Promotional Products Blog | Pinnacle Promotions Marketing Company

Welcome to this week’s edition of “Trending Topic Tuesday,” where we share our take on what’s going on in the world and what promotional products would appropriately (or inappropriately) market the subject matter.
Steve Jobs addressed a crowd of 5,200 developers at the 2011 Worldwide Developers Conference in San Francisco yesterday, and while he didn’t announce the release of the iPhone 5 (which members of the tech world had already guessed), he did speak about a number of updates to the company’s software that will improve functionality – and, likely, sales – of Apple’s already easy-to-use products such as the MacBook, iPad, and iPhone. And if you’ve always wanted to be a pilot or an astronaut, I’m sure that some of these new products and services will catch your ear.

Indeed, some of the features of Mac OS X 10.7 Lion sound like they were developed by NASA: we’ve got Mission Control, which makes it easy for Mac users to quickly navigate among apps and spaces; Launchpad, which allows users to find and launch apps from where they left off the last time they were closed; and iCloud, Apple’s own cloud-based file storage system that gives users the ability to access music, videos, images and more from any Apple device without having to upload them from their Mac to their iPod to their iPad (and so on).

iOS 5, the operating system used by mobile devices (the iPhone, iPod Touch, and iPad), also features a number of significant changes that make things both easier and more efficient for users. The camera is accessible via a shortcut from the lock screen, and all devices will be equipped with iMessenger, a conversation platform that allows individuals to carry on a single conversation (free of charge) between various iOS devices. Much like Blackberry’s BBM platform, iMessenger facilitates communication between iOS users via Wi-Fi or 3G to cut back on text messages.

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Yep that’s Apple’s new iPad, featured in its first television commercial that debuted during the Academy Awards on March 7th. Finally released on April 3, more than 300,000 iPads were sold on that first day alone, with more than 1 million apps and 250,000 e-books downloaded by users as well. One of my coworkers in the Web Development Department here at Pinnacle exclaimed last week how he was excited to be getting his tax refund as he was taking it straight to the Apple store to pick up his very own. I think I responded by saying very politely that I thought the iPad was “neat” but that I wasn’t quite sure the purpose it would serve for me (or the excuse I could use to spend the money to purchase one) as I already own an iPhone and MacBook. His response was some version of, “Me neither. I just want it.”

That answer my friends, is what brings us to one of the causes for what will inevitably be the success of the iPad, and anything else Apple conjures up for that matter – brand loyalty – to the point where Apple consumers can even define themselves by a connection to the brand (case in point – Apple’s “I’m a Mac” campaign). After all, it’s not every company that has consumers sleeping outside their stores just to be one of the first to buy their new product (recall the craze for Apple’s iPhone release back in summer 07). While I haven’t heard of anyone pulling out their sleeping bags yet, it seems to be just about on par with sales of its other devices and the Apple brand and its loyal consumers seem to be just as strong as ever.

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A study of Internet usage released by The Nielsen Company shows that Americans nearly tripled the amount of time they spend on social media sites and blogs between August 2008 and that same month one year later. Over the course of that time, people developed and altered the way that they gain information. Not only are consumers turning to online news sources such as CNN.com or the New York Times online, but also people are garnering more of their news from sites such as Facebook and Twitter. This means that hard news stories- about the earthquake in Haiti or the latest status update on healthcare reform- are cluttered with personal status updates, such as what John Smith ate for dinner last night or the color of Jane Doe’s new hat. What’s more, consumers are hearing the news through secondary sources that cannot help but add their own personal bias.

Personal bias about online news also applies to brands. Social media sites provide an easy and uncensored outlet for shoppers to share their likes and dislikes about certain products, companies and customer service experiences. Thus, as consumers spend more and more time on these sites, effectively changing the way they share and acquire information, marketers are forced to shift their campaigns as well. And they are. The same Nielsen study reveals that while the time consumers spent on these sites tripled, the amount of money that businesses spent advertising online increased 119 percent during that same time span.

