The challenges

In the beverage-distribution industry, it’s all about the prominence of your in-

store display.The more eye-catching your display, the better the chances for

high sales.The challenge is securing the high-visibility retail space you need.

As a distributor, your success at meeting the challenge can depend on the service

you give your retailers. Alaska Distributors relies on Sprint to ensure that sales

representatives are maximizing their time with customers and that its merchan-

disers are coordinated to give the highest level of service possible.

Changing adversity into opportunity

Bob Chester, IS manager with Alaska Distributors, knew it was time to find

a better technology for order placement. He saw wireless as the most versatile

solution. And he found Sprint to be the most flexible provider.

By working with Sprint, Chester found that not only could he enable his sales

representatives to place orders anywhere on the enhanced Sprint Nationwide

PCS Network, he could help them reduce the number of devices they carried.

“In the past, our salesmen relied on two-way pagers, cell phones, and the

handheld unit they used for ordering,” he says.

By adopting the Sprint PCS Vision Smart Device TreoTM 300 by palmOne and using

Sprint PCS Business ConnectionSM Enterprise Edition, Chester was able to replace

the pagers and deliver a Sprint PCS® Phone that connected his people to their

company email, the Web, and their calendar and to-do lists. Because the device

was built around the Palm OS® with its well-developed interface, the learning

curve was manageable, both from an IT and end-user point of view. Now, the

sales representatives rely on fewer devices to do their jobs, potentially boosting

their productivity.

Alaska Distributors Finds Sprint DeliversBetter Ways to Service Customers

Founded after the repeal of Prohibition, Alaska Distributors Co. began distributing beverages to thestate of Alaska from its facil-ities in Seattle, Washington.Now nearly 70 years old,Alaska Distributors employs500 people and distributesspirits, wine, beer and non-alcoholic products in Alaska,Washington, Oregon, Idahoand Montana. Its productline is diverse — rangingfrom international brands of spirits and wines to micro-brewed beers. With roughly5000 customers spread overfive states, the sales force iskept active. And things weregoing to get even more hec-tic, thanks to the slowdemise of the phone booth.In most cases, the sales rep-resentatives relied on publicpay phones to place ordersusing proprietary terminaldevices via analog modems.As analog pay phonesbecame fewer and fewer,the sales representativesfound themselves drivingfurther and further to makethe necessary dialup connections to place orders.

Sprint PCS® for the Distribution Industry

Making the migration

The proprietary terminal device that Alaska Distributors had relied on for order

entry was limited by its reliance on analog POTS transmission. Moving to a wire-

less solution offered obvious advantages. But the migration needed to be smooth

and efficient.

At the time, Chester knew of the upcoming deployment of the Sprint third-

generation (3G) network but decided to make the migration sooner rather than

later.This strategy made the best use of the then-existing Sprint second-genera-

tion (2G) network while achieving the main goal: untethering the order system.

The sales representatives now connect to the ordering system with Windows®

Pocket PC handheld devices via Sprint PCS Connection CardsTM.Time previously

spent finding a phone booth is now spent in front of customers, providing the

service that gives them a competitive edge.

Creating productivity gains

The sales representatives aren’t the only ones benefiting from being wirelessly

enabled. Now, the IT team, merchandising group and executives have come to

rely on the Treo 300s by palmOne for their email and Web access. In fact, the

executive group was among the first to adopt — and embrace — the device.

“Some of the executives weren’t willing to invest the time in the beginning,” says

Chester.“But once they got through the learning curve, we can’t get them away

from the Treos.”

Likewise with the Sprint PCS Connection Cards.“While we were developing the

system, the prevalent feeling was that we just can’t turn this system loose on a

regular run-of-the-mill rep; they just can’t handle it,” says Chester.“But in the end,

configuration problems were minimal and they just didn’t have any problems

figuring it out.”

