ANNUAL CONFERENCE – ERA National Conferences are unique educational and networking events devoted to management and sales issues shared by reps, manufacturers and distributors. Attendees have given recent conference outstanding ROI ratings.

STEP (Sales Training for Electronics Professionals) is an annual live, virtual event hosted for frontline sales professionals by a mix of professional sales trainers and by industry sales executives. Attendees can expect a unique blend of sessions that will provide useful tactical takeaways, best practices and key tools to succeed at sales in today’s ever-changing market.

ERA LIVE – These virtual sessions will take place frequently throughout the year and will feature electronics industry experts and peers who will present a variety of hot topics.

ERA TALKS – ERA’s podcast series, ERA Talks, features informative and educational interviews with industry leaders in a quick conversational format.

CERTIFIED SALES PROFESSIONAL (CSP) PROGRAM – Offered through MRERF, the multi-day Certified Sales Professional (CSP) program is offered throughout each year in various North American cities and is recommended for salespeople in both rep firms and distributor companies.

ERA CHAPTER PROGRAMS – Local educational events in ERA’s 20+ territories are often open to manufacturers at low or no cost

THE REPRESENTOR – A quarterly magazine sent in print and digitally to 3,500 ERA reps, manufacturers, distributors and consultants. Classified ad rates for ERA members are discounted 20 percent.

ERA CONTRACT GUIDELINES & EVALUATIONS – are available on ERA.org for agreements between: reps and manufacturers; stocking reps and manufacturers; reps and employees; reps and sub-reps. Also available are forms/guidelines for reps to evaluate prospective principals and for manufacturers to evaluate prospective reps.

ERA ELECTRONICS INDUSTRY DICTIONARY of abbreviations, acronyms, nicknames, terminology — ERA’s new Industry Dictionary is available to ERA members as a searchable glossary of industry terms and acronyms – make sure to check periodically for updates!

EXPERT ACCESS is a free service to members offering telephone consultations with ERA professional resources in these fields: legal; fiscal and taxes; insurance; rep and distributor recruitment and management; start-ups; strategic planning; and buy/sell/merge opportunities.

ERA BULLETIN BOARD allows ERA members to post open job positions, alliances and/or buy-sell-merge opportunities (anonymously if they wish.) For details, contact Karin Derkacz, ERA Operations Director, at kderkacz@era.org.

Among the many intangible benefits of membership are ERA’s many outreach and collaborative efforts, including:

A member of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce;
A co-sponsor of the annual Electronics Distribution Show;
A working partner with ECIA, MANA, NEMRA and other rep associations in various industries; and
The founder and supporting member of the Manufacturers’ Representatives Educational Research Foundation (MRERF), sponsor of the Certified Sales Professional (CSP), Certified Professional Manufacturers’ Representative (CPMR) and Manufacturers Best Practice (MBP) programs.

Recognized Resource suppliers provide ERA members with services and discounts tailored to meet the needs of reps and manufacturers. They include:

• UPS shipping services
• Office Depot and Pennywise Office Products
• Avis and Hertz Auto Rentals
• Software — Empowering Systems, Repfabric
• Research and Data — Budde Marketing Systems, Edgewater Research
• Recruitment — JJM Search
• Digital Marketing Services — Lectrix, G&G Creative Services
• Professional Certifications — MRERF
• Expert Access — Services to assist with rep and distributor recruitment, management and training, strategic planning, employee or prospective employee testing and evaluation, POS and other customized reporting, executive searches and recruitment, start-ups and more