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Monday
November 30, 2009 Break Out the Crystal Ball!Filed under: Editorial Hi Everyone! I hope you all had a fabulous Thanksgiving and didn’t pass out in a tryptophan-induced coma face down in a Jell-O mold. ; ) As we enter the last month of 2009, it’s a natural time to look ahead and try to prepare for what 2010 has in store for us. In that vein, I’ll be moderating a Webinar this Thursday, 12/3, from 2 p.m.-3 p.m. (ET) called, “Get Ready for 2010: Top Sales and Market Trends.” My whip-smart panelists are three of my favorite people in the industry, all of whom are at the helm of distinguished supplier companies and each of whom is on this year’s Counselor Power 50 list. My pal Bonni Shevin-Sandy is the executive vice president of Counselor Top 40 supplier Dard and this year’s Counselor International Person of the Year. My girl knows her stuff, and is so savvy when it comes to finding new markets into which to sell that the international and custom division of Dard, of which Bonni is president, was up double-digits in 2009. Bill Korowitz, president of Counselor Top 40 supplier The Magnet Group, is a new friend of mine. He’s very much the renaissance man — a trained economist as well as a guitar aficionado (he’s been known to stay up til 2 a.m. jamming, with his amp cranked “to 11″). Bill has one of the driest, most sardonic wits I’ve come across in some time and is equally astute at reading sales and marketing indicators both for our industry and the U.S. economy. And last but not least, we have Ira Neaman, owner of Counselor Top 40 supplier Vantage. Ira is one of my oldest friends in the industry, and the person who — when I was new to the ad specialty business nearly 13 years ago and knew nothing about imprinted apparel — was patient enough to give me many in-depth tutorials. Still, to this day, when I have an apparel-related question and need someone to explain the intricacies to me, Ira — who was one of the youngest people ever to graduate from Harvard Business School — is first on my list. For that reason, I have always called him my wearables “Yoda.” As apparel constitutes the largest category of product sales in our industry, Ira the Yoda is an expert on the latest trends and applications. Learn from him, you will. If you’d like to listen in to the Webinar this Thursday to hear Bonni, Bill and Ira discuss such topics as keeping your company competitive in a down economy, where industry sales will be in 2010, new growth markets for ad specialties and the smartest thing companies can do in the upcoming year to be successful, click on the link below to register. https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/174512624 Cheers, and more next week! – M
Wednesday
October 7, 2009 In Praise of Spongy Girl Parts & Walks of Shame …Filed under: Editorial, Personal Hi Everyone! I’m heading off to Shelbyville, TN, tomorrow to celebrate the wedding of Andy Townes, the oldest son of Dan Townes, legendary industry luminary and owner/president of Shepenco/Shelbyville Pencil (asi/86850). I’ve been to Shelbyville to stay with the Towneses before and they party on a whole different level down there in the South. Can. Not. Wait. Before I leave for the long weekend, I wanted to send shout-outs to everyone doing creative promotions and giving their time and resources for Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Cancer is such a horrible, insidious disease, and more than any other group, breast cancer awareness advocates are really experts at mobilizing the masses to raise funds and spread the word about early screenings and self-education. As the proud owner of spongy girl parts, I’m always happy to support friends and colleagues who do breast cancer walks for the Susan G. Komen foundation and other entities, and have received my fair share of pink-hued ad specialties — caps, T-shirts, mugs, water bottles — for my donations. However, as I always lean sharply to the irreverent side, I recently came across three items that just slayed me due to their sheer sassiness. Laughter, as they say, is potent medicine.
