Promotionally Yours: Real Life Promos: Coffee Mug ~ Promotionally Your...

Promotionally Yours: Real Life Promos: Coffee Mug ~ Promotionally Your...: Real Life Promos: KSDK Promotional Coffee Mug Posted: 24 Aug 2016 02:03 PM PDT According to the ASI Impressions Study 2016 , the ave...

Real Life Promos: Coffee Mug ~ Promotionally Yours, Sheri Breaux Halo Branded Solutions

Real Life Promos: KSDK Promotional Coffee Mug

Posted: 24 Aug 2016 02:03 PM PDT

According to the ASI Impressions Study 2016, the average person owns about 10 promotional products. They could be in the home, office or car, and many are used daily. If your branding was on just one of those 10 items, you would play a part in your customers’ daily lives. The result? Countless impressions at a very affordable price!

Take this coffee mug for example:

Years ago while living in St. Louis, I won concert tickets through a local TV Station  (KSDK NewsChannel 5). When I went to pick up the winning tickets, they also gave me this coffee mug. It is one of my favorite mugs because it is hardy and big enough to hold a substantial amount of coffee.  KSDK, you did good with your promo product choice.

What makes this a great promo pick?

Durability: I drink a lot of coffee, but that’s not all this mug gets used for. It’s seen its share of tea, water and even foods such as ice cream, cereal and oatmeal.  It has survived three moves, the microwave and numerous washings.  Long story short, it’s lasted a long time.

Long-lasting brand recognition: At the time, I just thought the addition of the mug to my concert tickets was just a nice gesture. Now, 5+ years later, I realize it was an important branding move. Had they not given me this mug, I wouldn’t remember that I won tickets from them so long ago. I may remember the event, but not how I got there. Today the conversation isn’t “oh, I won tickets in some contest… I think it was a local news station. Maybe radio… or maybe I entered at a restaurant.” No, now I know it was NewsChannel 5 St. Louis. I don’t live in St. Louis anymore, but if I go back, I might turn to Channel 5 because it’s something I’m still familiar with.

Simplicity: Sometimes simple wins. The branding is big and bold on this mug, but it’s not too wild. The company didn’t add any quirky phrases or images that might offend the recipient either. It’s just a logoed coffee mug and sometimes, that’s all you need.

Promotionally Yours: Calendars - Halo Branded Solutions ~ Promotionally...

Promotionally Yours: Calendars - Halo Branded Solutions ~ Promotionally...: Fundraising with Calendars Posted: 18 Aug 2016 03:02 PM PDT It’s back to school time and that means kids are not only getting back t...

Calendars - Halo Branded Solutions ~ Promotionally Yours, Sheri Breaux

Fundraising with Calendars

Posted: 18 Aug 2016 03:02 PM PDT

It’s back to school time and that means kids are not only getting back to the classroom, but back to extracurricular activities as well. Which also means it’s time to start thinking about fundraising for all those activities your students are going to partake in throughout the school year. A great way to raise some money and promote your nonprofit or school group is calendars.

They can be completely customized.

There are a variety of products sold for fundraisers from wrapping paper to cookie dough, but most of them are not products that will remind buyers of your organization year round.  It can be as simple as featuring your organization’s logo or team mascot on each page or as complex as you want it to be with artwork created completely by your group.

You can create buzz by letting others contribute.

A great way to make a calendar feel personal is to let students or members of the organization submit photos or artwork to be featured in the calendar.  You can use pictures from your community or artwork from students.  Those that are selected will be thrilled to be featured!

You can sell advertising space to cover costs.

Local businesses want to show support for their community.  Approach local merchants and vendors and ask if they would like to be featured in your calendar and show support for your organization.  You can take it a step further by selling individual date squares to businesses that want to highlight an upcoming event.  The businesses that contribute may even let you display your calendar at their locations.

Repeat Business

Because calendars are replaced annually, once you have a successful calendar campaign established you will have loyal repeat buyers and supporters year after year.

If you think calendars may be a great fundraiser for your organization and want to learn more reach out to your HALO Account Executive to get expert advice on creating a calendar program that is unique to your group.

