The Write Stuff: The Power of Promotional Pens

Even in our digitally connected world of smart phones and keyboards, texts and emails, writing instruments are still considered to be the #1 most popular promotional product. Why? Simply put, people use them! We rely on pens and pencils regularly— at home, in the office, and on the go — to leave notes, write reminders, sign documents, and mark boxes. Their uses are endless!

According to a 2012 study published by Promotional Products Association International (PPAI), people in the United States use a pen 5-10 times a day. Seventy-three percent of people in the United States carry a pen with them at all times.

When it comes to promotional pens, the PPAI study also reported that of those who have received a promotional pen:

• 79 percent reported that they use promotional pens they receive
• 40 percent reported they use them at least 1-5 times a day
• 60 percent could recall the name of the advertiser who gave them the pen
• More than 50 percent of them could remember the product or service
• Almost half of the people surveyed said they often pass on the pens to another person

Five Benefits of Promotional Pens

Aside from statistics, here are five more reasons that customized promotional pens have all of the components of the “perfect” promotional product:

1. Customized promotional pens are used all of the time.

Perhaps one of the greatest benefits of customized pens is that promotional pens are used on a daily basis — by people of all ages and in every industry.  

2. Customized promotional pens are often shared.

Like money, pens often move from hand to hand. Statistics show that the average pen has seven different users in a lifetime. While a promotional pen may start with an original customer, quite often it will wind up in the hands of someone else. Every time the pen changes hands, the company’s name and identity spreads.

3. Customized promotional pens are easy to distribute.

Customized pens are small, portable and convenient to pass around — at trade shows and special events — as well as within your place of business. Recipients can carry them anywhere they go — quite often they may pick up a promotional pen without even realizing it.

4. Customized promotional pens are inexpensive to produce.

Promotional pens are one of the least expensive forms of advertising and ideal for companies with lean marketing budgets. They provide maximum brand exposure at a surprisingly affordable price. Cordial Greetings offers a wide range of options — some cost as little as .49 cents a piece!

5. Customized promotional pens come in all shapes and styles.

There’s blue ones and black ones, red ones and green ones – even pink and purple. The list of types and styles of promo pens are endless. Cordial Greetings’ own selection of promotional pens range from basic ballpoint pens to more sophisticated designs — such as our new Stylus Click Pen that offers both the functionality of a pen, as well as a stylus.

What are people’s favorites?

The PPAI study also revealed people’s preferences for promotional writing instruments. The top five user favorites were:

1. Ballpoint pen
2. Roller ball pen
3. Gel pen
4. Highlighter
5. Permanent marker

Get to the “point.”

If you are looking for an easy, inexpensive way to market your company and build brand awareness, a customized promotional pen can be a smart addition to your marketing mix. Ready to get started?

10 Easy Ways to use your Calendar as a Marketing Tool

What do you get when you cross a kangaroo with a calendar?  A leap year, of course!

They come in all shapes and sizes.  They bring images of glorious landscapes, icons of patriotism, happy puppies, playful kittens, beautiful flowers and even the smiling faces of your office staff!  With designs and styles too numerous to mention, calendars remain an economical and practical way to market your business.

Here are ten easy ways to market using this truly versatile tool!

1.     Save the date!  Part of a local festival?  Having a pre-holiday sale?  Anniversary sale?  Choose a desk or wall calendar and note your special date with a bright sticker.  Your customers will be grateful for the easy reminder.

2.     Say Cheese ... or First Bank and Trust!  Placing the smiling faces of your office team on a photo-personalized calendar card helps your customers -- and perspective clients -- see just who they'll be dealing with!  The importance of familiarity in the business world can't be emphasized enough.  Are you a one-person show? Consider a photo card calendar with a business photo of yourself or add your family, for a more personal touch.

3.     Keep your business info right before their eyes!  How wonderful -- and how easy! -- would it be to have your business information, address, telephone, website and even business hours right before your customer's eyes, each and every day?  Imprinted desk calendars do just that!

4.     Don't just send a card -- send a gift!  Calendar greeting cards do twice the job for a fraction of the cost.  Now when your loyal clients open your holiday greeting card, they'll find not only your best wishes but a useful and practical gift. 

5.     Come fly with me.  Travel agency?  When you give the Destinations 2014 calendar to your clients not only are you giving them a practical gift but a ... hint!

