Promotional Products Blog | Pinnacle Promotions Marketing Company

The following story takes place on the sparkling clean beaches of the Jersey Shore:

One day Danny told all of the kids working his T-shirt shop to come downstairs for a meeting. “We are going to be having a little competition from now on,” he explained. “Except I am going to make it really hard on about half of you. All of the awesome people are going to be on one team, and the rest of you who only lay around on the beach are going to be stuck on the other. I think you know who you are.”

As Snookie, Vinny, and Sweetheart Sammy looked at each other, they knew they were the latter team. “What should we call ourselves?” Snookie wondered. A light popped up above Sweetheart Sammy’s head for the first time in her life, and she blurted “We are like so Badass! We should name our team that!” The threesome grinned, honestly believing that they came up with the most original, coolest name ever conceived in the history of the Jersey Shore.

The rest of the Jersey Shore-eans rolled their eyes at their friends’ horribly lame attempt to bring something to the table. The Situation, Pauly, and Ronnie headed off to the gym to work on their A-game. As they were pumping iron to prepare for some serious fist-pumping later on that evening, they were discussing their Italian heritage. “We are so mafia,” grunted The Situation between reps. “We should call ourselves The Untouchables. Team Jackass has nothing on us!”

The three boys got back from the gym to find that their Italian flag bearing laptops had been hacked and now proclaimed “Team Badass Rocks!” Pauly was heated and wanted to start a fight, but JWow convinced him to wait. “You were working out hard at the gym and this was what they wasted their time on,” she explained. “Did you ever hear that story about the grasshopper and the ant? They are just playing games while we are preparing for the real challenge.” Pauly looked confused, Why is she talking about bugs? , but he decided not to start a fist fight with his roommate anyway.

The two teams conversed on how to get more people walking the boardwalk to come in and buy T-shirts. They only had one week left until they had to present their ideas to Danny. Team Badass continued to pull stupid pranks, like put photos of ugly donkeys up in their rooms and write on the Shore blog that the other team sucked. The Untouchables, however, were not fazed. They knew that they were, after all, untouchable. There was really nothing to worry about. The Untouchable team did a group fist pump, and prepared for a night of clubbing down at the Jersey Shore.

Ashley
Account Coordinator
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The People’s Choice Awards last night inspired me to take a slightly different approach to today’s blog. Rather than writing a completely original post, I thought to myself, why not reflect on the musings thus far of my fellow Pinnacle bloggers? There have been some amazing topics raised since the inception of our blog last May so here are MY choices for the most fitting blog posts in a variety of categories:

1. Funniest: “What Not to Wear: Pinnacle Promotions Edition” (by me and Jaime)

The spoof we co-wrote based on television’s “What Not to Wear” was actually suggested by several of our coworkers, and we all laughed for days about this one! Brent was a trooper, although I’m sure he won’t be thrilled about me rehashing the details of our original post. ☺ This may be one blog idea that we have to recycle in the future- Pinnacle employees, make sure not to break any fashion rules, or the “Fashion Police Officers” may write about you next!

2. Spookiest: “6 mildly scary films about promotional products that never made it past storyboarding” (by Acree)

Acree’s clever take on classic scary movies sent shivers through my bones! Her suggested parody “The Hills Have Ice” gave me nightmares- deranged ice scrapers attacking an unsuspecting family of tourists? No, thank you! If Acree ever decides to produce any of these films, I may need to get away from the promotional products industry, as our office showroom would be an intimidating haunt after dark…

3. Most Delicious: “Promotional Products: Recipes for Successful Marketing Campaigns” (by Sarah) and “Toasting and Roasting: What to Do Post Pumpkin Carving” (by Kim)

Well, I can’t say that I have actually made Sarah’s zucchini bread recipe myself, but I have tasted it and can say that it is even more delicious than it looks in the photo! I highly suggest printing out a copy of the entire post and cooking up your own loaf of zucchini bread. And how could I forget Kim’s post featuring a recipe for toasted pumpkin seeds? I don’t think pumpkins are in season anymore, but this recipe is definitely one to keep in your kitchen to whip up this Fall!

