Since 1990, when CPU Distributing Inc. came into being in Houston, Texas, we have been providing resellers across the nation with networking hardware and software. Over the years, we moved our facilities to Humble, Texas (just north of Houston) and moved from a focus on general networking solutions to a primary focus of providing resellers the best and most up-to-date network/data/email/internet & remote access security products from leading information technology manufacturers. We still provide general networking solutions (i.e. switches, NICs, routers, PCs, laptops, cable, printers, ink cartridges, & so-forth), but as a secondary focus.
What Makes Us Different?
In today's technological world, you have many online companies that are box pushers. They post ridiculously low pricing on the various price comparison sites, are basically just order takers, and that is where their service stops. They do not provide the customer service that resellers need and deserve. In other words, they provide a ridiculously low price but no value and it is the reseller that suffers in the end. How?
Some of our customers have found that the very low price showing on the various price comparison sites that exist are simply an attractant to lure people to their site. But when they go to buy the item at that price, they discover that the online vendor couldn't actually sell at that price? Some of the excuses they hear are, "We no longer have that item in stock" or "We just sold the last one at that price" and then they are offered something similar or the very same item at a higher price.
Well, if you have experienced this, you know how frustrating it is and how it can delay your customer's IT projects because you have to obtain another price which is higher and then requote your client. That is not good for you or your client. It puts you in a bad light.
What About Us?
Developing a relationship of trust with our customers is very important to us because without trust, you have no relationship, business or otherwise. Also, when we build a relationship of trust with our customers, they can pass that relationship of trust down to their clients.
How so?
Simple Scenario 1: A customer calls to get a quote on a particular SKU # and we tell her it will only be that price while supplies last or until the promotion ends (i.e. September 30, 2009), whichever comes first and that once that SKU # is no longer available it will be a different price. What happens? They pass that valuable information to their client so they can have the choice to take advantage of the promotion in a timely manner or not. And since we provided the need-to-know information up front, our customer comes to trust us. And since they passed on that need-to-know info to their client, their client also comes to trust them.
Simple Scenario #2: We just give them the price of the SKU they requested and not reveal that the price is only while supplies last or until the promo ends. What happens? They pass that price onto their client without the need-to-know information which could help them make a more educated decision regarding when to make the buying decision. Instead, the customer delays the decision until after the promo ends which they did not know about and tells our customer to order the item thinking they are getting the "good" price. Our customer places the order only to have us come back and say, "Sorry, we can't give it to you at that price. The promo is over. Plus, they are no longer carrying that SKU" and then refer them to a different SKU at a higher price. What happens then? A lack of trust occurs because our customer believes and rightly so, that we should have made her aware of the limited time/stock factor on the price we quoted her. Now, she has to go back to her client and tell them and try to save face while at the same time quote them a higher price. This then has the potential to cause their client to mistrust the integrity of our customer. After all, they expect our customer to know about these promos and such.
That is why it is very important to us to build a relationship of trust between our customers and us, because we know that what we do or do not do, whether accidentally or not, can affect the relationship between our customers and their clients.
Therefore, though we are not perfect, we work hard at building that relationship of trust and our customers know that we will do our best to do right by them. And if we do make a mistake, we will do our best to rectify it as quickly as possible. On top of that, though we do not guarantee the lowest price everytime, you can trust that our pricing is fair and reasonable and accurate. And if you happen to come across a price that is incorrectly posted, you can know that we will do our best to honor that price and if we are not able, we will do our best to keep the newer price as close to the posted pricing as possible for that particular order/quote.
NOTE: We do ask that our customers and potential customers to please understand that our posted pricing is based on uploaded costs into our online system from the various vendors/manufacturers of the thousands of items we provide. Sometimes, they may accidentally upload an incorrect cost, SKU, picture or description for a particular item. We will not necessarily catch this until a customer tries to order or request a quote for that item. Therefore, in order to honor a incorrect posted price based on an incorrect uploaded price for that particular sale/quote, we will have to get that particular vendor/manufacturer to honor that cost. If we can't, then we will do our best to provide a price as close to the "original" posted price as possible based on the corrected cost from the vendor/manufacturer.
ALSO. . .
We consider ourselves a Value-Add Distributor, not box pushers, providing a two way channel conduit . . .
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A conduit where security and network vendors are able to reach out to the VARs and System Integrators that need their solutions and
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Coming from the other direction, a conduit whereby VARs and System Integrators can gain access to the best and most up-to-date solutions available
. . . all at a fair and reasonable price while receiving the customer service they deserve.
