Our recent Pinnacle Promotions Atlanta Idea Expo ’14 was a huge success! We invited area customers and prospects to join us for the day to take advantage of promotional samples and a chance to meet with vendors. We hosted several educational seminars. And, we invited our guests to sit down with us for lunch provided by local fav Cue. One of the educational seminars focused on the idea that you can use social media to connect, sell and reward your customers using promotional products.
custom outdoors products
What Happens After a Big Breakup
Your last breakup may not have been worth millions of dollars. But, perhaps you too had to decide what to do with a corporate logo after dissolution or split. Perhaps you needed to find an outlet for your uniforms after a company name or logo change. Or, maybe you decided not to give that favorite concert t-shirt back to your ex. Either way, there’s a lot more to think about after a big breakup than just the feelings. Don’t forget to consider the stuff!
Manchester United, one of the champions of the Barclay’s Premier Football League in England, made big news recently when they switched from Nike to Adidas as the main supplier for their kits. The deal is the highest uniform deal of all time in any sport. Adidas will pay Manchester United $1.3 billion over 10 years to provide uniform kits.
The Initial Breakup:
Nike decided after a 10-year relationship that ManU wanted too much money to continue the relationship. Did this have anything to do with Manchester’s recent poor performance in the Premier League? They finished 7th this past season. Either way, when word got out that Nike was moving on, sports powerhouse Adidas was more than happy to move in. Adidas worked a deal to pay $130 million per year for the next 10 years to Man United. They expect $400 million in sales per year to generate from this relationship. Man U put Nike on notice in January, and the Adidas deal was done by June. The new kits start in the 2015-2016 season.
Intellectual Property and New Gear:
Of course, the brand owns their logo as intellectual property. But as part of the complete kit, Adidas will outfit Man U with an updated, slightly tweaked logo, and full game and training uniforms (down to the underwear). However, the deal is only for playing and training wear. Unlike with the Nike contract, now the team will control any other licensing for promotional products directly.
Old Gear:
And what is the team to do with the old, outdated Nike gear? The team will continue to use the kit through the 2014-2015 season. But, what happens to the gear after that?
Often, teams need an outlet for getting rid of outdated products. Some clubs sign the old items and give them to charity. Others are required to donate the items, but not in a geographical area that they can be resold or profited. It can be mandated that the items be sent to third-world countries and given to charity.
Man U is hosting a contest this season so that people can enter to win Nike Tour Gear worn during game play and signed by the players. You can enter here.
Whether a logo change or corporate split, what do companies do with all the old stuff? Have you found creative ways to use last year’s marketing materials? Tell us in the comments below!
Are you looking for us? We’ve moved!
We are excited to announce that we are finally all settled into our new offices!
This is the fourth location for Pinnacle Promotions in our 20-year history. The process to find a new location began in May, 2013. Our organization had outgrown the offices we had called home for more than 10 years. The move involved location scouting, plan development, packing plans, and eventually the actual move, and to do all of this as efficiently and seamlessly as possible.
Owners Mitch and Dave Weintraub worked with local realtors to scout a location that would meet our current needs, but also allow for continued growth and was in a central location for employees. With the new office it was our goal to build out a state-of-the-art showroom and expand our current operations. Pinnacle circulated surveys to the entire company to find out what features were most important to the team. Then working with architect, did their best to accommodate functionality and comfort requests. (In the end, the employees are pretty happy with the results!)
Packing! Is there any worse job when you are moving? Luckily, Flood Brothers Commercial Relocation Services made packing a breeze. Their system of pink, numbered crates helped to ensure that everything made it to the right location. Easy to use, and easy to move!
The only snag in our otherwise brilliant moving plan? Atlanta’s epic Snowmageddonpocalypse. After three weather-related reschedules, we were finally able to make the big move!
We enjoy hosting our vendors and clients in our new facility. If you are in the Atlanta area, please stop by for a visit at:
4855 Peachtree Industrial Blvd., Ste. 435
Norcross, GA 30092
For more great pictures, check out our Pinnacle Facebook page!
Personalize it! And, you can be a winner, too.
Personalization is key in the promotional products business. But when it comes to personalization, it seems retail is following the promotional industry’s lead. From the first day that your barista asked to put your name on your cup of coffee at Starbucks, personalization was creeping into mass retail. But recently, both Gatorade and the U.S. Soccer Organization are banking on your desire to personalize their products.
Gatorade’s #WinfromWithin campaign went for the personalization angle earlier this year. You can create your own, personalized label for your Gatorade bottle. But, in creating your own label you were also entered into a contest to win a case of Gatorade bottles with your labels on the bottle.
The U.S. Soccer Organization is currently using personalization to encourage fans to purchase gear and get excited about our national team’s participation in the 2014 World Cup, which begins in Brazil on June 12th. Their “One Nation. One Team.” campaign allows you to not only purchase an official U.S. National Team jersey, but for the first time in an active World Cup season you can personalize the official home jersey with your name and number.
What brands will follow next for personalization? Will you be able to brand your own soda can before it comes out of the vending machine? How about personalized flavors of your favorite brand of chips from your local supermarket? Will we soon see “Gucci by me” on purses and shoes at the mall?
