................................9
www.legendvalve.com Liberty Pumps...............................71
www.libertypumps.com Matco-Norca...................................3
www.matco-norca.com
Navien.....................................23, 67
www.navienamerica.com Neoperl .........................................58
www.neoperl.com
Noritz ............................................35
www.noritz.com
Pentair...........................................43
www.pentair.com
Rheem...........................................15
www.rheem.com Rothenberger.................................37
www.pipetoolsatwork.com
Saniflo...........................................42
www.saniflo.com Service Metal Products.................33
www.servicemetal.net Smith Cooper..................................5
www.smithcooper.com Speedclean ....................................70
www.speedclean.com Stiebel Eltron ................................12
www.stiebel-eltron-usa.com
T & S Brass...................................73
www.tsbrass.com
Ta Chen.........................................84
www.tachen.com
Tapco.................................46, 47, 83
www.tapcogenuinepartscenter.com The Distribution Point ....................2
www.thedistributionpoint.com
Titan Flow Control........................36
www.titanfci.com United Pipe & Steel ......................13
www.united-pipe.com
Val-Fit ...........................................45
www.valfit.com
Victaulic..................................16, 17
www.victaulic.com
W.O.I.............................................27
www.woihouston.com
Walworth.......................................65
www.twcousa.com
Warren Alloy...................................7
www.warrenalloy.com
Weldbend ................................24, 25
www.weldbend.com
YOW.............................................39
www.yourotherwarehouse.com
Zoeller...........................................59
www.zoeller.com
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