The first is this double-sided Scoop ColorBrights Rollerball/Highligher Combo Pen from my pals Michael and Matt Linderman at Express Pens (asi/53411) in Austin, TX. Michael and Matt did this particular pen for a group located in Austin called Planet Cancer, which offers support to young adults, ages 18-40, with cancer. Being in Austin – a city that’s so delightfully eccentric and idiosyncratic that the slogan for its business association is “Keep Austin Weird” — this group has taken a decidedly “F-You” attitude toward cancer. Their message, imprinted on Michael and Matt’s pen, is deliciously defiant and a hit product among visitors to Planet Cancer’s site. (As a rabid Stones fan and Keith fanatic from way back, I covet these pens!) Another favorite item on the Planet Cancer site (www.planetcancer.org)? This T-shirt for women, emblazoned with the phrase “Crazy, Sexy Cancer Goddess.” LOVE IT.
The next item, which ASI’s editorial creative director Jim Lang clued me in to, may be The Best Thing Ever Invented. Ladies and Gentleman, I give you the Walk of Shame Kit. Now, I don’t know about you, but where I spend my summers in Avalon, NJ, walks of shame are practically an Olympic sport. (For those of you who aren’t degenerates, a “walk of shame” is what you do the morning after hooking up with someone, when you have to sheepishly shuffle back to your own home in the cold, harsh light of day — usually with throngs of smirking onlookers present — with your eyelashes stuck together, your tongue fuzzy, your shoes in your hand and other articles of clothing crammed into your purse …). Again, being the eternal optimist, I’ve always tried to put a positive spin on it, declaring my morning-after hikes home the “Strides of Pride” and adding a bouncy little jaunt to my step — until the inevitable tumble off the curb, into the gutter.
Complete with everything a dehydrated diva could need, the Walk of Shame Kit comes with sunglasses (to simultaneously keep the pesky glare of sunlight from exacerbating your crushing hangover and camouflage smudgy makeup), a beach cover-up-like dress, flip-flops, a drawstring duffel to carry your clothes from the previous night, a pre-pasted toothbrush, and my personal favorite, a note card that can be left behind that says, “Call me” on one side and ”Thanks for nothing” on the other. Lastly, there’s a pink breast cancer awareness bracelet to remind you that you should always balance out an act of blatant SHEdonism with one of altruism. For each kit sold, a portion of the proceeds are donated on the buyer’s behalf to a breast cancer awareness foundation. Kits can also be customized (ideal for sororities!), either by imprinting the dress, duffel and flip-flops or the tin the kit comes in. For more information on this item intended to help regain a little dignity the morning after and do a little good in the meantime, go to www.walkofshamekit.com. Cheers, and more next week! – M PS: Since I turned 40 two years ago, I make sure to get a mammogram every October. If you haven’t already, sign up for one soon … It’s what all the cheeky chicas who love their spongy parts are doing! ; )
Monday
September 28, 2009 With Glasses Half Full …Filed under: Editorial, Fun, Personal Happy Autumn! As summer is my favorite season, I’m less than thrilled to see it go but welcome the positive aspects of fall, like the latest crop of shoes and boots and the premier of some great new TV shows (more on that later)! Here at Counselor, we’re beginning to think about our awards season and have decided to add a new category to our Spirit Awards to honor industry pros who are using new media platforms for their self-promo campaigns. As an example, check out the latest in a series of Sweda’s hysterical YouTube videos for its 24-hour service. [Click here to watch.] I’m sure there are many companies in the industry crafting cool, creative self-promos using innovative forms of multi-media, so keep an eye out for our call for nominations in February. Here at ASI, one of my favorites is this video on the subject of athletic apparel for Wearables magazine, starring staff writer and our reigning editorial department kook, Matt George. Matt, who’s in his early 20s, reminds me of a big, goofy chocolate lab who pants and gets all excited at the idea of chasing a stray ball or having his belly rubbed. The last 30 seconds of this video make me cackle each time I watch it: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P2g1bBzKdDE&feature=player_embedded Speaking of fun, I — and my colleagues here at ASI — always try to stay positive and look on the bright side, despite turbulent financial and market conditions for the economy and our industry. We’re definitely glass-half-full kind of people. As an example, ASI president/CEO Tim Andrews graciously hosted a soiree at his home in Princeton, NJ, last week for the company’s senior leaders. It was a fun and festive occasion, and a great opportunity to relax with work friends you’re too busy to spend time with on a daily basis. I’ve been invited to Tim’s house before, but wasn’t able to make it due to traveling. As Tim greeted me at the door, I told him it was “my first time” and we both burst out laughing, knowing I don’t get to utter a phrase like that too often. Tim’s reason for hosting the party was quite simple: “In an uncertain time, and certainly these have been uncertain times, it’s more important than ever to thank the people who matter — and for me there’s hardly a better way I know than to invite them to come over for a little food, some drink and to be able to spend some time with their colleagues in a social environment,” he says. Here are some photos from the party, featuring some of your favorite ASI characters, I’m sure. Post a comment and let me know who your favorite ASI staffer is and why!
