And handy promotional products are very, very effective.

4imprint White Paper and Podcast Released:
What’s in the Employee Breakroom?
Blue Paper® features employee nutrition and its impact on productivity.

(OSHKOSH, Wis.)— Promotional products retailer, 4imprint releases its most recent podcast and Blue Paper (its own version of a white paper), entitled What’s in the Breakroom?: Employee Diet and Productivity. Featuring research that links nutrition to worker productivity, this Blue Paper offers health-conscious tips and ideas to reducing absenteeism and increasing an employer’s bottom-line.

In a 2006 Personnel Today magazine article by Sally O’Reilly, wellness-solutions company vielife studied 15,000 people in the U.S. and the U.K. Results found that employees with poor nutrition reported 21% more sick-related absences and 11% lower productivity than healthier colleagues. Additionally, in Christopher Wanjek’s book Food At Work Workplace Solutions For Malnutrition, Obesity And Chronic Diseases, it was found that in one year obesity contributed to more than 39.2 million lost work days and 239 million restricted work days.

In response to this convincing data, many companies are making the shift to healthy onsite food offerings, such as nutritional vending machine choices to low-fat cafeteria menu options to nutrition policies that dictate no-donut meetings. And, the rewards are showing themselves in reduced illnesses, chronic diseases and enhanced concentration.

“This Blue Paper sheds wonderful light on the direct relationship between healthy eating and work productivity,” explains Mary Curtin, vp of human resources for 4imprint. “As employers, we have an opportunity to provide a supportive work environment that caters to healthy eating and nutrition through a variety of methods, including offering WeightWatcher® programs, nutritious vending options or even onsite fitness classes. By helping keep our team members well and fit, they live longer, better lives, and we benefit from their increased productivity. It truly is a win-win.”

Blue Paper (4imprint’s version of a white paper) and podcast available for download at http://info.4imprint.com/bluepapers/.

About 4imprint Blue Papers
4imprint Blue Papers are in-depth, how-to articles, distributed to 4imprint customers to help their organizations succeed. Accessible at http://info.4imprint.com/bluepapers/ in both print and podcast forms, Blue Papers are also available on iTunes®. Blue Papers cover popular, cutting-edge business, marketing, human resources and management topics such as podcasting, online social media, search engine optimization (SEO) and experiential marketing.

About 4imprint
4imprint is part of 4imprint Group, Plc, a publicly traded company on the London Stock Exchange, and serves more than 100,000 businesses with its innovative promotional merchandise throughout the United States and Canada. For more information, log on to www.4imprint.com.

A wellness program can include anything that improves employee’s physical or emotional health.  Offering incentives for attending fitness classes, smoking cessation, and weight loss programs provide opportunities for staff to improve their health. Making an onsite nurse available makes it convenient and cost-effective for employees to take care of health issues.

To improve emotional well-being, offering non-work related classes can be a much needed way to relieve stress.  Cooking, parenting, and crafting classes offered on the lunch hour can be an effective creative outlet.  Or present opportunities for telecommuting, to allow employees some flexibility with family and sick time.

The benefits for the organization include reduced healthcare costs, less employee sick time, and more productive and creative employees.  Staff can benefit from more work-life balance, feeling better, fewer health problems, and less stress.  These programs can be a critical asset when recruiting, hiring, or retaining employees.

Do your currently have a wellness initiative in place?  Or are you planning one for your agency?  If so, feel free to share your ideas and any impacts you’ve seen.  There are opportunities that can benefit all of us.

For additional information on what wellness can do for your agency, read 4imprint’s new Blue Paper on Employee Diet and Productivity.

• Set up a meet & greet for staff to get to know new and existing patients.  Staff will have the opportunity to meet with patients on a personal level to get to know them better, understand their concerns, and learn about their families.  When greeted by name at the next appointment, both staff and patients will feel appreciated.
• Introduce the opening of a new location to the community.  Invite local media to the open house, as well as new and potential patients.  It’s a great opportunity to talk about the benefits of the new location, and make patients aware of your presence.
• Recruit new staff.  Invite prospective job candidates in to meet your staff currently in you organization.  They can get to know what positions and opportunities are available, and understand more about your business and plan.

Open houses provide many public relations opportunities for your healthcare facility, and provide an ideal occasion for you, your staff, and patients to network in a more casual setting.

For more information on planning an open house, take a look at 4imprint’s Healthcare Newsletter.

I love this picture.

Got a note from Shauna (one of our customers) who was looking for a way for her daughter’s soccer team to support a teammate named Riley who is battling cancer. Riley’s folks had already started ‘Riley’s Army‘ – an organization to help other families with cancer (which is amazing if you think about it!) – and the girls wanted something they could wear as part of their soccer uniform to honor their friend (and others who are fighting the fight) and so an idea was born.

These embroidered wristbands fit the bill perfectly. Love the way this photo gets all the hands together – a real feeling of solidarity.

Good stuff indeed.

4imprint White Paper and Podcast Released: Body Language
Blue Paper® features common cues and interpretations of body language and
the importance of cultural awareness in nonverbal communication

(OSHKOSH, Wis.)— Promotional products retailer, 4imprint releases its most recent podcast and Blue Paper (its own version of a white paper), entitled What is Your Body Language Saying?

“Body language can be just as important as spoken language in communications,” shares Mary Curtin, 4imprint vice president of human resources. “This paper discusses cues such as facial expressions, gestures, posture and proximity which can help employers better communicate with their employees, customers or partners. It’s an interesting topic with application to associates at all levels.”

As business becomes increasingly global, companies must also be mindful of cultural differences and nuances that are present in body language. Jeanette Martin, co-author of “Global Business Etiquette” and business professor at the University of Mississippi, says that there is value in understanding cultural differences in body language even if your company has not yet reached a global market.

In addition to discussing common body language cues and body language in a cross-cultural setting, 4imprint’s latest Blue Paper provides tips on how to ensure that you are aware of and using body language in an effective way, such as:

• Copy or mimic the gestures of the person you are speaking with to make him or her more comfortable.
• Maintain a foot stance that is six to eight inches apart with feet pointed forward as it communicates a relaxed and attentive state.
• Balance eye contact so you are looking directly at someone 80-90 percent of the time. More and it appears disconcerting, less and it shows disinterest.

These, along with many other practical non verbal recommendations, are available for download as a Blue Paper and as a podcast at http://info.4imprint.com/bluepapers/.

About 4imprint Blue Papers
4imprint Blue Papers are in-depth, how-to articles, distributed to 4imprint customers to help their organizations succeed. Accessible at http://info.4imprint.com/bluepapers/ in both print and podcast forms, Blue Papers are also available on iTunes®. Blue Papers cover popular, cutting-edge business, marketing, human resources and management topics such as podcasting, online social media, search engine optimization (SEO) and experiential marketing.

About 4imprint
4imprint is part of 4imprint Group, Plc, a publicly traded company on the London Stock Exchange, and serves more than 100,000 businesses with its innovative promotional merchandise throughout the United States and Canada. For more information, log on to www.4imprint.com.

It was fascinating to see the step-by-step transformation from stainless steel sheet to finished water bottle.

Step 1: Stainless Steel Sheets

Every stainless steel bottle begins its life on one of these rolls of stainless steel.

Step 2: Stainless Steel Tubes

Then, each flat sheet is formed into a stainless steel tube.

Step 3: Tubes Cut to Size

Each tube is then cut to size.

Step 4: Water Bottle Shaping Begins

Each tube is then shaped – and the familiar bend of the water bottle neck begins to emerge.  When shaping is complete, each stainless steel bottle is then polished and painted to add color.

Step 5: Detail Added

For some stainless steel water bottle designs, additional features (like the rubber grip on the Travel-Well Stainless Steel Water Bottle pictured above) are added.

Step 6: Finished Product

Finally, the finished product – ready to imprint with your logo!

-Suzanne

The Associated Press reports consumers are craving the tried-and-true, with a healthy dose of nostalgia in their holiday décor and gifts.  Consumer psychologists say classic colors, shapes and styles evoke welcome feelings of security and stability.

If classic gifts will resonate with your customers, suppliers, donors, volunteers or members, a gift like our 3 ¼” Round Shatterproof Ball Ornament might be a good option.  We’ve given it a slight update, screening a holiday motif and the year on one side, with room for your logo in a subdued, metallic gold on the other.

The ornament comes in muted, matte shades of classic holiday colors: red, gold, green, blue, clear, white and purple.  These are available in quantities as few as 100, for just $2.50 each.  Packaged in an individual gift box, these ornaments are ready-to-give.

In fact, you may even want to start a new tradition – making this the first in series of collectibles you share with customers. You’ll have your holiday gift-giving figured out for years to come!

-Suzanne

There is one for glass, one for cans and one for paper.

But, this month, that changes.

Oshkosh, where I live, is taking its recycling program to the next level. Soon, we’ll be able to combine all of our recyclables into one bin.

The move to single-stream recycling – where all recyclables are combined together is pretty cool.  It usually encourages people to recycle more than when they have to separate everything.

But, I do have one tiny (ok, maybe tiny is not the right word) concern about all of this.  I might have to give up my garage. The recycling bins are really big.  I’m a little concerned that there might not be room for anything else in there – like my car, for example.

City of Oshkosh Single-Stream Recycling Bins

Fortunately, the bins come in two sizes.  I managed to order the smaller one – it measures 24” W x 32” L x 42” H but might now need to go buy a smaller car to fit the space.  I’ll let you know.

If you’re looking for something handy to use for taking your recyclables to the bin, you might like these Bright Recycling Bags, which help you keep paper, glass and cans separated.  Or, if this is something your customers might like, check out our version, the ModFX Recycling Tote Set.

Happy recycling.
-Suzanne

But as always, our incredible Facilities Crew was not satisfied with just posters or decorations (although we have some good ones!) – I offer the picture below as evidence (this is how you were greeted today if you work at 4imprint)! These guys work very, very hard to help us make 4imprint a special place to work and they’re always up for having some fun along the way to celebrate accomplishments, recognize holidays or just bring a smile.

Well done guys! Definitely brought some smiles today – and reminded me I need to work on my abs.

