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Thursday
February 25, 2010 Photos From the ASI Show San DiegoFiled under: Uncategorized While we here in the Philly area suffer through Snowmageddon Part III, my pal Joan Chaykin is basking in the lovely California weather at the ASI Show San Diego. She also brought along a camera to further rub in just how nice it is out there on the Left Coast. Joan, this ain’t helpin’ us! Anyway, enjoy the pics …
Gotta be California …
Two clowns and a red snapper fish head. Nice.
Ahhh, California sunsets.
Giant statue of the sailor and nurse in that famous kiss pose.
Melinda and Kathy on the entrance to the Gaslight District.
Group shot posing with Andy. Strangely, we all think it looks like we’re visiting Andy (one of the youngsters) in the old-age home “Wave hi to the camera Andy!”
USS San Diego.
USS Midway.
Anchors aweigh!
Statue of Bob Hope entertaining the troops.
Southern California!
CJ and Matt.
Gaslamp Quarter.
Tuesday
February 23, 2010 Got A Favorite Promotional Product?Filed under: contest
Yes, it’s actually quite an interesting and fun industry. Anyway, we here are ASICentral want to know, What Is Your Favorite Promotional Product? And we’re encouraging you to upload images of your favorite promotional product to our Facebook page (NOTE: chance for egregious self-promotion!) for a future vote. In a few weeks we’ll post all the products to our Facebook fans and let them decide which one is the best one. So, go to our Facebook page now and upload an image of your fave promotional product, tell us a little bit about it, and you’ll be automatically entered in the contest. (Not a fan yet? Just click the “Become A Fan” link at the top of the page.) And if you’re wondering what the spoils are, it’s bragging rights, a blog writeup and a mention in our newsletters! That’s all folks! – Buggsy
Friday
February 19, 2010 About Tony Robbins …Filed under: General
Sure, they were lovely and big and bright, but why would I always wake to them? Did Tony Robbins own the late-night infomercial market? Well, if you grew up in the ’80s and had, like, only a handful of stations, then yeah, I think he did! Anyway, my first impression of Tony Robbins was of an annoyingly verbose, albeit well-spoken, talking head who seemed to have an excellent grasp of what he was talking about, though I never listened. I was too fixated on his bleached teeth, and so I just didn’t like him. But in the early 2000s, he appeared in the movie Shallow Hal with Jack Black — the movie where i not only discovered how ginormous Robbins is, but also that he has “banana hands” — and a newfound respect was born. He played himself in the movie and really came across as endearing and genuinely interested in helping others help themselves. Since I joined ASI in 2007, Tony Robbins has been a keynote speaker at one of our ASI Shows and is set to be the keynoter next week at our San Diego show and, though I’m not going, I really wish I could. Because from what people have told me from the last time Tony appeared at a show, he’s really something special. So if you’re going to the ASI Show San Diego next week, but aren’t going to see Tony Robbins, then I need to ask … what’s wrong with you!!? It’s FREE!!! And all you gotta do is click here to register! And if you simply can’t make it, I’ll be glad to go in your place. – deezTV
Monday
February 15, 2010 Tip of the Day - 7 Niche Markets to Target SwimwearFiled under: Tip of the Day Stitches magazine found seven cool niche markets that want decorated swim gear now. 1. Pro sports. Lori Coulter, president and CEO of Lori Coulter LLC (asi/46771), says professional sports teams in the NFL and Major League Baseball are buying bikinis – but fortunately, not for the players. “We get a lot of requests from cheerleading teams, particularly for professional teams,” she says. “They may do a calendar and need everybody in the same swimsuit.”
