How many times a day do you go online for quick information? Most of us use our computers throughout the day to check financial markets, order merchandise, look at our competitors' web sites and search for critical business data. The internet is a terrifically efficient way to gather information.There's even a trend to put books online. I suppose e-novels are an efficient way to access the printed word. But it certainly isn't the only way.
Can anything really compare to the experience of reading a good book? The good solid weight of a hardbound book, the crisp black letters on clean paper, the sound of the binding cracking as you open a new book for the first time, the turning of a page to see what will happen next--you can't get those experiences from a computer. The information may be the same, but the depth of the experience is vastly different.
I recently devoted some space in this column to the great benefits industry professionals can access at DMIA's award-winning web site, www.DMIA.org (March issue, p. 10). That site and www.printsolutionsmag
.com include a wealth of fantastic information we can gather efficiently.
If the association's online content is akin to a good e-book, its hardbound equivalent is a good DMIA meeting. In April, 185 DMIA members congregated at the Hyatt Regency Tamaya Resort & Spa in Santa Ana Pueblo, N.M. We gathered information directly from each other instead of a computer. As always, DMIA's Spring Management Conference was a magnificent experience. During this year's meeting, the association introduced "Peer-to-Peer Perspectives" about topics such as technology and compensation. The presentations and discussions that followed them were informative and lively. I left those meetings with ideas to implement at my business, and so did many others.
An annual highlight of the Spring Management Conference is the opportunity to steer DMIA's course by introducing ideas at committee meetings. This year was no exception--the association's Board of Directors received insightful feedback from the event's five committees: Publications and the Members-Only Online Solution Center, Trade Shows, the Source Hotline, Education and Suppliers (a new committee).
Many people say the best business discussions they have at DMIA meetings are the ones conducted during breaks and receptions. As I looked around the coffee-break area on the second day of the conference, I saw groups of members engaged in wonderfully animated conversations. The mood was upbeat, and the spirit of sharing information was evident.
Continuing with my book analogy, can anything really compare to hearing new ideas from the best and brightest people in our industry? Watching a presentation and realizing its content is perfect for your business, turning a corner and running into an old friend, sharing a laugh with a new acquaintance--you can't get those experiences from a computer, either.
DMIA members should keep using www.DMIA.org and www.printsolutionsmag.com to access important information, but they shouldn't miss the rich experience of DMIA meetings. Our next big congregation is the 2003 Print Solutions Conference & Expo, to be held Oct. 21-24 in Las Vegas. I hope to see you there.
For my part, I'll continue to log on to the internet many times a day. But at the end of the day, I'll save some time to curl up with a good book.
Gail O'Roke, CDC, is CEO of distributorship Independent Business Group, based in Hayward, Calif., and president of DMIA.
