I’ve been trying to figure this one for quite some time and I’ve finally figured it out and wanted to share with all of you so you can do the same thing.  If you were trying to do this, you know that gmail is giving you the option under your mail settings to add a pic, and it is asking you to add a URL of the website in order to post your photo. Well, I’ve been doing this and nothing would happen it wasn’t working for me. So, today I’ve decided to do something different. And here is how I did it, share if it worked for you.

• 1. First thing you need to do is compose new email.
• 2. Click on the icon that looks like a photo and add your logo from your computer in the body of the email.
• 3. Email yourself
• 4. After you open the received email, right click on the logo and copy image address
• 5. Then go to your email settings
• 6. Scroll down to your signature, write your name, phone number what ever you want and click on the little picture icon again
• 7. Paste copied url, but you have to use Command C, since right click will not work in this matter- don’t know why.
• 8. Voila,  it should be there, now every time you email someone you will be showing your logo as well.

March is a month full of excitement. We just had St. Patrick’s Day, the opportunity to see a Super moon which only happens every 20 years and Spring has finally arrived; hopefully we’re going to start having more sunny, warm days. In addition to all of the happenings around us I want to introduce you to our featured recommendation for the month of March: Superior Business Products. Superior has it all…SUPERIOR service, the world’s biggest selection, a team of employee-owners with a commitment to excellence, and guaranteed low prices! So let’s get right to the questions.

1. How long has Superior been in business and how did they get started?
Superior Business Products has been in business for 26 years. Steve Sabatino, the person I interviewed, has been with Superior for 10 years. It all started when the founder  Manny Pena of our company decided to go out on his own while working for another office supply company, Union Book. In the beginning, he did everything himself including taking orders and delivering products. He started with a part-time student from Schenectady Community College, in one office in our current building, and as Superior grew, the building became ours and we have been there ever since.

2. That’s really great and I am assuming that because of the background he had it wasn’t as difficult?
It was easier because he had the experience, customer base and contacts. One of the unique things about Superior is that we are an employee-owned company. Over time, we literally were buying back shares of the company from him. Two years ago we became 100% employee-owned.

3. What are some steps Superior took in the beginning to market/promote itself?
When Superior first started it was all word-of-mouth and referrals. Over the course of time we’ve done everything: radio, TV, billboards, print advertising.

4. How does Superior market/promote business now?
Radio and referrals are a huge part how we get new business. All of the sales consultants participate in leads/referral groups. We also have an active role in our community donating money and time to local organizations. Currently, I’m a member of the YMCA board of directors in Guilderland.

5. Is Superior targeting mostly the Albany area or can they provide service nationwide?
We focus mostly in the Capital District, but we have the ability to deliver to the 48-continental United States, next day at no charge. An example would be delivering calculators to California or toner to Texas, both via free next day delivery. Some of the companies we serve have corporate head quarters in the Capital District and have satellite offices throughout the country, so we distribute products daily through a network of 32 distribution centers. When a customer places an order with Superior the product is delivered from the closest distribution center in proximity to that customer and shipped to them via UPS. This has been a seamless process for our customers and given us the ability to meet their needs.

6. What service/products does Superior offer?
We break them down into four different categories:
1. Office Products
2. Business Furniture
3. Coffee and Beverage Services
4. Cleaning and Breakroom Supplies

Office Products is the largest category for us and the basics people think about are copy paper, post-it notes, toner, etc.

Business furniture could be the chairs we are sitting on right now to offices suites, cafeterias, and school classrooms to cubicles where we can do 100 of them at a time. We also handle transactional furniture such as desks, chairs and file cabinets.

As far as coffee, we focus on the Keurig, one-cup brewers; I think it’s the best thing ever. We offer free 3-day demos so customers can try the brewer in their office. The coffee is our fastest growing category and it’s easy to deliver. We also carry Paul DeLima coffee, and Coca-Cola & Pepsi beverages.

The Cleaning and Breakroom category grew from the coffee and beverages to include everything you need for your breakroom, office kitchen, and facility cleaning supplies.

8. At what point did Superior realize that they needed to have a logo for their business?
We had a logo right away. It was very simple in the beginning based on our typestyle for the name Superior. We evolved to a blue bar with the Superior name and as the company grew, the logo changed with it. We updated it recently because we wanted it to encompass what our mission is. Our slogan is “Whatever it takes…and then some” and we tell our customers we’ll jump through hoops for you and that’s exactly what our logo depicts.

9. Does Superior have any promotions right now that others can take advantage of?
We have some ongoing promotions:

10. What are some of your interests/hobbies?
I enjoy working out with weights. I love bicycling; I’ve been a biker for a long time. I actually once bicycled from Seattle, Washington to Santa Barbara, California.

It took me 15 days, riding 100 miles a day; I camped out and it was a fantastic experience.

No, it was just me. I planned on going with a friend but he got accepted to The Air National Guard and had to report to boot camp. I had my gear ready to go so I went forward with the trip.

My greatest enjoyment comes from spending time with my children. I have 3 kids and I love doing all sorts of activities with them. Especially being outside and taking them everywhere; I’d say they are very good travelers. 

They are 10, 7, & 5 years old.

13. What advice would you like to give to a new business owner?
Whatever you do, have a plan and process in place and write them down. As time goes by, you may need to alter these plans, but make sure you are clear on what you want to accomplish. Be able to measure results and inspect what you expect. If you are not achieving the desired results you will need to make adjustments.

E-mail: ssabatino@superiorbponline.com, and you can find us online at www.superiorbponline.com – To order products and see pricing you’ll have to request a username and password.

I’d like to thank Steve Sabatino for his time in providing all of us with wonderful information; I hope you find some value out of it and that you will take the advantage of some products Superior Business Products offers. Please feel free to share this interview on facebook and twitter. If you would like to be the next business featured on my blog let me know or if you know someone that would want to be featured, please let them know.

I find Emina’s work at six26studio to be quite creative…She understood what I was looking for and provided in a timely and professional manor.