Latest 4imprint White Paper and Podcast:
Professional Associations: Putting Them to Work For You
Blue Paper® expands on the values of professional associations for
individual professionals and businesses.

(OSHKOSH, Wis.)— Promotional products retailer, 4imprint releases its most recent podcast and Blue Paper (its own version of a white paper), entitled Professional Associations: Putting them to Work for You.

Dick Knapinski, public affairs director for the Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA), a professional and enthusiast association for those in the aviation industry, says that what’s true of EAA is often true of most professional associations, “Organizations serve as the catalyst that allows members a way to find information and to share experiences.”

Membership in a professional association can return invaluable benefits—professional development, access to industry publications, discounts, networking opportunities, and more. But, you can’t just sign up and expect the rewards to pour in.

“Membership in a professional association—as an individual or as a business—can be a valuable resource,” shares Mary Curtin, 4imprint vice president of human resources. “But these memberships need to be chosen wisely and used effectively. Then you can expect to expand your knowledge base and your client list while creating visibility within an industry.”

4imprint’s latest Blue Paper provides insight to the benefits of membership in professional associations as an individual and as a business. It addresses what individuals and businesses should be looking for when identifying professional associations to join, policy and guideline considerations for employers, tips for networking at your first professional association event, and keys to getting the most out of membership.

Blue Paper (4imprint’s version of a white paper) and podcast available for download at http://info.4imprint.com/bluepapers/.

About 4imprint Blue Papers
4imprint Blue Papers are in-depth, how-to articles, distributed to 4imprint customers to help their organizations succeed. Accessible at http://info.4imprint.com/bluepapers/ in both print and podcast forms, Blue Papers are also available on iTunes®. Blue Papers cover popular, cutting-edge business, marketing, human resources and management topics such as podcasting, online social media, search engine optimization (SEO) and experiential marketing.

About 4imprint
4imprint is part of 4imprint Group, Plc, a publicly traded company on the London Stock Exchange, and serves more than 100,000 businesses with its innovative promotional merchandise throughout the United States and Canada. For more information, log on to www.4imprint.com.

There are many effective ways to communicate to the public.  Through open meetings, flyers, direct mail pieces, or giveaways, you want to be sure that the message sticks, and your budget dollars are spent wisely.

Research has shown that promotional products are an effective, low cost tool for reaching the right audience and having them recall your message.  Of those participating in a 2004 survey, 73% use promotional products at least once a day, while 76% remember who gave it to them, a full twelve months later.  Recipients of these types of products hang onto them because they find them useful (75.4%) and attractive (20.2%).  Continued exposure may be what you are looking for to get your message through.

There are many products available that represent your department’s message.  Recycled and earth-friendly products are ideal options for promoting a message of conservation, or an event within the park system.  Choose sanitizers or first aid kits to bring awareness to public health issues.  Or be sure the community has contact information of local public safety departments with magnets, pens and notepads.

Whatever method you are using to share your message, be sure the public hears it loud and clear.

If you’re a 4imprint customer you’ll know what our Blue Boxes are all about – but it’s cool to see them have a life past delivering ideas and samples!

Why the interest in Tritan?

Tritan(R) Copolyester

Tritan (developed by Eastman Chemical Company) has many of the positive properties of polycarbonate.

It’s tougher than standard plastics used in drinkware, making it shatter-resistant. It’s also heat-resistant, so you can put it in the dishwasher. It’s odorless – so it doesn’t smell like plastic. And, it has one important feature that differentiates it from polycarbonate.  It’s BPA-free.

Promotional Products Made with Tritan

4imprint Camelback Better Bottle

We’re starting to see a few products made from Tritan, including the Camelback Better Bottle, which comes in both a 17 oz. and 25 oz. size.  If you’d like to see Tritan up close, just click the ‘Request a free sample’ button on the Camelback Better Bottle page.

In fact, when traveling on the West Coast earlier this month, I couldn’t help but notice a bunch of new products made with Tritan.  The industrial design of this water bottle from Kor caught my eye.  It is one example of a new product made with Tritan.

We will be releasing more promotional products made with Tritan this fall, too.

If you want to know more about Tritan, visit the Eastman Tritan Web site for additional product details.
-Suzanne

Our customers expressed a lot of interest in these products, so I want to tell you about them, too.

Atherton USB Drive

With its round metal case, this USB Drive (available in 1GB, 2GB and 4GB) looks like no other.  Bright colors provide a perfect backdrop for your logo.  And, with the accompanying black lanyard and key ring, customers will keep this USB drive close.

Get Organized! Notebook Combo Set

This is a multi-tasker’s dream gift.  A 70-page notebook, plastic pen in an elastic loop, sticky notes and adhesive flags are all packed into this polypropylene notebook set.  Everything you need when you’re on the go.  The Get Organized! Notebook Combo Set is a 4imprint exclusive.  We designed it based on customer feedback on related products.

Off-Roader Travel Bag

This bag is big enough to hold a camera, money and travel documents (like tickets, a passport and ID) and yet small enough that it’s easy to carry around.  The updated shape gives it a more modern appearance.  Zipper pockets in front keep everything secure.  No wonder travel agents and tour groups seem to gravitate toward this style of bag.  It is perfect for travel, tours, fairs or trade shows.  You can either screen print or embroider your logo on this bag.

-Suzanne

If you’re looking for unique gift that you can really feel good about giving, we’re excited to be offering a couple of products produced by Women Helping Other Women (WHOW).  WHOW is a non-profit organization that helps women who find themselves in difficult situations. They offer training, education and employment to women who have had to seek refuge in a domestic violence center or other shelter. The founder and board members work without compensation and the proceeds from the work they do go to scholarships.

WHOW uses original recipes, bakery skills and  kitchen creativity to create more than just award-winning (and super-delicious) products – they create self esteem, emotional and physical health and opportunities for women looking to start a new life.

WHOW’s specialty is fruitcake – and not the ‘I’m-not-sure-what’s-in-this-thing-called-fruitcake’ stuff you see around the holidays.  Their cakes are one-of-a-kind, all-natural, tasty goodness. We’re offering a couple of different versions – one is a 1lb Cake and Coffee combo in a gold box with your logo , and the other is a ‘triple pack’  of three different 1lb cakes in tin with your logo.

So, if you’re considering a ‘gourmet gift’, I hope you’ll consider a WHOW product.  In a way, you’d be giving two gifts at once!

Steve and Barbara from the chapter stopped by to give us a beautiful framed version of an ad that featured a picture of our little piggy! Guenevere from our research team really drove the process and she’s the one holding the bank.

This is a gift that will get people talking.  It’s called the Snuggle Me.  It’s a wearable blanket.

Yes, clever readers, this product is somewhat like the infomercials you’ve been unable to tear yourself away from.

But, the fabric on the Snuggle Me isn’t your basic fleece – it’s a soft, plush chenille.  It feels like a teddy bear, which makes it perfect for curling up under with a good book or while watching your favorite TV program.

The Snuggle Me also has a pocket – perfect for the remote control or snacks.  We can embroider your logo on the Snuggle Me.  And, you’ll be able to order as few as six.

And, though it’s not yet SEEN ON 4IMPRINT TV, it’s likely to be this year’s most popular gift – though not everyone will have the courage to admit wanting one!  In fact, it has already been popular around our office.

When I got the Snuggle Me product sample, it promptly moved next door – into Mary’s office.  (She’s often chilly, so we’ve seen her wearing the Snuggle Me on more than one occasion.)

When we started taking pre-holiday orders from the Snuggle Me from employees, it seemed everyone wanted one.

If you’re looking to give your customers something they’ll use all the time, stay tuned.  The Snuggle Me arrives later this fall.

-Suzanne

(OSHKOSH, Wis.)— 4imprint has released the 4th edition of an exclusive 13-month, 2010 Wildlife calendar, featuring the photography John Van Den Brandt. By day, John is a National Account Executive with 4imprint, but he spends nearly every other waking moment looking through a viewfinder capturing breathtaking images of wildlife in their natural habitat.

John’s work has been showcased for years in a variety of publications and retail outlets and his artistic passion is evident in this one-of-a-kind, limited edition calendar featuring wildlife photography from his travels throughout the United States, Manitoba and British Columbia.

Printed on retail-quality stock, this staple-bound, full-color wall calendar features a new scene each month—and your business’ logo 365 days a year. Accompanying each photo is a note from John describing the ‘story behind the shot’. On-sale now, and ideal for holiday-giving, these calendars are only available while supplies last.
“There is something for everyone in this calendar; from backyard birds to the exotic animals. My favorite may be the killer whale as I was able to capture it entirely out of water,” states Van Den Brandt.

“We are thrilled to provide such a unique, quality product – it really takes the traditional logo’d calendar to an entirely new level,” explains 4imprint President Kevin Lyons-Tarr. “It’s a great example of how our team is willing to go above and beyond for our customers, and we appreciate John sharing his personal passion and hobby with them.”

About 4imprint
4imprint is part of 4imprint Group, Plc, a publicly traded company on the London Stock Exchange, and serves more than 100,000 businesses with its innovative promotional merchandise throughout the United States. For more information, log on to www.4imprint.com.

While traveling a few weeks back, I did the unthinkable. I actually opened the over-priced hotel room bottled water.  In my defence, there was no soda machine and it was a little late to be wandering the streets looking for a 7-11.  So, the $5 bottle of water was my only option. (In case you hadn’t guessed, I’m still struggling with guilt!)

If you hate the feeling of overpaying for bottled water, check out TapIt, a water bottle refilling network that helps you find free water refills when you’re on the go.  They’re a non-profit network and they sign up restaurants, cafes and other shops to provide free water refill.  Right now, they’re tracking locations in Florida, New York and Oregon.  You can log onto their Web site for a list of where to go for refills.  Or, you can get the TapIt app for your iPhone®.

Or, if you are a business traveler, you might want to check out Club Quarters hotels.  (They’re actually a private hotel club, but you can book their spare rooms on Priceline® and hotels.com.)  They offer a tank of free, purified water in the hotel lobby and on each floor.  You can take your own bottle or one of theirs and refill it as you like.

