Almost a year after the initial shutdowns in the U.S., popular tourist destination cities are using branded safety efforts to attract visitors and ensure that they feel comfortable, helping bring back much-needed tourism dollars to businesses like hotels and restaurants. One example is Houston Clean, which initially launched in August…
Read MoreAuthor: Brendan Menapace
Amazon Expands ‘Gamified’ Employee Appreciation Program, But Some Workers Say ‘Swag Bucks’ Aren’t Enough
Amazon is set to expand its “FC Games” program that turns warehouse tasks into arcade-style video games. Designed to increase productivity while rewarding top performers with “swag bucks” redeemable for branded merchandise and other items, the program might actually be having a negative impact for some workers…
Read MoreUnlikely Promotional Marketing Lessons From Netflix’s ‘Canine Intervention’
We’ve had a lot of time to watch Netflix over the last few, uh, well, year. (We are now the foremost experts in the British Monarchy.) But our most recent Netflix watch, intended as a nice way to spend a rainy Saturday afternoon, actually turned into a lesson in branding and promotion for small businesses…
Read MoreA Year After Launch, SwagCycle Has Kept 60,000 Promo Products Out of Landfills and Raised $168K for Charity
In August 2019, Grossman Marketing Group launched its SwagCycle program, which let companies repurpose their unwanted or unused branded items. In its first year, the program engaged with 21 different companies, kept 60,418 items out of landfills and yielded $168,922.18 in charitable donations…
Read MorePeople Are Somehow Reselling Sealed Boxes of McDonald’s Promotional Pokemon Cards
We knew those Pokemon cards that McDonalds used as Happy Meal toys would end up on eBay and other resale sites. What we didn’t expect was to see entire boxes containing hundreds of packs sold while still sealed in the original boxes in which they were shipped…
Read MoreHow a Colorado Brewery Turned a Beer Label Typo Into a Win
The best thing you can do when you make a mistake is own up to it, maybe laugh about it a little, and do better next time. That’s exactly what Colorado brewery Snowbank Brewing did after can labels for its Aprés Ski Lager listed that the beer contained “seal salt” (rather than “sea salt”)…
Read More4imprint Revenue Dropped 35% in 2020, Profit Down 96%
4imprint this week announced its 2020 fiscal year results. According to Morningstar, the company’s revenue was down 35% to $560 million from $860 million. Specifically in North America, revenue fell 34%, and U.K. and Ireland revenue dropped 53%. The distributor also posted a 96% drop in annual pretax profit…
Read MorePeloton Reportedly Sold 600K Pieces of Branded Apparel Last Quarter, Announces Adidas Collaboration
Peloton CEO John Foley said the company sold 600,000 units of branded apparel last quarter alone. Peloton appears to have fully bought in to apparel, making it a cornerstone of its product offering to complement its exercise bikes. It should only reinforce that with an upcoming Adidas collaboration…
Read MoreBar Owner Defends ‘Kiss Me, I’m Contagious’ T-Shirts
If you saw a shirt, right now, in 2021, a year into the pandemic, that said “Kiss me, I’m contagious,” what would you think? Would you think it was a joke about COVID-19, or would you think, “Oh, contagious means fun. We’re fun. It’s a fun day.” One bar owner is hoping you’d go with the latter…
Read MoreOffice Depot Rejects Staples’ Latest Acquisition Offer
Office Depot parent company ODP Corp. rejected Staples’ latest acquisition offer yesterday, claiming that the offer “lacked basic deal terms including a purchase price.” Staples has been trying to purchase assets of Office Depot since 2015, when it was thwarted by the FTC…
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