3. Fishing. Stan Rudman, a principal owner of Sportailor Inc. (asi/88796), has taken advantage of the fishing industry’s newfound interest in swimwear via one of its brands, Hook and Tackle Outfitters. “The fishing guys are wearing boardshorts,” he says. “My company came out with boardshorts for the fishing industry, but added features to make it fit into that industry, like utility pockets. They can also be sold to beach stores.” 4. High schools. John Amsterdam, president of Neet Feet Inc. (asi/73525), says flip-flops have come a long way in terms of popularity, both in swimwear and in general fashion. “At first they started as a novelty,” he says. “They’ve become more mainstream and visible, from celebrities wearing them to the Northwestern University championship women’s lacrosse team showing up at the White House with flip-flops.” 5. High fashion. Who knew that flip-flops are high fashion? “We do private-label projects for retail customers,” Amsterdam says. “One of our biggest customers is a top New York City fashion designer and we do flip-flops for his retail stores.” 6. Lifeguards. At municipal swimming pools, lifeguards have always been a popular target in terms of swimwear, but Gulbenkian says business is picking up in this area. “This has been a growing market,” he says. “Drownings are up, and people are a lot more safety-conscious. What’s the first safety item at a pool? It’s the lifeguard, just as the policeman is the first safety item downtown.” 7. Swim teams. “The competitive swim-team market grew a little bit after the Olympics and Michael Phelps, no question,” Gulbenkian says. “What is growing is a solid swimsuit with the individual team logo on it.” From Stitches’ February 2010 cover story, “Suit Up“
Friday
February 12, 2010 Tip of the Day - Be A Top SellerFiled under: Tip of the Day Three tips on how to be a top seller:
From Counselor magazine.
Thursday
February 11, 2010 SNOWMAGEDDON!Filed under: General Philly and the surrounding suburbs are currently experiencing Snowmageddon 2010 (definition: 20+ inches of snow followed by 20+ more inches of snow 4 days later), and we had a rare day off yesterday. So I threw the gauntlet down to the folks in Editorial and asked them to send me their best snow pics. I’m proud to say they didn’t disappoint … Enjoy! – DEEZ
Friday
February 5, 2010 10 Sexiest Valentine Promo ProductsFiled under: Uncategorized Queue Barry White’s Greatest Hits and light some candles … Introducing ASI’s inaugural list of the Top 10 Sexiest Promotional Products! Looking for a hot idea for a Valentine’s Day promotional giveaway or business gift? Look no further! From chocolate lips (#5) wrapped in red foil, to contrasting color thongs (#4), this list is smmmokin’ hot!! Want to know which product is the hottest?! Check out the list here, and read more about it in today’s press release. And as an added bonus, watch a special edition of The Joe Show, where our very own Joe Haley shows us some of the products on this year’s list. Just click on the video below and enjoy!
– BarryWhite’sGhost
Wednesday
February 3, 2010 Tip of the Day - Cold CallingFiled under: Tip of the Day Make your cold calls brief, no more than two to three minutes and be focused on understanding the prospect’s needs at a high level so you can provide them with a compelling reason to spend some time with you, and most importantly, getting the appointment.
Tuesday
February 2, 2010 Poll Results: Tiger Woods’ WoesFiled under: Poll Results, Uncategorized Fore! Look out, Tiger Woods - according to our latest poll results, your brand is in trouble. If our latest survey is any indication about how the shamed professional golfer’s image will affect the sale of his products in this industry, then there’s a long road ahead for the marketers who deal in Tiger Woods’ merchandise. Earlier this year, I posted the following question: Are you less likely to sell Tiger Woods branded products to your clients in light of recent news? The answer options were simply: Yes, No and Maybe. Being from the old school, I immediately thought the answers would be predominantly “No”, that people would be more likely to buy and sell these products due to the meteoric rise in media scrutiny. The old adage There is no such thing as bad publicity stuck out in my mind, and I suspected the results would lean toward “No”. Somewhat to my surprise, almost half (178, 48%) of our respondents replied they’d be less likely to sell his name to their clients. Here are the full results broken down in a visual:
I suppose, then, that infamy does come at a steep price. Unfortunately, it won’t be Tiger Woods who pays up (he’ll be just fine financially), but those who are trying to repair and unload his branded merchandise. – TigerBeat
Monday
February 1, 2010 What’s the best way to get new business in 2010?Filed under: Poll, Uncategorized Take the new ASICentral poll now! |
Ahh, what an industry. When I first started working with promotional products, I thought it was gonna be all pens, notepads and T-shirts. Alas, I’ve discovered that promotional products can be more than that, including journals made of elephant poop, motorized coolers and USB drives in the shape of just about anything … including carrots (honestly! see image at right).
2. Car and boat dealerships. Coulter also sells some of her skimpier swimwear to high-end auto and boat dealers for what she calls the “age-old image” of an attractive woman standing next to a shiny new car or boat to add appeal for the consumer. “The dealerships are very interested,” she says. “If a decorator has a relationship with a dealer, it’s an easy add-on to the account – so decorate a branded Lexus or Porsche bikini that models can wear for an event.”