Do you have any other tips for getting more use out of your re-usable bottle?  Love to hear your ideas.

–Suzanne

If you haven’t seen the photos, they’re worth checking out.  His Nike®-sponsored gear was white with matte gold logo, detail and trim. (Photo credit: Nike)

That it perfectly matched the championship trophy is probably not a coincidence.

In fact, the matte gold reminded me of our Zig Zag Pen, which sports a similar gold tone.  Of course, had we known, we could’ve created a white pen with matte gold trim.

Bottom line: matte gold is hot.

Are you seeing it pop up in other unexpected places?  If so, I’d love to see photos.  Send me a link if you have one.

–Suzanne

Where can we go to find information regarding what is going on in our government?  With email available, as well as social media options, there are many opportunities to communicate clearly and accurately with the public.

E-newsletters are an ideal way to communicate with the public.  About 79% of adults in the U.S. are online, and 90 of these use email, so it is a quick and effective way to communicate to a large group of readers.  4imprint’s recent Government newsletter offers some valuable steps for setting up your agency’s e-newsletter.

Another option is a social media site.  Facebook, for example, has over 250 million active users worldwide.  This type of site offers a great way to share documentation and articles with the public, by allowing users to ‘join’ the group.

Are you currently using technology to communicate to the public?  If so, I’d love to hear what you’re using and you’re applying it.  If you’re not, there is no better time to get started.

Now, the event is getting press – watch the video here.

While the quality of the book makes it attractive, the position of the pen is what makes this combo truly eye-catching.  The matching pen nests among the pages of the journal and peeks through the cover when the journal is closed.  Using some industrial design magic, the cover holds the pen in place.  The pen’s metallic finish pops against the rich black cover.  An elastic band holds the journal closed.

This is the kind of book that people can’t help but notice when you pull it out.  (Just imagine how much attention your logo will get.)  And, this book and pen will put an end to fishing around the bottom of your bag looking for a pen or pencil.

If you’re one of those really organized people, you’re probably starting to think about year-end gifts.  These journals are one idea to add to your list.  Your customers will love both the form and function.  And, at $6-$7/each, you’ll like the price.

–Suzanne

4imprint Donates $42,500 to 85 Nonprofits in Second Quarter

(Oshkosh, Wis.) – Eighty-five nonprofit organizations from across the United States and Canada received a $500 in-kind donation from promotional products distributor 4imprint to use toward their program and service offerings during the second quarter of 2009.

Through its one by one® charitable giving program, 4imprint donated more than $42,500, giving away one $500 grant per business day to local and national charities in need in the US and Canada. The in-kind, promotional products donations are designed to help eligible nonprofits reach their goals of boosting awareness, thanking employees, recognizing donors, promoting events and beyond.

“From the stories we hear, it’s clear one by one® grant recipients are creatively using these product donations to make a difference,” said Kevin Lyons-Tarr, president, 4imprint. “These organizations are finding great ways to reach out and help even more people.”

To learn more about 4imprint’s one by one® program or to apply for an in-kind donation, interested parties can visit http://onebyone.4imprint.com.

Second-quarter grant recipients include:

105th Airlift Wing Family Support Group – Newburgh, N.Y.
A Day On The Farm for St. Jude Children’s Hospital – Pickett, Wis.
A Step Closer Foundation – Baltimore, M.D.
American Cancer Society – Santa Ana, Calif.
Arkansas Coalition Against Domestic Violence – Little Rock, Ark.
Arlington Heights Park District – Arlington Heights, Ill.
Assaulted Women’s Helpline – Toronto, Ontario
Assunpink Environmental Institute – Hamilton Square, N.J.
Aurora Visiting Nurse Association – Oshkosh, Wis.
Barnabas Ministries – Zeeland, Mich.
Berlin Blue Knights / Bruce Williams Scholarship – Berlin, Wis.
Berlin Bugle Mouth Bass Association – Berlin, Wis.
Big Brothers Big Sisters of Edmonton & Area – Edmonton, Alberta
Big Brothers/Little Brothers of Southgate Schools – Southgate, Mich.
Boys & Girls Club of Oshkosh, Inc. – Oshkosh, Wis.
Brookings Special Olympics/BIAC – Brookings, S.D.
C.L.A.S.S. Education, Inc. – Indianapolis, Ind.
Camp LuWiSoMo – Wild Rose, Wis.
Carl Fenichel Community Services, Inc. – Brooklyn, N.Y.
Carter Memorial Library – Omro, Wis.
Catholic Charities – Bridgeport, Conn.
Clarity Care – Oshkosh, Wis.
Community Benefit Tree, Inc. – Kaukauna, Wis.
Congregational United Church of Christ – Neenah, Wis.
Connecticut Children’s Medical Center – Hartford, Conn.
COTS, Inc. – Appleton, Wis.
David & Margaret Youth and Family Services – La Verne, Calif.
Dedham School PTF (Parents, Teachers and Friends) – Dedham, Maine
Eagle’s Nest YouthBuild – Oklahoma City, Okla.
Enlisted Association of New Jersey National Guard – Spring Lake, N.J.
Environmental Discovery Project – Chesterland, Ohio
First Baptist Church – Hammond, Ind.
First Church of Christ Youth Group – Farmington, Conn.
Fish for Kids – Fond du Lac, Wis.
Food Lifeline – Shoreline, Wash.
Gayle Sheldon Memorial Foundation – Rutland, Vt.
Georgetown Volunteer Fire Department – Georgetown, Prince Edward Island
Green River Valley Land Trust – Pinedale, Wyo.
Hebbville Academy – Hebbville, Nova Scotia
Hope and Care Center, Inc. – Oshkosh, Wis.
Lawrence County Cancer Patient Services – Bedford, Ind.
Lime Springs/Chester Elementary School – Lime Springs, Iowa
Lupus Foundation of America – Links 4 Lupus – Oshkosh, Wis.
Make-A-Wish Foundation of Wisconsin – Appleton, Wis.
Mt. Zion – Malvern, Ark.
National Capital Region YMCA-YWCA – Ottawa, Ontario
North Country HealthCare – Flagstaff, Ariz.
Oakbrook Evangelical Free Church – Oshkosh, Wis.
Office for the Aging, Inc. – Canastota, N.Y.
Operation: Love Reunited – Denver, Colo.
Oshkosh Area Humane Society – Oshkosh, Wis.
Oshkosh Special Olympics – Oshkosh, Wis.
Phoenix Union Foundation for Education – Phoenix, Ariz.
Piedmont Rape Crisis Center – Winder, Ga.
Pleasant Grove Baptist Church – Perry, Fla.
Precious Bundles Children’s Clothing Assistance – Thunder Bay, Ontario
Prevent Blindness Northern California – San Francisco, Calif.
Project Embrace – Plover , Wis.
Psychological Trauma Center – Los Angeles, Calif.
Real Missions – Maple Valley, Wash.
Rescue Mission Alliance – Valley Food Bank – Pacoima, Calif.
RESTORING-U Clergy-Community Collaborative, Inc. – Washington, D.C.
Rose Pioneer Elementary School – Holly, Mich.
Saint Vincent DePaul Society of Oshkosh, Inc. – Oshkosh, Wis.
SAMMinistries’ Furniture for a Cause – San Antonio, Texas
Save Our Souls Foundation – Bel Air, M.D.
Search Community Mental Health Services – Strathroy, Ontario
Sharing Life Community Outreach – Mesquite, Texas
Shirley Hills Wolf Ridge Committee – Mound, Minn.
Southwood Baptist Church – Tulsa, Okla.
Special Olympics Southern California – Long Beach, Calif.
Special Olympics Virginia-Area 5 – Verona, Va.
Summit Missions International – Akron, Ohio
Teton Arts Council – Driggs, Idaho
The Center for Life Enrichment – Hollywood, M.D.
The Coastal Empire ROCK Group – Savannah, Ga.
The County of Prince Edward Public Library – Picton, Ontario
The Rainbow Society of Alberta – Edmonton, Alberta
The Washington Hospital Foundation – Washington, Penn.
Things of My Very Own, Inc. – Glenville, N.Y.
Van Buren Housing Authority – Van Buren, Ark.
White River Battered Women’s Shelter, Inc. – Newport, Ark.
Woodlands Wildlife Refuge – Clinton, N.J.
Word of Hope Ministries, Inc. – Milwaukee, Wis.
YMCA Strong Kids Campaign – Oshkosh, Wis.

About 4imprint’s one by one® program
one by one® is the charitable giving program of 4imprint. Now in its fourth year, 4imprint’s one by one® program supports nonprofits with IRS-approved 501(c)3 status or Canadian-registered charities, religious organizations and accredited schools. Since the program began, the promotional products retailer has awarded nearly a half-million dollars in promotional products grants to nonprofit organizations.

4imprint, Inc., is the North American division of 4imprint Group, plc, an international provider of promotional products, imprinted items and corporate gifts. Learn more at http://onebyone.4imprint.com or follow the one by one® program on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/4onebyone.

The calendar features photos taken by our own John Van Den Brandt, who is one of our National Account Executives, a very talented wildlife photographer. Each year he brings in the ‘best of the best’ photos he’s taken and several of us debate which photos should make it in – this year’s batch is outstanding.  Each month there is a different photo and a quick story written by John telling you about the shot (that’s one of my favorite parts as it really gives you the ‘back story’ on each photo).

Calendars make great promotional giveaways. They’re useful, and as such appreciated,  and they keep your message and logo up for all to see throughout the year. And a calendar with outstanding photography and paper quality is more like a ‘retail piece’  - so it has high ‘perceived value’ and will get a good spot on a nearby wall! This calendar has the added benefit of only being available in a limited quantity, so you’ll be giving something that people won’t see everywhere.

I’ve put a couple of the photos from the calendar below to wet your whistle. You can see them all here.

Latest 4imprint White Paper and Podcast:
Dollars and Sense: The Impact of Multi-Sensory Marketing
Blue Paper® features the underlying research and benefits to marketing to all senses

(OSHKOSH, Wis.)— Promotional products retailer, 4imprint releases its most recent podcast and Blue Paper (its own version of a white paper), entitled Dollars and Sense: The Impact of Multi-Sensory Marketing.

