September/October 2006

Welcome to the latest issue of Nutraceutical News from IFS.  In this issue you'll find our Case Study, which examines the cosmecutical line derme'llage Skin Care Regimen.  As for our other columns, we take a look at what accuracy really means in our Fulfillment Notes section.  In our Marketing column, we'll tell you if you should focus on being the best or instead focus on being the first, and in the Customer Service Corner we'll talk about what it takes to keep your online customers happy.

For more information about the content found here or about any of our products and services, you can always visit our website, www.ifssolutions.com.  To share your feedback about this newsletter, please click here.  To unsubscribe, please use the link at the end of this issue.

In this issue:

• Case Study: Botanical Solutions, Inc. and derme'llage Skin Care Regimen
• Fulfillment Notes: What Accuracy Means to IFS
• Maximize Your Marketing Effectiveness: Don't be the best…be the first
• Customer Service Corner: Are your online customers well cared for?  How to keep the wonderers of the web happy.
• About IFS: For More Information, Contact Us

Most of us have spent a significant part of our lives outside in the sun.  Not too long ago the thought of that being a bad thing was simply nonsense.  Unfortunately, today we are more aware than ever of the seriousness of sun damage including wrinkles, sunspots, and worst of all, cancer.

"The sun is an integral part of our lifestyle," said Environmental Dermatologist and well known cancer prevention researcher, Robert D. Bibb, M.D. "But people have to do more to protect themselves from its dangers as well as other environmental pollutions."

For Dr. Bibb, this problem is one he has spent 30-years trying to solve.  Now, as the creator of the breakthrough raspberry-based cosmeceutical line, the derme'llage Skin Care Regimen, he has found one of the answers he's been looking for.

It all started after Dr. Bibb - one of the pioneers of Environmental Dermatology - teamed up with Dr. Daniel W. Nixon, former vice president of the American Cancer Society and one of the world's premier cancer prevention researchers, and cancer and DNA expert Dr. Lyndon L. Larcom to discover the link between the enzymes found in raspberry seed extract and healthier skin. After five years of thorough testing and use by Dr. Bibb's patients, derme'llage - www.dermellageskincare.com - was born.  As sales of Dr. Bibb's trademark product, his collagen protective, wrinkle fighter and skin damage protector Raspberry Rejuvenation Creme, began to grow, an enthusiastic and fiercely loyal customer base developed and the men knew they needed to find a way to offer the product nationally.

Today, Botanical Solutions - www.botanicalsolutions.com - is relying on Innovative Fulfillment Solutions as a key member of the team of highly skilled professionals the company has assembled to help market its growing business and to introduce their line of cosmeceutical and nutraceutical products to the rest of the world.  IFS will manage all of Botanical Solutions' direct-to-consumer orders - via telephone, Internet and/or mail - then process the credit cards and manage the pick/pack and shipping process.

"I am confident we've put together a team of the very best people in the industry to dramatically stimulate and foster the dynamic growth of our business model," said Donald Wizeman, Senior Vice President of Botanical Solutions.  "IFS is an extremely critical player, because they are the ones who will be interacting with and representing BSI and derme'llage to the consumer.  Their "can do" attitude and practice of adopting problems as their own and then figuring out a way to solve them, sets them apart from the others in the industry."

IFS President Keith Milburn said, "We are delighted to be working with Botanical Solutions and derme'llage.  BSI is a first-class organization with an exceptional product line and a group of very talented and bright individuals behind it.  We look forward to helping them grow and succeed."

Don't you just love it when your much-anticipated package finally arrives?  Tearing off the tape is almost like opening a holiday present.  But then you look inside and you come to the realization that what you received is not what you ordered.  You become frustrated and tell yourself, "I will never order from that company again".

We have all experienced this disappointment before, but here at IFS accuracy is a top priority.  We track and continuously measure the accuracy of our shipments, which has provided our customers with fewer than 1 accuracy-related issue per 250 orders.  Our customers are not only assured they will get their package on time but that it will be exactly what they ordered.

