Attacking Quotes Is Simple Business Sensibility

By Carl Gerhardt

I have always been amazed at how poorly many, if not most, firms handle requests for quotes (RFQs). Over the years I have done a lot of competitive shopping over the phone. Typically if I called 10 companies and asked for a quick simple quote on a print job, only about two would even ask for my name and phone number. The ones that did get my name and number would rarely attempt to follow up. Today with more RFQs coming online, following up on these opportunities is equally, if not more, important than phone inquiries. Still, the same principle of follow-up applies.

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Business Management - Marketing/Sales

Carl Gerhardt Author's page Carl Gerhardt is the chairman of Alliance Franchise Brands LLC, the parent company of Allegra Network LLC and Sign & Graphics Operations LCC, and a world leader in marketing, visual and graphics communications, linking more than 600 locations in the United States, Canada and United Kingdom. The company’s Marketing & Print Division, headquartered in Plymouth, MI, is comprised of Allegra, American Speedy Printing, Insty-Prints, Speedy Printing and Zippy Print brands of marketing, printing, mailing and Web services providers. Its Sign & Graphics Division, headquartered in Columbia, MD, is comprised of Image360, Signs By Tomorrow and Signs Now brands of sign and graphics communications providers.

Carl and his wife, Judy, owned and operated their own successful Allegra franchise for nearly 20 years before selling the $2.3 million operation in 2003. He is a PrintImage International/NAQP Honorary Lifetime Member and was inducted into NAPL’s prestigious Soderstrom Society in 2010 in recognition of his contribution to the industry.