Scenes from the Cherry Hill Chamber show

I had a chance to take in the annual Cherry Hill Chamber of Commerce Business Expo this past week. As always, it was a solid, well-run show with numerous companies set up at the show, trying to showcase themselves and attract business. And after all, isn't that what a Business Expo is all about?

I also went with another reason in mind. We often talk to our clients about trying to differentiate themselves. At a show such as this, it isn't always easy. With more than 100 exhibitors, it's not very easy to be different. However, after seeing what promotional items were being handed out at the booths, it's pretty obvious that not a lot of companies spent a lot of time trying to be different -- or more precisely, trying to get attention.

A very unscientific walk-through showed the following items being given away at booths:
-- Pens (19 booths)
-- unimprinted hard candy (7 booths)
-- Sticky notes/memo cubes/memo pads (3)
-- Food clips (1)
-- Stress balls/toys (3)
-- Computer screen calendars (1)
-- Mints in imprinted tins (2)
-- T-shirts (2)
-- Apples (1)

One company had an impressive display of promotional items -- tote bags, calculators, frisbees and t-shirts. I'm wondering how they figured out who got what when they were speaking to prospective customers.

What really struck me -- besides the fact that not everybody had something at their booth, were the hard candy people. We almost always advise our clients NOT to give away anything edible (one you eat it, the message is gone -- literally), but to give away something that's not even imprinted reeks of cheapness. After all, this is a business expo, not Halloween. After incurring all of the expense of joining the Chamber and setting up at the Expo, the worst possible place to try to save money is in deciding what to hand out at your booth.

If your company is participating in a show in the near future, please feel free to give us a call to arrange a no-cost, no-obligation meeting to discuss your booth activity and promotional plans.

Ready to hit the links?

If you're involved in organizing a golf outing for your group or company, be prepared for one of the longest, most passionate "conversations" your organizing committee will have. It's the conversation which begins with the innocent question, "what type of give should we give the golfers?"

Corporate Logo magazine conducted a survey of recreational golfers to find out which gifts they would prefer to receive. And, to make it even more informative, it's broken down by price point:

Less than $10
Balls
Glove
Spikes
Tees
Divot Tool
Ball Marker

$10- $50
Balls
Clothes
Towel
Head Cover
Glove
Shirt Poncho
Green fee gift certificate

More than $50
Clubs
Shoes
Round of golf
Pull-over windbreaker with course logo
Driver
Shirt
Wind Jacket

Two other ideas that we spotted that are a bit more unique are:
-- A humidor that comes with six imprinted Callaway golf balls, as well as a cigar cutter
-- An all-in-one clip on "caddy", that holds a scorecard, tees, pencil and a ball dispenser.

See you on the links!

The 7 (formerly 4) P's of Marketing

Once upon a time, in a college far, far away, they taught students the four "P"s of Marketing. In no particular order, they were:
Price
Product
Placement
Promotion

All pretty self-explanatory. You have a product, determine its selling price, the proper placement for that product in stores, etc., then you promote it. And hopefully, people buy it and everyone lives happily ever after.

Not so fast.

Somewhere along the way, three extra "P"s joined in the marketing parade so now there are actually 7 P's of Marketing.

The three "new" P's are:

-- Process: What a consumer has to go through to get the product. Or, what a company has to go through to get a product to market.

-- Packaging: Millions of dollars are spent to develop eye-catching, attention-grabbing packaging that will hopefully cause a customer to pick up the product and buy it.

-- People: the feeling you get from the salesperson. Think about it -- how often you buy (or don't buy) something based on the person trying to sell it to you.

Hard to believe that marketing is even more complicated than before. Any comments?

Think about it...

Heard a funny line at a seminar last night, and tought I'd pass it along. I'm sure you know someone like this..

I know some people who stopped to think, and didn't start up again....


Enjoy the day!
Rich

What a girls' soccer team can teach about business

I was watching my daughter's 10-and-under soccer team play last Saturday, and to say they weren't playing well would be quite an understatement. Not to say that there are any future Mia Hamm's on the team, but they were playing this game like it was their first time together. You know, when the coach starts out by saying "This is a ball. We can't use our hands." etc. etc. etc.

After watching them suffer their first defeat since Thanksgiving, it suddenly struck me. It's not that we think that the girls will win every game (although they've pretty much done that since forming in September), but we've come to expect a level of play from them. And when that level of play -- that consistency -- isn't there, the results are disappointing.

The same thing applies to business. How often do we return to do business with the same companies over and over and over again? Is it because they're the closest? The cheapest? Or maybe, just maybe, you get consistent service and quality from them. It's a comfort level that you've reached with them, for whatever reason.

