2008 GHTA Conference

Deal me in! It's a fun night of gaming and getting to know people at the tables. Play for FABULOUS prizes and the chance to win $$$$ for the charity of your choice! Blackjack, Craps, Roulette and Poker - test your luck with our professional dealers.

Our industry is heavily reliant on China. George Kacic and Robin Harvey will address coming changes and how they may affect you and your business.

Doesn't everyone have fun with strings??? We'll have a little bit of fun.

To secure your spot or for further information on this year's golf outing, please contract Marc Rice, MarcRice1@aol.com.

Celebrate another successful conference! Before we head home we have one more opportunity meet someone new, say goodbye to new friends and enjoy our last night in Florida.

Guerilla Marketing, coined by Jay Conrad Levinson, is more about matching wits than matching budgets. It is based on 16 "monumental secrets" that can help you increase your profits and visibility by investing your time, energy, and imagination - but not your money! Through interaction and creativity, this break-out session will look closely at three of the 16 secrets - patience, follow-up and consistency. This session is designed to be a fun, yet informative. bring out the inner guerilla in you!

This session hopes to give the attendee a new outlook on their current marketing plan. The goal is to get people out of the box.better yet, throw the box away! When a sales agency is passionate and enthusiastic about change, the possibilities are endless!

Hear from a panel of industry experts who have been studying past and current trends in the market. Their information is sure to be insightful on where we are and how to stay ahead in our industry during a changing market.

This year's president, George Kacic, officially kicks off the conference and throws it over to Ted Teele to go over our two fast paced, information packed days.

The gift industry is dramatically changing. Old axioms such as market exclusivity, 15% commission, and controversial issues such as commission on direct sales need to be assessed. The traditional rep/agency pay structure needs to be redefined for the reps to prosper and the vendors to be profitable.

Come and see recommendations that offer fresh and challenging perspectives of senior managers from Lineworks (Gibson & Associates), DMW Associates, Tripar, Wellspring, TC Enterprises, Company of Kings, Oak Patch Gifts and the Southern Link.

B-9, B-9.O-42, O-42. Grab your dobber and get ready for an exciting round of People Bingo! If it sounds strange or you're not sure what to think.well that's the intention. Be there and join in the fun!

When the economy jitters, the first sector to feel the move is retail. Your RAB recognizes that, and is here to help you navigate those quickly shifting sands in ways that support your retailers while solidifying your long term success. By working together, we can all adjust and grow rather than merely hang on for dear life.

Join the RAB Panel Discuss to learn what's really happening at the ground level, how retailers are changing their approach with customers to generate sales, and how the retailers' "new reality" translates for vendors and reps supporting them.

Registration and the Hospitality Suite will be open throughout the conference for your convenience.

You've heard of speed dating.well, take out all of the romance and there you have it - speed networking! 8 minute one on one discussions with someone you don't know but could possibly benefit from knowing. You can choose to network with vendors, in sales, in the industry or randomly.

Gain an understanding of personal interactive styles and adult learning strategies to increase knowledge retention, reduce turnover, and quickly get territories up to speed - allowing your organization greater success in the global marketplace.

Attendees may also be asked to share some of their recruiting and training challenges with the goal to creating a GHTA sponsored sales principal educational program.

It's a completely unstructured gathering of the minds with no agenda and no rules - a time to learn and share with others in an unorganized session.

Following your session on speed networking, put your skills to good use and network with more people at the Welcome Reception.

When you experience Duane Cashin, you enter an exciting environment that motivates you to exceed your highest goals. In that heightened atmosphere, Duane shows you how to break away from old, ineffective behaviors that block peak performance as he inspires you to adopt a fresh, new perspective that fosters increased confidence, clarity of purpose, and a renewed commitment to your personal and professional success.

In Duane's Creating Value keynote presentations, you learn what value really is, why people aren't getting enough of it, and how you can create it. Duane describes how the art of transforming basic interactions into personal, authentic and memorable experiences is the cornerstone for continuous achievement and productivity. He explains that by forming relationships based on trust, mutual respect and integrity - whether with new or existing customers, co-workers, or family and friends - you provide the one true value that is greatly sought after but rarely found.

With more than 20 years of experience in executive management, sales leadership and team development, Duane Cashin is the power and passion behind Creating Value: Making Every Experience Count!. An "in-the-trenches" kind of guy, when you meet him, you just know he's really been there, done that, and understands exactly where you are at and what you need to know to break through. From his first business venture as a newspaper boy, to piloting two start-up companies from zero revenue to multi-million dollar annual sales, to rapidly and dramatically increasing revenue for a Fortune 500 company, he sees his greatest achievement as the ability and deep desire to help others achieve what they want. The Creating Value philosophy flourishes from this core belief.

Duane's analogies, metaphors, and real-life stories combined with his warm and witty style will keep you laughing while you learn sound business and life principles. There are no "sure-fire" one-liners, and trick formulas here; just genuine, real-world insights and perspectives. Duane will infuse you with a passion for success and leave you with a vision of your higher purpose and a drive to achieve your personal best.

Randy Eller's expertise in the Home and Gift industry is the result of a committed career. His path to success began with a ten year stint in the retail management of variety stores for a 20 store chain headquartered in Knoxville, Tennessee. In 1982, Randy became a salesperson with Russ Berrie & Company and flourished on their team, advancing to Vice President of Marketing for Russ Berrie South until 1987. He is perhaps best known for his accomplishments and guidance of CBK, an importer and wholesaler of home décor. He was a pioneer for this company in 1988 as CBK's first salesperson, subsequently becoming the President and a partner in the business in 1995. He was instrumental in the many changes that brought CBK to the forefront of its industry and the ultimate sale in 2002 of CBK to Blyth, Inc, a large New York Stock Exchange company.

Terry Jones founded Travelocity.com. He led the company as President and Chief Executive Officer from it's founding until May 2002. Previously, Jones served as Chief Information Officer at Sabre Inc. In his 24 years at Sabre, Jones held various executive positions including President of Decision Technologies, Vice President of Applications Development and Vice President of Product Development.

Prior to Sabre, Jones joined American Airlines in 1978 as Director of Product Development when American Airlines acquired Agency Data Systems, a Florida-based mini-computer accounting systems company. He became president of the division when it moved to Dallas/Fort Worth.

A graduate of Denison University in Granville, Ohio, Jones entered the travel industry in 1971 as a travel agent with Vega Travel in Chicago. He later served five years as a vice president of Travel Advisors, a company specializing in business travel to Eastern Europe and the USSR, with offices in Chicago and Moscow.

Jones serves on the Board of Directors of Entrust Technologies and the Hart Ecenter@SMU. He is currently a principle of Essential Ideas, a consultancy he co-founded to help companies in their transition to the digital economy.

Terry is now devoting much of his time to speaking and sharing his unique insights on the future of business through the new consulting firm - Essential Ideas. CNN recently called Terry Jones - "a major web pioneer, who six years ago founded a dot-com that would revolutionize how you bought airline tickets and vacations"

Jones, who took an idea and created a business with 33 million members and one of the first profitable dot-coms can bring your audience first hand knowledge of creating a national brand, thriving in rapidly changing markets and using technology for competitive advantage.

His programs are both informative and mind expanding. He challenges audiences to think outside the box and envision the future.