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Tuesday
May 1, 2012 Tip of the Day - Add Promotional Products to Your ShopFiled under: Research
Today’s tip of the day comes from the Marketing Tactics section:
Wednesday
August 24, 2011 Best Places to Work 2011: The CountdownFiled under: Research
As the companies are named, a running list will be kept for reference. Good luck on making this year’s Counselor Best Places to Work list!
Wednesday
May 11, 2011 Top 300 US Cities for Promotional Product SalesFiled under: Research, site updates
If you did, then you must already be familiar with Counselor’s May issue, which includes a feature about the top 30 cities for promotional product sales. (Top 10 for each size market.) For the online version, however, we wanted to do something a little different. Since Counselor Editor Andy Cohen had enough data to fill up three magazines, we decided to do an online resource tool that feautured not just the 30 cities in the magazines, but 300 cities - extending each size market from Top 10 to Top 100! Introducing the 2011 Top Cities for Promo Product Sales Interactive Resource! With this resource, not only can you toggle between the market sizes (Small = less than 200,000 people; Mid-size = 200-500,000 people; Large = more than 500,000 people) for all the cities, but you can sort by various fields, including 2010 Sales, Percentage of Market, Population, and even Grade! Yes, we’ve even taken the liberty of grading the city market based on its performance against the rest of the field. The top 20 receive an A; the next 20 a B; the next 20 a C … and so on. So, what are you waiting for?! Check it out now! And please let us know what you think by emailing us at feedback@asicentral.com. –Team ASICentral
Friday
November 12, 2010 Power Summit 2010 WrapFiled under: General, Research
Sunday, Nov. 7 After registration, a commemorative photo, which will appear in Counselor magazine, was shot from the grounds of the beautiful Fairmont Turnberry Isle Resort & Club. See the pic here. After the photo, ASI ran a speed networking event that allowed all the guests to interact with each other in three-minute increments. See photos of the speedworking event here, and watch a video of the event with Counselor Editor Andy Cohen here. Finally, dinner and a keynote speech from Sean Snaith, Ph.D., Director of the Institute for Economic Competitiveness, College of Business Administration, University of Central Florida. Watch Counselor Editor Andy Cohen interview Snaith following his keynote speech here. Monday, Nov. 8 Monday began with the unveiling of the Global Advertising Specialties Impressions Study, which proves that promotional products beat all other forms of advertising mediums in cost-effectiveness. This study, which follows 2008’s landmark study, covers a broader audience as it spans cities such as London, Toronto, Montreal and Sydney. Read all about this study here. And for a quick video summary of the study, don’t miss this video! After the Impressions Study, guests engaged in lively panel sessions including product safety, supplier and distributor roundtable, and more. Watch a Counselor Editor Andy Cohen interview some of the panelists here. And for images from the panel sessions, click here. The afternoon ended with guests having the opportunity to relax and either play golf or tennis. See pics of the the activities here. And the day culminated in the announcement of the vaunted Power 50 list for 2010. See the list here. And watch a video interview with some of the Power 50 here. Tuesday, Nov. 9 Panel sessions continued on Tuesday, with guests engaging in sessions about building buzz. Watch as Counselor Editor Andy Cohen interviews panelists after the sessions here. For complete coverage of the ASI Power Summit 2010, click on the link below: And if you’re interested in registering for next year’s Power Summit, click here.
Tuesday
August 10, 2010 2nd Quarter Sales Verdict? Industry’s Looking GoodFiled under: Research
This is great news for the industry and we’re hoping the trend continues through 2010! Also, we’re curious what you’re 3rd quarter 2010 stats will be when compared with 3rd quarter 2009. Please take the poll below.
Wednesday
July 21, 2010 Counselor State of the Industry 2010Filed under: Research, Uncategorized, site updates
From the exclusive Distributor and Supplier Top 40 list to the strategies on how to improve your business, the Counselor 2010 State of the Industry is chock full of stats, facts, how-to manuals and much more! Plus, as an added online bonus, we’ve created a video with tons of charts, graphs, quotes and “Did You Knows” regarding the industry in 2009. So what are you waiting for?! Check out www.stateoftheindustry.com now!
Thursday
June 3, 2010 Top 100 Markets For Ad Specialty SalesFiled under: Markets, Research A recent exclusive Counselor study unveiled the best cities for ad specialty distributors to do business in right now. The list revealed the Top 25 metropolitan statistical areas — or MSAs — that have the most potential for promotional product distributors to find business. For the online version of this feature, we decided to extend the list to the largest 100 markets and give them not only a rank, but a grade too, with the thinking that just because a city made the list doesn’t mean it’s ideal for ad specialty sales. So, the top 20 cities in the list are all considered Grade “A”; the next 20, Grade “B”; etc … all the way to City #100, which, for the sake of this list, received a grade of “F”. And since it’s an online feature, of course we decided to make it interactive and fun! All 100 city/markets are listed alphabetically in a right-hand scrolling area. Click on a city and a full-color image representing that city will pop up, along with a rank and grade as well as pertinent statistical info for that city, including annual ad specialty sales, population, number of small businesses, etc … So without further ado, we present Counselormag.com’s 100 Largest Markets for Ad Specialty Sales! Click here and enjoy!