Businesses spend thousands -- actually, probably millions -- of dollars a year trying to find out why consumers go to one store over another. I mean, is there really THAT much of a difference between McDonald's and Wendy's and Burger King? Probably not. And how about supermarkets? You could probably blindfold most people and they couldn't tell if they were inside a local Shop Rite or Acme (pronounced as three syllables in Philadelphia) or any other brand.

Usually, it comes down to that certain "something." Maybe the restrooms are cleaner. Maybe the lighting is better in the parking lot. Maybe it's the color scheme in the company's logo. Maybe your parents always shopped there. Whatever "it" is, the store has "it", and that makes it tough for you to change. Just like it makes us soccer parents tough to comprehend when our team doesn't play consistantly.

This is a ball. We kick the ball into the net. That's our goal.

And in business, our goal is to help you meet your goals as well. And hopefully, you like the color scheme in our logo...

The 13 best times to use ad specialties

To borrow from David Letterman, we tried to compile at "top 10" list of the best times to use ad specialties. Our problem was that we couldn't stop at 10.

Or 11.

Or even 12.

So here is the Top 13 Times to Use Promotional Items. We hope that this list will help you see the value of promotional items. Happy Reading!


1. To promote the opening of just about anything ... especially things "new". A new plant. A new office. A new store. A move to a new location. Plus, a new phone number, postal code, the addition of your web site, corporate E-mail address. If your marketplace will find anything about you "new", a specialty will help you get your message across.

2. To introduce a new product or a new service. Usually such intros are so important to a corporation upper level management is deeply involved. Maybe it involves a name change, a division change or addition, new people promoted to handle this new offering. Whatever it is, those who can buy what you sell need to know about it, and remember it.

3. To motivate and inspire your team. It could be motivation of your sales team or office staff, your independent reps, your plant workers, your store folks. Within a single department or company wide. It could be at a sales meeting, an annual meeting, a company picnic. And the reason doesn't matter either. People respond to an outreach. It is not about cost - it is about value.

4. To motivate your clients and prospects. To do what it is you want them to do. To "stroke" them into action. Specialties can improve your relations, and act as a goodwill tool, too. Everyone likes to receive a gift - you'll benefit when you give one to your customers.

5. To gain new business - to open new accounts. A specialty or premium can become your offer - the incentive to at least talk with you. Everything that comes in a tube, a box, a puffy bag gets opened - guaranteed 100% of the time. You will get an audience - at least long enough to tell or share your story. And frequently the "extra" encourages a sale. At least a trial. People respond to greed - which is not a bad thing - it is a fact. Offer a "thing" or "idea", and a certain group of your prospects will become customers.

6. To create an image, to demonstrate a capability, to build awareness, to position your organization in the minds of your audience. Each an "advertising" and "public relations" goal. Which, when repeated often, can become marketing and sales agents. Specialties and premiums by definition are kept, saved, used, seen, passed along ... rarely tossed. So, you are remembered when it is time to buy.

7. To develop traffic - usually trade show or retail store traffic. People traffic - from those who are most likely to be impressed and make a buying decision in your direction. The specialty can be mailed, hand-delivered, or offered on site when your prospect or customer visits. There are many options on what to offer, and how to make your presentation. The idea is to get more people to visit. A specialty or premium will help.

8. To activate inactive accounts. Most customers become non-customers from a lack of attention. A specialty sent through the mail, with a premium on the back-end when a new order is received, gives you an opportunity to gain back what you lost. Offer a benefit "extra", and many will respond.

9. To open new doors - to get into truly new accounts, places you have not been able to crack using conventional marketing and sales methods. You undoubtedly know of business you don't have, you should have. So, reach out with a unique, different, unusual approach - something others are not doing - offer an incentive. Initially for an appointment - later for a purchase.

10. To move - SELL! - product. At any level. Retail. Wholesale. Through dealers or distributors. Direct to end-users. Or up-front with manufacturers. Your product need not be a close-out item - or it might be. It could be end of season. It could be you have something new. Or, your promotion could be in response to something your competition is doing. Doesn't matter ... if you want to move products quickly, offer a specialty or premium ... and watch the results.

11. To balance in improper product mix. Inventory control is key to profits for many companies. And the best up front controls don't always work ... as the marketplace doesn't always respond the way they did last time. Use a specialty to gain attention - use a premium to pay off the sale.

12. To introduce new people. And to reward others. Up to this point we've talked mostly about places and things. Yet, it is people who are most important. It is people who make things happen. These people who interface with your customers are most important. Make sure they each know you care - make an offer, give a reward.

13. To say "thank-you" to anyone - everyone - for any reason. At any time In any place. What you offer is a demonstration of your caring. An appreciation for a job well done. A goal met. For being a leader - or a follower. For being loyal. For walking the extra mile. Or ... for just being!

Cool ideas

As I've mentioned before, there are two common questions we get from customers.

