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Wednesday
April 7, 2010 Green is Good: The Green Catalog is HereFiled under: Community, Industry Initiatives, News About ASI “Going green” can mean a lot of different things, from buying organic produce at your local supermarket to overhauling your company so it’s as energy efficient as possible. “Green” is such a hot concept, 4 in 5 small to medium size businesses now offer some sort of green products or services. Here at ASI, during the month the world celebrates Earth Day, we’re issuing our 2010 edition of The Green Catalog, which consistently sells out, year after year. These days, environmentally-conscious buyers want green products that are useful – and clever – and this catalog really delivers. Inside, you’ll discover more than 120 eco-friendly items, ranging from seed packets to products made from fast-growing and renewable bamboo (it grows up to 4 feet a day!). Flip through and you’ll find pencils made from recycled tires, water-powered clocks, stapleless staplers and even watches powered by a mercury-free battery. Want to reach a music loving audience? Try the seeded music download cards. Download your tunes – then plant the card in the ground and watch it grow. A price index in the back of the catalog makes it easy to choose products to match any client budget. Products are also grouped by easy-to-use categories, including food and drink, outdoors, trade shows, bags and briefcases, clocks and watches, office, sports, travel, and home. The book ships free from now until April 15, and a free digital version comes with the print purchase. The front of each copy can be imprinted in full color with the distributor’s logo and contact information, and ASI offers this feature year-round. And in further response to the ever-growing demand for eco-friendly products, ASI now features a pavilion at our five super-regional trade shows dedicated to showcasing only green products. To order The Green Catalog online and to see sample pages, click here. The catalog – circulation 135,000 – has already sold over 100,000 copies, so don’t wait too long to order yours. And let me know what green products are working for you by posting a comment or emailing me here. I’m also on Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube.
Tuesday
April 6, 2010 Real Estate Mogul Tells It Like It IsFiled under: ASI Shows, Community Barbara Corcoran is a natural-born storyteller with a million-dollar attitude. Tuesday, she dished out valuable bits of business advice on ASI Internet Radio along with gems from her incredible rags-to-riches rise. One of 10 children raised in a 2-bedroom flat, Corcoran had nothing to lose and nowhere to go but up when a customer at the diner she worked at lent her $1,000 and told her she’d make a great real estate agent. She parlayed that initial investment into a multi-million-dollar real estate business. This from a woman who didn’t even read until the 7th grade. After this interview, I’m happier than ever Corcoran is our keynote speaker at the first ASI Women’s Summit in New York City on Tuesday, May 4. Register by Friday and save $100. And if you missed this morning’s interview, check it out online by clicking here. To succeed, she told listeners, play the confidence game. Convincing herself she had a right to as much success as possible gave her the confidence to knock on Donald Trump’s door early in her career. Or take a page from Corcoran’s memoir, “If You Don’t Have Big Breasts, Put Ribbons on Your Pigtails,” and use whatever advantage you have available. Want to build buzz about your business? Publish a trend report (which can be as simple as “9 out of 10 teens choose blue as their favorite tee shirt color”) and pitch a stat-laden story to the press. Better yet, get quoted as an industry expert on a blog or in the newspaper. “The press is the golden chalice,” she said. “Use the press to build your brand. The little guy has the corner on creativity.” Corcoran also advised listeners to always be honest “because people can see through baloney a mile away and truthfulness breeds trust.” To move product, make salespeople feel like winners. She once motivated her sales force to sell more million-dollar homes by handing out big gold ribbons imprinted with “million dollars.” Recognition, she said, “is the name of the game in motivating salespeople.” To get an even better idea of the kind of advice she’ll hand out at the summit, check out Corcoran’s weekly report on the real estate market on NBC’s “Today Show.” She’s also an investor/shark on ABC’s reality hit TV show “Shark Tank.” No matter how she delivers her message, you can be sure Corcoran will tell it like it is. What piece of advice motivates you? Let me know by posting a comment or emailing me here. I’m also on Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube.
Thursday
April 1, 2010 How’s Health Care Affecting Your Business?Filed under: Healthcare No matter what you think of recent health care legislation, there’s no question it’s raised a number of key issues for businesses. Here at ASI, we held an all-company meeting recently to explain particulars of our health care plan’s annual renewal for our staff. How is your business responding? In our own industry, we’ve posted an online poll on the right side of asicentral.com asking if you’re concerned that the new health care bill will further limit your ability to sell items to pharma companies and medical device manufacturers. So far, 54% say “yes.” These and other issues critical to our industry even prompted ASI senior vice president Dale Denham to travel to Washington, D.C. with 30 other ad specialty professionals to lobby Congress. Along with health care, the group discussed recent legislation limiting the number of reporting exceptions granted to drug and medical device companies regarding payments and gifts to doctors. Companies must now report any gifts or payments made to doctors that are individually worth more than $10 or collectively worth more than $100 in one year. Further, starting in 2013, all payment disclosures will appear on a public website. Dale says one of the most important take-backs for him is the importance of letting representatives know how you feel about any and all legislation impacting our industry. He suggests you write, call or — better yet — visit their office in person. Find your senator here. This week, Congress adjourned for its two-week Easter recess, which means many of your representatives are in their home district. Drop by their office and let them know your thoughts. How is your company responding to the health care legislation? Let me know by posting a comment or emailing me here. I’m also on Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube.
