ASHLEY FURNITURE UPDATE FOR Volume 2, Issue 9

DELAWARE, NEW JERSEY &

PENNSYLVANIA A U G US T 20 10

Facebook for Business

At this point, you have heard of social
media and inbound marketing. Maybe you
experimented with Twitter and checked out
your kids’ Facebook profiles, and you can
see the value for college students who
want to make sure they’ re all at the same
bar on Saturday night. But why does any of
this matter to you or your business?
Social media and inbound marketing are
DELAWARE, NEW JERSEY & PENNSYLVANIA
ers –even you B2B folks. Facebook is a tool
for connecting people with those around
them. As with any social media tool, market-
ers have an opportunity to use Facebook to
expand their online footprint and engage
with customers directly.
Why You Should Care:
At the time of this writing, Facebook has over
Think your customers aren’ t on Facebook?
There are tens of thousands of regional,
work‐ related, collegiate, and high school
networks. More than two thirds of Facebook
users are outside of college and the fastest
growing demographic is those 35 years and
older. While Facebook started off as a com-
munity for college students, it has expanded
far beyond that and you will be hard‐ pressed

increasingly important assets for busi- 200 million active users and that number to find a demographic not yet represented
nesses to get found by and engage with continues to grow steadily. It is the third among Facebook’ s 200 million users.
potential buyers on the web. Think about most trafficked website in the world (behind
Ashley Update

To download the complete e-booklet that

the way you find information about prod-
ucts and services –are you watching TV
ads? Going through your junk mail? Or are
you going to a search engine or a friend?
People have gotten better and better at
ignoring marketing messages with DVRs,
caller ID, and spam filters, and instead
goes to Google and social networks for
answers to their questions.
The question for you is: will you be there
to answer it.
Facebook is not an evil time‐ waster, a
community just for college students, or
something scary or irrelevant for market-
Google and Yahoo) and the most trafficked explains the value and process of establish-
social media site in the world. As early as ing your own Facebook Page, visit our web-
July 2007, Facebook started calling itself one site at www.tristatefurn.imagineretailer.com
of the top people/social search engines on
the web, though some disagree.
Business Goals for Using Facebook:
 Get found by people who are searching for your products or services
 Connect and engage with current and potential customers
 Create a community around your business
 Promote other content you create, including webinars, blog articles, or other
resources

Featured Products
B545 –Mannus

NEW THIS FALL: With the warmth and beauty of a relaxing cottage getaway, the "Mannus" bedroom
collection uses a warm medium brown finish flowing over planked panel details to perfectly capture
the inviting feel of country styled furniture. This bedroom furniture, beautifully adorned with aged
bronze colored metal accents, is sure to magically transform to atmosphere of any bedroom decor.

55300 Barcelona –Antique

With an elegant flowing design featuring rich upholstery and exquisite detailing, the
"Barcelona-Antique" upholstery collection captures the true beauty of grand traditional styled
furniture. With the rich finished elegantly detailed showood adorning this furniture, the
"Barcelona-Antique" upholstery collection is sure to enhance the beauty of any living area.

68602 Motivation — Cappuccino

Taking comfort to the next level, The "Motivation-Cappuccino" upholstery collection features the softest
corduroy fabric wrapped snuggly around thick padded arms and beautifully formed chaise seating to take
the idea of contemporary styling and create relaxing furniture that you can really sink into. The series is
available in three colors and offers an option for Power Motion.
Page 2 ASHLEY UPDATE

Marketing Your Business With Promotional Products

Why You Should Use Promotional Products In Your Marketing Campaigns?
The short answer is “
Human Nature.”As a human being we all love getting gifts. Giving a person some-
thing free is a most effective way to attract that person’
s attention. We all use this method. For example,
parents promise gifts to their kids to get them to focus on their studies. In the same way giving free gifts, or
promotional products, to your target market is a great way to attract attention and to develop relationships.
Marketing Your Business with Promotional Products:
Is It Worth Spending Money On Promotional Products?
Can promotional products increase your customer base? Will you be able to achieve a positive return on investment by giving away promotional products?

YES, you will. According to a study conducted by Georgia Southern University in 2005, giving promotional products enhances the overall image of a business. Product recipi-
ents are more likely to recommend the giving business to others. Almost 72 percent of people receiving promotional products at trade shows remember the companies for
more than 12 months. More than 76 percent have a positive attitude toward the giving company.
How To Select Effective Promotional Products for Your Campaigns
What follows next are four tips that will help you select the most effective promotional products for your marketing campaigns.

