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Friday
March 19, 2010 ASI Named a “Best Places to Work”Filed under: Community, News About ASI There’s no doubt tough times cause businesses to ask a great deal of employees. So it was especially gratifying to me that so many of our employees recently voted ASI one of the region’s “Best Places to Work.” Greater Philadelphia Media sponsored a contest to recognize top employers, based on employee nominations. Altogether, more than 100 local companies received nominations. In the end, ASI was nominated in nine categories and won the “Best Places to Work” award among companies with more than 200 employees. This week, our human resources department (pictured, along with me and ASI vice chairman Matthew Cohn) picked up the award and enjoyed a celebratory luncheon. We all share this award with Carol Albright, our SVP of HR, her team and everyone who works here. When employees talk about why they like working at ASI, they usually mention benefits like our on-site day care, training classes and wellness program, which rewards participants for things like going to the gym and stopping smoking. And four times a year, we recognize individual employees or teams for outstanding efforts and accomplishments. Not surprisingly, a lot of companies are cutting back on such programs, thinking it’s a way to save some money. But, as a recent story in ASI’s Successful Promotions magazine shows, companies are wise to continuously reinvigorate their incentive and recognition programs to keep loyal employees. ASI’s Counselor magazine also has “best places to work” competitions - for the promotional products industry - and you learn what past winners have done correctly in their profiles here. Let me know what your company does for its employees by posting a comment or emailing me here. I’m also on Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube.
Wednesday
March 17, 2010 The Secret to Success: Do What You LoveFiled under: Community, Members, News About ASI In a recent radio interview, I was asked about my early goals and how they helped me realize my dreams. In short, I live by a pretty simple guiding rule: do what you love.
As I told radio show host Herb Cohen, my family was on food stamps when I was young. But, that never stopped me from pursuing ambitious goals. After college, I left the great Midwest for New York City, starting out as a national copyreader for Dow Jones News Service - and ending up president and chief executive of Dow Jones Reuters Business Interactive. Under my management, Dow Jones was one of the first companies to provide business information to corporate desktops over the Internet. Today, I head a company that’s equally ambitious and forward-thinking. Here at ASI, digital products now make up 70% of our service lineup, up from 20% just a few short years ago. Our emphasis on cutting-edge technology - and an investment in the people who drive that technology - sets ASI apart and keeps us finely attuned to business today and the future. In a real sense, I’m still following the same dream I had as a kid: doing what I love. You can hear what I had to say about our industry during the Executive Leaders Radio interview, a weekly roundtable with executives and CEOs, live this Friday from 8-9 a.m., on WWDB Radio. Just click here to listen to the live stream of the show during that hour. Let me know your secrets to success by posting a comment or emailing me here. I’m also on Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube.
Wednesday
March 3, 2010 When Irish Eyes Are Shining, Promo Products Strike GoldFiled under: Community, Using Ad Specialties
Whether your tastes run to lucky shamrocks or tricked-out pints, there’s a product for you and your clients, along with plenty of ways to launch St. Paddy’s Day advertising campaigns throughout March. Joe “The Joe Show” Haley struck gold at the end of the rainbow with a new video featuring the products. Click here to watch the video and click here for photos and purchasing information. Here are the 7 luckiest promo products: 1. Irish Rubgy Shirt - Great for sports team promotions throughout March. 2. Shamrock Tattoo - Include these in themed mailings to college students. 3. Light-Up Bottle Ring - Partygoers will love getting this fun bonus from their local tavern. 4. Leprechaun Hat - Local restaurant servers and staffers can wear these to greet patrons. 5. Necktie with Shamrocks - The perfect business gift for customers at banks and offices. 6. Irish Pint Glass - A classy pewter emblem adorns this business-gift favorite for executives. 7. Plush Shamrock Toy - Daycare centers would enjoy giving these to children. Let me know what products you’re bringing to the party by posting a comment or emailing me here. And don’t drink too much green beer! I’m also on Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube.
