NMC treats dealers to first annual Dealer Fishing Trip

POTTSBORO, Texas—National Monitoring Center held its first annual Dealer Fishing Trip to Lake Texoma on the Texas/Oklahoma border on June 4. Select NMC customers were joined by prospective NMC dealers and staffers from both the Aliso Viejo, Calif.- and Dallas-based centrals for a daylong trip to one of the nation's most renowned fishing spots.

The goal of the trip, according to NMC regional sales manager David Steinbrunner, was to attract new prospects through word of mouth from peers, and strengthen relationships. “Our ultimate goal was to get a fire prospect, a burg prospect and a current fire and burg client on each boat and let them have some fun and talk,” Steinbrunner said. In total, 18 dealers and prospects embarked on the journey in four separate boats, which headed out onto the lake from Highport Marina here.

NMC's Dallas central station manager Stefan Rayner agreed there was no substitute for relationships formed during a bonding experience like a sunny day spent fishing and swapping stories. “It's about the relationships with the people we do business with. If you just do business for business and you don't have the relationships with the people, how can you have a long-lasting business with these guys?” Rayner said. “The people we know, we've known for a long time and they bring other people in. It's easy for us to sell what we do when the people who are already here sell it for us.”

Kings III Fire & Security business development manager John Ybarra felt the fishing trip was one way in which NMC tried to give back to their dealers and foster a stronger industry. “NMC takes care of us, really pampers us as far as customer service,” Ybarra said. “They put on functions like this in order to build camaraderie in the industry instead of trying to separate everybody … there is s a brotherhood in the fire and security worlds.”

Steinbrunner agreed. “A lot of dealers will see us at association meetings and they have a feel for who we are, but they don't really get to see us outside of the associations or outside of the press, so this gives them a chance to see who we really are outside of that environment,” Steinbrunner said. “Plus it's a chance for the guys from California to meet with the guys from Texas and we're all out here together. There's some real team building.”

This reporter participated in the event, and it is his opinion that he caught the biggest fish, but he's willing to listen to opposing arguments.