FREE UPIC CREDIT REPORT PUTS DISTRIBUTORS IN DRIVER’S SEAT

PPAI Launches Webinar Series to Educate Distributors on the Power of Credit

Irving, Texas, (October 19, 2006) Promotional Products Association International (PPAI) kicked-off a monthly webinar series to announce its free credit report program and help industry distributors proactively manage and grow their business with UPIC Credit Services.

In addition to learning the importance of proactively managing their credit and how creditors use their credit scores to determine risk and establish credit terms, distributors attending the September webinar learned:

• How the free UPIC identifier and free UPIC credit report can easily replace paid subscription-based identifiers and credit services 
• How credit--savvy distributors are using their free UPIC credit report to “push” suppliers to look beyond traditional industry credit sources thereby saving money for both distributors and suppliers
• Simple steps to improve their credit score to get better terms from industry suppliers and other business vendors

 Distributors also learned how they can get predictive credit information on more than 18 million U.S. businesses  with Smart Credit, which successfully results in getting paid faster, reducing bad debt and increasing staff productivity.

Mark Salter, CAE, director of marketing at Forius and presenter of the webinar explained how important it is for distributors to proactively manage their credit. Salter noted, “All too frequently, credit reporting— especially in the promotional products industry—is supplier driven and focused only on the negative interactions between distributors and suppliers. Through PPAI supported services like the free UPIC Credit XChange and free UPIC Credit Profile, distributors can benefit from the information suppliers report and how their business credit reports are delivered to suppliers.” Salter also explained that UPIC Credit XChange is a free service allowing suppliers to report both positive and negative business transactions and UPIC Credit Profile is available at no cost to all PPAI member distributors and industry suppliers. “Flipping the traditional model and putting credit data in the hands of suppliers and distributors is a win-win for both parties,” said Salter.          

PPAI is urging all distributors to take advantage of this educational opportunity and participate in an upcoming webinar. Webinars are currently scheduled on the following dates: October 31, 2006 and November 14, 2006, both at 1 pm CST. For more information about webinars please call 888-884-UPIC (8742) or e-email upic@ppa.org.

UPIC Credit Services is a comprehensive suite of business tools designed specifically to help promotional products professionals grow their businesses. UPIC Credit Services was created jointly by PPAI and Forius Business Credit Resources to supply a range of business services -- from credit reports and reporting tools to one-on-one access with experienced, industry focused credit consultants.