Proforma's nearly 600 independent franchise owners rely on the firm's Worldwide Support Center in Cleveland for high-class marketing materials and sales tools. To that end, the company launched ProSMART, its sales, marketing and relationship system, in February 2002.

ProSMART, which was designed by four in-house developers at Proforma, enables franchise owners to stay in touch with clients consistently and to learn valuable information about prospects. After users enter IDs and passwords, they see a screen that includes several sections. One is "Alerts," which notifies users about marketing campaigns available to all franchise owners. For example, Proforma provides a marketing piece each month that users can send to 25 prospects within a 30-mile radius of their locations. After users select which companies they want to receive the promotion, the pieces are printed by one of the firm's 250 preferred vendors (called "PLPs" for "preferred limited partners").

Also, Proforma purchases end users' contact information from Omaha, Neb.-based mailing list provider infoUSA and adds details about those firms in ProSMART using reports from Short Hills, N.J.-based Dun and Bradstreet. Owners can use the system to attain mailing lists based on specific criteria, including industry type, number of employees, annual sales, metropolitan area, job titles of decision-makers and even gender of those decision-makers. Owners pay 25 cents apiece for updated, detailed information about the prospects their searches yield.

Proforma updates information in ProSMART frequently. "We have 600 people who wanted to be treated and heard independently," says Todd Carpenter, the company's director of information services. "Trying to find common set of rules to implement and minimize exceptions is where you get payback with technology."

Despite ProSMART and the many other marketing tools Proforma owners can access, owners must take initiative to use them, says John H. Campbell, the company's chief business development officer. "People who get Craftsman power tools for Christmas are excited," he says. "But if they never take them out of the box, the tools are no better than the worst ones on the market-same goes for our tools."

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Proforma's main goal is called "1071"—1,000 franchise owners, 70 percent of business through Proforma's 250 preferred vendors (called "PLPs" for "preferred limited partners"), and $1 billion in owners' combined sales. "We cherish the people who put ink on paper, ink on golf balls and stitches on shirts," says Gregory P. Muzzillo, Proforma's founder and co-CEO. "Without our suppliers, we wouldn't be in business."

Here's a Q&A with a person intent on helping Proforma accomplish the second part of the "1071" goal-Terry Tibbits, the company's chief partner/vendor development officer:

Print Solutions: What's the main mission of Proforma's PLP program?

Terry Tibbits: Basically, it's to do a whole lot more business with fewer suppliers. Many independent owners join Proforma for our purchasing clout. But if someone's doing $50,000 in business with 40 vendors who offer similar things, that's not much clout. We have streamlined the number of vendors we rely on, using owners' recommendations. We have aligned ourselves with top printing and promotional products companies. That's where our preferred supplier program came from. To help our partnering vendors, we give owners a sourcing guide, an e-sourcing tool on our intranet, and we invite only them to exhibit and speak at our meetings and shows.

PS: Part of the company's "1071" goal is to generate 70 percent of business through PLPs. How close to that goal is the firm?

TT: Last year, approximately 60 percent of volume went through our preferred suppliers. That's a decent number, and it's ever-increasing.

PS: Because you want to drive business to select vendors, I imagine some manufacturers knocking on your door don't become PLPs.

TT: That's true, but we'll always listen to suggestions from our owners. We probably take about 20 calls a week from vendors who want to work with Proforma because they recognize the opportunity to get in front of nearly 600 owners, but we don't add many. Our dedication to PLPs is really telling them that once we feel comfortable and we know there's a fit based on quality, product mix and geography, we try to develop strong relationships.

PS: What makes a good PLP?

TT: More than anything else, it's customer service. We get good pricing because of our size, volume and respect in the industry. It's a huge benefit when we don't have to baby-sit orders. PLPs support what we do, and we do the same in return.

PS: Do owners call the Worldwide Support Center for details about PLPs, or for recommendations on which ones to use for particular jobs?

TT: We get more than 400 calls a week about PLPs. Our owners sell across the board, so people at the Support Center are dedicated to researching and keeping in contact with vendors. Owners know they can call here any time. If an owner has been selling promotional products to a customer, then that customer asks about envelopes, the owner has an immediate source to call.

PS: I noticed that more than 120 PLPs participated in the vendor showcase at Proforma's 2002 Convention and Family Reunion in Baltimore. Also, updated news about PLPs appears in Connections [Proforma's monthly internal newsletter] and Success Digest [its e-newsletter]. Is that recognition demanded by PLPs?

TT: It's deserved. More importantly, we stay on top of them to ensure quality. We like to share information with suppliers about how they're doing with owners. Twice a year, the company sends out PLP evaluations to owners and asks them rate vendors on about 20 criteria. We compile the information, share it with owners and have conversations with suppliers if expectations aren't met. On the other hand, our best PLPs receive lots of recognition at our annual convention.

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Alan Chippindale, Proforma's president, is responsible for attracting and developing franchise owners as well as helping them acquire distributorships. As he explains, Proforma mainly helps distributors accomplish five goals: grow their sales, grow their profits, expand control over their businesses, increase the value of their businesses and have more fun. In order to accomplish those goals, Chippindale says, "we must foster feedback through strong relationships among ourselves. If you don't attain and respond to feedback, people don't share and they wonder what's going on."

That's a primary reason Proforma has development coaches (DCs). The company's 40 DCs serve as liaisons between franchise owners and the company's Worldwide Support Center, and most DCs are owners themselves. DCs have a dual job: help current owners become more successful, and attract new ones to Proforma. "We believe strongly in working together," says Vera Muzzillo, the company's co-CEO. "The group is better served when all voices are speaking."

Proforma's DCs help fellow franchise owners by highlighting industry trends and growth markets, leading seminars about the company's philosophy and being accessible for one-on-one consultations. "They have credibility because they've been-there-done-that," says Philip J. Rigney, Proforma's chief business development officer. "They're all over the board with expertise and focus, and they're dedicated. Sometimes, their task is more about influence management than anything. They serve as tell-it-to-me-straight filters who can listen to owners and provide great feedback."

Tom Van Rens, owner of Milwaukee-based Proforma Promotional Group and a DC, joined Proforma in 1999. "Taking care of people in my group is No. 1 job to me," he says. We try to generate new people to come in, plus we give seminars and one-on-one meetings to help people understand the company's concept. This is especially important for new franchise owners because we don't want people to feel forgotten about."

Keith Beck, president of Proforma Pacific Systems in Pleasanton, Calif., says he enjoys being a DC because he can help other people become successful. At the beginning of 2002, he was responsible for helping 19 owners. In November 2002, he was responsible for helping 12 additional ones. "When I talk to an owner, I speak from a franchise owner's standpoint," he says. "They can ask me anything they want."

In 2001, Carl and Kim Watson sold their business, Grand Prairie, Texas-based Proforma Watsonrise, to become full-time DCs. "As distributors, we were matchmakers," Carl Watson says. "You find and understand clients' needs and match them with folks who make certain products. That matchmaking aspect still applies to coaching. We want to know about owners' families, understand their dreams and help them meet their goals. To do that, we must understand the tools Proforma provides. If you're using your shoe to drive a nail and I introduce you to the hammer, that's a great benefit. That's how we see our roles as DCs."

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