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Thursday
May 19, 2011 Honoring Marty LottFiled under: ASI Shows, News About ASI No question, this is industry is populated with a lot of outrageous characters. You know who you are! And then there’s Marty Lott, the quietly assured president of Top 40 apparel supplier SanMar – and Counselor’s just-named 2011 Person of the Year. I think you can tell a lot about someone by the way they handle a crisis. A big reason why we chose to honor Marty at Wednesday night’s Counselor Awards in San Diego is for the way he managed his company throughout the recent cotton crisis. His undisputed leadership abilities were also on full display while tackling inventory issues affecting so many in the industry. These are but two fine examples in a long career chock full of inspiring moments. Click here to view Counselor‘s Person of the Year profile of Marty Lott. We had a terrific time at the black-tie awards ceremony, held for the first time at the awe-inspiring San Diego Air & Space Museum. In addition to honoring Marty and our International “Person” of the Year, Billy Dolan and Vivian Lo of Camsing Global, Counselor magazine unveiled its annual Top 40, the ranking of the largest suppliers and distributors in the industry. This year’s distributor list is headed up by Staples Promotional Products (asi/120601) and the supplier Top 40 is lead by Norwood (asi/74400) & BIC Graphic North America (asi/40480). Click here to view the 2011 Top 40 distributors and click here to see the Top 40 suppliers. Click here to see photos of all the action. Today is the first day of exhibits at the San Diego show and tonight we’ve got comic Wayne Brady live on stage. Friday promises to be another action-packed day. And then it’s on to Chicago, July 19-21. If you’re at the show, let me know what you’ve seen and done by posting a comment or emailing me here. I’m also on Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube.
Wednesday
May 18, 2011 Happy Happens in San DiegoFiled under: ASI Shows, News About ASI We’re here in San Diego, enjoying the first day of the ASI Show in the most active industry region in the country. Participating companies represent nearly $2 billion in industry sales and I can assure you that everyone is charged up and ready to network, learn and sell. In addition to strong distributor attendance, the California show is attracting a majority of the Counselor Top 40 suppliers to the San Diego Convention Center today through Friday. San Diego really has it all – gorgeous ocean views and incredible sunsets, the famous San Diego zoo (you can see Hua Mei, the only panda cub in the U.S., on the zoo’s pandacam), the Gaslamp Quarter, Old Town and Balboa Park cultural center. Thursday, show participants can enjoy comic master Wayne Brady. I saw Wayne on Drew Carey’s new comedy show Improv-A-Ganza last week and he was as outrageously talented as ever. I can’t wait to see what he brings to our show. Hopefully, lots of audience participation. Despite California’s reputation for sunshine, today it’s in the low 60s and rainy, just like it is back East. But with its typically great weather, miles of sandy beaches and major attractions, San Diego has a secure reputation as an ace tourist destination, which makes it a great place to host a trade show. We’re opening with Education Day, sponsored by Fields Manufacturing (asi/54100), which includes a brand-new Social Media Marketing track along with a full slate of educational seminars and workshops with 65 points available toward the ASI Certification Program. Tonight, for the first time, the black-tie Counselor Awards – the industry’s most prestigious and anticipated awards event – will be held at the San Diego Air and Space Museum. We’ll honor Counselor’s 2011 Person of the Year, International Person of the Year and the outstanding sales achievement of the Top 40 distributors and Top 40 suppliers in the industry. We’ll post all the winners and photos from the event at www.asicentral.com so even if you’re not with us in California, you can check out all the action. It’s not too late to catch an ASI Show – you can register now for ASI Show in Chicago, July 19-21, at www.asishow.com. To learn more about exhibiting or sponsorship opportunities, contact Karen DiTomasso, vice president of sales, at kditomasso@asicentral.com. If you’re with us in San Diego, let me know what you think so far by posting a comment or emailing me here. I’m also on Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube.
