Day 1: Registration is open from 12 - 5 p.m., which is when you'll meet your new best friends for the next three days: the ASI staff! Collect your binder of printed supplier profiles and meeting schedule, ask questions and learn any last-minute onsite information you'll need to know. Later in the evening, join us at the Welcome Reception for heavy appetizers and drinks to kick off what will prove to be the most productive three days for your business.
Days 2 & 3: Begin your day with breakfast and light conversation, then it's time to start your private meetings (with scheduled breaks) until we pause for lunch. Head off to your afternoon meetings fueled and rejuvenated, then enjoy a few hours of R&R before we meet back up for dinner, either onsite in a lovely setting or at a popular local restaurant.
Day 4: Attend breakfast before your final round of 20-minute meetings for some last-minute networking. The last meeting concludes later in the morning, which allows time to pack and pick up your reimbursement check prior to hotel check out.
We know how precious your time is and that every minute of your day counts. That's why we've optimized the schedule to be as productive as possible. Through extensive research, we found that 20 minutes is the sweet spot for a private meeting and no more than 40 meetings was the right number, after first factoring in essential networking events and R&R time. We landed on a 3.5-day schedule that does it all!
After all, where else could you meet privately with this many of the industry's best suppliers, all in one beautiful location, over less than 4 days and at no cost to you? Head home with lucrative partnerships in place, in addition to getting business done.
Absolutely! We recognize that while it's great to have focused meetings with suppliers onsite, you need to keep your business moving back home. We've built in three 20-minute breaks throughout the day so you can have some touchpoints with co-workers and share new products with clients.
Distributor attendees get one-on-one supplier consultations tailored to your business and priorities, providing a powerful opportunity to build personal relationships with top-tier companies. We take care of every detail, right down to shipping your personalized supplier samples back to your office for free.
These exclusive events are invite-only. Qualifying ASI members are treated to an all-expenses-paid experience with concierge-level service at four- or five-star suite hotels. Attendees tell us hosted-buyer events are priceless - and well worth the investment in time.
Meetings are all about YOU! Suppliers come prepared to address YOUR exact needs to create a personalized working relationship that benefits both parties for years to come.
Here's a glimpse at what can be accomplished during these meetings:
These private, 20-minute meetings are scheduled over two and half days with up to 40 supplier companies. Suppliers come prepared to discuss your specific business needs and current projects, ready to collaborate with you on how best to work together. Customized samples are often provided, which we'll ship back to your office hassle-free. Regular breaks are scheduled throughout the day to allow you to return calls, check your email or grab a snack and beverage at our hospitality suites.
Come for the samples and inspiration – stay for the long-term contacts you'll make and the new business these meetings will drive!
We hold four fASIlitate events each year, with each of these intimate events boasting a schedule of private meetings and robust networking that encourages strong relationship building between all 40 suppliers and distributors in attendance. This highly focused and concentrated time spent together fosters strategic and profitable partnerships that last for years.
Our annual ConneX event has a similar format but hosts up to 80 suppliers, allowing access to a larger pool of products and resources. A schedule of 38 private, 20-minute meetings will be generated for each distributor attendee with suppliers that have been matched as solutions to their specific business needs through ASI's proprietary matchmaking platform. The remainder of the schedule is open for more individualized networking, allowing attendees to choose which additional suppliers they'd like to meet.
Additionally, each event has a different barrier to entry. fASIlitate is for distributors with $1 million in annual sales (no print); ConneX requires $500K in annual sales.
The first step is to become an ASI distributor member if you're not already. We require attendees to have at least one year of industry experience.
Here's the prequalification form – it takes less than 3 minutes to complete. Your fASIlitate Contact Concierge will follow up to confirm your status and complete onboarding materials.
As a reminder, fASIlitate events are for distributors with $1M in annual sales (no print); ConneX requires $500k in annual sales.
You'll receive a binder upon arrival that includes your meeting schedule and logistics. Each supplier has prepared a presentation specially for you – so we ask that you attend every meeting assigned. There's also plenty of time to relax and have fun during our social gatherings! These events are held in beautiful locations, and we want you to experience your surroundings while you're in town.
Yes, you're welcome to bring along a co-traveler. However, keep in mind that the supplier meetings, meals, networking events and airfare reimbursements are only for the qualified distributor attendees. We encourage you to extend your stay before or after the event to enjoy the city with your co-traveler. We contract discounted hotel rates three days pre/post-event to allow for extended trips and to make the most of your time. Contact us for more information.
These meetings require extensive and careful planning to ensure the best possible experience for all attendees. Cancellations create a scheduling challenge for us, so we ask that any cancellation notice is accompanied by an adequate replacement for the confirmed attendee from the same company.
We understand that emergencies may arise, but if this requirement cannot be met within two weeks of the event, a cancellation fee will be enforced.
To serve the widest variety of distributors, attendance is limited to once every 18 months.
ASI covers your travel (up to $500 flight reimbursement/$100 in mileage if driving), transit to and from the airport, hotel and meals! We take care of everything, including setting up your transfers.
If your flight is outside the allotted $500 amount, please contact fasitravel@asicentral.com for assistance.
A check made out to you will be available for pickup after your final meeting on the last day of the event. If you do not receive your travel reimbursement onsite, you can expect it within 10-12 business days.
Business casual (including offsite meals).
"The event has been phenomenal! The interactions, the engagement and the one-on-one time has been a major benefit. My son attended the Denver event and told me I had to go. I've met some new suppliers and reconnected with some old ones, I'm so glad I came."
asi/241126
"My experience at fASIlitate has been phenomenal! Everything from learning tricks from my fellow distributors on how to make the best out of it to speaking with our friends at ASI about who to connect with to make the experience a little better and to network a little more. Most of all, the suppliers that you get to meet with. You get one-on-one face time with people who can help bail you out of a situation and can give inside product knowledge that you may not get from a spec sheet. But, at the end of the day, you go home with an immense amount of follow up and virtuals and more things in your arsenal to make you a better salesperson."
asi/132690
"Overall, as a 42-year veteran in the ad specialty to promo products industry, I am always astounded by how much there always is to learn. The process at fASIlitate is the best arena for true learning and partnering with the suppliers by distributors, and vice versa. I appreciate the gracious investment of the suppliers and you at ASI for organizing this kind of teaching/learning/bonding, experience and do not take it lightly."
asi/9109171
"This is our third year attending fASIlitate meetings. At the beginning of the event, probably 10% of attendees knew of Links Unlimited. By the end, 90% left knowing exactly who we were and how we could help them, which is fantastic. Meeting with new prospects and networking with them at the dinners and receptions has proven to be productive, as is evident in the $300,000 customer we met two years ago at a fASIlitate event. We attribute a lot of our success to fASIlitate."
asi/67617
"I highly recommend fASIlitate. The ROI that comes from the personal one-on-one meetings is second to none. You just can't get this level of engagement at a trade show. ASI is a class act and the format is phenomenal – the fantastic locations, the quality of distributors that attend, the accommodations and restaurants and the professionalism – all wrapped up into three days of fun and excitement!"
asi/75350