According to Author John Medina in his book Brain Rules, research studies have proven that groups exposed to multi-sensory environments always outperform those in uni-sensory environments. Their recall is better all around—in quantity of information retained, clarity and duration.

“For brands struggling to compete in today’s crowded marketplace, strategic use of sensory information can provide a critical advantage,” explains Greg Ebel, 4imprint’s vice president of sales and marketing. “When we appeal to multiple senses, our efforts are multiplied, creating powerful brands with lasting consumer connections.”

4imprint’s latest Blue Paper provides a plethora of well-researched data marketers and business owners can use and apply, including: understanding that fast music decreases spending in a retail environment, but increases turnover in restaurants, and that shoppers who touch products are more likely to purchase. These, along with many other insights, will help businesses develop and implement sensory marketing strategies.

Blue Paper (4imprint’s version of a white paper) and podcast available for download at http://info.4imprint.com/bluepapers/.

About 4imprint Blue Papers
4imprint Blue Papers are in-depth, how-to articles, distributed to 4imprint customers to help their organizations succeed. Accessible at http://info.4imprint.com/bluepapers/ in both print and podcast forms, Blue Papers are also available on iTunes®. Blue Papers cover popular, cutting-edge business, marketing, human resources and management topics such as podcasting, online social media, search engine optimization (SEO) and experiential marketing.

About 4imprint
4imprint is part of 4imprint Group, Plc, a publicly traded company on the London Stock Exchange, and serves more than 100,000 businesses with its innovative promotional merchandise throughout the United States and Canada. For more information, log on to www.4imprint.com.

4imprint White Paper and Podcast Released:
Effective Events Planning

Blue Paper® features tips and tricks to making your company event a success

(OSHKOSH, Wis.)— Promotional products retailer, 4imprint releases its most recent podcast and Blue Paper (its own version of a white paper), entitled Tips and Tools for Effective Event Planning.

Company-wide events, no matter a business’ industry or sector, can be well worth the effort, but require a great deal of planning and resources. Many events can be coordinated in-house, but at times it may be necessary to hire an event planner. This Blue Paper provides details as to the circumstances where a professional is most effective as well as tips to undertaking event planning internally.

When a company tackles its own events, it should begin with identifying the event goals and measurement indicators for its success. In their book, Event Planning Made Easy, Paulette Wolf, Jodi Wolf and Donielle Levine say the first step to planning a successful event is to establish the five W’s and the “how”:
1. Who are your guests?
2. What is your event?
3. When is your event?
4. Where is your event?
5. Why is this event happening?
6. How much money is in the budget?
From there, the real work begins and can easily take as much as 18 months to plan when considering location scheduling, vendor availability and entertainment contracting.

“Our customers use events for a variety of purposes,” states 4imprint Vice President of Human Resources Mary Curtin. “From corporate staff picnics to product launches to tradeshows, events are integral to not only sales, but employee satisfaction and recruitment efforts. This Blue Paper helps businesses, of any size or industry, improve their events to positively impact their bottom line.”

Blue Paper (4imprint’s version of a white paper) and podcast available for download at http://info.4imprint.com/bluepapers/.

About 4imprint Blue Papers
4imprint Blue Papers are in-depth, how-to articles, distributed to 4imprint customers to help their organizations succeed. Accessible at http://info.4imprint.com/bluepapers/ in both print and podcast forms, Blue Papers are also available on iTunes®. Blue Papers cover popular, cutting-edge business, marketing, human resources and management topics such as podcasting, online social media, search engine optimization (SEO) and experiential marketing.

About 4imprint
4imprint is part of 4imprint Group, Plc, a publicly traded company on the London Stock Exchange, and serves more than 100,000 businesses with its innovative promotional merchandise throughout the United States and Canada. For more information, log on to www.4imprint.com.

4imprint Introduces ‘’Embroidery Made Easy” Pricing on Embroidered Promotional Apparel
Customers Drive Price Changes for Embroidered Dress Shirts, Jackets, Polos, Sweatshirts

(OSHKOSH, Wis.)— Customers looking for an easier way to order embroidered apparel will appreciate promotional products retailer 4imprint’s new “Embroidery Made Easy.” Simplified ordering for embroidered dress shirts, jackets, polos and sweatshirts includes:

• No extra charge for extended sizes including 7XL
• No extra charge for small orders (6+ items)
• $35 tape charge – Free tape if you order more than 24 polos, dress shirts or jackets
• No stitch counts – No extra charge if your logo fits the described embroidery area.

“When we asked customers, they told us ordering embroidered apparel isn’t as easy as it should be. Trying to keep track of extra charges for sizes and certain colors and figuring out what their embroidery charges would be based on ‘stitch counts’ just seemed more difficult than it needed to be,” said Kevin Lyons-Tarr, President, 4imprint. “Based on that feedback, we went back to the drawing board and eliminated the charges for large sizes and colors, made our embroidery charges simple – if your logo fits in the imprint area shown there is no embroidery charge at all. In addition, we lowered our minimums, lowered – and on quantities of 24 or more eliminated – the logo set-up or ‘tape’ charge, and really focused on making sure our range includes items that come in men’s and women’s styles.”

Embroidered dress shirts, embroidered jackets, embroidered polos and embroidered sweatshirts represent hundreds of products in a variety of styles and fabrics including moisture wicking, stain resistant, wrinkle resistant, performance, fleece from brands such as Reebok®, Columbia®, Cutter & Buck®, Fruit of the Loom®, Hanes®, Jockey®, Van Heusen®, Blue Generation, Katahdin and more.

“Customers will find this pricing on every embroidered jacket, dress shirt, polo and sweatshirt we sell, and nearly all are available in seven days or less,” Lyons-Tarr said.

About 4imprint
4imprint is part of 4imprint Group, Plc, a publicly traded company on the London Stock Exchange, and serves more than 100,000 businesses with its innovative promotional merchandise throughout the United States. For more information, log on to www.4imprint.com.

So I should not have been surprised, but definitely was, when a large gathering of associates (like 200+!) formed outside my cube today – all to wish me a happy birthday and offer congratulations (and have a good laugh about…) my recent inclusion on a ‘hot list’ in our industry (I know, my name and ‘hot’ in the same sentence…makes me laugh too!).

There was cake, ice cream, some gag gifts, but best of all a real barbershop quartet to seranade everyone. The fact that one of the voices in the quartet  is our own Orien (or Big O) from our web development team made it all the better. The guys hit it out of the park!

If you work with us, these are the folks who are here to support you – and as you can see you, and I, are in good hands.

The last time I was home – and, yes, it has been awhile – my mum had the coolest bag from TESCO, one of the UK’s largest supermarket chains.

I couldn’t take my eyes off the print. It was a classic floral and instantly recognizable as a Cath Kidston print.

For the uninitiated, Cath Kidston is a designer who transforms traditional English prints into smart, modern home goods, clothing and accessories. Colorful fabrics and designs are her signature.

That’s what made the tote so desirable.

My mum’s bag was one of eight Cath Kidston-designed reusable totes that TESCO introduced last year. Each bears one of her signature vintage-inspired prints, including a classic-looking holiday tote. According to the TESCO Web site, each bag is made from nine recycled soda bottles. They even include an illustration depicting the transformation from soda bottles to eco shopping bag.

The story doesn’t end there. For each bag purchased, neither TESCO nor Cath Kidston profit from sales of the eco bag. Instead, the companies are contributing 50p per bag (approximately 75 cents) to the Marie Curie Cancer Care Charity – with more than £400,000 (approximately $635,000) raised and 6 million plastic bottles saved from the landfill.

I’ll be surprised if designer-inspired eco totes don’t start popping up all over the place in the not-so-distant future.
–Suzanne

So @hollyapeterson – here you go – lots of hyperlinks below to have fun with! And thanks for letting us have fun on a Friday afternoon! If you need more, just say the word…

Amber – “Luggage Tags”

Lindsey – “Little Drink Umbrellas”

Jennifer K – “Beach Towel” or “Full color lip balm with beach background art”

Missy M – “Tahitian Totes or tub cooler”

Erin – “Sand Toys, lip balm, deep sea aquarium…parrot towel, Cabana Cooler”

Susan – “Stress Item – palm tree, sun, tropical fish”

Jennifer S – “Lip Balm”

Richard – “Swanky Pen”

Kristi – “Beach towel, cooler, Koozie”

Kate – “Beverage Cooler”

Judy – “Cooler”

Missy E – “Sunscreen (I burn too easily)”

Melissa – “Beach Towel”

Kristen – “Hobo Tote”

Guenevere – “Palm tree shaped items: stress balls, key chains, chocolates”

Jen G – “Sunscreen Packets”

Melanie – “Plastic coconut cups”

Emily W – “Sunglasses, towels and sunscreen, oh my!”

Randi – “anything with a Caribbean full color image…”

Carolynn – “Cabana Cooler, Bean Bag Animals with Life Raft, beach chair, towel…”

Tricia – “Koozies, Life of the Party Tub Cooler, Sea Life Beanbag w/Inner Tube”

Joe – “Tahitian Tote”

Jessie – “Sea Life Beanbags”

Steve –“Palmtree and Sunblock”

Julie –“ Sunscreen”

Niki, April – “Flip flops”

Crystal – “Pineapple or Banana Pen or Photografix Tote”

Marge – “tropical cooler”

Lori- “Sunglasses”

Trish, Nancy, Carrie – “Palm Tree InkBend”

Melissa – “…Goofy Clipz Holder -snorkel guy, Paper Photo Frame Summer”

Shelley K – “Life of the Party Tub Cooler, Parrot Towel”

Kari – “Palm tree/cabana hut beach towels”

Shelley – “…beach safe caribineer, tropical shirt…”

Marsha – “Sun care kit”

Nila – “…Tropical Camp Shirt…”

Angie H – “Life of the Party Tub Cooler- Tropical”

You can see a whole range of these Post-it designs here.  Need help adding fun or innovative design elements to any of our products to include with your logo? No problem – just say the word!