Cheers, and more next week! – M PS: By now those of you who read my blog and my tweets (@ASI_MBell) know that I’m a TV junkie. As I promised myself I would only add two new shows to my already-crowded roster (really, more than that and I would qualify as a crazy cat-lady recluse, just to keep up with all the TV I watch!), here are my picks: For a sitcom, the show Modern Family is hil-arious. It premiered last Tuesday and “The Lion King” moment at the end had me roaring… Click here to watch the 30-minute episode (it’s worth it). For a drama, I went with FlashForward, which premiered last Thursday. I vacillated about whether or not to commit to this one, because it’s premise is a little unnerving, creepy and disjointed and I already get my weekly mind-f**k from Lost. However, having watched the premier, I’m in. In the show, everyone in the world passes out at exactly the same time for two minutes and 17 seconds, which — as you can imagine — wreaks widespread havoc. The last scene from Thursday’s episode alone had me hooked.
Friday
September 11, 2009 Of Webs, Vampires & Sweda…Filed under: Editorial Happy Friday! First, thanks to everyone who logged on to hear the Webinar I moderated yesterday, which featured some industry leaders who will be speaking at ASI’s upcoming third annual Power Summit in Carlsbad, CA. [For more information on the Power Summit, click here]. David Nicholson, president of Counselor Top 40 supplier Polyconcept North America, Vera Muzzillo, co-CEO of Counselor Top 40 distributor Proforma and Memo Kahan, owner of Counselor Top 40 distributor PromoShop discussed such timely issues as sales and marketing strategies to employ in a sluggish economy, pricing predictions for 2010, whether print or online supplier catalogs are the most effective, fertile markets for ad specialty sales, how the new CPSIA regulations will affect the industry and smart ways to utilize online social media. To listen to the free Webinar in its entirety, click here and then click the link at the top for “Power Summit Preview.” Speaking of social media, have you seen how my pals at Counselor Top 40 supplier Sweda are using it masterfully to tout their guaranteed 24-hour service? They’ve posted videos on YouTube that are freaking hilarious. You can tell that Scott Pearson, Sweda’s vice president of merchandising — and the man I affectionately call “Giggles” due to his infectious laugh — and Jim Hagan, the company’s oh-so-charming and self-deprecating president, are having a blast doing these videos. And yes, they are funny, but they’re also getting attention and pushing Sweda’s marketing message out to the industry by using a very cool medium that requires only a bit of time and creativity. Talk about off-the-charts ROI. They are smart cookies, my Sweda BFFs. Click on these links to see their three-video series. “Twenty-four Touches for Sweda’s 24-Hour Service”: “Twenty-four Shots for Sweda’s 24-Hour Service”: “Daredevil Jump Over 24 ‘People’ for Sweda’s 24-Hour Service”: Have an awesome weekend, and more next week! Cheers, – M PS: If you’re a fan of HBO’s True Blood like I am, how excited are you for Sunday’s finale to a season that — despite the show’s genre — definitely did not suck. My hopes for the last episode of ‘09? That someone finally takes down Maryann, the Dionysian strumpet, hard; that Jason continues his Dawn of the Dead-inspired attacks in his uproariously hysterical fashion; and that we again get to see bad-boy vamp Eric, who is so freakin’ hot he makes me want to do “bad things,” sans his shirt. Can. Not. Wait.
