Magnetic Calendars: Opportunities to Make Your Message Stick

Imprinting magnetic calendars with your company logo and contact info is a great promotional strategy-as long as you can find the right opportunities. Here are some good and not as good times to give away branded magnetic calendars.

Good: at the point of service in a customer's home or office space; a handy way to post an invoice as there will likely be a refrigerator or other appliance nearby to attach the magnet to.
Not as Good: Parades; attendees are far away from home and receive a lot of promotional papers and items and these are often left on the ground or thrown away.

Good: At the point of purchase ( if you sell food, baked goods, medical prescriptions or delivery items) customers will be bringing their purchases straight to the kitchen so there's a good change the magnet will be remembered and added to the artwork already adorning the fridge.
Not as Good: in a mailing campaign that lacks the proper packaging or fulfillment guidelines. You can prospect with a mailing and include a magnet but be sure to check with your post office.

Good: Send a follow-up thank you to clients for choosing your business. A Thank You goes a long way and magnet calendars are an affordable way to say "thanks" and included your information for future contact.
Not as Good: At a conference or trade-show; attendees are typically traveling and often will throw the product away rather than taking the space and time to pack it.

Whatever your plan is magnetic calendars add staying power to your promotion and keep your contact information visible all year long while in use.

4 Customer Types That Still Love Promotional Calendars

We often hear how business is becoming paperless, and how customers prefer to do their banking, shopping and communicating on line. But printed promotional calendars still make sense for lots of people and here are 4 potential customers you could reach with a printed giveaway:


Moms - Moms love having a wall calendar near their command center, where ever that may be, so they can choose a convenient date/time for your service call or free estimate.

Professionals Who Work with their Hands - Restaurant owners, chefs, and mechanics to name a few, need a quick at a glance reference while their hands are busy for planning and reference.

Government and Public Service Professionals - Teachers, social workers, police and firemen are often scrambling to make the most of scarce budget dollars. Advertising your business to them with a promotional wall calendar is a win-win, as it gives them one less supply to buy for themselves so they will be sure to use it. 

Seniors - Businesses that cater to senior citizens do well by supplying promotional calendars at the point of service or in a direct mail campaign. Seniors are less likely to track their schedules on a mobile device and the larger font makes for easier reading.


Your clients will thank you and our calendar reviews attest that printed calendars are "a great tool for a fair cost and get your name out there." Start your fall promotion off with a logo or personalized calendar and advertise your business 365 days a year.

Business Thank You Notes: 3 Steps to an Amazing Customer Experience

Email isn’t always best- certainly not when it comes to saying thanks. To create a truly memorable and amazing customer experience in the 21^st century, some companies are discovering they need to follow their mom's advice. Want to copy their success? Follow these simple steps:

1. Buy some branded or personalized business thank you notes

2. Encourage your sales team and  account reps to hand write genuine notes of thanks when customers buy, renew or even leave you for a competitor.

3. Be sure to set up a forum for positive and potentially negative feedback via social media and online reviews. Remember this can be an opportunity to change and grow.

Interacting with your customers encourages loyalty and creating a personal relationship creates an open dialog for better customer service.

This company learned the value of handwritten notes- read more  http://onforb.es/1sWzrXS

Our goal is to help your small business succeed one printed product at a time!

Affordable Company Birthday Cards that Deliver Valuable Results

When is a cheap company birthday card more than just a birthday card?

When you plan and create a campaign around it- one that can deliver valuable ROI.  Here are four industry examples of how to leverage cheap company birthday cards:

• From an accountant - A birthday card sent outside of tax season, with an invitation to check out financial services (in addition to tax filing services), might create a successful cross-sell
• From a salon- A coupon for a free birthday service in conjunction with a regular manicure/pedicure
• From a dental office- A discount on teeth whitening services 
• From a physician - add a helpful reminder about important milestone years that warrant a specific type of exam or procedure e.g. mammogram

If possible, give customers a code or special web landing page to reference so that you can measure the results and traffic from these efforts.

Your signature will add a personal touch your message and our greeting cards offer free imprints with your order.

Take Part in Small Business Saturday

Mark your calendars! Small Business Saturday is around the corner! An American shopping day held on the Saturday after Thanksgiving (after Black Friday and before Cyber Monday), this annual event encourages shoppers to do their holiday shopping at small and local businesses — like yours!

Small Business Saturday is anything but small and all about community. It was founded by American Express in 2010 as a way to celebrate and promote the local businesses that make America’s neighborhoods so great. Due to the big response, in 2011 it became recognized as an official shopping holiday.

This year Small Business Saturday falls on November 29^th.

No matter what type of business you are in, it pays to participate! Take advantage of this unique opportunity to promote your business and boost sales for your business.

Encourage your customers to Shop Small®.

Encourage your customers to shop your business by creating memorable marketing materials that promote your business and invite customers to Shop Small®.

1.    Extend an invitation. Create an in-store event to attract new and old customers to come to your business. Send out simple customized invitations. You can also promote online by creating an event on Facebook.

2.    Let it fly. Put up a flyer in your store window that reminds shoppers of the date and encourages them to shop local. Not only is it a great way to support your community, but it is also a great way to boost your brand image.

3.    Gear up on giveaways. Plan a special giveaway that reminds your customers to shop at your establishment all year long. Customized 2015 calendars, personalized pens, and custom-printed t-shirts are all great, functional gifts your customers can use every day of the year.