The first goes something like, "you say you can put my name on anything. How about XXXX?" And that usually means a piece of women's underwear or somehting else within that realm (and if you're really curious, the answer is "yes, we can.").

The second question is "what do you have that's new?" Here are two of the newest, coolest things I've seen. The first is a USB flash drive that has the additional security measure of fingerprint recognition.
http://www.allinoneline.com/ProductDetails.aspx?productID=379
Very tech-y.....very cool.

The second is imprinted rose petals. Yes, you read that right. You can get your company name imprinted on the petals of a living (well, it was at one time anyway) rose. Think about the impression (no pun intended) that would make on a business contact. They also sell more generic roses as well, for that special person in your life.
http://www.speakingroses.com/Default.aspx

I hope these help you see the unlimited possibilities of advertising specialties. If you want more ideas or information, feel free to drop me a line at: Rich.Bradley@proforma.com

Bad Marketing 101

My daughter went out trick-or-treating tonight, as did millions of other kids. One of the items she brought home confirmed that some people will stop at almost nothing to market themselves.

The item was a candy bar, which had the person's business card stapled to it. And, in case you were curious, the person was a Realtor. And this was given out at the Realtor's house, not in an office park or something like that. Uggh....

Not good. Not good at all....

Do you know someone who...?

One of the wonderful things about being a small business is that you get to interact with so many other business owners. And one common thread -- aside from always looking for new business -- is that they are always will to open their rolodex to you.

Referrals are an incredibly powerful tool for building a business. It's so much easier to do business with someone when you share something in common. Think about it -- the people you like to be with (even in non-business situations) are the people who share the most in common with, whether it be your taste in music, food, drink, entertainment, humor, hobbies, etc. The key word is comfort -- you feel at your best when you're comfortable with each other.

Talking that to the business world, think about the dreaded cold call. You call someone who isn't expecting your call (or who doesn't want it in the first place). They feel annoyed and intruded upon. You have about 1.2 seconds to try to convince them to stay on the phone for another 1.2 seconds.

Compare that to a call when the person says, "Hey Rich, Bob Smith asked me to give you a call." Bang....there's a level of comfort (provided, of course, that you like Bob Smith). That level of comfort is the power of a referral.

Don't be afraid to ask somone if they know someone who can help you out....whether it's finding someone to mow your lawn, fix your car, do your taxes or design a brochure, or find jackets for your son's football team. You may just find that you'll be very comfortable doing business with them.

I would be remiss if I didn't offer you the chance to join the referral group I'm in. For more information, go to www.referralmadness.net.

Thanks for the news, Mel

So Mel Gibson comes clean and tells the world that he's been sober for 65 days. Just wondering if that means in a row, or total in 2006? Hmmmmmm....

Mayonaise and coffee...yummy!

This was sent to me the other day. I thought it's message was very special, so I wanted to share it with you....



WHEN IS THE JAR FULL?
When things in your life seem almost too much to handle, when 24 hours in a day are not enough, remember the mayonnaise jar and the two cups of coffee.
A professor stood before his philosophy class and had some items in front of him. When the class began, he wordlessly picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill it with golf balls. He then asked the students if the jar was full. They agreed that it was.
The professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into the jar. He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles rolled into the open areas between the golf balls. He then asked the students again if the jar was full. They agreed it was.
The professor next picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar. Of course, the sand filled up everything else. He asked once more if the jar was full. The students responded with a unanimous "yes."
The professor then produced two cups of coffee from under the table and poured the entire contents into the jar effectively filling the empty space between the sand. The students laughed.
"Now," said the professor as the laughter subsided, "I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life. The golf balls are the important things – your faith, your family, your children, your health, your friends and your favorite passions –and if everything else was lost and only they remained, your life would still be full.
The pebbles are the other things that matter like your job, your house and your car.
The sand is everything else – the small stuff. "If you put the sand into the jar first," he continued, "there is no room for the pebbles or the golf balls. The same goes for life. If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff you will never have room for the things that are important to you.
"Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness. Play with your children. Spend time with your parents. Visit with grandparents. Take time to get medical checkups. Take your spouse out to dinner. Play another 18. There will always be time to clean the house and fix the disposal. Take care of the golf balls first – the things that really matter. Set your priorities. The rest is just sand."
One of the students raised her hand and inquired what the coffee represented.
The professor smiled. "I'm glad you asked. It just goes to show you that no matter how full your life may seem, there's always room for a couple of cups of coffee with a friend."

A worthwhile charity

As you may know, sports has been an integral part of my childhood, adult and professional life. I’d like to introduce you to a local charitable organization that I’ve recently been made aware of through a contact at Temple University. The organization is called Access Sports. They’re based in Philadelphia, in the Manayunk area.

