By William Brady
In November, FranklinCovey finished work on a BYU edition of its day planner for 2002.
The planner was designed for Cougar fans who want to show their true colors, said Jamie Gull, head of Affinity Marketing for FranklinCovey.
'The planner is full of excellent information about BYU,' Gull said.
He said the planner will help all fans of BYU polish their knowledge of school history and trivia.
In addition to regular FranklinCovey planner features, the BYU edition contains images of campus on every page, inspiring quotes from BYU leaders and interesting facts about the school.
Each page is designed in BYU blue and tan and carries the school logo.
'It was the CEO''s idea,' Gull said. 'The idea came to him while talking to some people from BYU.'
Gull was responsible for approaching BYU with FranklinCovey''s proposal.
Michael Busenbark, executive director of the BYU Alumni Association, said Franklin contacted BYU at the end of August.
'Our first question was whether or not alumni would be interested in the product,' he said.
Busenbark said anytime the Alumni Association enters into a business arrangement, steps are made to ensure only useful products and services are offered.
'As long as alumni are buying planner refills, we figured they''d be interested in the BYU edition,' he said.
Busenbark said the marketing and communications staff of the Alumni Association spent many hours on short notice to provide content for the planner.
'We collected quotes, interesting facts and photos,' said Todd Michaelis, assistant director of marketing and communications for the Alumni Association.
Michaelis said the communications staff tried to find quotes, facts and statistics that would be less familiar to the average student or alumnus.
'It was a rush to find great stuff people had never heard of,' he said.
Michaelis said working on the project provided him with a better view of all BYU has to offer.
'The planner will give users a daily reminder of their alma mater,' he said.
Busenbark said an excellent product emerged from the Alumni Association''s cooperation with FranklinCovey. He said the edition is both attractive and useful.
FranklinCovey will donate a portion of proceeds to the BYU Alumni Association. Donated funds will support scholarships and alumni programs.
Gull said sales of the planner have been good, but not as high as expected.
'But it''s still early in the season,' he said.
Gull expects sales to increase as people finish their Christmas shopping and buy planner refills for January.
Paul Buss, buyer and supervisor of the school supplies department at the BYU Bookstore, also said sales of the planner started slowly.
'Interest is picking up,' he said.
In an effort to spur sales, FranklinCovey reduced the edition''s original selling price of $45 to $35 in its retail outlets.
Buss said the Bookstore will follow FranklinCovey''s lead in lowering the price.