Education Week, at edweek.org, has a “Schools and the Stimulus” site which is a good resource for articles and commentary of what is going on with these very topics.  Enjoy!

http://www.edweek.org/ew/collections/schools-stimulus/index.html

New 4imprint White Paper and Podcast:
Corporate Universities Keep Employees Top of Their Class
Blue Paper® Features the Benefits and Methods for Continuing Employee Education

(OSHKOSH, Wis.)— Promotional products retailer 4imprint releases its most recent podcast and Blue Paper (its own version of a white paper), entitled Benefits and Methods for Continuing Employee Education.

According to Jill McCullough’s 2007 article “Changing landscape necessitates spending on employee education,” companies spend more than $2 billion per year on employee education. And, an article by Ann Bares titled “Companies spend an average of $1,202 per employee on training,” indicated e-learning has grown to 20 percent in 2008, up from 15 percent in 2007.

“We hope this Blue Paper provides readers with a solid background about what’s involved in developing a ‘corporate university’ or continuing education program and the benefits that come from doing so,” said 4imprint President Kevin Lyons-Tarr.

4imprint’s Blue Paper, Back to School: Corporate Universities Help Companies Keep Employees at the Top of their Class, showcases examples of both large and small companies’ corporate universities and continuing education programs. It offers insights into the scope of such programs, their benefits and affiliated costs.

The Blue Paper (4imprint’s version of a white paper) and podcast are available for download at http://info.4imprint.com/bluepapers/.

About 4imprint Blue Papers
4imprint Blue Papers are in-depth, how-to articles, distributed to 4imprint customers to help their organizations succeed. Accessible at http://info.4imprint.com/bluepapers/ in both print and podcast forms, Blue Papers are also available on iTunes®. Blue Papers cover popular, cutting-edge business, marketing, human resources and management topics such as podcasting, online social media, search engine optimization (SEO) and experiential marketing.

About 4imprint
4imprint is part of 4imprint Group, Plc, a publicly traded company on the London Stock Exchange, and serves more than 100,000 businesses with its innovative promotional merchandise throughout the United States and Canada. For more information, log on to www.4imprint.com.

For some ideas on making your practice more spa-like, check out 4imprint’s latest Healthcare newsletter.

New 4imprint White Paper: The Business Case for Stress Management
Blue Paper® Outlines the Role Stress Plays in the Workforce, and How to Combat It

(OSHKOSH, Wis.)— Promotional products retailer 4imprint releases its most recent podcast and Blue Paper (its own version of a white paper), titled The Business Case for Stress Management & What Employers Can Do About It.

“Stress is obviously a serious issue for businesses,” states 4imprint Vice President of Human Resources Mary Curtin. “It impacts productivity, attitude, turnover and overall health. We see an incredible value by addressing this issue and wanted our customers to benefit from the latest research addressing how to combat stress in the workplace.”

According to reports released in 2007 from the American Psychology Association, stress comes with a hefty price tag, costing American businesses more than $300 billion per year. More recent and conservative data indicates that 22 percent of group health insurance costs are stress-related and that psychosocial stress has been estimated to be responsible for 33 percent of worker compensation costs, reports Dr. Lyle Miller in his 2009 article “The Business Case for Corporate Stress Assessment Intervention.”

4imprint’s Blue Paper, The Business Case for Stress Management & What Employers Can Do About It, offers examples of successful techniques other businesses have employed to reduce stress, including mandatory vacation, training and workplace flexibility.

The Blue Paper (4imprint’s version of a white paper) and podcast are available for download at http://info.4imprint.com/bluepapers/.

About 4imprint Blue Papers
4imprint Blue Papers are in-depth, how-to articles, distributed to 4imprint customers to help their organizations succeed. Accessible at http://info.4imprint.com/bluepapers/ in both print and podcast forms, Blue Papers are also available on iTunes®. Blue Papers cover popular, cutting-edge business, marketing, human resources and management topics such as podcasting, online social media, search engine optimization (SEO) and experiential marketing.

About 4imprint
4imprint is part of 4imprint Group, Plc, a publicly traded company on the London Stock Exchange, and serves more than 100,000 businesses with its innovative promotional merchandise throughout the United States and Canada. For more information, log on to www.4imprint.com.

There are many sources available online that provide ideas, such as Education World’s Parent Involvement in Schools article. Providing parents with an opportunity to share ideas for fundraising and school events, or a forum to meet other parents and discuss concerns can make them feel like they are actively participating in their child’s future and education.

4imprint has published a newsletter on this very topic, with some practical ideas on involving parents in school activities.

Managing for Performance Strategies Highlighted in 4imprint White Paper
Promotional Products Vendor’s Blue Paper® Profiles 4 Steps for Performance Management

(OSHKOSH, Wis.)—Maximizing performance is a top priority for many organizations. Turns out performance management is not just good for the organization, but also beneficial to employees.

How can organizations establish an effective performance management program? Promotional products retailer 4imprint tackles that topic in Managing for Performance, a newly released Blue Paper®. The Blue Paper describes the performance management approach to setting expectations, monitoring performance, providing feedback and taking action as steps that help get results.

Though these steps may sound simple, organizations seeking to implement them may quickly realize that adopting a performance management strategy leads them to re-evaluate the organization’s job descriptions, leadership and management training, interactions with employees, project management, communications style and internal sharing of best practices.

In fact, a shift to performance management often requires training for both managers and employees because focus changes. Where employees may once have focused on outputs – like how many hours worked or amount of time spent with customers, they now are expected to focus on outcomes – like sales volume and customer satisfaction.

“This paper does a good job of outlining performance management, and highlights some of the keys to success and the role managers play in helping employees reach their targets.” said Kevin Lyons-Tarr, President, 4imprint.

Managing for Performance is a complimentary Blue Paper (4imprint’s version of a white paper) and podcast available for download at http://info.4imprint.com/bluepapers/.

About 4imprint Blue Papers
4imprint Blue Papers are in-depth, how-to articles, distributed to 4imprint customers to help their organizations succeed. Accessible at http://info.4imprint.com/bluepapers/ in both print and podcast forms, Blue Papers are also available on iTunes®. Blue Papers cover popular, cutting-edge business, marketing, human resources and management topics such as podcasting, online social media, search engine optimization (SEO) and experiential marketing.

About 4imprint
4imprint is part of 4imprint Group, Plc, a publicly traded company on the London Stock Exchange, and serves more than 100,000 businesses with its innovative promotional merchandise throughout the United States and Canada. For more information, log on to www.4imprint.com.

New 4imprint White Paper Describes Tips for Finding the Best Job Candidate
Blue Paper® Identifies Online and Offline Tools to Guide an Organization’s Search

(OSHKOSH, Wis.)—Companies that are hiring are noticing a steep climb in the number of applicants for almost every job. So, what are the best tips and tricks to use to find the best candidate? This is the question promotional products retailer 4imprint answers in its newly released Blue Paper, ‘Finding the Best Job Candidate.’

The Blue Paper (the imprinted items distributor’s version of a white paper) includes interviews with human resources professionals, headhunters and hiring managers and descriptions of the online and offline tools they use in hiring, including:

1. Online business networking sites that can be used as resources for finding applicants for many positions. Entry-level positions may be the exception.
2. Online peer-to-peer job search and referral communities that allow hiring managers to crowd source the names of potential applicants.
3. Freelancer sites offer ranking systems that match candidate skill sets with a company’s job requirements.
4. Portfolio sites that enable companies to ask candidates to create a profile, upload a video introduction, explain career goals, showcase accomplishments and upload supporting documentation.

Human resources staffers also describe the value of an employee referral system, the importance of identifying career paths for potential employees and ways to welcome new team members.

“Employee referrals are one of the most effective ways to recruit quality candidates,” said Mary Curtin, Vice President Human Resources, 4imprint. “This paper highlights a few new tools that work well for generating referrals as well as other ideas for landing great applicants.”

The Best Candidate for the Job is a complimentary Blue Paper and podcast available for download at http://info.4imprint.com/bluepapers/.

About 4imprint Blue Papers
4imprint Blue Papers are in-depth, how-to articles, distributed to 4imprint customers to help their organizations succeed. Accessible at http://info.4imprint.com/bluepapers/ in both print and podcast forms, Blue Papers are also available on iTunes®. Blue Papers cover popular, cutting-edge business, marketing, human resources and management topics such as podcasting, online social media, search engine optimization (SEO) and experiential marketing.

About 4imprint
4imprint is part of 4imprint Group, Plc, a publicly traded company on the London Stock Exchange, and serves more than 100,000 businesses with its innovative promotional products throughout the United States, Canada, UK and Republic of Ireland. For more information, log on to www.4imprint.com.

While attending an industry trade show earlier this year, I saw something cool at Urban Outfitters: a do-it-yourself screen-printing kit.

It was very cleverly packaged and perfect for one-off t-shirts or posters.  The kit is available online and includes everything from the paints to screen, squeegee and instructions.

So…is a one-of-a-kind screen-printed t-shirt in your future?  If so, what would it say?
–Suzanne

Some fairly straightforward ideas include reducing costs (vendor management, brainstorming cost savings ideas with physicians) and maximizing efficiency (space, rooms, OR’s). Other ideas include partnering with local physicians, recruiting new staff, and offering unique and profitable services.

The article offers up some practical ideas that make it worth reading.

Hospital Review Magazine – Best Practices for Increasing Hospital Profitability

Non-woven polypropylene is one of the most common new fabrics we see in bags.

This is actually a plastic product, which makes it lightweight and sturdy.  Making non-woven polypropylene is somewhat like making paper.  It starts out as a thick liquid, is extruded into sheets and then cut apart and sewn into products such as bags.

What does all this mean for you?  Well, simple production methods keep costs low.  So, if you’re buying for your organization, you’ll notice these bags cost less.  And, because they’re lightweight, you save on shipping, too!  Compact design makes them a snap to store.  And, trade show attendees love these bags – because, let’s face it, when you’re at a convention picking up catalogs, sell sheets and the like, it helps to have a lightweight bag.