In a nutshell, Access Sports is trying to provide access to a variety of sporting events in the Delaware Valley to at-risk children and youth groups, individuals with special needs and the economically disadvantaged. Basically, they are trying to introduce the excitement and enjoyment of sports to kids who may not get a chance to see a game or event on their own.

So how can you (and I) help them? This is what they are looking for. I lifted this from their website (www.access-sports.org):
Tickets to Sports Events
Marketing/Public Relations Services
A Digital Camera
Baseball Caps with Access Sports logo
Office Supplies
Disposable Cameras
Signed Sports Memorabilia
Your Help!
Your financial donations are greatly appreciated!

If your company has tickets to a game (Phillies, Riversharks, Temple football) that you know are going to go unused, please think about calling me or Access Sports to donate them (and get a tax break). Additionally, as you can see above, all kinds of office supplies are needed. Lastly, if you want to split the costs of getting any logo’ed items made up for them with your logo on it as well, I’ll do the job at cost.

Please take a few minutes to look over their website, and consider helping them out.

What's new?

"Hey Rich, what do you have that's new? I want something that's really hot; that's really gonna make my customers take notice."

It seems like everyone wants what's new, hot and different for their next promotion. But in reality, what's new usually isn't what's best for the customer. It's amazing that after a customer (or potential customer) asks a question like that, they usually end up buying one of three items -- clothing, pens or magnets. Why? Because what's new, hot and different didn't (or wouldn't) work for them. And in the world of printing and ad specialties, what you really want is something that will deliver your message in a low-cost, high-impact fashion.

As promotional products distributors, we receive literally hundreds of e-mails a week from companies showing off something new. There are shows (there are three in the Delaware Valley in September alone!) where manufacturers show off their latest and greatest. And there are always the new catalogs ("Over 500 new items this year!") to show off all kinds of interesting stuff.

So what are some of the cool, fun things available? How about a watch with a built-in flash drive? Or sunglasses with and MP3 player built in. Admittedly, both are very cool in a James Bond/Mission Impossible-type of way. But will they work for an insurance company, used car dealership or dental office? Probably not.

I received a sample of a bendable pen the other day. Kinda goofy, but it's easy to imagine the possibilities for any number of occupations -- chiropractor, accountant, physical therapist, anyone who works with children, etc. But just as important -- actually probably even important -- is the message that the pen conveys. A bendable pen that says "Jones Chiropractic" and a phone number isn't good. One that says "Jones Chiropractic -- we'll straighten you out" delivers a good message in a memorable fashion -- and isn't that what any business wants?

So the next time you're thinking about a promotional product, don't just ask what's new -- think about what works best for you.

Great quote

I saw this great quote in a chat room the other day. It'a wonderful thing for all people involved in sales to keep in mind.

“There is hardly anything in the world that some man can’t make a little worse and sell a little cheaper, and the people who consider price only are this man’s lawful prey.”
– John Ruskin, art and architecture critic

Have a great Friday!

What's that raised type called

One of the first questions a customer must make when getting business cards printed is whether they would like them printed with "flat" or raised ink. And usually they respond with a question of their own -- "what's the difference?"

In reality and price, there's usually no difference. One is not "better" than the other, nor is one "more professional" than the other. And it's pretty much split 50-50 between business that have raised print (or "thermography") or flat cards. So how do you choose?

If you have pictures, or lots of colors, or very small print on your cards then you almost have to go with regular printing. If you have just a few colors on your card, or maybe just a logo and some type, thermography may be a viable option for you.

So what exactly, is thermography? Thermography is the process of spreading thermal powders on wet ink and heating it in order to melt the powder into a single solid mass ,which is raised above the printed surface.

If you need more information, or if your boss might drop a pop quiz on you, I'd recommend checking out this site:

http://glossary.ippaper.com/default.asp?req=knowledge/article/154

In addition to business cards, thermography is also used on letterhead, envelopes and business cards. If you'd like to see samples of thermography, feel free to drop me an e-mail at: Rich.Bradley@proforma.com

That's it for now!

Freebie Fridays!

We're in the process of negotiating with some of our preferred vendors to get some free stuff to give away every Friday.

We haven't decided if it'll be done through a trivia contest or picking e-mails at random, or whatever. Details, details, details...

Stay tuned!

Welcome to our blog!

To help us stay better connected to you -- our friends, clients, customers and potential customers -- we've joined the World of Blogging. We intend to use this blog to pass along information about what we're doing, current promotions from suppliers, interesting news in the world of marketing, design and/or printing, as well as anything else that we think you may find interesting. We help to give you a reason to come back and visit us often, whether it's to find out what other companies may be doing, our take on the world of news, sports or movies, or to give you some "food for thought." All of this, with very few mentions of Paris Hilton!

If you have a suggestion for a topic you'd like to see addressed, please feel free to pass it along.