Tuesday
September 8, 2009 Get Caught in My “Web”Filed under: Editorial, Interviews Hi Everyone! I’m just back from a long holiday weekend in my beloved Avalon, NJ, where I reveled with such abandon that I now know how Keith Richards feels after a Stones tour. Now that September is off and running and school is officially back in session, we’re kicking our education efforts here at ASI into high gear. This Thursday, September 10, I’m moderating a free Webinar featuring three of the smartest, savviest, most talented people I know in the industry: David Nicholson, the newly-appointed president of Counselor Top 40 supplier Polyconcept North America; Vera Muzzillo, co-owner of Counselor Top 40 distributor Proforma; and Memo Kahan, owner of Counselor Top 40 distributor PromoShop. Each of these leaders will be panelists at ASI’s third annual Power Summit, which will be held from November 1-3 at the La Costa Resort & Spa in Carlsbad, CA. For more information on this year’s Power Summit, click here. What listeners will glean from this Webinar are the panelists’ insights and advice on the strategies they’ve been using to keep their businesses above water in a dismal economy, and their stance on topics like new safety regulations and what the industry can expect for the rest of 2009 and into 2010. See below for more information on this free education event. I hope to see you log on this Thursday! More later in the week, and cheers! – M
Friday
July 24, 2009 My Kinda Town, Chicago Is!Filed under: ASI Shows, Editorial, Fun, Travel Hi Everyone! I’m just back from the ASI Chicago Show, which was awesome on a multitude of levels. It was fabulous seeing old industry friends (Windbrella’s Bob Hechler, JournalBooks’ Tim O’Boyle & Jamie Raynor and R.S. Owens’ Scott Siegel, I’m looking at you… ; ) ) and meeting some amazing new ones like industry veteran Lisa Bennett. That Lisa and I have never met is perplexing. Lisa, who lives in Chicago, is a multiline rep who handles companies like Counselor Top 40 supplier Ash City, my friend Leigh’s company, Say Thank You with Coffee, and some others. She is sassy, hilariously wry and we share many of the same friends. She also has the distinction of being the person to convince me to stop being such an old-school whiner and join the Twitter flock. (Though I still maintain, as I routinely tell SnugZ’s Charley Johnson, it will be easier to raise the dead than to get me on Facebook … that so isn’t happening.) Stay tuned for next week’s blog which will have my Twitter info. The show itself was well-attended and steadily crowded, and participation in ASI’s educational offerings was up nearly 10% from last year. I myself moderated two panels, which turned out well – mainly because I am so lucky to be friends with such talented people. On my panel for suppliers, which offered the chance to gain insights into how to win a distributor’s business and loyalty, I had Deluxe Corp.’s Sheila Johnshoy, Touchstone’s Tad Webster, Brown & Bigelow’s Cindy Jorgenson and WorkflowOne’s Mike Riddle. On my ”Secrets to Wildly Successful Self-Promotions” panel, I had industry speaker and veteran Cliff Quicksell, OnTime Promotions’ Sharon Biernat and PromoShop’s Kris Robinson. I’d like to thank all my panelists for being so gracious and giving with their time and expertise. Lastly, my favorite event of the Chicago Show is always the Counselor awards banquet, where we recognize the Person of the Year, as well as the Top 40 suppliers and distributors (for a list of winners, click here). It was an exciting night for me because my girl Bonni