–Suzanne

Given that this is a topic near and dear to my heart (full disclosure alert – I’m on the Board of Directors and our family has been personally touched by these diseases), I could go on and on about the event, the work the Foundation does, education on these little known diseases, etc.  However, given that I try to keep this blog broadly focused on marketing, promotional products and creative ideas I thought I’d share this photo:

The Foundation put together the first ever ‘Hope, Steps and a Cure’ walk as part of the event, to raise awareness and to show people how they can put a walk together in their hometown.  The team at the Foundation that put this whole event (and the walk specifically) together, did an oustanding job in every way and they paid attention to many, many details. One important detail was the use of color in the walk t-shirts and other promotional items/materials.

This photo doesn’t begin to do justice to how it really looked when a sea of 200 bright red t-shirts weaved their way around downtown Indy.  At times it literally looked like blood flowing through the veins of the city. It drew a ton of attention and the banner at the front of the walk (which I was helping to hold when I took this shot which explains why you can’t see it!) tied it all together.

When you’re tyring to get attention, don’t forget about color. Choosing a bright color and sticking to it consistently throughout an event makes a big impression.

The Scotch Brand Lint Sheets Pocket Pack and our Stain Pen make great giveaways because they’ll get used, and when they get used the ‘wow, I’m really glad (insert your company name here) gave me this item’ is worth WAY more than these items cost.

Plus you’re doing your part to keep people looking good and living lint free!

I’ll have more posts about KFAC as the event draws near but for now, I just wanted to invite you to check out the official (and just about complete) Kayak for a Cure website from a marketing perspective. Mark Starkey, the brains behind whole deal, always puts together great creative. He really gets how to connect you to the cause through the people and their stories-  you feel part of something – and he uses all the available tools (YouTube, Facebook, twitter, Flickr – you name it).

Good stuff.

So, it probably comes as no surprise that this has become one of the most popular promotional products available.  In the US, sales of these bags started to rise a few years ago when environmentally focused retailers like Trader Joe’s® and Whole Foods Market® and trend-spotting mass marketers like Target® began offering branded reusable bags.  By the end of 2007, it was difficult to find a supermarket not selling them.

In fact, all sorts of organizations have begun snapping them up.  A quick flick through the projects we’ve worked on recently shows them being used by community organizations, town and city councils, credit unions and financial advisors.  Some are being used to promote ‘green initiatives’ while others are just a useful giveaway to promote businesses and events.  A quick read through some customers’ reviews tells some interesting stories.

Check them out: http://www.4imprint.com/exec/all_reviews/~CA101326-1513.htm
–Suzanne

We’ve given products to hundreds of organizations over the past few years. We just revamped the one by one® website so you can read more about these organizations (there are some truly inspiring stories), see where they’re located and, if you’re involved with a non-profit, apply for a grant.

There are some wonderful things happening out there. For proof, just visit the one®  by one the site by clicking here. And if you know of a group that could use this kind of help, please spread the word.

Guenevere shows this technique on our logo in this video.

www.4imprint.ie

Kristin’s video below demos a value-priced opener (the Sonoma Wine Opener), and I’ve added a picture of one of the types of packaging that works well.  Cheers!

Bottle Boxes Make a Bottle of Wine a Logo'd Gift

You need to approximate your stitch count and pay for the embroidery tape.  If you’re ordering 10 shirts, the $95 average charge for embroidery tape adds almost $10 to the price of each shirt.  Shirts in larger sizes often cost extra.  And, logo placement was often limited to one or two locations.

We’re changing all that.  Here’s how:

•    With our embroidery, the price you see is the price you pay!
•    There is no extra charge for extended sizes.
•    The tape charge is reduced to a flat $35 – or we’ll waive it if you order 24+ polos, dress shirts and jackets.
•    And, there is no stitch count.  If your logo fits in the described embroidery area, there are no additional fees.

Our goal is to make it easier to order embroidered items.

How simple is that?
–Suzanne

“in 140 characters or less, what makes a company a great place to work?”

Here are a couple of the responses:

@imbrimful said: What makes a place one of the best places to work? Flexibility and caring, kind managers that take interest in their employees

@tlcolson said: decision autonomy within your sandbox, results oriented culture, “right-sized” company, market based comp/benefits

Jack Welch (at the Sunday keynote) stressed trust and communication (amongst a few other more colorful thoughts!).

What’s your take? Comment here or let me know via twitter:  @4imprintklt. It’s an important topic.

Especially in today’s economic climate.

I couldn’t be more proud of our folks and it was a thrill to accept on their behalf. There are some tremendous companies on this list and to be amongst them is pretty incredible.

June 29, 2009

For more information, contact:

Brenda Haines or Heidi Strand, Communications

(920) 230-2583

4imprint Named to 2009 Best Small & Medium Companies to Work for in America List
Promotional Products Retailer Recognized for Second Year in a Row
by Society for Human Resource Management and Great Place to Work® Institute

(OSHKOSH, Wis.)—For a second straight year, promotional products retailer 4imprint is one of the best companies to work for in America.

This morning, the Society for Human Resource Management and Great Place to Work® Institute released the 2009 Best Small & Medium Companies to Work for in America list, which ranks 4imprint 10^th among 25 mid-sized companies.

Announced as part of the Society for Human Resource Management Annual Conference in New Orleans, Louisiana, the list honors 25 small and 25 mid-sized companies that develop high levels of trust, pride and enjoyment among employees. The rigorous application and review process included surveys of 300 4imprint associates to assess the company’s credibility, respect, fairness, pride and camaraderie.

4imprint strives to create an atmosphere that supports associates personally and professionally.

“Our entire team works together to create an atmosphere where our associates and our company can be successful,” said Kevin Lyons-Tarr, President, 4imprint. “That’s why being included on this list is such a tremendous honor. It’s a tribute to the way our associates work with each other, our customers, our supplier partners and our community.”

Lyons-Tarr will post updates from #SHRM09 via Twitter and has posted to his blog a resource list of articles related to workplace culture. For Kevin’s updates, follow @4imprintklt <http://www.twitter.com/4imprintklt> or visit the blog at http://info.4imprint.com/klt.

About 4imprint

4imprint provides businesses and organizations throughout the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom with promotional merchandise, including imprinted promotional products, advertising specialties and customized corporate gifts.

4imprint is part of 4imprint Group, Plc. For information in the United States, visit www.4imprint.com. In Canada, visit www.4imprint.ca. In the United Kingdom, visit www.4imprint.co.uk.

About SHRM and the Great Place to Work® Institute, Inc.

SHRM is the world’s largest association devoted to human resource management, representing more than 225,000 members in more than 130 countries. The Great Place to Work® Institute, Inc. is an international research and consulting firm dedicated to building great workplaces. The firm uses its employee survey and assessment process to select companies for the ‘Best Small & Medium Companies to Work for in America’ list and FORTUNE’s 100 Best Companies to Work For® list.

Promotional Products Retailer 4imprint Releases
Customer Experience Management White Paper

(OSHKOSH, Wis.)—Marketing dreams – and nightmares – are built on customer experience. So, how can an organization design and implement the ideal experience? Imprinted items retailer 4imprint offers insights into the art and science of customer experience management in a newly released Blue Paper®, Customer Experience Management: Putting Customers in Charge.

Customer Experience Management focuses on addressing customer needs at every touchpoint in the relationship, shaping the customer’s interactions by anticipating and addressing needs and desires every step of the way. To do this, experts recommend organizations:

1. Learn what customers expect, want and need from their interaction with an organization.
2. Compare those expectations, desires and needs to the experience the organization currently provides.
3. Redesign the interactions to bridge that gap.

The long-term strategy takes time to implement, but researchers say the investment pays off, by building loyalty and turning customers into ambassadors who deepen their relationship with the organization and encourage friends and family members to do the same.

“The neat thing about this idea is that organizations of any size and sector can do it,” said Kevin Lyons-Tarr, President, 4imprint. “Whether you run a small business or work in health care, government or for a nonprofit organization, you’re likely to find an idea or two in this paper that you can take and put to work for you.”

Putting Customers in Charge is a complimentary Blue Paper (4imprint’s version of a white paper) and podcast available for download at www.4imprint.com/bluepaper.

About 4imprint Blue Papers
4imprint Blue Papers are in-depth, how-to articles, distributed to 4imprint customers to help their organizations succeed. Accessible at www.4imprint.com/bluepaper in both print and podcast forms, Blue Papers are also available on iTunes®. Blue Papers cover popular, cutting-edge business, marketing and management topics such as podcasting, online social media, search engine optimization (SEO) and experiential marketing.

About 4imprint
4imprint is part of 4imprint Group, Plc, a publicly traded company on the London Stock Exchange, and serves more than 100,000 businesses with its innovative promotional products throughout the United States and Canada. For more information, log on to www.4imprint.com.

These papers will get you thinking – and maybe even implementing – which is a good thing given the critical nature of the topics involved!

• The Power of Recognition
• Teamwork Matters
• Employee Recognition
• Employees as Brand Stewards

It’s a huge show – but to me its size is proportional to the importance of human resource management to every business. 

My first exposure to this show was last year when we were named one of the Best Small & Medium Companies to Work for in America (7th on the 25 medium sized companies) – honestly one of the most thrilling days ever – an honor for our team and an honor to represent them. It was wonderful to meet and be surrounded by so many people who truly recognize that people make the difference, and therefore professional, thoughtful and strategic human resource management is a fundamental building block of success.

This year, not only do we have folks from 4imprint attending the show as part of their professional development in HR, we’re also displaying at the expo for the first time as promotional products work in a variety of HR applications – recruitment, recognition programs, wellness programs, safety programs, corporate events and community outreach and much more. We got the booth set up yesterday (which always takes longer than you think it should!) with plenty of samples to look at and many more to giveaway (if you’re going to the show we’re at booth 3346-3348). I’ll be there when the expo opens this afternoon, and will be there tomorrow as well. Mary (our HR leader!), will be there from time to time (when she’s not at a seminar or checking out other booths) and John and Guenevere will be there throughout (thanks guys!).

I’ll be posting any additional thoughts (not only on the HR side of things, but also the trade show marketing side as well) while I’m here . The show atmosphere has also inspired me to pull together all of the HR/People/Culture papers we’ve published in one nice, handy post. We’ll get that out a bit later. 