Monday
March 29, 2010 ASI Heads Back to VegasFiled under: ASI Shows, Industry Initiatives, News About ASI ASI is shaking up Las Vegas this September with a newly-announced Holiday Preview trade show at the Sands Expo Center. We tweaked a previous show in response to requests from suppliers and distributors who wanted a more intimate format. The show takes place Monday and Tuesday, September 13-14, and presents a terrific networking forum to learn what’s new for the holiday selling season. In addition, we’ll offer several educational and networking opportunities, including the acclaimed “New Distributor Success Track” for newbies, an “Exhibitor Presents” session for select exhibitors to present their hot new products for 2010, tabletop exhibits and a closing networking reception. The Vegas show is similar to our very successful Advantages Roadshow — our traveling tabletop show — and the format provides a platform for exhibitors to meet on a personal level with prospects and clients. Distributors may register now for the ASI Holiday Preview at asishow.com. Suppliers interested in exhibiting at the ASI Holiday Preview should contact Karen DiTomasso, vice president of sales, at 800-546-3300 or at kditomasso@asicentral.com. It’s never too soon to start thinking about the holiday selling season so let me know your thoughts by posting a comment or emailing me here. I’m also on Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube.
Monday
March 29, 2010 Sign Up Now for the ASI Women’s SummitFiled under: ASI Shows, Guest Blog, News About ASI We’ve been busy, with our recent virtual trade show and the launch of the new ESP Web and ESP Orders – hopefully you were “at” the show. I want to let you know we’ve got more up our sleeves, including a new event in the works – the ASI Women’s Summit. It’s happening at the Millennium Broadway Hotel in New York City, on Tuesday, May 4, during the ASI Show New York. This exclusive action-packed afternoon will provide an environment for women to network and share ideas with women leaders, peers and executives in the advertising specialty industry. We’ll have a networking reception with beverages and hors d’oeuvres, and a luncheon keynote by Barbara Corcoran. Barbara parlayed a $1,000 loan into a $5 billion real estate business, and she now runs one of the most successful real estate firms in New York City. The lunch will be followed by coffee and dessert with promotional products industry expert, Rosalie Marcus, The Promo Biz CoachTM. Rosalie will lead an interactive discussion about how women in our industry can leverage their strengths to build their businesses. There’s much more, and you’re sure to leave this Summit with new ideas you can immediately apply at your company in the second half of the year. Register by this Wednesday, March 31, and the cost of the event is only $149; after that it’s $249. To register and to learn more, click here. I look forward to seeing you in New York! -Dana Dana Reaume is education coordinator for ASI – reach her at dreaume@asicentral.com.
Wednesday
March 24, 2010 Top 10 Giveaways for Earth DayFiled under: Industry Initiatives, Using Ad Specialties
Here at ASI, we’re getting in the spirit with our very first “Top 10 Eco-Friendly Earth Day Giveaways” list – out today. More companies than ever before are using eco-friendly giveaways to promote their commitment to the environment. Editors of Counselor magazine searched for creative giveaways in ESP (our exclusive promo products database) and found marketers snatching up everything from notebooks made of elephant poo to shower timers to paper embedded with wildflower seeds. Here’s the list: 1. Elephant-Poo Notebook – The ultimate recycled item, great for colleges and trade shows. You might think elephant-poo products are just a clever-sounding marketing gimmick. Think again. Since the paper uses no trees, it’s perfect for eco-conscious buyers. Such products continue to pick up steam, including dinnerware made from bamboo, which grows up to four feet a day and is 100% biodegradable! To see photos of the products and purchasing information for each, and to watch a video with the editor of Counselor magazine featuring the items, visit asicentral.com/earth. What does your company do to help the environment? Let me know by posting a comment or emailing me here. I’m also on Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube.
Wednesday
March 24, 2010 Virtual Trade Show Attracts Nearly 1,500Filed under: ASI Shows, Education We just completed our first virtual trade show of 2010 this week, and nearly 1,500 attendees visited, did business, went to education sessions, and learned about the new ESP Web and ESP Orders. ASI is the only company in the industry to offer distributors and suppliers a way to go to a trade show while drinking your coffee in the office. You can enjoy an archived version of this week’s show through this Friday, at www.asicentral.com/vts. Feel free to forward the link to anyone. It’s free. Be sure to join us for our next virtual trade show on Wednesday, April 28 – and there are two more after that one yet this year. They provide a great way to network online, and I strongly encourage you to attend at least one if you can. You’ll love it. |