Shevin-Sandy, executive vice president of Counselor Top 40 supplier Dard, won the very well-deserved International Person of the Year award. I adore Bonni, and when it comes to doing business in a global marketplace, my girl has skills!!! The funniest line of the evening came from Chuck Fandos (“Chuckles,” as I call him), who took one look at the group of hooting and hollering rowdy rummies – PromoShop’s Kris Robinson and Memo & Sabrina Kahan, Chuck’s business partner Conrad Franey, Sweda’s Jim Hagan and Scott Pearson, BIC’s Dave Saracino, in addition to myself and ASI’s publisher Rich Fairfield – at our very prominently placed (dead center in the front of the room) table and looked at me with dread. ”What the hell are you doing putting us up so far in the front, Michele??? Look at us – we’re back-of-the-bus kind of people!!!” But hey, that’s my way – I love surrounding myself with excessive rock stars and charismatic wackos. ; ) Enjoy some photos below from the show and look for more next week! Cheers, M
Tuesday
June 23, 2009 Dreaming of Double-Digit Growth?Filed under: Editorial, Personal Hi, Everyone! We recently had a very special event here at ASI: We hosted the monthly meeting of Specialty Advertising Counselors of the Delaware Valley (SACDV), our local industry association. It was a fun and informative meeting, equal parts networking event and education. There was lots of fabulous food (salad, pizza, hors d’oeuvre, wine, soft drinks, root-beer ice cream floats) courtesy of the event’s sponsors: Admints/Zagabor, ASI, Montco, PromoBiz Coach and Rockland Embroidery. Janet McMaster, education chair of the group, explained the need for grassroots efforts to combat an overly-restrictive and detrimental bill currently before Congress: the Physician Payments Sunshine Act. Janet stressed the need to write your local congressperson to express concern over the negative impact it would have on the industry. She also noted that SACDV will be forming a legislative committee to work as an advocate in the legal arena on behalf of the group and the industry. Dale Denham, senior vice president for ASI, addressed the group in more detail, explaining that if passed, the law would force pharmaceutical and medical equipment companies to reveal the gifting of every item, of any value, once the annual threshold of $100 is crossed. Under the current law, only items exceeding $25 must be reported once the threshold is passed. Information would be combined in a national database that could be accessed by the public. Click here to read more. But it was Gene Geiger’s keynote presentation, entitled “Virtual Business Cultivation: Using Social Networks to Grow Business,” that had attendees tuned in. Gene is such a super guy — one of the most gracious, genteel and dryly funny people in the industry — and his presentation did not disappoint. (He may also be the one person in the industry who could get away with using the phrase “honest to Betsy” — as he did last night — and have it sound endearingly charming.) If you’re like me and get completely overwhelmed by the concept of online social networking and sites like Facebook and Twitter, Gene’s speech was for you. In it, he explained how online social networking isn’t just for kids anymore — indeed, the fastest-growing group of users are the over-40 crowd. Gene said it’s ideal for building relationships and “light alliances” where people can make connections they don’t have the time for otherwise. For more information about SACDV or to request a copy of Gene’s very thorough and comprehensive presentation, go to www.sacdv.org.