6.     Instant art!  Wall calendars provide instant brightness to a sometimes not-so-festive cubicle and add a nice addition to a breakfast nook or home office space.  Warm, practical and imprinted with your business information, you won't be forgotten -- you're a part of the decor!

7.     Be a hero!  When you donate calendars to a local school or assisted living facility, your good deed -- and your business -- gets noticed!  

8.     A little something extra in the bag!  Save mailing costs and target your market when you tuck a calendar into their shopping bag or give a calendar magnet when you provide a service call. 

9.     Get your votes here!  Running for office?  Newly elected?  Patriotic calendars are a wonderful way to reach out to your constituents while providing important information about your campaign or district office.

10.   Say Ahhhhhhh.  Whether puppies or kittens are your clientele, offering their leash holders a puppy and kittens calendar with dates pre-marked for their furry one's next vaccine or grooming appointment is a great way to ensure a return visit.

We hope these ten suggestions give you ideas that help you market your business 365 days a year!  Cordial Greetings encourages you to share your ideas with us -- and wishes you a happy, prosperous 2014!

Adding a Personal, Local Touch to your Marketing

Disneyland is a work of love.  We didn't go into Disneyland just with the idea of making money.  --  Walt Disney

Business is about people.  When we approach our customers as friends; when we create a business environment that feels welcoming and when we provide products or services that deliver what they promise at a fair cost -- we soon find our bottom line isn't quite so ... bottom!

As summer draws to a close and we settle into our regular routines, we find that the sometimes lazy autumn season becomes the perfect time to touch base with old acquaintances and remind our customers that they haven't been forgotten. Here are just a few examples of ways to spark the interest of new clients while reminding our long standing customers that they are truly valued:

Get your cider on!  Whether hosting a full-blown fall open house or simply brewing an urn of hot cider or hot cocoa to have on-hand, you'll find that even the simplest of personal touches will help you to stand out and be remembered.  They may come through the door as customers -- but they'll leave as friends. 

Trim the Tree.  Offer a week-long Tree or Wreath decorating contest and prepare for a revolving door!  Prospective customers  -- not to mention participants -- will be stopping by to check out the competition.  Add  a coloring contest for the little ones and now you really have a show.  Display the winners in your storefront window.  This fun idea will truly live up to its name as it acts like a beacon, drawing customers to your door.

Baby it's cold outside!  Autumn brings with it more time indoors -- and more time surfing the web and catching up with our social media sites.  Don't forget to update your website, add some cool seasonal colors or graphics and offer cyber coupons.  As your customers check you out, remind them that there's a coupon that they can access right then from their smart phone.  Remind them to “Like” you on FaceBook for additional sales and promotions. 

I Yam who I Yam.  Popeye, that great guru of branding, knew his stuff!  Keep in mind as you shift your colors, your themes, your products to suit the season, be true to your brand.  If you are a floral shop known for your unique arrangements, don't succumb to the tried-and-true leaves-in-a-frosted-pumpkin.  Stay innovative!  If you are the local coffee shop, add a pumpkin spice selection.  Place those cool college sweatshirts front and center to remind those who drive by of the big game that weekend.

Reach out, stay in touch and welcome your customers in a way that only you can -- and you'll never be at a loss for business! 

Charlie Brown, you are the only person I know who can take a wonderful season like Christmas and turn it into a problem."   Linus  (Charles Schultz)

It's September.  It comes every year.  The month when we begin to hear the whispers of the approaching holiday season.  It begins slowly.  Back-to-school clothes replace the brightly colored shorts and tees.  Before long, the appearance of the first turkey serving platter.   It's only a matter of time. 

This year, why not get a head start and prevent the heretofore inevitable deer-in-the-headlights moment when, standing amidst hanging snowflake ornaments and over-stuffed Santas, you realize that (again) you're too late to market and advertise effectively for the season. 

Here are a few easy-to-do suggestions that will jump start your advertising campaign and will advertise for you!

I'm here for the wooden spoon set.  An interesting study by the Yale School of Management indicates "the shopping momentum effect" is alive and well.  Draw customers into your store and get them to buy just one thing -- and you'll find that they will immediately begin looking for other things to buy.   When you advertise to bring your holiday shoppers through the door, keep that in mind and offer special pricing on an item or service everyone can use. 

Haul out the holly.  Literally.  Decorating your storefront will set the holiday atmosphere before they ever walk through the door.  Change it just a bit each week and you'll keep interest piqued! 