4.    Create special offers. Increase the incentives with special one-day discounts and promotions that will improve foot traffic into your store location. Giving away gift certificates  for every $XXX spent is a smart way to encourage repeat business.

5.    Give them something to smile about. Create even more excitement for your local small business by doing something unique to generate attention. Have a DJ play music in the store. Hire a magician or clown. Serve free coffee in the morning. Display balloons outside your store and give away free cake.

6.    Be social. Social media played a critical role to the first Small Business Saturday’s success. Be sure to follow the movement on Facebook and hashtag #SmallBusinessSaturday on Twitter.

Regardless of whether you are a retail store or restaurant, a beauty salon or a bakery, Small Business Saturday is a fantastic opportunity to reach out and show your community that small businesses matter. The only “wrong” way to participate is to not participate at all.

Be sure, too, to check out the free materials American Express provides to assist you in promoting this fantastic and meaningful event.

Thing big. Shop small.

Have you celebrated Small Business Saturday in the past? Are you planning to participate this year? We want to know! Please tell us your story below.   

---

Your Customers Are Looking Online. Can They Find You?

Every day people use their smart phone to look for everything from local movie times and dining options to car repair services, pet supply stores, beauty salons, and more.  Is your company one of them?

According to The New York Times, nearly half of all mobile searches — also known as “googling” performed on a smartphone — have a local intent. This means that the person who is doing the searching is looking for local information. This number is up from 40% last year and translates to literally billions of local searches taking place on mobile phones.

To better understand people’s local search behaviors, Google recently partnered with Ipsos MediaCT and Purchased to research the behaviors of more than 5,000 American smartphone users. Their study revealed:

• Searches with local intent are more likely to lead to store visits and sales within a day
• 1 in 3 searches on smartphones occur right before a consumer’s visit to a store
•    50% of mobile users are most likely to visit after conducting a local search — compared to 34 percent of consumers who are using tablets or computers to research the same information.
• Mobile searchers are typically ready to buy once they are in a store.
• 18% of local searches lead to sales, compared to 7 percent for non-local searches.
•  Consumers search for a variety of information, the most popular being:
• Business hours
• Directions to a local store
• Local store address

Despite the huge volume of local queries in mobile, a majority of small businesses and brands still don’t have mobile-optimized websites. If your company happens to be one of them, Cordial Greetings can help. 

The Benefits of Mobility
Given the growing trend in mobile device use, it’s more important than ever to ensure that your business can be found quickly and easily — and using the devices your customers rely on the most.

We’ve all been in situations in which we wanted to find something nearby — the closest gas station to the airport, a local yoga studio, or simply a place to go to dinner. We also search for services that don’t necessarily have a prominent store front — a landscaping business, a trucking company, a dentist, a plumber, and more. Mobile content helps to ensure that your business is found and allows people to pass your name along effortlessly!

Get Your Business Moving
Dedicated to helping small businesses succeed, Cordial Greetings now offers Mobile Landing Pages. Choose one of eight attractive and professional template themes, including automobile, construction, landscaping, general business, towing, plumbing and more. Each one is designed to make it easy for your customers to access your business information on their mobile device.

Getting Started – Three Simple Steps

1. Provide us with your company and contact information
2. We will create a Mobile Landing Page for your business and provide you with a QR code image via email
3. Add your QR code to any promotional product or printed media

With Cordial Greetings a mobile website isn’t only easy, it’s also affordable— just $49.99 for an entire year! Your Mobile Landing Page will be active for 12 months from the date of purchase and can easily be renewed - allowing your business to benefit for as few or as many years as you choose.

Take the Next Step

Get started today!

Promotional Ideas to “Fall” in Love With

We hate to be a buzz kill, but the summer months are drawing to a close. Goodbye sun and fun, hello autumn! Soon the temperatures will start to fall — and so will the leaves.

For many of us, the “back to school” season also means “back to business.” The time is now to start thinking about new and innovative ways to promote and market your company. To help get you started, consider some of the following Cordial Greetings autumn themed promotional products:

Thanksgiving Cards – Why wait until the winter holidays to express appreciation and gratitude? Cordial Greetings offers a wide selection of attractive Thanksgiving cards that make it easy to say thanks to customers, partners, and prospects.  

Personalized Tear Off Calendar Cards — Make a date with the Carving Thanks Perfed Calendar Card.  Personalized, perfed calendar cards are a calendar and card in one! They are a perfect way to say you care and give a promotional gift your customers can use every day of the year.

Promotional Pens — Write it off! Promotional pens are perfect for Fall. Did you know that Cordial Greetings offers 13 different types of customizable promotional pens? Choose from a wide range of styles, shapes, colors, and imprints.

Customizable Coffee Mug— As the days grow cooler, give your favorite customers a gift they can warm up to. Our customizable, classic coffee mug is an affordable and functional promotional gift that’s brimming with potential!

Promotional Notebooks — Take note! Our new line of promotional notebooks are a fun, contemporary way to get you company noticed. The Orange Chevron Reporter Style Notebook and the Colorful Circles Journal Style Notebook are two perfect options for Fall and ideal for the office, home or school. Customize the back cover with your company name and contact information. 

Count on Cordial Greetings

While we can’t make summer last forever, count on Cordial Greetings to help make a lasting impression this Fall. From key chains and coloring books to can coolers and coffee mugs, we offer a wide variety of unique and affordable promotional products that are perfect for your business or organization.

Have a great idea for a fall promotion? Let us know! Tell us how you plan to use promotional products to market your business this autumn by posting your story below. We’d love to hear about it!