I’ll get updates out via twitter as well if you’re interested. You can follow me @4imprintklt 

You can read about the program here.

Games are an excellent way to get trade show visitors to interact with you and your team – and they’re just plain fun. You can use these games around the office as part of fun incentive programs as well.

Games like Plinko up the 'fun-factor' and increase the interactivity at your booth

I thought this was a really great idea!  So I dug through my vast selection of bags and found a Soft Mesh Tote, which is the perfect size for my daughter’s swim gear.   It’s stylish as well, so, as always, she and I will look good as we carry her wet clothes home!

Just toss one of these throws over a banquet table and instantly you’ve got a professional looking ‘foundation’ for displays or tradeshow booths. And they’re an extraordinary value because they last for ages and are incredibly versatile. We use them here for recruiting fairs, open houses, trade shows – we’ve even got them in our break room where we set up shop for lunch. They look great on seminar or meeting regristration tables as well.

Instant Trade Show! Table Throws Turn Any Table Into an Effective Display

Given that some of the team will be there for a few days, we have a couple of different combinations of colors and designs.  One of my favorites in the mix is ‘tone-on-tone’. That’s where the embroidery is the same tone/color as the shirt.  I know, seems a bit counter-intuitive, but it looks very polished and works well on custom polos, promotional dress shirts and even heavyweight T’s or sweats.

Tone-on-tone stands out by not ’standing out’ – know what I mean?

Tone-on-tone embroidery for a polished look.

First, these pens look really cool – they are available in new styles and colors.  Equally importantly, they are affordably priced.  Here are a few I think you’ll like:

Curvy Pen

Customers love this pen!  So, we’re always on the lookout for ways to update it and make it look even more phenomenal.

Bright colors are hot, so that’s what you’ll see here.

This pen is available in a White Barrel – that looks sharp when paired with Lime Green, Gray, Orange, Turquoise or Magenta trim colors.  (For those interested in both style and price, these pens start at just 85 cents each for a quantity of 250.)

New Spiral Notebook and Ballpoint

You’re getting the inside scoop on this notebook and pen set.

Each notebook is paired a matching Curvy Pen with white barrel with bright accent trim.  The notebook and ballpoint set will be available later this summer.

Stay tuned.

Zig Zag Pen

This new pen has a frosted finish, which gives it a luminescent quality.  Translucent blue green, red, teal and opaque black are paired with matte metallic goldtone trim, a 4imprint exclusive.

These color combos are really striking.  Your logo will pop.

Clip-It Color Pen

Workers who spend a lot of time out and about on job sites will love the handy spring-loaded clip on this pen.

It’s available in translucent black, green, orange, blue and red.  Prices are just $1.19 each for 300 pens.

Hex Pen

If you want a pen that will really stand out, check out this one.  The combination of the clear frosted barrel and the peekaboo hex design makes this pen a standout.  Prices start at just 65 cents for a quantity of 300.

Fame Highlighter Pen Combo

This pen does double duty with ease.

It pairs a retractable pen with a highlighter – a combination you don’t often see together.

This is another 4imprint exclusive.

If you’d like to request a copy of our Pen Collection catalog, call 1-877-446-7746.  Or, see all of our pens by clicking here.
–Suzanne

Consider a gifts box, vibrant tissue paper or some other kind of packaging. This little ‘extra’ make a big impact and tells the recipient you really thought about them as your were putting things together. Plus, who doesn’t love that ‘prize inside’ feeling?

Our merchandising crew has added some fun new packaging goodies to get the thought process going next time you need to say ‘thanks’!

The popularity is really driven from the wide acceptance these drives now have in our everyday lives – you’ll see them on quite a few key chains shuttling data and pictures around, and they’re now almost as much a school supply requirement as a no. 2 pencil!

And it’s that ‘utility’ that makes USB memory an ideal promotional item.

The most effective giveaways are ones that the recipient will use over time.  This means your logo or message will be seen frequently over a long period, and it’s no bad thing that your organization is associated with something that people really value.  Plus, if presentations are a regular part of your business, there’s nothing better than loading the presentation onto a drive and leaving that drive – and presentation – with your client!

The popularity of USB memory sticks has meant an explosion of styles, colors, and memory sizes – you won’t have a problem finding something that fits into your branding guidelines.  Memory size is the determining factor when it comes to price – less memory means lower price. However, keep in mind that less memory alos means less utility for the client,  so generally it’s best to buy the most memory for the money. Sizes of 1GB, 2GB and 4GB are the most popular.

Check out Amber’s video below on one of our more popular drives – she does a better job of touching on some this than I do! And if you’re looking for one of the best-looking USB drives around – check out this blog post.

Check out the Logo Bean video here.

Obviously he practices what he preaches.  Read the article here.

June 1, 2009

For more information, contact: Brenda Haines or Heidi Strand, Communications

(920) 230-2583

Promotional Products Distributor 4imprint Releases ‘The Power of Recognition’ White Paper

Keys to Building an Employee Recognition Program that Works

(OSHKOSH, Wis.)—Looking for the silver bullets for employee motivation? Psychologists and management consultants say achievement, recognition and professional growth strongly and directly influence workplace satisfaction and motivation.

According to a WorldatWork survey, 89% of the companies are running an employee recognition program. According to Roy Saunderson, president of Recognition Management Institute and author of Giving the Real Recognition Way, that’s why company leaders are often puzzled when employees give the company low marks.

Saunderson says it’s important to distinguish between rewards and recognition. He says practicing ‘rewards’ but not ‘recognition’ leaves employees and team members longing for more.

“A lot of this is the please and thank you concept that mum taught us,” he said. “If you’ve done something noteworthy, don’t we just say thank you?”

Tangible rewards work best when they accompany recognition and opportunities for professional development, according to Dr. Aubrey Daniels. Daniels says rewards “anchor the memory” of exceptional performance, serving as a visual reminder to recipients that their effort and accomplishment is appreciated.

The Blue Paper^SM, 4imprint’s version of a white paper, profiles several different rewards options employers are using, ranging from on-the-spot cash bonuses to use of a MINI Cooper.

“This Blue Paper highlights many ideas that help employers bring out the best in their teams,” said Mary Curtin, vice president human resources, 4imprint. “And, by doing that, they’ll also get the most out of their rewards program.”

About 4imprint Blue Papers^SM

4imprint Blue Papers^SM are in-depth, how-to articles, distributed to 4imprint customers to help their organizations succeed. Accessible at www.4imprint.com/bluepapers, Blue Papers^SM have covered popular, cutting-edge topics such as podcasting, online social networking, search engine optimization (SEO) and guerilla marketing.

Most Blue Papers^SM also have corresponding podcasts which can be downloaded at the Blue Paper^SM Web site or through iTunes.

About 4imprint

4imprint is part of 4imprint Group, Plc, a publicly traded company on the London Stock Exchange, and serves more than 100,000 businesses with its innovative promotional merchandise throughout the United States and Canada. For more information, log on to www.4imprint.com.

If you live in New York, or even just passing through, stop at Coogan’s.  Peter, Dania and the Coogan’s crew will make sure you get a good meal and leave with a smile.  Thanks also to the Coogan’s crew for letting our photography team get in the way to get some great shots. We’re lucky to be able to call Coogan’s our customer (if you see some good looking green Coogan’s Tote Bags around town those came from us – as did the green polos Peter and Dania are modeling on the cover)!

Peter & Dania on the 4imprint Cover - They Look Great!

Of course this means lots of photo shoots.

We’re lucky we have such a great (and patient!) photography team. They make everyone look good – even when there isn’t much to work with, as in these photos from one of my recent shoots.

Thank goodness for digital photography. At the ratio of ‘usable-to-unusable’ shown above we’d have to shoot rolls and rolls of film just to get something we could use.  And that’s before all the work getting the photo into Photoshop so someone can get rid of that bad hair thing on the upper right side of my noggin.

Looking at these photos I’m lucky our associates are such good sports about becoming models. Although I’ll bet if we used these photos sales of promotional blindfolds would skyrocket.

Todd Madsen and his wife have recently launched a new business called ‘Deals to Meals‘ (we helped them with some promotional pens for some upcoming expos and shows they’re going to be involved in).

Talk about a perfect business for this economy.

Deals to Meals finds the lowest prices each week at the grocery store (they’re in Utah) and make a meal planner around the best sale prices. Customers can log in to their site each week and print off a grocery list and a weeks worth of meals and recipes.

Deals to Meals really taps into that ‘do more with less’, ‘have fun getting the most for your money’ vibe.

Very cool!

–>

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Don’t forget to enter your Coupon Code E956-GC when checking out online, or mention it when placing your order. May not be combined with any other offer.

This e-mail was sent to #EMAIL# We won’t rent, share or sell your e-mail address to anyone. To modify or cancel your subscription to our e-mails, please visit http://www.4imprint.com/changesubscription.aspx Did someone forward this to you? 4imprint would love to send you E-Specials and other promotions. To sign up, please go to our website and look for the “Register Now” box in the upper right-hand corner of your screen. To view our privacy policy, visit http://www.4imprint.com/privacy/ Please add the e-mail address 4imprintdirect@4imprint.com to your address book to ensure you will continue to receive this e-mail. 4imprint 101 Commerce St. Oshkosh, WI 54901 © 2009 4imprint, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

As mentioned before, I see a lot of product all around the world.  But, Chocolate-covered tarantulas and BBQ Worm Crisps were new – even for me. Inspired by TV hits such as Fear Factor, interest in things like this has skyrocketed. Featured in London’s Selfridges store (like an upscale Macy’s in the UK), the Edible range was getting full attention as I did some last minute shopping.  They’re also available in the US.

Here’s the story from This is London and another story from LAWeekly!

If this looks like the perfect gift for you, they will ship to the US.  Gift hampers are available!
–Suzanne

Promotional Products Retailer 4imprint ‘Building a Culture of Innovation’
Blue Paper® and Podcast Now Available

(OSHKOSH, Wis.)—Truly innovative companies view culture differently. Those cultural differences are the topic of ‘Building a Culture of Innovation,’ a new white paper from promotional products retailer 4imprint.