Monday
May 16, 2011 On The Road – AgainFiled under: ASI Shows, News About ASI If there’s a frequent flyer king, I’m betting its Nick DiNicola, the general manager of the Advantages Roadshow. Over the years, the Willie Nelson of roadshow warriors has easily logged more than a half million miles criss-crossing the U.S. and Canada with the industry’s best-attended traveling show. This year, the roadshow’s 12-week schedule took Nick from Vancouver to Ft. Lauderdale, San Diego to Montreal, and nearly 70 cities in between. By the tour’s end last week, more than 6,000 distributors had attended a show, making vital contacts sure to pay off in new orders. Now, Nick’s on a much-deserved break from the road, but it won’t last too long. The ASI Holiday Preview Tour rolls into Los Angeles, Toronto, Atlanta and Philadelphia this fall. The show features leading ad specialty suppliers showcasing their seasonal products in a tabletop setting, along with free hot-topic education focused on ways to boost your revenue along with valuable networking. I know it’s tough to think about the holidays when you’ve yet to throw your first BBQ, but registering for the holiday preview tour is a surefire way to guarantee those all-important holiday sales. To exhibit, suppliers can call their ASI Show sales rep at 800-546-3300 or contact Nick directly at ndinicola@asicentral.com. Speaking of BBQs, what summer products are on your radar? Let me know by posting a comment or emailing me here. I’m also on Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube.
Thursday
May 5, 2011 We Got HimFiled under: Community, Industry Initiatives, Using Ad Specialties One thing our industry does exceptionally well is jump on breaking waves and ride them right to shore. This week, companies like Northwest Embroidery in Washington state did just that. Northwest sprang into action within hours of bin Laden’s death to embroider Navy SEAL Team 6 hats and get them up on their website. The company knew Sunday’s feat by the elite military squad would fuel interest in all things patriotic. So did Matt Quinn, owner of Quinn Flags and Banners in Hanover, Pennsylvania, whose phones started ringing Monday morning. Quinn says his sales increased about 400% this week – and that his company was ready to meet all comers. “We have over 3 million flags in stock today and more are being produced daily,” says Quinn (asi/80228). Other popular items include decorative pleated fans, patriotic bunting and American stick flags imprinted with a client’s name or website. Gill Studios (asi/56950) of Kansas, has five new stock design bumper stickers and a ribbon magnet along with American flags – and 10% of proceeds from the sales of these items will be donated to a very good cause, the Wounded Warrior Project, a non-profit that aids injured service men and women of this generation. Did your company see a spike in sales of patriotic items – or produce anything Osama-related? Pinata Casa, a Texas promo products company (asi/73969) that offers 4-foot-tall piñatas (perfect for Cinco de Mayo promotions!), sold more $50 bin Laden piñatas in the last few days than they’ve sold in the last year. “Osama is one of our most popular piñatas,” Gerald Zhou told us. Sometimes, it really is all about timing and knowing when to strike when the iron is hot. Just like the Navy SEALs did. I’d never heard of SEAL Team 6 until Sunday, but according to the New York Times, SEALs – which stands for Sea-Air-Land teams – were created by JFK in 1962 as a way to expand unconventional warfare. Their specialty is using lethal force intelligently in the most dangerous missions on earth. The “elite of the elite” are the guys who parachute from 30,000 feet with oxygen masks to take back hijacked cruise liners – the guys who jump from Black Hawk helicopters in the dead of night to find and dispatch Public Enemy No. 1 in all of 40 minutes. Incredible. Let me know if your company did anything special this week by posting a comment or emailing me here. I’m also on Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube.