Dreaming of Double-Digit Growth? Tired of the doom and gloom financial news? Listen in to the free Webinar I’m moderating tomorrow! We’ve found some industry suppliers who have experienced double- and triple-digit growth, despite the turbulent economy. My panelists will be Fred Antonini, owner of eGrips (asi/54596), whose company grew 1,700% in one year, as well as Brett Hersh, owner of AdMints & Zagabor (asi/31516) and Rob Watson, president of MediaTree (asi/70303) — both of whom experienced 100% growth for their companies from ‘07 to ‘08 — and Christopher Duffy, senior vice president of marketing at Bag Makers Inc.(asi/37940), a company that grew 47% from ‘07 to ‘08. Join us for the Webinar tomorrow, Wednesday, June 24, from 2:00-3:00 p.m. (EST) to learn their tips for success, see how they’ve navigated pitfalls and discover how they’ve used innovation and ingenuity to generate spectacular sales in a stagnant marketplace. To listen to the Webinar held earlier today, click here. More next week! Cheers, M
Friday
May 1, 2009 Elves and Ogres and Babies, Oh My!Filed under: Editorial, Personal Hi Everyone! I’ve always been a glass-half-full kind of girl, both philosophically and alcoholically. So in the midst of so much negativity — bad economy, sagging industry sales, swine flu pandemic, pending laws that can wreak havoc with the industry — I’m choosing to get my Pollyanna on and highlight the positive. 1. We’re not Iceland. I recently read an article about the economic crisis in that lovely country in the April issue of Vanity Fair magazine and came across this gem: “Alcoa, the biggest aluminum company in the country, encountered a problem peculiar to Iceland when, in 2004, it set about erecting a giant smelting plant: The so-called ‘hidden people’ — or, to put it more plainly, elves — in whom some large number of Icelanders sincerely believe. Before it could build its plant, Alcoa had to hire a firm to certify to the government that the plant site was elf-free. As one government official explained, the process of ‘certifying the non-existence of elves can take at least six months — and be very tricky.’ ” [Click here to read the Vanity Fair article about Iceland] Elves? Really??? Lest anyone question why Iceland fell into financial ruins, it’s clearly because they’re operating under the assumption that they exist in Middle Earth. There’s no doubt that we have issues in the U.S. that require a Herculean effort to fix. What we don’t have, mercifully, is a population and a government willing to let leprechauns, fairies and the Trix rabbit control business policy. 2. Not all doctors are lemmings. Am I the only one who’s had it with the power-tripping dictators at PhRMA riding roughshod over its members? I’ve always been curious how one self-governing body can impose regulations on its members that can be most charitably described as “goofy.” I went to my doctor, a spitfire named Christine, not too long ago and asked her if — when presented with a pen, mug or notepad imprinted with the name of a drug and its logo — she’d be swayed to then write prescriptions to her patients for that drug. She looked at me as though I just offered her a bong hit. “No,” she said archly, “because, you know, I have a functioning brain.” She resents being strong-armed by “a somewhat useful, though oftentimes archaic and cranky” (Christine’s words) governing body. I don’t blame her. If anyone needs a big, logoed bag of “STFU,” it’s the ogres overseeing PhRMA. 3. New blood.This week, I celebrated my 12-year anniversary with ASI. (Tim Andrews, our president/CEO, is never far from a witty, Oscar Wilde-esque bon mot and noted that “it seems like 20 years for the rest of us”). Sometimes, I get that “been there, done that, know everyone and seen it all” weariness. Then, completely randomly, I meet someone new in the industry — someone who makes me remember why I love the people in it so much — and I just get giddy. On Wednesday, I had a 90-minute conversation with Nicole DiTrolio Standley, president of The Perfect Swag in CA (asi/293508) and a blogger in her own right (www.LaDolceSwag.com). I’ll say this as clearly as possible: I Love This Chick! She’s whip-smart, wicked funny, uber-creative and my new industry BFF. She GETS IT, and has reminded me how — when distributors are innovative, eccentric, brave, brash and love their suppliers — they truly can kick ass. Read more about Nicole in the brand-spankin’ new May issue of Advantages in the “What’s Your Story?” section. The writer Hunter S. Thompson repeatedly said, “Crazies always recognize each other.” I am convinced this is now the basis for my friendship with Nicole — together we’ll be sugar and spice and everything vice. See you at the SAAC Show, Nicole — cocktails at the Chateau Marmont on me! ; ) 4. Oh, babies! Now here’s some life-affirming, happy news: ASI vice president Dale Denham’s wife Kim just gave birth to twin girls. Woo Hoo and congratulations!!!
The babies’ names are Kyleigh Anne (7 lbs; 15 ounces) and Kira Michelle (8 lbs; 4 ounces). “Mom and babies are doing great,” Dale says. 5. Summer lovin’. Twenty-eight days from today will be the start of Memorial Day weekend, and I’ll be on the way to my beloved Avalon for the summer — reveling in the sun, cavorting with old friends and disgracing myself like a haggard rock star. Can. Not. Wait. More next week! Cheers!!! – M |
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