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Flash drives are nothing new to the promotional products industry (you can find Pinnacle’s most popular USB flash drives online at The USB Drive Shop) Companies everywhere have been snagging up these little items imprinted with their business’ name and logo to give away to customers and to use internally for their own data storage and transfer needs. But it seems that a new wave of USB flash drives is emerging care of a Korean company (the website is all in Korean but it appears to be called EARLYSHOP) that hand makes little flash drives to appear as tiny replicas of different types of food. Yummy. Continue reading…

As a newcomer to the world of blogging and online marketing in general, yesterday’s exchange on our very own Pinnacle Promotions blog blew me away. Just to recap, a correspondence took place between my extremely talented, but also fairly new to the realm of blogging, coworker Acree Graham, and a blogger that I consider to be one of the most prolific social media thought leaders, Jay Baer of Convince and Convert. In my mind, this exchange exemplifies the phenomenon of blogs and their power to spark high level interactions between newbie marketers and established industry experts in a matter of hours. As a recent college graduate, I feel that my generation is extremely fortunate: the wealth of information available to us, faster than ever before, is one benefit that we have over generations past, but furthermore, it is the accessibility to people whom we admire and respect in our lines of work that is an even greater privilege, should we have the confidence and courage to reach out to them.

“What makes marketing the best career in the world is that is it ever evolving. There’s always a new insight, new tool or tactic. So if you want to be at the top of your game and really be someone your clients love and rely on — keep learning. Read, write, listen. Every day.”

-Drew McLellan, author of the blog Drew’s Marketing Minute.

Dana
Team Lead – Social Media
view my bio!

Reading Acree’s blog yesterday did make me a bit nostalgic about college life. My sadness did not last long, however, as a late afternoon brainstorming session with my coworkers left me giddy with excitement about all of the creative ideas that we hope to bring to fruition. Today, as I write this blog, I am slightly overwhelmed by the blank document on my computer screen, but I am hopeful that after jotting down my thoughts and organizing them in a logical progression, anyone who stumbles upon this post will be left feeling satisfied and intrigued.

The sheer number of emotions that we experience on an hourly, and even minute-by-minute, basis is mind-boggling. One of the downright coolest websites I have seen in a long time (other than Pinnacle Promotions, of course!) is Trendhunter.com, recommended to me by Pinnacle’s Relationship Manager, Natasha. Trend Hunter garners over 9 million monthly views and claims to be “the world’s largest, most popular trend community”. With over 61,000 posted trends, this site is an incredible resource for anyone interested in innovative gadgets, concepts, and campaigns.

But enough about Trend Hunter and onto the real inspiration behind today’s ramblings. My first paragraph with distinctive feelings bolded and underlined relates to a Trend Hunter slideshow called “34 Emotion-Based Innovations.” While I am not sure whether inventions like the TouchMan cellphone, which allows for visual sharing of emotions during phone conversations, will be met with widespread acceptance, there are some products on the list that may take the world by storm.

The LadyBag, designed by Canadian researchers, uses RFID technology to detect the contents of the purse- if it detects an absence of a certain item, a visual icon representing the missing item appears on the external LED display. When every RFID-tagged item specified by the user is detected, a smiley face graphic shows up on the outside display. The LadyBag also determines the user’s emotional state via physical sensors, and visually depicts the emotions on the outside display as well. I’m not sure how I feel about literally wearing my emotions, but the RFID detection technology would be useful, to say the least!

The mood pen, created by electronics powerhouse Philips, features sensors in its shaft to monitor the user’s heart rate, blood pressure, skin temperature and pressure. The inks and shape of the writing tip adapt to the emotions detected, so written words will appear different depending on whether the writer is happy or sad. The emotion-sensing technology could be turned off if the user decides not to put his or her feelings on display. My question is, if users are going to turn off that special feature, why wouldn’t they just opt for regular promotional pens?