As organizations around the globe look for opportunities to expand their product lines and enhance their services, the desire to innovate grows. This 4imprint Blue Paper (the imprinted products company’s version of a white paper) takes readers through five steps they can take to strengthen support for innovation in their organization, from assessing the current culture and identifying needed change, to hiring staff and establishing a structure that nurtures creativity and supports development of new ideas.

“Organizations of all different kinds are focusing on innovation,” said Kevin Lyons-Tarr, President, 4imprint. “And, while each organization’s challenges will be different, there are some common themes that exist in innovative organizations. We’ve pulled a few of those together. We hope it will inspire those who are just starting – or those who are looking to jump-start an already existing initiative.”

The Blue Paper also discusses the importance of tolerating risk for companies that seek to become more innovative. As the paper describes, innovation can be messy. To develop a culture of innovation, organizations must often overcome the desire to come to consensus quickly and neatly and learn to thrive on challenging ideas.

Download the Blue Paper and podcast at http://www.4imprint.com/bluepaper.

About 4imprint Blue Papers
4imprint Blue Papers are in-depth, how-to articles, distributed to 4imprint customers to help their organizations succeed. Accessible in both print and podcast forms, Blue Papers are also available on iTunes®. Blue Papers cover popular, cutting-edge business, marketing and management topics such as podcasting, online social media, search engine optimization (SEO) and experiential marketing.

About 4imprint
4imprint is part of 4imprint Group, Plc, a publicly traded company on the London Stock Exchange, and serves more than 100,000 businesses with its innovative promotional merchandise throughout the United States and Canada. For more information, log on to www.4imprint.com.

Promotional Products Retailer 4imprint ‘Building a Culture of Innovation’
Blue Paper® and Podcast Now Available

(OSHKOSH, Wis.)—Truly innovative companies view culture differently. Those cultural differences are the topic of ‘Building a Culture of Innovation,’ a new white paper from promotional products retailer 4imprint.

As organizations around the globe look for opportunities to expand their product lines and enhance their services, the desire to innovate grows. This 4imprint Blue Paper (the imprinted products company’s version of a white paper) takes readers through five steps they can take to strengthen support for innovation in their organization, from assessing the current culture and identifying needed change, to hiring staff and establishing a structure that nurtures creativity and supports development of new ideas.

“Organizations of all different kinds are focusing on innovation,” said Kevin Lyons-Tarr, President, 4imprint. “And, while each organization’s challenges will be different, there are some common themes that exist in innovative organizations. We’ve pulled a few of those together. We hope it will inspire those who are just starting – or those who are looking to jump-start an already existing initiative.”

The Blue Paper also discusses the importance of tolerating risk for companies that seek to become more innovative. As the paper describes, innovation can be messy. To develop a culture of innovation, organizations must often overcome the desire to come to consensus quickly and neatly and learn to thrive on challenging ideas.

Download the Blue Paper and podcast at http://www.4imprint.com/bluepaper.

About 4imprint Blue Papers
4imprint Blue Papers are in-depth, how-to articles, distributed to 4imprint customers to help their organizations succeed. Accessible in both print and podcast forms, Blue Papers are also available on iTunes®. Blue Papers cover popular, cutting-edge business, marketing and management topics such as podcasting, online social media, search engine optimization (SEO) and experiential marketing.

About 4imprint
4imprint is part of 4imprint Group, Plc, a publicly traded company on the London Stock Exchange, and serves more than 100,000 businesses with its innovative promotional merchandise throughout the United States and Canada. For more information, log on to www.4imprint.com.
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4imprint Offers Tips on Improving Efficiencies, Inventory Control with Inventory Control and On-Demand Manufacturing Blue Paper®, Podcast

(OSHKOSH, Wis.)—Promotional products online and catalog retailer 4imprint looks at the just-in-time (JIT) production system in its latest Blue Paper and Podcast release, Inventory Control and On-Demand Manufacturing.

Today, business owners are looking to save money any way they can
This is one way to do that – while benefiting your customers. If you’re thinking about introducing just-in-time principles in your organization, this Blue Paper provides an overview of the principles.
With just-in-time manufacturing, customer orders trigger the production process, rather than the usual “produce first, sell second” inventory model. According to the Blue Paper, the best just-in-time systems have the right materials at the right time in the right place and in the right amount.

Inventory Control and On-Demand Manufacturing outlines six main measures of success in implementing a JIT system. These include:

1. Supply management – Small, frequent shipments are required.
2. Empowered employees – Staff members need to make decisions quickly and effectively.
3. Production cells – Small cells that produce product from start to finish.
4. Reduced setup time – Eliminating extra production.
5. Signaling system – Alerting suppliers when more material is needed.
6. Cycle (or “takt”) time – Cross-train employees to lower production cycle time.

According to the Blue Paper, eliminating the risks and carrying costs of inventory makes organizations more flexible and responsive.

“Today, business owners are looking to save money any way they can,” said Dave Hursh, vice president of operations, 4imprint. “This is one way to do that – while benefiting your customers. If you’re thinking about introducing just-in-time principles in your organization, this Blue Paper provides an overview of the principles.”

Converting an organization’s production and inventory process to just-in-time processes involves reducing setup, standardizing tasks, restructuring the shop floor and calculating demand requirements.

Download 4imprint’s Inventory Control and On-Demand Manufacturing Blue Paper or podcast.

About 4imprint Blue Papers
4imprint Blue Papers are in-depth, how-to articles, distributed to 4imprint customers to help their organizations succeed. Blue Papers have covered popular, cutting-edge topics such as podcasting, online social media, search engine optimization (SEO) and experiential marketing.

Most Blue Papers also have corresponding podcasts which can be downloaded at the Blue Paper Web site or through iTunesTM.

About 4imprint
4imprint is part of 4imprint Group, Plc, a publicly traded company on the London Stock Exchange, and serves more than 100,000 businesses with its innovative promotional merchandise throughout the United States and Canada. For more information, log on to www.4imprint.com.

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4imprint Offers Tips on Improving Efficiencies, Inventory Control with Inventory Control and On-Demand Manufacturing Blue Paper®, Podcast

(OSHKOSH, Wis.)—Promotional products online and catalog retailer 4imprint looks at the just-in-time (JIT) production system in its latest Blue Paper and Podcast release, Inventory Control and On-Demand Manufacturing.

Today, business owners are looking to save money any way they can
This is one way to do that – while benefiting your customers. If you’re thinking about introducing just-in-time principles in your organization, this Blue Paper provides an overview of the principles.
With just-in-time manufacturing, customer orders trigger the production process, rather than the usual “produce first, sell second” inventory model. According to the Blue Paper, the best just-in-time systems have the right materials at the right time in the right place and in the right amount.

Inventory Control and On-Demand Manufacturing outlines six main measures of success in implementing a JIT system. These include:

1. Supply management – Small, frequent shipments are required.
2. Empowered employees – Staff members need to make decisions quickly and effectively.
3. Production cells – Small cells that produce product from start to finish.
4. Reduced setup time – Eliminating extra production.
5. Signaling system – Alerting suppliers when more material is needed.
6. Cycle (or “takt”) time – Cross-train employees to lower production cycle time.

According to the Blue Paper, eliminating the risks and carrying costs of inventory makes organizations more flexible and responsive.

“Today, business owners are looking to save money any way they can,” said Dave Hursh, vice president of operations, 4imprint. “This is one way to do that – while benefiting your customers. If you’re thinking about introducing just-in-time principles in your organization, this Blue Paper provides an overview of the principles.”

Converting an organization’s production and inventory process to just-in-time processes involves reducing setup, standardizing tasks, restructuring the shop floor and calculating demand requirements.

Download 4imprint’s Inventory Control and On-Demand Manufacturing Blue Paper or podcast.

About 4imprint Blue Papers
4imprint Blue Papers are in-depth, how-to articles, distributed to 4imprint customers to help their organizations succeed. Blue Papers have covered popular, cutting-edge topics such as podcasting, online social media, search engine optimization (SEO) and experiential marketing.

Most Blue Papers also have corresponding podcasts which can be downloaded at the Blue Paper Web site or through iTunesTM.

About 4imprint
4imprint is part of 4imprint Group, Plc, a publicly traded company on the London Stock Exchange, and serves more than 100,000 businesses with its innovative promotional merchandise throughout the United States and Canada. For more information, log on to www.4imprint.com.

-30-

Got this great picture in from our customers Dave and Helen at Pumpkinland Iowa. Pumpkinland is a third generation family farm in Orange City, Iowa. And they do more than just pumpkins at Pumpkinland (although they do pumpkins pretty darned well!) - they have a maze, a store and much more. Dave and Helen (aka ‘Grandma and Grandpa Pumpkin’) made a decision to grow the business and as you can see from their website that’s been keeping them plenty busy.

Amongst other things, they’ve purchased Keep-It Clips from us that they told me were a big hit at a recent business expo (these clips are a great giveaway at home and business expos – very, very practical which means your logo will be seen for a long time!). Helen mentioned that they love the color orange and use it in all of their marketing – and you can see what she means by looking at the picture!

Focusing on a color is a smart move and can really pull all of your marketing together. If you’re interested in more the subject of color, here’s a solid article on the subject.

Came across this table made out of a shipping carton the other day. It was featured in a book about green design (coolhuntinggreen.com) and it made my smile for two reasons.

First, how many of us did this anyway as a student? (Or, even more recently when moving?) Did you think of yourself as ‘eco trend-setters’?  Probably not.

Second, it made me wonder what our Blue BoxesTM have turned into over the years!

For those of you who aren’t 4imprint customers, Blue BoxesTM are boxes of free samples we send out to our customers to keep them up to date on promotional products available. They are sent out in corrugated cardboard boxes that are, well, blue.

We’ve been sending out these boxes for several years now, so I’m willing to bet they’ve found their way into a few kids’ science projects, are storing nuts and bolts in a few garages across the country and maybe even storing promotional pens for reference?

I’m sure you’ve found a bunch of different ways to re-use your Blue BoxesTM before recycling them. So, do tell.  And, if you have pictures, I’d love to see them!

–Suzanne