4. Most Likely to Inspire Readers to Get Up and Sing: “Presenting Pinnacle’s Lyrics Lounge: Promotional Products Inspired by Music” (by Jaime)

Jaime’s series of “Pinnacle’s Lyrics Lounge” entries was certainly a well-loved one around our office. It was hard to pick just one post, as other great songs were referenced as well, but I thought the original should win the award, as it did start the series off with a bang. Hopefully 2010 will bring more “Pinnacle’s Lyrics Lounge” originality from Jaime!

5. Most Likely to Cause Readers to “Shake Their Groove Thangs”: “Pink Gloves Dance: Can You Spot the Promotional Products?” (by Guest Contributor, Eliza)

Eliza’s creative integration of the YouTube hit “Pink Gloves Dance” video into her guest blog post in December made me want to grab the nearest promotional product and bust a move. Nurses bopping their heads while wearing hot pink sunglasses should be inspiration enough for readers to introduce some fun and excitement into their next promotional giveaway campaign… or even to hold an impromptu dance party in their cubicles!

6. Best Seasonal Post: “Hittin’ The Pool” (by Heather)

Re-reading this post from last June brought a wistful smile to my face, as I would much rather replace the snow in Atlanta today with warm rays of sunshine and pool-worthy temperatures. Her description of spending a leisurely weekend working on a tan makes me look forward to Summer already!

7. Best Business Advice: “Building Business Relationships with Promotional Products” (by Kim)

In my final category, I selected Kim’s heartfelt post about the importance of fostering lasting relationships with your customers. Her observations and recommendations rang true in my mind, especially upon a second reading. The suggestions that she shares about sending inexpensive giveaways and promotional products to clients are timeless and universal- there is no time like the present to begin making your customers feel appreciated and valued!

With the number of posts made to our blog nearing 200, it was tough for me to narrow down my selections- if you have a favorite post, leave a comment and let us know. And, of course, you can expect many more inventive entries from Pinnacle’s Marketing team and our awesome guest bloggers in 2010!

Dana
Team Lead – Social Media
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While jean leggings, Swedish nail beds, and other fads of 2009 have mostly come and gone with the passing year, some shopping trends are here to stay. In 2009 more seniors were shopping online than ever before, and experts predict this will be an ongoing trend. The new senior market offers many advertising opportunities, making it important to stay educated about how to effectively reach this group.

Seniors- defined by the U.S. Census Bureau as those aged 65 or older- are the fastest growing segment in the United States and moreover the group with the largest disposable income and ability to make purchase decisions (unlike teens who also have large disposable incomes but often have their spending controlled or limited by parents). In fact, seniors spend over $7 billion online according to research by SeniorMag.

So, how do companies target the influential senior demographic? One important detail to recognize when marketing to seniors is that older men and women often have more time to research products and are less likely to buy on impulse. That being said, seniors are increasingly turning to the Internet in order to compare items and they often make their purchases online too.

In order to appeal to this developing demographic, companies that focus heavily on e-commerce need to ensure that their sites are user-friendly. Marketers can do this by posting pictures of seniors using their products and writing promotional material that contains relevant and interesting information, as seniors are often skeptical of ads that sound too “sale-sy.” Since seniors are more likely to trust companies that they view as honest and practical, distributing promotional products is another effective way to garner attention and loyalty from the senior audience because it allows them to sample functional products while reinforcing a brand name.

Although seniors are often savvier shoppers than teens and baby boomers who shop online, they are typically interested in the same types of products as younger audiences. Top purchases made by seniors include travel tickets and hotel arrangements, MP3 players and other electronics, and apparel. And, Americans over the age of 65 are some of the most loyal you can find, evidenced by an AARP survey showing that more than 80% of seniors who shopped online were satisfied with their purchases. Just don’t try to sell them the latest heavy metal CD!

Sarah
Marketing Coordinator
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http://www.flickr.com/photos/36144637@N00/ / CC BY-SA 2.0

http://www.flickr.com/photos/moondstuldio/ / CC BY 2.0

This blog posting is mainly a reflection of how the thought of promotional products can truly infiltrate one’s everyday life. Try and follow me on my literary journey to how I found another perfect occasion to supplement one’s marketing efforts with promotional items…

If you happened to take a peak at the full moon shining above on New Year’s Eve then you got a special glimpse of what is called a “blue moon,” meaning the 2nd full that occurs in a single month (there is generally only 1 full moon each month). Even more special is the fact that this blue moon occurred on New Year’s Eve, a correlation that has not happened since 1990, and will not happen for another 19 years. Colloquially, a blue moon refers to a very rare event, and inspired the phrase “Once in a blue moon,” (which actually occurs about once every two and a half years) whose usage dates back to the Medieval Times in England.