Studies have shown that the three most important factors to customers in doing business with direct-to-consumer companies are:

• customer satisfaction;
• on-time delivery; and
• accurate shipments.

At IFS, those three priorities are our top priorities, as well.  It is important to us that our clients are satisfied and assured of our commitment to them.  In addition to the accuracy rate mentioned earlier, we answer all phone calls within three rings and we ship 100% of all orders within 24 hours.

If you have any questions or comments about the importance of accuracy to IFS or if you need help ensuring the accuracy of your own fulfillment operation, email us today at info@ifssolutions.com

When you are focusing on the benefits of a competitor, what comes to your mind? You want to be better, right?  You want to out-smart, out-weigh, and out-sell everyone else in your category.  But is it really about being better or simply about being the first?

In Al Ries and Jack Trout's book, "The 22 Immutable Laws of Marketing," they discuss important rules that define what makes a good marketing strategy beginning with "The Law of Leadership."

According to Ries and Trout, the most important task a new company needs to execute is the creation of a category in which you can be first.  "It's better to be first than it is to be better," says Ries and Trout.  "It's much easier to get into the mind first than to try to convince someone you have a better product than the one that did get there first."

Lets take Airborne for example, the natural formulated cold preventative that took America by storm.  Everyone knows what it is, what it does, and who invented it by the simple mention of its name.  Why?  Because it wasn't a better option for a cold remedy, it became the only option.  The only non-prescription herbal-vitamin remedy that literally got rid of a cold before it really started.

So here's the big question, what can you do to create your own "Airborne" status? Put these questions in relation to your company:

• What can you do to make your product exclusive?
• How do you give your product or service a twist that makes it completely different than any of your competitors?
• How can you aim your solution at a smaller market, not a larger audience?
• How can you build your marketing so you are seen as the only option, not another copycat?*

So, while you ask yourself these questions related to creating your own "category," keep in mind that people tend to stick with what they've got.  No matter how many competitors begin to roll in, consumers have already built a relationship with the original.  They feel security with the product and they know it's the real deal.

*Tips provided by Mark Deo of SBA Network

Have you ever gone online to order something and it seems to be more work then it's worth?  Do your customers feel that same way about your website?

As internet technology continues to advance, customers find themselves more apt to order everything they need online from household furniture to their daily vitamins.  Now, the thought of picking up the phone and waiting to talk to a person is simply too much of a hassle or worse yet, they get an operator from another country that they cannot understand.  Customers want their ordering process to be quick, understandable, helpful and secure.

Here are some points you should make note of while evaluating your website.

• Can customers find an "Order Now" or "Shop" link on the home page?
• Are your products well categorized such as Vitamins, Herbals, Homeopathic Remedies, Minerals and Nutrients?
• Do you have sub-categories for an easy find?  For example, if someone was searching for Calcium supplements, can they simply click on an identifiable category name like Minerals and Nutrients then click on Calcium to find all the suitable supplements?
• Does your ordering area have an image of the product, the name, the size (such as 50 pills per jar), the price, quantity option, and an "Add to Cart" button all in one identifiable space?
• Are customers able to click on the image or name of the product to find more information (such as appropriate dosage, ingredients, nutrition, and warnings)?
• Is there an obvious shopping cart that always shows how many items they have selected?
• When customers proceed with their order, are all the fields required obvious (e.g. mailing information and address, phone number, shipping options, etc.)?

If your website has these simple steps covered, your customers will know it is so easy to order from you, giving them no reason to shop with your competitor.

IFS is a world class, full service fulfillment operation with a track record of success.  A woman-owned business, we proudly serve some of the country's most respected corporations.  With a special expertise in the fulfillment of nutraceuticals, we can help you run your nutraceuticals business more efficiently and more cost effectively.