Usability - How useful are your products for your target market? Will the recipients of your products use them? If the answer to
these questions is “
No”then you are not using the right promotional products.

Promotional products should always be items that your market members use frequently. Then your brand name always remains in front of their eyes. For example, if your
target market is Information Technology professionals, you can give custom flash drives or laptop bags as promotional products.

Relevancy - How relevant are your promotional products? Promotional products always reflect the image of your brand and company. Therefore they should be as rele-
vant to your business as possible. For example, if you run a kitchen appliance business, it won’
t work to give potential customers custom flash drives. But giving them logo
-imprinted knives will work because knives are relevant to your business.

Reliability - Is your promotional product reliable? Have you heard the saying “
First impressions are lasting impressions”
? The opinion of your customers depend on the
quality of your promotional products. Giving cheap promotional products won’
t help you to promote your brand. If the recipients are unable to use your promotional prod-
ucts or throw them away due to poor quality, they want remember your business.

Visibility - I kept this point for last because your goal is to increase the visibility of your
brand. And to increase brand visibility, you need promotional products with a long visibility
period. Avoid giving promotional items which are edible, seasonal, or normally kept in draw-
ers because they have shortest visibility period. Prefer promotional products that will be
used throughout the year and stay out of drawers and cupboards. You want your products to
get maximum exposure.

Contact your Marketing Specialist today

for more information and ideas!
VOLUME 2, ISSUE 9 Page 3

2010 Home Office Purchasing Plans

By Dana French / Furniture Today

$4.8 Billion - That’

s the dollar amount U.S. consumers spent on home
office furniture last year. Taken together, the product categories of
desks and other home office accounted 7% of the total furniture and
bedding market in 2009. Other home furnisher products include desk
chairs, bookcases, hutches, filing cabinets and credenzas.

Current buyers plan to purchase a desk and desk chair this year, the
centerpiece of the home office, more that any other office products.
According to the more than 8400 U.S. Consumers responding to Furni-
ture/Today and HGTV’
s 2010 Consumer Views Survey, 17% of overall
home office furniture buyers plan to buy a desk chair and 15% say
they'll purchase a desk. Younger consumers have an even higher plan-
to-buy rate. One-fourth of home office buyers under age 35 plan to
purchase a desk this year compared with 10% of buyers age 65 or older.

Nearly eight out of 10 desk and desk chair buyers are buying a replacement product. Two-fifths of chair replacement buyers have owned their current one for five to 10 years
and 36% of desk buyers have had their current desk for more than 10 years.

For more information including ways to entice your customers to pay more, visit our website at
www.tristatefurn.imagineretailer.com and download the complete brochure.

Companies brace for end of cheap made-in-China era

Costlier labor, currency are ending cheap made-in-China era; manufacturers struggle to adapt
Elaine Kurtenbach, AP Business Writer, On Thursday July 8, 2010