“Sprint was tough to beat because oftheir quick adoption of 3G and theircoverage, plus their phones were agood fit for us. It was a clean, elegant solution.”Bob Chester, IS managerAlaska Distributors

Increasingly, Alaska Distributors as a whole is coming to rely on the Sprint PCS

service.They’re developing informational Websites to help their sales agents and

merchandising team. Salespeople will show retailers what a sales display will

look like before it’s installed.They can find stock numbers quickly and retrieve

pictures of products using their browsers.

Now merchandisers can contact the sales representative by email, thanks to

Sprint PCS Business ConnectionSM Enterprise Edition, to confirm the location and

timing of a point-of-sale display without playing phone tag.“Having email is just

critical,” says Chester.“Now the rep can draw pictures and provide all sorts of

important info, where, with just a phone or pager, they couldn’t.” With fewer

miscommunications, the customers are better serviced and better satisfied.

In total, Alaska Distributors uses roughly 200 Treo 300s by palmOne and

140 Sprint PCS Connection Cards, all in western Washington. And approximately

180 employees use Sprint PCS Business ConnectionSM Enterprise Edition to

connect to their company email remotely.

Delivering a complete business solution

Before choosing Sprint, Alaska Distributors did its homework.“I basically inter-

viewed every single wireless provider,” says Chester.“Sprint was tough to beat

because of their quick adoption of 3G and their coverage, plus their phones were

a good fit for us. It was a clean, elegant solution.”

But more than just technology,“Sprint realizes corporate customers need to be

treated differently than regular consumers,” Chester says.

For instance, he points out Sprint PCS Free & ClearSM and Sprint PCS VisionSM

service plans. He subscribes to Sprint PCS Shared MinutesSM (which enables users

to draw on a shared pool of minutes) to minimize the amount of overage charges

among high-use individuals. By using Sprint PCS to PCS CallingSM, his employees

can call each others’ Sprint PCS Phones unlimitedly for a flat fee.

In the past, Chester expected that one of his employees would spend 20 to 30

hours per billing cycle sorting through the invoice. But now, with Sprint PCS

eBilling & AnalysisSM, the Sprint online invoicing and reporting service, he’s

reclaimed those hours.

He also credits Sprint PCS Preferred Corporate CareSM with the quality of care his

company has received.“Our reps have been terrific,” he says.“They’ve actually

pointed out ways for us to save money.”

The payoff

Alaska Distributors has just completed deploying the Sprint PCS Vision Smart

Device TreoTM 300 by palmOne and will begin upgrading to 3G Sprint PCS

Connection Cards for their representatives. It’s too early in the process to offer a

precise return on investment, says Chester.

08.04 04169Copyright © Sprint 2004. All rights reserved. Sprint, the diamond logo design, Sprint PCS Business Connection, Sprint PCS Free & Clear, Sprint PCS Vision, Sprint PCS Preferred Corporate Care, Sprint PCS Connection Cards, Sprint PCS Shared Minutes, Sprint PCS-to-PCS Calling and Sprint PCS eBilling & Analysis are trademarks of Sprint Communications Company L.P. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

Why Sprint?

When you choose Sprint, you’re in good company. In fact, more than 95 percent

of the Fortune 500 use Sprint for data, Internet, voice or wireless solutions as do

more than 26 million customers of all sizes in 100 countries around the globe.

The reasons are clear and compelling:

• Sprint is truly dedicated to understanding your needs and challenges and commit-

ted to developing tailored solutions that can help improve your productivity and

effectiveness

• Sprint is the service provider best positioned to offer a total networking solution —

one that integrates wireline and wireless services — so your employees can be

connected seamlessly and securely, virtually anywhere their jobs take them

• Sprint remains one of the most financially stable companies in the industry with the

resources required to maintain high service levels

• Sprint is a recognized leader in quality customer care, service reliability and product

innovation

Please contact your

Sprint Sales Representative

or Authorized Sales Agent.

1-877-700-8919

www.sprint.com/distributionsolutions