Meet Project Buddy.

Project Buddy is a 5 x 7 notebook that comes fully equipped for project work.

The idea for Project Buddy came from our best-selling Pocket Buddy – a promotional notebook with a re-sealable pouch at the back.  Like Pocket Buddy, it includes a great imprint space on the notebook’s cover.  But, Project Buddy also includes a re-sealable plastic pouch at the back with a pen, paper clips and sticky flags.  And, the three-pocket pouch has space for toting anything else that might be needed to see a project through to completion.

This is one of the most useful promotional items we’ve designed!  There are so many different ways you could use Project Buddy.

• Give Project Buddy to project teams during project kick-off meetings.
• Hand this promotional notebook out to college first-year students during orientation.
• Provide these promotional products to employee wellness groups to track nutrition and exercise.
• Include this giveaway with conference materials so attendees can easily track notes, business cards and other materials in one convenient location.

The potential uses are almost endless.  What other ideas do you have?

-Suzanne

Recently, I ordered something from Boden.
A British clothing retailer, Boden is very design-oriented and that shows up in every detail, including their packaging.  (Boden also operates here in the US.  Check out their site at www.Bodenusa.com.)

When I opened this recent order, I was surprised to find a little something extra.  Inside was a thank you gift, a notebook with a little note on the back that read:

“This is a small thank you for your order.  We hope it comes in handy.”

Now, the notebook itself was a nice touch.  But, the little explanation about why it was in my package was really nice!  From a marketing perspective, it immediately eliminated any potential confusion about whether the notebook was shipped with the wrong order.  I could immediately tell that it was meant for me, as a thank you.

If you’d like to ship a little thank you gift with your orders or include them as part of an in-store promotion, here’s a promotional notebook that would work well.

You can add a photo or artwork to the cover of the Full Color Memo Book along with your logo.  You could even add a little saying on the back of these handy promotional products, thanking your customers for their business.

Have you ever gotten a memorable thank you gift from a business?  If so, I’d love to hear about it.

-Suzanne

PS – If you’re looking for more “thank you” inspiration, take a look in our Thank You Store at http://www.4imprint.com/group/138/Thank-You-Gifts-for-Customers. We’ve pulled together some great products you can use to say ‘thank you’ to your customers.

Oh, the things they think of! We normally don’t think about paper without the tree. But there are a number of products on the market today that leave trees completely out of the equation. Our very own Callaway® Color Combo Notebook is actually filled with stone paper.

According to the FiberStone® website, limestone is mixed with a small amount of HDPE plastic to create the stone paper. The resulting sheets even offer several benefits that regular paper doesn’t. It’s a lot harder to tear and doesn’t soak moisture as easily. To me, it has almost a silky feel too. Not bad, huh?

We also have elephant poo poo paper notebooks and jotters, made from thoroughly dried and sanitized elephant waste. These are almost guaranteed to stimulate conversation at your next event!

What girl doesn’t get a little giddy when she sees glitter? Glitter literally lights up a room. Sparkly makeup, twinkling confetti, shiny sequins…we love to add a little glitter glamour to everything! When we were kids, you could almost bet we glued glitter to our art projects and stuck glittery stickers all over our notebooks. Are you trying to reach a female-centered audience? Wanna catch a woman’s eye? Try one or a combination of these low-priced iridescent promoters:

A sparkly flag notepad and a shimmering stick pen make a dashing promotional pair, don’t you think?

We also offer this snazzy lineup of glittery promotional pencils.

Watch the eyes of both guys and gals light up with this imprinted dazzler. Build some play into the workday! A little twinkle never hurt anything.

Has Earth Day 2011 inspired you to find a few ways your team can green your workplace? The Eco News Network has pulled together some simple ideas in a post titled “Ten Easy Ways to be Green at Work.”

Here are a few of my favorites:

“Replace plastic water bottles and Styrofoam coffee cups with reusable travel mugs and water bottles.”

If you usually offer visitors to your office a cup of coffee upon arrival, replace throwaway coffee cups with the I Am Not a Paper Cup -16 oz. Mug. This paper coffee cup look-alike keeps throwaway cups out of the landfill and is biodegradable.

“Spread the word! Encourage your co-workers to become green and improve your workplace atmosphere.”

Want to inspire your team to be more eco-friendly? The Just the Facts Bookmark – Eco Friendly includes 15 easy, do-able tips for being green.

“Invest in some eco-friendly office supplies…”

Eco-friendly promotional products and office supplies can be green, stylish and so handy that your team will snap them right up. The Eco Meeting Notebook is a great example. This journal is made from 100% recycled material and organic inks.

The Kernel Eco Pen is another great among eco-friendly promotional products.

These striking pens are manufactured from cornstarch material.

Koerner also suggests encouraging team members to walk or bike to work. Adding bike racks is a great way to do that. (Here at 4imprint, we made sure bike racks were included in the design of our new distribution center.) Likewise, she suggests turning down the lights and using natural lighting whenever possible.

What other ideas do you have for making your workplace more green? I’d love to hear them.

-Suzanne

Do you ever pick up a product and wonder, “why didn’t I think of that?” Here are five items that made me say exactly that.

These are the kind of clever, useful promotional items that get trade show attendees talking.

Mini Business Card Jotter
This clever little notebook has a polypropylene pocket, perfectly sized to hold a business card. You’ll never be without your business cards again.

Reflective LED Keylight
Do your keys go missing in the bottom of your bag? The brightly colored reflective construction of these keyrings makes them easy to find. The LED light is useful for reading a map in the dark.

Pocket Packs
The Custom Mending Kit Pocket Pack is a classic among pocket packs. But, now these handy little pocket-sized packets come with a variety of useful contents, including the First Aid Pocket Pack, Sunblock SPF-15 Pocket Pack, Scotch Lint Sheets Pocket Pack, Snap! Hand Cleaner Pocket Pack, Kids Fun Pocket Pack, Hand Cleaner and Lotion Pocket Pack, Outdoor Pocket Pack and more.

Smart Flags – Trade Show
This giveaway is something your conference-goers will put to use right away, using these Smart Flags – Trade Show to help them remember which vendors they want to talk with again. Want a giveaway they’ll use after the trade show? Smart Flags – General tabs help flag questions, important points, good ideas and urgent matters in any office.

Now, why did I think of that?
-Suzanne