Friday
March 12, 2010 Win Cash and Prizes Just for Taking Our SurveysFiled under: Research, Uncategorized
But this research would not be possible without the data, which is why it’s so important that any and all ad specialty professionals should be taking the time to fill out our surveys — we want as many submissions as possible so that we know the research is accurate. Of course, filling out surveys can be time consuming and we know time is money. That’s why Counselor is offering an added incentive to both distributors and suppliers to take the surveys. Here are the details.
Please take the survey that applies to you today and help Counselor produce the most important research report done in the ad specialty industry each year. –TeamCentral
Monday
February 16, 2009 ASICentral Goes GreenFiled under: Markets, Research
With the eco-friendly market skyrocketing and industry experts proclaiming it’s no longer a fad but a trend, we here at ASICentral decided it was about time to create a home on our web site dedicated exclusively for the Green market. Click here to find information regarding the eco-friendly trend, including:
And much more! – meanVINgreen
Sunday
January 18, 2009 Apparel: The Survey Says!My sixth-grade teacher once asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up and, without hesitation, I blurted out “Game Show Host!” Of course, this admission became increasingly odder and more uncomfortable as each male student after me proclaimed aspirations of a more manly nature … you know, like cop, fireman or breakdancer (did I mention these were the 80s?). My shortsightedness to feign an interest in what was cool or acceptable at the time resulted in a good, old-fashioned playground pummeling, and I never again spoke about an interest in game shows … until now!
And today I get that chance … well, minus the kissing. WELCOME TO FAMILY FEUD, PROMOTIONAL PRODUCTS-STYLE! With this month’s release of its annual Apparel Sales Survey, Counselor magazine has given me the opportunity I have waited a lifetime for … to take the big stage and ask you, the family audience, questions about a topic that we have surveyed — in this case, distributor apparel sales. DIRECTIONS: I’ll provide you with the question posed to industry distributors along with their top answers in random order, and you try to guess which one is the most popular. The winner gets, well, not much, maybe a mention in the blog and a Coke or something, but it’s the best we can do with the economy and all. So be sure to send your answers to feedback@asicentral.com with a listing of all your answers. Got it? Then let’s play the feud!
QUESTION 2: In 2008, which category specified had the highest percent of distributor apparel sales? Top 4 answers are on the board:
QUESTION 3: Relative to all distributor promotional products sales, how would you say sales of apparel have changed over the past year? Top 3 answers are on the board:
QUESTION 4: How did distributor sales volume in uniforms change within the past year? Top 3 answers are on the board:
QUESTION 5: What are the top three purposes for the promotional apparel distributors sell? Top 3 answers are on the board:
QUESTION 6: What are the top markets of apparel purchases? Top 8 answers are on the board:
QUESTION 7: Which category specified represents the highest percentage of overall distributor apparel sales? Top 5 answers are on the board:
QUESTION 8: How important do distributors believe brand names are to promotional apparel sales? Top 5 answers are on the board:
QUESTION 9: What percentage of distributor wearables purchases are manufactured outside the U.S.? Top 3 answers are on the board:
QUESTION 10: Compared to 2007, has the amount of product distributors decorated in-house changed? Top 3 answers are on the board:
QUESTION 11: What percent of all distributor apparel purchases are blanks? Top 5 answers are on the board:
Don’t forget to send answers now and check the blog often for results. Of course, if you want to see how you did, just check out the updated Apparel Research section of ASICentral for the Counselor Apparel Sales Survey … but not before you send your answers! “Love ya, will see ya here on the feud” (I just had to sign off like Richard — he’d be proud.) –TheKissingBandit |
Hot off the press! The 
Starting Thursday, Aug. 25 at 10:00 a.m. EST, we will begin counting down the 85 
If you were unable to attend this week’s ASI Power Summit 2010 from Aventura, Fl., don’t worry … ASI Team Blog has you covered! Here’s a recap of everything that went on at the Power Summit, along with news stories, videos, photos and much more. Enjoy!
On the heels of last week’s announcement that industry 
Yes, folks, it’s that time of year again! Time to get a raw data look into the overall health of the promotional products industry, as well as gain some insight on how to move your business in the coming years. Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to 
Plunked in front of a TV set like 