Stick to your reputation.  A holiday card in an envelope sealed with a sticker will be less likely to be tossed and will show your customers that, true to your reputation, you take that extra step to make things perfect. 

Don't break the bank.  Take advantage of early-bird specials on 2014 calendars and holiday cards.  When you order early you save not only money but you buy yourself time by having your cards in-hands and ready to be addressed whenever you are ready! 

Gift cards ... keep giving!  Stock up on gift cards and keep them on display at the register.  Not only are they great gift giving ideas for your customers -- but great gifts for your customers, as well.  Consider advertising a free $10 gift card with every $50 purchase.

Local Saturday.  Focus on local traffic on the Saturday before Christmas.  Last minute shoppers will welcome ideas for those last minute purchases.  

Hope this list spurs some ideas that will encourage you to begin strategizing early -- hopefully avoiding those last minute marketing misses!

Making the Most of a Negative Review

SEND IN THE LEMONS

… make lemonade.

Few things are more humbling in our business lives than receiving a negative review.  Like most things, it’s not so much the event as it is how we deal with the aftermath.  We’ve assembled a few suggestions to hopefully help you weather this inevitable storm and to realize there is good that can be taken from a negative review.  From evaluation to recognition to resolution, here is a mini-guide to helping all involved feel better!

Give me five.  Reacting immediately to a negative critique is the equivalent of taking the club from your reviewer’s hands and hitting yourself over the head.  Brilliant financier Warren Buffett was once asked what was the greatest piece of business advice he had ever been given.  Without hesitation, he said he was once advised:  “Remember, Warren:  There’s always tomorrow to tell someone to (take a leap)!” 

Whether you have read feedback online or actually have endured a face-to-face unhappy camper, your long-term best response is to step away from the keyboard or, if you are confronted in person, simply say, “I appreciate you’re taking the time to share your thoughts.  I’ll certainly think about all that you’ve said.”   Ask for their number or email address so that you can follow-up.

Really?  Here’s the part where we get our coffee and close our door.  It’s also the part where our conclusion determines our next step.  Was your receptionist honestly rude?  Was your promised delivery time missed by a mile?  Was your floral arrangement prepared with white carnations when they ordered red roses?  Could you really have served breaded rubber bands and saved the cost of fresh calamari? 

We always fry it for three minutes.  Determining if the criticism is valid really is the first step to resolution.  Have you had complaints before about Sally at the front desk?  Has your delivery service been late getting to your shop for a pick-up? 

Here’s how we know:  Take a listen to how Sally approaches your customers.  Are there times when she’s swamped and gets a little snippy?  Pull that floral order.  Could you have read it wrong?  Try the calamari. 

Squeeze the Lemons.  First, right the cause of the wrong, if there was one.  Change delivery services or put them on notice.  The front desk is a hectic mess and Sally really could use some back-up during rush times.  You didn’t read the description of the arrangement – only the item number.   The difference between the “5” and the “3” was … well, roses vs. carnations.  Have each order double-checked (not by Sally!) to be certain the description matches the product.  The new fryer runs hotter – looks like it’s now only two minutes for the calamari.
 
Pour the Lemonade.  Perhaps the most important strategy of all in winning the war against negative comments is to respond in the same venue as the critique was first given.  If you received unflattering feedback via social media, respond both on your Facebook/Web page and to the individual.  Keep it very, very brief.   If the comment was a valid criticism, thank them for their input and explain the changes you’ve made.  (Keep in mind, if Sally had to go … this isn’t the place to announce it!)  If the critique wasn’t valid, then the simple response thanking them for their input, along with a little blurb about how your customers are valued partners, works best.  (Because it’s true.) 

Customers will remember how you resolved their problem longer than they will remember the problem.  A refund for the floral arrangement, totally your fault, is in order.   An apology?  Those always come from you – you are after all the name on the door.  A nasty server, unpleasant customer service representative – or even Rude Sally – shouldn’t be the ones to apologize to the customer for that is the very best way to unleash an Armageddon-sized can of worms.  Offering a gift card is a great way to ask for a second chance to do it right.  The next appetizer is on us! 

Just remember that the worst possible mistake is doing nothing.  Even if you feel the critique is thoroughly unjustified, responding will mitigate the damage! 

Now, pass the calamari!