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We promise a fair and reasonable price PLUS value:
Because of the relationships we have developed with our vendors and manufacturers, we are able to obtain costs that allow us many times to provide lower pricing to you than what you may find from other vendors. And with other vendors, we are still building that relationship so we can provide better pricing to you on down the road.
Just like you, we need to make a fair and reasonable profit in order to stay in business. Therefore, we do not guarantee that we will have the lowest price or even be able to match what other vendors are posting. Why? Because, many times, they can't uphold that posted pricing. They are simply posting it on these price comparison sites in order to draw you into their site and try to sell you something different or even the same item at a higher price. But, if we can beat or match another vendors price, we will. We just don't guarantee it.
What do we guarantee? Simply this: A fair and reasonable price along with a sales and administration staff that is continually trained and strives to provide the 5-Star Customer Service that you deserve so everyone wins. The value we bring to the table for our clients is worth that fair and reasonable price which should also still be low enough for our customers to do the same with their clients and still be competitive.
This is how we look at it. We offer pricing that not only allows us to make a fair and reasonable profit to stay in business but a price that also allows our customers to do the same and allows their customers to still receive the most up-to-date security solutions at a great value for their IT investment. What we have discovered is that when one of our customers decides to go with someone that promises to beat our price, they usually end up coming back to us because of the services we provide. They learn very quickly that the other guys are more interested in pushing boxes rather than providing top-of-the-line customer service along with it and building a win-win relationship with them.
They learn a hard lesson . . . that many times, the lowest price is not always the best value; in many cases, it can be the worst value! That is why it is essential to find one or more vendors you can trust, provide you fair and reasonable pricing, and gives you customer service you feel is what you deserve instead of always shopping your normal vendors that have worked hard to gain your trust and business against the online box pushers who are more interested in a quick sell versus a long-term relationship with you.
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Our customers get use to us:
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Having a sales staff that are more than just order takers and quote makers but also well-trained consultants so that they can make sure that what our customers are purchasing is the right solution for what they are trying to do at their client's site.
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Double checking to see if there are any promotions from our vendors and manufacturers that can be applied to their quote requests and or orders so they can save even more money, win deals, and provide their clients with greater protection, benefits and value,
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Notifying them each month they have subscription renewals coming due in a particular month, if we are aware of them, so they can notify their clients and make sure they keep that residual income coming in and their clients protected,
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Being able to answer their questions regarding the solutions or security issues they have and if we can't, digging until we do.
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Setting up webinars and teleconferences as needed with the manufacturers of the various solutions we provide in order to answer any technological questions we may not know at the time or simply to just educate them about a particular solution.
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Working with them to get orders out and delivered on time.
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Seeing them as more than just a one or two time cha-ching moment but rather as an ongoing partnership whereby we both work together to create a win-win business relationship.
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Providing much more than other vendors that exist today.
As a matter of fact, many of our customers came as a referral from other resellers which says a lot about us and our philosophy.
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We provide expeditious order processing
When a customer places an order with CPU Distributing Inc., they can be assured that their order will be processed in an expeditious manner. Any questions that arise will be dealt with immediately and the customer advised of any problems and the resultant options for a solution as quickly as possible.
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Another Value We Offer:
At CPU, we see part of our job as helping to educate the reseller community on emerging technology products and how they can be used by the reseller to maximize their growth and profitability. This enables the reseller to provide the best products, solutions and support to the end-user, thus a greater value. At the same time, we have extended that educational process through our website to the end-user. We feel that the better educated the end-user is on the various security issues and solutions the easier it makes our customers' job in providing their clients the best solution for their network and data security needs and managing their clients' networks.
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In Summation:
Our focus on network security products, continued training on new products and technologies combined with the strong partnerships with our vendors and manufacturers enables resellers to maximize their profitability and provide greater value to their clients. Whether it’s pre-sales assistance, training or post sales assistance that’s needed, CPU Distributing Inc. is there behind our resellers as an aid in their success. We want to work with you in creating a dynamic win-win business relationship with you and help you do the same between you and your clients. Why don't you join us in this endeavor and let us prove ourselves?
Contact us at 800-880-4200 or sales@cpu-distrib.com to start the process or to provide suggestions on how we can better serve you and or make this website a more beneficial site for you and your company. We strive to provide the best in customer service and appreciate all feedback on how we are doing and suggestions for improvement.
We look forward to working with you toward your success!
Terry Green
President
APC