Tell us what you think is the next great frontier of personalization!
FORE: Shoot Low, Win Big!
Does your golf outing planning schedule look like this? Win big with good planning and the perfect products.
For years companies have used the Golf Tournament as a way to socialize and reward their customers. One company we know spends as much as $45,000 on their annual spring event. A Golf Tournament has also been a stalwart fund-raiser for the non-profit segment.
Non-profits have certain challenges, especially when it comes to fund raising events that are reward-return based. They need the perfect promotional products to not only thank donors for past giving, but to also encourage them to donate again and spread their message. Sometimes it takes more than one stress ball or mug to do just that.
Here are some ideas to help non-profits find the perfect promotional products for their next Golf Tournament.
Traditional:
Creative:
Waayyyyy outside the “tee” box:
The right golf promotional products will provide big returns on your outing investment!
The Unique Wedding Experience
Listen up, event planners and hospitality facilities! You already know that there is no longer such a thing as a “traditional wedding.” There are entire reality television programs built around brides (or bridezillas) competing for the most unique, most memorable wedding. You see it every day. Your brides want the unique wedding experience and we are here to help you give it to them!
Two of the biggest contributors to achieving the unique wedding experience: Pinterest and promotional products.
Pinterest: Pinterest burst onto the scene in 2010 hailing itself as a “virtual discovery” tool. At the core, Pinterest is a bookmarking site. In reality, it is a crafters, foodies, and shoppers paradise. Since its inception, Pinterest has become the #1 social networking site based solely on “time spent” statistics. In 2013, Pinterest was valued at $3.8 billion and there is no slow-down in its near future.
For brides and wedding planners, Pinterest is a welcome haven for ideas and support. You can shop for dresses, get alternative venue ideas, and even plan your menu.
Top Wedding Boards on Pinterest from Vogue Magazine.
The Pinnacle Wedding board is one of our most popular boards.
Pinterest Wedding Boards even have their own Buzzfeed list.
Promotional Products: Promotional products can also help make a wedding even more memorable! Here are a few promotional product ideas to help your clients host a totally unique wedding experience:
Wedding-branded flip-flops to help everyone in the bridal party relax.
Personalized Napkins can be used for everything from brunch to cocktails to the main meal.
Perfect for the sit-down meal AND a nice wedding favor, the Stemless Wine Glass.
A memorable addition to a beautiful outdoor wedding and a favor guests will want to use over and over: Fiesta Mason Jar Tumbler.
Event planners, hotels and venues can be ahead of the curve and offer these great ideas to their customers. Set your company apart, overhaul a wedding and help the brides and grooms that you work with create a one-of-a-kind, magical wedding day.
For more wedding ideas, please check out our Pinterest board or our website. Comment below if you know have other good ideas about how to use promotional products for a unique wedding experience.
School Supplies Supply Smiles: Pinnacle Promotions Makes a Big Impact in Haiti
When Pinnacle Promotions began more than 20 years ago, it was founded on a premise of doing good work and being good people. That desire has never left the heart of owners Mitch and Dave Weintraub. Recently, Pinnacle Promotions partnered with Martin Genauer and the law firm of Berger Singerman to support the Foundation Groupe Jean Vorbe in Port-au-Prince, Haiti.
Together, we worked to provide the children at the Foundation and the Foyer Divin Orphanage with more than 500 blankets and convertible bag-backpacks filled with pens, pencils, erasers and other school supplies. The Foundation was kind enough to send along pictures of some very happy children.
Translation:
I acknowledge receipt of your letter from the 11th and thank you. I take this opportunity to ask you to send Martin Genauer and Pinnacle Promotions, on behalf of Foundation Jean Vorbe and the orphanage Foyer Divine, my most sincere thanks.
I attached some pictures of the children receiving the blankets that will be so useful for the coming cool months.
Once again, thank you or having thought of us and wish you the warmest regards.
Jean Marie’ Vorbe
The value of giving back into the lives of children is immeasurable. We consider ourselves fortunate to have been a part of making a difference for school children in Haiti.
Don’t Underestimate the Value of a Good Bag!
By Elizabeth Fenlon
Merchandising Specialist
The PPAI Expo in Las Vegas is the trade show of trade shows. Literally. It is the biggest trade show in the promotional products industry, spanning two full floors at the Mandalay Bay Convention Center. With close to 3,250 booths and 11,500 industry attendees, you can imagine that this might be a tad overwhelming if you were a tradeshow newbie, like myself.
As a Merchandising Specialist for Pinnacle Promotions, it is my job to stay on top of industry trends and be ahead of the curve as new products launch into the market. Attending the PPAI Expo is a must. So, I packed my comfortable shoes and headed to Las Vegas for 4 days of nothing but talking about promo products.
Our team met at the airport at 6AM the day of the trip. I’d been packed for days, terrified of being late or of being the one to hold us up with my lack of business travel experience. Luckily, I’d recently gotten a Zoom DayTripper 15″ Computer Backpack and it turned out to be my most prized possession on the trip. Seriously, this bag has it all.