This idiom made me think of another popular expression, “Hats off to you,” which is an expression of admiration or praise said to have evolved from the action of actually taking one’s hat off to show respect to someone. Upon my search for a deeper history of this tradition, I discovered that January 15 is Hat Day, which would be the perfect occasion to advertise one’s business and services with promotional hats!

And finally for your listening pleasure, the ballad “Blue Moon” written by Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart in 1934, here performed by Dean Martin.

Jaime
Team Lead – Multimedia
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from Perez Hilton

Of course we all know the current controversy surrounding Tiger Woods and his Supermodel wife, Elin Nordegren.  What really went on that night of the crash may forever remain speculation. Tiger has since been dropped by many of his endorsers and it has even been rumored that he may be leaving golf forever.  Just because he has been affected negatively by this situation, that doesn’t mean his mistresses have been hurting during all of this.  All 7 (no, 8…wait, is it 9? 10? Shoot, who can keep up!?) of them have been earning their fair share by selling their stories to the tabloids and various media outlets.

Just when we all thought that it was only the lady friends that were reaping all of the benefits, along came John Gribbin.  This may be the first time you have ever heard of this man — believe me, I had never heard of him until about a week ago!  Gribbin wrote a book named Get a Grip on Physics.  Sound exciting?  Eh, not really. So just how does this correlate with the Tiger Woods scandal?

On the night of November 27th, when good ‘ol Tiger wrecked his vehicle, it just so happened that Gribbin’s book was on the floor board of his 2009 Cadillac Escalade.  With what some people would call pure luck, the book ended up in hundreds of paparazzi photographs.  Since then, the book has risen significantly in sales and went from 396,224 on Amazon’s sales rank to 2,268! How about that for product placement!  Just think how amazing it would have been if one of YOUR company’s promo products had made a cameo that night!

Katie McCormick
Account Coordinator

Providence St. Vincent Medical Center in Portland, Oregon sure knows how to get down and dance! They are the makers of this very popular YouTube video – Pink Gloves Dance.

It all started with a glove manufacturer, Medline Industries, which decided to make pink hospital gloves instead of green. For each case sold in the month of October, Medline donated $1 to breast cancer research.

St. Vincent decided that the more health care workers wear pink gloves, the more people would talk about breast cancer. More than 200 hospital staff volunteered to wear the pink gloves in a video. There are lab technicians, janitorial staff, kitchen staff, nurses and doctors all showing their moves dancing in the hospital.

There are lots of different promotional products available to help support various causes, and a few ideas are featured on the Pinnacle Promotions Promotional Marketing Calendar.

We even have a specific page dedicated to Breast Cancer Awareness Month which provides several product ideas and marketing recommendations.

Can you spot the following promotional products in the video?

1) Flag
2) Scrubs
3) Lanyard
4) Doctor Jacket
5) Hawaiian Lei
6) Pink Umbrella

One of my favorite and most effective promotional products is the pink umbrella. While it’s raining as you walk through the town, your awareness message can be seen from so many people. I encouraged the use of a fold up umbrella to one of my non-profits last year for their campaign. They received such positive feedback that they decided to use umbrellas again this year!!

Eliza
Account Manager
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The Alabama Crimson Tide defeated the Florida Gators in the SEC title game this past weekend earning them the title of No. 1 team in the nation and a spot in the national championship game Jan. 7 in Pasadena. But unless you were not one of the 70,000 plus fans in the Georgia Dome Saturday night, nor one of the 30 million CBS viewers, you already knew that. Despite growing up within the borders of the Southeastern Conference, and with a father and older brother who both spend the majority of the fall in front of a television screen watching college football, I have never been a huge fan of the sport, or any sport for that matter. My indifference toward the game was probably further established due to the fact that I went to Emory University – a college that has never had a football team yet proudly boasts, under the symbol of a football on school apparel, “Undefeated Since 1836.”

