What Can We Learn from Ketchup?

Anticipation …

At the risk of dating myself, when I think of the word anticipation, my thoughts drift toward the classic Heinz Ketchup commercial. This commercial with a Carly Simon song as a music backdrop, speaks to the anticipation of thick, rich, Heinz Ketchup as it slowly drips from the bottle.

Read More

Become a Better Strategic Partner by Helping Your Clients Plan

The promotional products industry for decades has bred reactive salespeople. As I have interviewed top performers over the years, one trait seems to surface more times than not. It’s not the verbalizing of having “great customer service,” no, it’s actually putting that statement into practice well beyond what most would consider good customer service.

Read More

Duck Dynasty: The Dangers of Tying Your Brand to Celebrities

For years companies and brands have been in love with the notion of associating their brands with celebrities. But, before you decide to partner with a celebrity, be they musician, actor, reality show star or athlete, it’s a good idea to weigh the advantages and disadvantages.

Read More

Is Experience the Enemy of Innovation?

One of my former marketing professors at a large, local university recently asked me to help judge upper-level marketing presentations with other area marketing professionals. The small, group presentations were based on either a product introduction or a new marketing plan for a small business facing an issue.

Read More

Trade Shows Are Forever: A Be Bold, Be Different, Be Memorable Thriller

The scent and sweat and stale-roasted almond stench of a trade show at 3:00 p.m. can be deadly. Greene was trying to get out of the massive hall without being spotted by an enemy … or an ex-girlfriend. Someone came up behind him from a darkened booth. Greene felt something cold and hard press into the small of his back. A gun muzzle?

Read More

The “Aha!” Moment That Can Triple Your Business

Making the leap from $300,000, $400,000 or $500,000 in sales to becoming a multimillion dollar distributor can take some hard reflecting, tough choices and most importantly lots of planning. What it comes down to is this: Are you willing to go outside your comfort zone, pursue major accounts and challenge your sales team to follow suit?

Read More

Crank It, Baby!

Hi there, all you Bold, Different and Memorable Sales-Type People. Ponder this scenario with me, won’t you?
It’s December 26 and the fourth quarter of 2013 is one week away from entering the history books …

Read More

Meeting Clients Where They Are

Promotional marketing is at its best when it empowers a client’s brand, meets his or her objectives and fits within a specified budget. It is at this point that the focus shifts from offering options to providing solutions, which goes hand in hand with solving a client’s problems—some of which they might not even know they have.

Read More

Apparel with Live Moving Animation is Here, and It’s Pretty Cool

Bloomberg Businessweek recently reported on a new apparel company animating T-shirts by cutting holes in the artwork, then placing smartphones or tablets behind the opening and configuring them so an animation would play. Is this a technology you could apply to your apparel marketing?

Read More