My backpack has a dedicated computer pocket, which made getting my chunky, old, Toshiba laptop through security a breeze. It also has a separate pocket to store an iPad. Want more pockets? This bag has them. There are two zippered pockets that are perfect for sunglasses, and two side pockets that also have zippers. Best of all, the back panel of the bag is designed to slip over the handles of my rollerbag.
Upon arriving we were able to check in, get a feel of the layout, view the exhibitor list and map and come up with a game plan to tackle all those booths over the next few days. If you’ve never been to a trade show, especially one of this magnitude, there are a few essentials you HAVE to have on you at all times:
• Comfortable Shoes – 8-10 hour days of walking and standing
• Refillable Water Bottle– Las Vegas is a dry climate. It is important to stay hydrated. They’ll price gouge you for bottled water at the show. So, being able to refill from the water fountain is a must.
• Pen/Notebook – Because you will NEVER remember everything.
• Camera Phone – There is no way you will get 2 floors and 3,250 booths of samples on the plane. Take pictures.
• Business Cards/ Business Card Holder – Again, you will never remember everyone’s name.
• Snacks – ok, maybe this is just me? Avoid getting cranky when it’s 5 o’clock and you realize you still haven’t eaten lunch.
Everything on my tradeshow essential list had a perfect spot in my bag, allowing me to be hands free and focus on the real reason I was there, to scout out the newest and most effective products to help your brand Make the right impression™.
The Fuller Brush Man’s Necessities
The Fuller Brush salesman is a legend in the outside sales community. The Fuller Brush man was the original traveling salesman. He went door-to-door, cold calling from city to city, state to state across the country. Movies have been made about him, from The Fuller Brush Man to Planes, Trains, and Automobiles. He is a part of pop culture, and the ideal that salespeople strive to be.
While the Fuller Brush man-model has changed over the years, the role of the “traveling” or outside salesperson still exists. Whether a local person or across states or countries, the role of the salesperson has changed over the decades but there are some business essentials that every outside salesperson needs.
See if you agree with our list:
Business Cards: A must for any salesperson, inside or out. You can order online, or even print your own these days. Business cards are also moving out of the traditional-size mold and branching out into more creative shapes and designs.
Business Card Holders: Don’t keep your cards in your wallet. Instead, pull your business card from a classy holder.
Luggage Tag: Easily spot your luggage on the baggage carousel. Luggage tags make life easier for the seasoned traveler!
Messenger Bag: Many of our messenger bags have a handy laptop compartment.
Seat beads: A must-have for the salesperson who spends most of their life in the car!
Good Shoes: Enough said.
Sleep Mask: This Napoleon Dynamite sleep mask will keep other flyers from bothering you because they know you mean business.
A Good Book: Goodreads will help you find your next good book, and tell you what your friends are reading, too!
Hand Sanitizer: Stay germ free and safe while you travel.
Fun Giveaways: What a better way to make the right impression than to give your clients and potential customers something to remember you by. And if you can make them smile in the process, even better! Our clients loved their poppers! VIDEO
Stress-headache Medication: And lastly, do not leave home without relief for those long travel days, weather delays, or cancellations!
To be successful, you must always be prepared. So, make sure you don’t leave the office without these sales necessities!
Promotional Products to Save Your Snowmageddonpocalypse
The Pinnacle Promotions office is located in the Atlanta area. In 2014, we survived, along with our friends, family and colleagues, through one of the worst snowstorms in recent memory. Call it what you like: Snowmageddon, Snowpocalypse, or more accurately Snowmageddonpocalypse. People were stranded in their cars for anywhere from 1 – 20 hours. Children were stranded at schools, and worse on school buses and brave teachers and good Samaritans kept them safe and warm. There are many theories as to why this happened. And as there are many blame theories, there are that many stories or more of miraculous and random acts of kindness and selflessness.
Pinnacle Promotions was uniquely equipped to continue servicing our clients during the storm. Our account teams were able to address our customer’s needs through proprietary tools and resources, and make the necessary adjustments to make sure our clients weren’t left out in the cold.
In talking with many who were stuck or stranded, we heard over and over about the items that they really wished they had with them to weather the storm.
Some of the top comments we heard:
“I wish I had a blanket in the car.” A customized throw or blanket would be the perfect winter item to have in the car at all times and be ready in the summer to host a picnic.
“Wish I had an external phone charger. I didn’t expect my phone to die and not be able to use my car charger.” A branded portable power bank is a price-effective and compact way to come to the rescue of your clients and employees.
“Can’t wait to get home and have a warm cup of coffee.” Many of those who spent hours on the roadways trying to get home were relieved to walk into their homes and grab their favorite custom mug to sit down for a drink to warm them through.
And here at Pinnacle, we grabbed promotional ice scrapers on our way out the door to help us get the snow and ice off our windshields for the drive home.
What items do you think would be most helpful in a snowstorm? Check out our Winter Promotional Items section for some great ideas.
And lastly, a special thanks to all of the emergency service personnel, road crews and good Samaritans who helped those who were waylaid by the storm.