SHANGHAI (AP) -- Factory workers demanding better
wages and working conditions are hastening the
eventual end of an era of cheap costs that helped
make southern coastal China the world's factory floor.
A series of strikes over the past two months have
been a rude wakeup call for the many foreign compa-
nies that depend on China's low costs to compete
overseas, from makers of Christmas trees to manufac-
turers of gadgets like the iPad.
Where once low-tech factories and scant wages were
welcomed ina China eager to escape isolation and
poverty, workers are now demanding a bigger share
of the profits. The government, meanwhile, is pushing
foreign companies to make investments in areas it
believes will create greater wealth for China, like high
technology.
Many companies are striving to stay profitable by
shifting factories to cheaper areas farther inland or to
other developing countries, and a few are even resum-
ing production in the West.
"China is going to go through a very dramatic period.
The big companies are starting to exit. We all see the
writing on the wall," said Rick Goodwin, a China trade
veteran of 22 years, whose company links foreign
buyers with Chinese suppliers.
"I have 15 major clients. My job is to give the best
advice I can give. I tell it like it is. I tell them, put your
helmet on, it's going to get ugly," said Goodwin, who
says dissatisfied workers and hard-to-predict ex-
change rates are his top worries.
Beijing's decision to stop tethering the Chinese cur-
rency to the U.S. dollar, allowing it to appreciate and
thus boosting costs in yuan, has multiplied the uncer-
tainty for companies already struggling with meager
profit margins.
In an about-face mocked on "The Daily Show with Jon
Stewart," Wham-O, the company that created the Hula-
Hoop and Slip 'n Slide, decided to bring half of its
Frisbee production and some production of its other
products back to the U.S.
At the other end of the scale, some in research-
intensive sectors such as pharmaceutical, biotech and
other life sciences companies are also reconsidering
China for a range of reasons, including costs and incen-
tives being offered in other countries.
"Life sciences companies have shifted some production
back to the U.S. from China. In some cases, the U.S.
was becoming cheaper," said Sean Correll, director of
consulting services for Burlington, Mass.-based Emp-
toris.
That may soon become true for publishers, too. Print-
ing a 9-by-9-inch, 334-page hardcover book in China
costs about 44 to 45 cents now, with another 3 cents
for shipping, says Goodwin. The same book costs 65 to
68 cents to make in the U.S.
Y o u r A s h l e y R e p r e s e nt a t i ve s
Case Goods:
Bill Nagle - (608) 304-1746
billnagle@ashleyfurniture.com
Bob Nagle - (215) 528-2006
rnagleoffice@ashleyfurniture.com
Jay Ferber - (267) 265-5597
jayferber@ashleyfurniture.com
John Nagle - (215) 704-1174
jnagle@ashleyfurniture.com
Motion:
Sean Orlando - (215) 669-1242
sorlando1@ashleyfurniture.com
Paul Morris - (267) 249-1010
pmorris@ashleyfurniture.com
Richard Prince - (610) 350-7290
rprince@ashleyfurniture.com
Stationary:
Tom Moore - (973) 897-9122
tmoore@ashleyfurniture.com
Anthony Forrest - (215) 880-5122
aforrest@ashleyfurniture.com
Todd Csencsits - (610) 909-3031
tcsencsits@ ashleyfurniture.com
Scott Deibler - (717)689-0142
sdeibler@ashleyfurniture.com
New Pillow Packaging
The new accent pillows are vacuumed packed to
reduce space in shipping helping everyone con-
trol costs.
Please be aware that you will have to fluff the
pillows to return them to their original size.
Pillows on the left have been fluffed, whereas,
the pillows on the right are straight out of the
Remember to check out our website at www.tristatefurn.imagineretailer.com
'Renovate' Credit Card Program for
Independent Furniture and Home
Furnishings Retailers
TD Retail Card Services has introduced the Renovate Credit Card program in the U.S. and Canada for independent
retailers of furniture, flooring, lighting, and other home furnishings and decor items.
Created specifically for the home furnishings sector, the Renovate Card is a revolving private label consumer credit
card that can be used for purchases of products or services at any merchant participating in the program. Merchants
opening the individual consumer's account can have their store's name embossed on the card.
"Through economies of scale, the Renovate Card delivers many of the important advantages of a private label credit
card to independent home furnishings retailers with single or multiple locations who may not generate the sales
volume to justify a private label program of their own," said Marc Sczesnak, President of TD Retail Card Services.
More specifically, the Renovate Card program provides independent retailers with the ability to:
Furniture Basics:
 Increase sales and long-term loyalty by giving customers the purchasing power to buy now and in the future.
 Drive traffic year-round with a wide range of special promotional offers and flexible financing options.
 Offer instant credit, with easy-to-complete in-store applications processed in minutes.
 Process transactions instantly using TD Retail Card Services' secure online web services.
 Receive fast funding on completed transactions.
 Get quick assistance from TD Retail Card Services representatives during standard retail operating hours.
 Market to their best customers through statement-stuffers or special direct mailings.
Retailers in the program will be able to offer their customers a variety of special financing options, including six no-
interest programs, as well as low-APR programs. "Such options provide a distinct competitive advantage to merchants
selling high-ticket items for the home," noted Mr. Sczesnak.
The program will be promoted to customers through in-store signage and collateral materials provided by TD Retail
Card Services. For further information on the Renovate Card program, visit www.tdrcs.com/release .
Welcome Richard Prince
to the Ashley Team Mark your Calendars
We are pleased to announce a new member of the Las Vegas Market August 2-6
Motion team. Richard Prince joins Sean and Paul and Tupelo Market August 20-22
will be assisting them primarily in the Philadelphia
area and New Jersey. He brings a wealth of retail High Point Market October16-21
knowledge with him and is anxious to work with you
to increase your sales traffic and revenue. Richard’ s
email is rprince@ashleyfurniture.com. You can also
reach him by phone at (610) 350-7290.