Wednesday
April 27, 2011 ASI Spreads the NewsFiled under: Industry Initiatives, Media Coverage, News About ASI If you were in Times Square recently, you could have looked up at one of the world’s largest digital signs and seen a 32-foot-tall ad for promo products. The ad featured a planter can with seeds and soil packet that allows users to grow herbs inside. It’s from Points of Light Inc. (asi/78825) and was among 11 eco-friendly items featured in an ASI press release we issued before Earth Day. We then posted the release headline and photo in Times Square. The 11 screens on the Reuters building that make up the “Reuters sign” (pictured, right) where they were displayed occupy more than 7,400 square feet in Times Square, which receives over 1.5 million impressions daily and annual visits by 30 million tourists. As far as advertising real estate goes, Times Square is a pretty prime piece of the pie. The release and the Times Square display are just part of the many efforts ASI makes to publicize our industry. Every month, we issue an average of six press releases, which enjoy potential circulation of 200 million cities across America, as well as Europe, India, Australia and beyond. In the last year alone, ASI and the promo products industry have been featured on TV stations in New York City, Dallas, San Diego, Chicago and Arizona. And some of you might be interested in a story that just came out in Expo magazine on show and event executives in our industry selected for the mag’s very first list of “Expo Elite.” It was an honor for me to be included on the list, but what I found most useful were the stories and strategies from other professionals. Hopefully you’ll discover some ideas for your own organization. If you have any ideas on other ways ASI might spread the news about our industry, post a comment or email me here. I’m also on Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube.
Monday
April 25, 2011 Keep Calm and Marry OnFiled under: Using Ad Specialties Everyone loves a wedding, right? But there’s no question a walk down the aisle costs money. On average, couples spend $24,066 on wedded bliss – and that’s minus the cost of the honeymoon and engagement ring. Lucky for England’s William and Kate, much of the bill for their royal union is being paid by the Queen, the Prince of Wales and the Middletons. Taxpayers, however, must foot the cost of security, which some say could be the costliest in history, considering the number of royals, senior politicians, VIPs and diplomats expected. It seems everyone – including the promo products industry – is jumping on the wedding bandwagon. As ASI’s Counselor magazine reports from London, Friday’s nuptials are causing a royal run on wedding-related memorabilia and promotional products. Click here to read the Counselor story on the promotional trend and click here for a reporter’s blog with photos of some of the products. This week, the “Joe Show” featured some of the many wedding products our reporter tracked down and shipped back to the states, including a commemorative booklet, tea cup, heart-shaped compact and even ashtray. My favorites are the Wills and Kate masks I’m sure Joe will be wearing Friday morning when he tunes into the wedding along with about 2 billion others. Click here to watch the special edition “Joe Show.” Counselor’s reporter interviewed a number of manufacturers and distributors about the mugs, plates, commemorative pens, William & Catherine compacts, ashtrays and even shot glasses available for sale. For those in need of a laugh, there’s even a commemorative plate reading “Thanks for the free day off,” a “Keep Calm and Marry On” poster and “Kiss Me Kate” beer. Lucy Stuart, co-owner of Norfolk, UK-based distributor S R Print and Design, says the breadth of products available makes this occasion the biggest for promotional product consumer sales since the change of the millennium in 2000. The Telegraph newspaper reports the sale of royal wedding merchandise altogether could top $42.5 million. Are you planning to get up at 4 a.m. to watch events unfold? If so, post a comment or email me here. I’m also on Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube.
Friday
April 22, 2011 Get Creative and Go, Green, GoFiled under: Members, News About ASI, Using Ad Specialties How many of you remember the very first, few Earth Day products like the dim light bulbs and the costly laundry detergent that didn’t really clean your clothes? Now, more than 40 years on, nearly every major store carries a fleet of great “green” products and gas-friendly cars like the Prius can be found in every neighborhood. The promotional products industry has done its part as well, serving up terrific eco-friendly products that make everyone feel good about saving our planet. They’re competitively priced or offer enough value that consumers don’t mind shelling out a little bit more. And it’s a no-brainer that companies branding themselves via green promo products send a direct “We care” signal to end-buyers. This year, in what’s become our annual list of go-green promo products, we put an emphasis on finding items that make creative use of recycled materials, like recycled paper turned into coolers, bike chains crafted into picture frames, billboards made into bags and garden litter transformed into journals. “The Joe Show” also jumped on the bandwagon and devoted an entire segment to creative giveaways that can appeal to everyone, “crunchy” or not. Click here for a YouTube “Joe Show” demo of the products and read on for our Earth Day hot list:
Let me know how your company promotes Earth Day concepts all year long by posting a comment or emailing me here. I’m also on Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube. |