Thus I was recently drawn to an article I happened to see in the December issue of Allure Magazine, entitled “How to Enjoy Football.” The article, based on an interview with Andrea Kremer, a reporter for NBC Sunday Night Football and a correspondent for HBO Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel, explores several ideas for how one can get more “into the game.” One of which me struck me more than the others:“Study up on the story lines. Knowing the main dramas of the season helps you see games as a series of interrelated events, not one-offs, and a lot of these stories come down to the quarterback. How is Tom Brady doing after his injury, and will his Patriots make the playoffs after falling short last year? How will Brett Favre perform when his new team, the Vikings, plays his old team, the Packers? And there’s big drama in Dallas with Tony Romo. You may know him as the guy who dumped Jessica Simpson, but the Cowboys also dumped his star wide receiver, Terrell Owens. The team has a new billion-dollar stadium and a head coach who’s in the hot seat—can they thrive under all that pressure?”

This tactic of following the story behind the game holds true in the marketing arena as well, which Acree very clearly outlined in her blog posting from last week, “Tell your brand’s story with promotional products.”  in which she described the power of promotional products in reference to their ability to communicate a company’s story to their consumers.

Jaime
Team Lead – Multimedia
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One of my favorite things to do in Atlanta is attend the festivals and shows that come to town in the spring and summer.  From art events, such as the Inman Park Festival, to music festivals, like Corndogorama where up-and-coming bands can be showcased (and of course – a corn dog eating contest!), I love getting out of the house and walking through these festivals.  Regardless of the event, I enjoy the good food, great music, artistic talent and festivities that come along with these festivals.

Secretly, I also love checking out the promo items companies are giving away!

My friends tease me when I look at the bottom of a mug or the tag in a bag and recognize the product, but I also enjoy seeing what products people go crazy over.  Whether recipients appreciate the brand – a popular beer or alcohol drink, an insurance company, or a small publication or radio station – or the item itself, it’s fun to see the products in action and to see people’s response to the items first hand.

I’ve seen everything from cardboard speakers to coconut shot glasses and retro slap-bracelets to full-size custom camping tents and sleeping bags (those were incredibly hot with everyone trying to win the items!) Recently, I attended a festival and actually stood in line to win a promotional item an airline was giving away; the item was so timely that I just couldn’t resist. It was a rainy day and a company was distributing nylon, water-resistant cowboy hats – perfect for people that forgot an umbrella.

I’m actually working on a project for a customer now where I’ve attended the event for the last three years. I have seen the items this customer gives away, as well as items from the other sponsors of the event. I am able to put my experience to good use while brainstorming unique items that I know people attending the event will love.

I think it’s official: I’m a promo-junkie and I love it.

Avett Brothers enjoying Corndogorama in Atlanta:

Natasha
Relationship Manager
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I am probably one of the most loyal country music fans you will ever find. I know the words to a vast majority of the songs, from Garth to Carrie, and after a recent trip to Nashville, can honestly state that I have never felt more at home in an American city than in the Home of Country Music! I mean, live country music being performed at the bars and restaurants all day long, not to mention country tunes blasting from speakers at the bus stops- it is every country music lover’s dream come true. Watching the Country Music Awards last night led me to reminisce about my fantastic experience in “Nashvegas.” (NOTE: The above video clip from the CMAs poking fun at Kanye West made me fall out of my seat laughing… Little Jimmy Dickens deserves an Oscar for that performance!)

Most great American cities boast unique anecdotes about residents and events, both past and present, but these distinctive histories are not always as blatantly obvious as in Nashville. Statues of country greats like Elvis and Dolly Parton line the sidewalks (and if you must know, yes, I did stop to take pictures next to each of them!), cowboy boots can be found in almost every retail store, and museums paying homage to country legends like Johnny and June attract audiences hailing from far and wide.

During my visit to Nashville, I knew that my sadness to return to Atlanta could be assuaged by collecting memorabilia from various venues I frequented during my stay. I could barely close my suitcase because of my new purchases, but I do not regret a single one of them! I could not avoid the tourist shops on Broadway (one of the main streets in downtown Nashville), and wound up buying a fitted custom t-shirt with a subtle graphic featuring the word “Nashville” and a sketch of a guitar at the hip, a few other wearable items and some souvenir gifts for my family and friends.

I am already planning my next trip to Nashville, but in the meantime, I will have to settle for watching my favorite country artists on TV and sporting my Nashville-emblazoned promotional apparel around Atlanta to keep remnants of an unforgettable weekend fresh in my mind!

Dana
Team Lead – Social Media
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