http://asicentralblog.com/blog Wed, 10 Mar 2010 19:36:09 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en Ad specialty distributors often spend so much time on tasks that don’t involve selling – fulfilling orders, following up on invoices and talking to suppliers, just to name a few – that they neglect their main objectives. Yes, you need to create as much time in your day as possible ... http://asicentralblog.com/blog/2010/03/10/tip-of-the-day-create-more-selling-time/ Here are the top 10 phrases that kill creativity: Yes, but … The boss will never go for it I don’t have time Get a committee to look into it We tried that before It’s not in the budget It’ll never work No! We’ve always done it this way It’s not my job Source: Chic Thompson http://asicentralblog.com/blog/2010/03/09/tip-of-the-day-top-10-phrases-that-kill-creativity/ Of the 4 major U.S. regions (Northeast, South, Midwest, West), which do you think did the best in overall promotional products sales in 2009? What were their top markets and hottest items? Unemployment numbers? Give up? Well Advantages' magazine has done a terrific feature this month called What's Hot in Your ... http://asicentralblog.com/blog/2010/03/08/interactive-map-hottest-us-sales-region/ Just a few years back it seemed that everyone was jumping on the eco-friendly bandwagon. Whether you were buying an electric car or an organic t-shirt, "going green" was the hip thing to do and it was said to be more than a fad, but a trend that was here to ... http://asicentralblog.com/blog/2010/03/02/poll-is-green-movement-losing-steam/ 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, ... http://asicentralblog.com/blog/2010/02/25/photos-from-the-asi-show-san-diego/ 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 ... http://asicentralblog.com/blog/2010/02/23/got-a-favorite-promotional-product/ Growing up a child of the almighty television, I have lots of memories of sitting in front of the boob tube late at night watching mindless Joe Bob Briggs-inspired cheesy horror flicks, Johnny Carson and Taxi reruns as my brain rotted away. And as the night wore on and I drifted off to sleep, ... http://asicentralblog.com/blog/2010/02/19/about-tony-robbins/ 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 ... http://asicentralblog.com/blog/2010/02/15/tip-of-the-day-7-niche-markets-to-target-swimwear/ Three tips on how to be a top seller: Find a hot-selling product. Joe Stile, the national account executive at Halo/Lee Wayne (asi/356000), calls himself the calendar king, with good reason, since his annual calendar sales alone total $600,000. “My best-selling product has been an African-American history calendar, which features sports ... http://asicentralblog.com/blog/2010/02/12/tip-of-the-day-be-a-top-seller/ 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 ... http://asicentralblog.com/blog/2010/02/11/2079/