The general public may not be ready for some of these innovations just yet, but it is fascinating to think about how emotion-detecting technology will affect communication channels and marketing. Someday in the future, will marketers be able to capture and analyze consumers’ emotional reactions to billboards, television commercials, and point of purchase displays? The examples in the slideshow seem to point to “yes,” but it will be exciting to observe the developments as they infiltrate mainstream outlets.
Dana
Team Lead – Social Media
view my bio!

It all started with a straightforward question. “What are you doing?” asked the people at Twitter.com, and millions responded. Twitter officially launched in 2006 and by February 2009 the site’s total number of unique visitors per month had exceeded 7 million, a more than 1382% increase over the previous year according to Nielsen Online and Mashable.com.

Twitter continued to grow in popularity during the summer months- and not just with ordinary Joes. The site also developed as a marketing tool, with more and more companies tweeting contests, rewards programs, free trial offers and even promotional products giveaways.

While the statistics are undeniable, a new question has arisen in the minds of both Twitter users and non-users: Why should we care? On a personal level, Twitter has given us more information than we ever thought necessary to know about our friends, families and neighbors. In fact, this morning I awoke with an e-mail to learn that my sister’s boyfriend’s former college roommate was following me on Twitter. Really??  On the surface this seems absurd; I mean, I’ve met the guy maybe twice, and we haven’t had any contact in years. But when it comes down to it, Twitter is all about creating a network and advancing your resources. After all, he works in the marketing industry as well.

Furthermore, many marketers are learning that analyzing the trends in consumer’s tweets provides valuable information about their clients and better yet, their potential customers. Although it’s true that only a small number of tweets have any sort of pass along value, conversational tweets still contain  consumer insight that allows us to personalize campaigns accordingly. As marketers, it’s important for us to understand the wants and needs of our target demographic… and that all stems from understanding their backgrounds and consumer behaviors. Do you see the value in Twitter? Let us know @pinnaclepromos.

Sarah
Marketing Coordinator
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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
view my bio!

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

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

1. The Cinchpack of Notre Dame

The pitch: A String-A-Sling backpack sold to tourists at the Notre Dame Cathedral is hired to kidnap the beautiful Esmeralda. The cinch pack ends up falling in love with Esmeralda and attempts to save her from her captors, at his own risk…

Why the film was never made: Producers claimed cinch packs weren’t pitiful enough to inspire sympathy in audiences.

2. The Hills Have Ice

The pitch: Deranged ice scrapers descend from the hills to attack and cannibalize a family of innocent tourists. In the end, however, the ice scrapers feel remorse and decide to help the tourists by clearing the frost from their car windshield.

Why the film was never made: Producers argued that the ending was too postmodern for a box-office slasher.

3. Pirates of the Carabiner

The pitch: Keychain thieves hijack a college bookstore and take a pretty co-ed hostage, in hopes that her magic carabiner will free them from an ancient curse.

Why the film was never made: Studios felt the college football tailgating crowd was too small of a target audience.

4. Kites of the Living Dead

The pitch: Hordes of the undead wreak havoc on post-apocalyptic suburbia. After successfully turning all human survivors into zombies, they organize a worldwide day of kite flying that unites zombies in global peace… until the sequel.

Why the film was never made: Studios couldn’t predict that in 2009 zombies would rival even vampires in popularity.

5. The Fan-tom of the Opera

The pitch: After her father dies, a singer at the Paris Opera House hears the sound of whirring fans when she sings. Finally, a ghostly figure of a fan emerges from the shadows and declares its love for her.

Why the film was never made: Producers were unable to cast a fan with a decent singing voice.

6. Poltermice
The pitch: Promotional mice begin communicating with a five-year-old girl in suburban California through static on the computer screen. Eventually they travel through the computer monitor and into the house. “They’re here…”

Why the film was never made: Studios felt the story would be too traumatic for post-9/11 audiences. Maybe in 2010.

Acree
Creative Writing Intern
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