Keeping In Touch with Your Customers

"I'm not a marketing person.  I don't ask myself questions.  
I go by instinct."   Karl Lagerfeld

Whether keeping in touch with friends or family, greeting cards remain an economical, fun, thoughtful way to do just that.  

That same philosophy makes an easy jump to our business world when we begin to look at our customers as our business-friends.   Not only can we say “hello” and remind our customers that we are there to help when needed or to wish them well on their birthday, but we can (and should!) use this handy keep-in-touch method as a vehicle to update our customers on everything from our monthly specials to a change in contact information.

Greeting cards are just one "marketing tool” that works.  Let's take a look at a few more marketing ideas that don't come with a hit-you-over-the-head club, but yet are super effective ways of making things happen!

I Like You ...  Social media really is the latest and greatest way to stay in touch and let your customers know what you're up to.  Offer a coupon to those who Like you on Facebook.  Don't forget to post often and encourage customers to visit your page for deals not offered anywhere else.  Placing cyber-coupons on your page makes it easy for customers to effortlessly "carry" your coupons, rather than clipping and cutting and arriving with a messy tangle.

You can take it with you ... Colorful bookmarks with your company name and address; recipe cards with your kitchen store hours; coloring sheets or squeaky new crayons for the little ones -- offer your customers something to take with them and you've struck marketing gold.  Now they are reminded of you each and every time they bake a pie or turn a page or are presented with another masterpiece from their child.  You've become part of their everyday world.

Don't Be Shy ...  Link your promotion to a public event.  Sponsor the local run/walk race and offer a free gift or discount from your storefront for all of those who participate.  Being seen in the community helps to show customers that you're not just the shop on the corner, but an integral part of the town.

There are many (many!) ways that we can market.  Choose the vehicle that seems right for you ... or stretch yourself a bit!  Reaching out to your customer as we would any friend will create long-lasting, profitable partnerships.  

"In the world of Internet Customer Service, it’s important to remember your competitor is only one mouse click away."   Doug Warner

... or a call away, a block away, an advertised sale away ...  

Although Mr. Warner may be referring to internet customer service the truth is that, whether we're clicking it or walking it, Main Street is bigger than ever.  Even savvy business owners can no longer be confident that their customers are captive audiences, as theirs' isn’t the only game in town.  Customer service is more important than ever.  It not only keeps one's customers coming back, but it's often the linchpin for drawing new customers through the door. 

Here are a few basic rules to not only draw new customers, but new-to-you customers!

To thine own self be true.  Bill Shakespeare must have owned a small book store!  Remember when all this began?  Remember your great idea, your enthusiasm for the products you carry or the service you provide?  Get back there!  Being true to your mission statement, true to your dream, will instantly provide a certain level of service that your customers will feel, respond to and (better yet) spread the word about.  Trite but true:  Your business is a clear reflection of who you are.  When people feel comfortable with you, they feel comfortable working with you.

Whatever you are, be a good one.  If you are the Mom and Pop diner with your storefront nestled between the florist and the hardware store, don't try to be the shiny new giant Starbucks down the street.  Know that there is a service you provide that can't be -- and isn't being -- duplicated by a competitor.  Know your niche and embrace it rather than putting your efforts into becoming something else.  Abe Lincoln's homespun wisdom seemed to work for him!

Would Macy's tell Gimble's ....?  Run your own race, but keep your eyes open.  When seeking to draw (and you should seek to draw!) clients who are unhappy with the service a competitor is offering, first take a look at what exactly that service is.  Do your research.  Pull some of your competitors' brochures.  Visit their web sites.  How are you the same and where do you differ?  How can you differ?  What client-base isn't being served?  Armed with your competitors' marketing strategies, it will be easier to see what's worked and what hasn't. 

Make new friends, but keep the old!  There is little that frustrates a long-time customer more than finding your storefront emblazoned with a banner offering special discounts to new customers.  Should you advertise to welcome them?  Absolutely!  That being said, you may want to herald in your campaign targeting new customers at the same time you offer a customer appreciation celebration.  Want a little more bang for your buck? -- run your customer appreciation week immediately prior to your welcoming-new-customer offers.  Your current customers will feel you thought of them first -- and your new customers are likely to have seen how you value your old customers, as well. 

Revisiting the core of your business -- who you are -- is the fastest route to becoming who you want to be and will provide invaluable insights into how to get there.

The Cordial Greetings Team encourages you to take your lead from the budding trees and flowers around you  -- make this be the spring your business blooms brightly!