Wednesday
February 24, 2010 Promo Products on the Charity Auction BlockFiled under: Community, News About ASI, Using Ad Specialties The administrative team at ASI - spearheaded by Carole Seymour - organized a silent auction to benefit the Bucks County chapter of the American Red Cross. Over two days, employees bid on an eclectic array of items furnished by the editorial department, from a glittery Obama T-shirt and turkey fryer to a golf bag and ukulele. The auction raised $1,447, with the highest bid going for the Obama shirt. Personally, I was angling for the ukulele. The auction is one effort among many. Since 2003, ASI has helped raise nearly $2 million in cash and goods for worthy causes. That amount includes $620,000 for the American Red Cross to assist hurricane victims, over $25,000 for the Adopt-A-Family program, five tons of donated items to food banks and homeless shelters, $60,000 to PPEF (an industry education fund), chairman Norman Cohn and his family’s efforts to raise about $1 million for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (http://www.cohnsisters.com/), and over $64,000 for a food bank I helped establish in my Indiana hometown of Hope. It’s gratifying to know that even when times are tough - perhaps especially when times are tough - we can count on each other to help those in need. What charities are you or your company involved in? Let me know by posting a comment or emailing me here. I’m also on Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube.
Monday
February 15, 2010 Blog On! Stitches’ Social Media Site Scores Major RecognitionFiled under: Community, News About ASI These days, just about anyone can blog - but it’s pretty hard to create a social media site that serves a real purpose and actually gets people communicating. For these reasons - and many more - Stitches magazine’s social media site was recently nominated for a 2010 Jesse H. Neal Award. The magazine’s editor and social media master is Nicole Rollender, who created the site in 2008. The Neal Awards, established in 1955 to recognize and reward editorial excellence in business media publications, are considered the “Pulitzer Prize of the business media.” Stitches is nominated in the category of “Best editorial use of social media.” I’m sure the Stitches entry stood out because it’s clear Nicole is a hands-on editor, posting blog entries, videos and other content that helps readers and routinely sending email blasts alerting them to new features and chat times. She’s a familiar presence on the site, chatting with readers at all hours. Celebrating its 23rd year, Stitches magazine is the voice and vision of the embroidery industry. The site Nicole created for readers has a growing audience of 1,500 members, including embroiderers, screen printers, machine technicians, distributors, suppliers, digitizers and apparel designers. The ultimate goal, she says, is an online hub where Stitches readers can connect in real time and feel like they’re part of a community. Members can reach out, network, post questions and photos and discover new trends and fresh ideas that can help them grow their business. To check it out, sign in at www.stitchesmagsocialsite.com. And let me know how social networking is helping your business by posting a comment or emailing me here. Of course, I’m also on Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube.
Thursday
January 7, 2010 ASI Names Members of Advisory BoardsFiled under: Community, Industry Initiatives, Members, News About ASI A new era of industry leadership is upon us, thanks to the men and women who stepped-up and accepted a position on ASI’s latest advisory boards. I applaud all of you! Click here for the complete list of all new members. Hundreds of ASI member companies did their part by voting during the online balloting period to help choose leaders of the boards. Here is a sampling of the new members: The ASI Advisory Board –
Marketing, Public Relations & Industry Research Advisory Board –
The Safety & Legislative Advisory Board –
Technology & Operations Advisory Board –
The effort doesn’t stop here. I encourage everyone to share their thoughts and ideas with ASI, and especially with these new board members, as we move forward into a new year and confront and conquer fresh challenges. Tell me what you would do to improve the industry by posting a comment or emailing me here. I’m also on Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube.
Tuesday
December 22, 2009 Vote Now For New Advisory Board MembersFiled under: Community, Industry Initiatives, News About ASI Voting is now open to select members of ASI’s four new ASI advisory boards. To vote, simply click here by Thursday, December 31, and follow the on-screen instructions. Final board members will be announced in January. The four new boards are: * ASI Advisory Board * Technology and Operations Advisory Board * Marketing, Public Relations and Industry Research Advisory Board * Safety and Legislative Advisory Board So make it an early New Year’s resolution to vote today. And let me know what you think of the candidates by posting a comment or emailing me here. I’m also on Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube. |