Promotionally Yours: Marketing to Millennials... POKEMON - Halo Branded...

Promotionally Yours: Marketing to Millennials... POKEMON - Halo Branded...: Marketing to Millennials – Gotta Catch ‘Em… Posted: 03 Aug 2016 09:54 AM PDT *Logo from PokémonGO.com “Millennial” – ...

Marketing to Millennials... POKEMON - Halo Branded Solutions - Promotionally yours, Sheri Breaux

Marketing to Millennials – Gotta Catch ‘Em… Posted: 03 Aug 2016 09:54 AM PDT *Logo from PokémonGO.com “Millennial” – it seems this marketing buzz word should have outlived its time by now, but buzzworthy or not, marketers need to pay attention. There are many proposed dates for what qualifies one as a “millennial,” but most people can agree to define the generation as born sometime between 1980 and 2000 (give or take a few years.)  When choosing a target market, demographics can help you fine-tune your advertising methods. Consider today’s hottest trends in fashion, music, TV and movies. Clothing styles, bands, television shows and movies that were popular in the 80s, 90s and early 2000s are all coming back. In 2015, the second generation of the popular TV show Full House, aptly titled Fuller House made a successful debut. Movies such as Jurassic Park, Ghostbusters and Independence Day have all recently been rebooted. And lately, the most successful throw-back is the Pokémon GO app – In less than two weeks of its initial launch, the game had 21 million active users in the United States. These 20-30 year olds are not just running around catching Pokémon, they may be your customers. So, in honor of the Pokémon GO phenomenon, we present to you – Marketing to Millenials—Gotta Catch ‘Em! Using important skills from Pokémon GO we’ll review some basic principles to keep in mind while marketing to millennials. 1.      The game is not for everyone. Although it’s a popular game, there are some people who have not downloaded Pokémon GO and have no intention of ever doing so. Similarly, marketing to 20-30 year olds isn’t for everybody. Always remember your primary target market. If this isn’t it, consider a secondary market, but don’t force it. If you’re selling retirement homes, it’s unlikely anything you do will entice this group to buy from you. 2.     Approach with respect. Just as “Baby Boomers” and “Gen-X” are names of generational groups, “Millennials” (also known as Gen-Y) is also just a label for a group of people born in a particular date range. These men and women deserve your respect just as much as anyone else. While some may run around catching Pokémon in their spare time, at work they are likely to face the pressures of being managers and even executives. Don’t discredit them because they are younger or assume that they fall into stereotypical roles because someone told you “all millennials” act a certain way. Approach carefully, or you may never “catch ’em.” 3.      “Pikaaachuuu” – Don’t try too hard. If you don’t speak their language, you can still speak to them. Trying too hard to be trendy and relatable will be recognized as a façade, and it may hurt you with this large potential client base. Connect with the millennial crowd through trust-building content and social media outreach. Like your other clients, they’ll appreciate your real, personal approach, even without their vernacular. 4.     Evolve as needed. One important aspect of Pokémon is that most of these fictional creatures can evolve at least once (often twice) to become larger, stronger Pokémon. Sometimes your business needs to evolve, too. In a tech-heavy, fast-paced world, if you’re marketing to the younger generations, you’ll need to evolve more often. Stay on top of trends through social media and trend-spotting business magazines like Forbes, Fast Company and AdAge. 5.      There are always more. The world of Pokémon is vast; there’s one on every corner… in fact you may be next to one right now. The same is true for Millennials. If you haven’t “caught one” yet, don’t worry. There’s still time. This generation is also sometimes called “Echo Boomers” because many are children of Baby Boomers and (more importantly) the birthrate increased in the 1980s and 1990s, so there are many people in the U.S. that fall into this age group. Remember, one of the best things you can do when trying to market to a new audience is conduct your own research. Go to places they frequent. Eat where they eat. Shop where they shop. Listen to the same music, and check out the same television shows. You can find this research on the internet, but experiencing your audience’s life firsthand will help you be more relatable without faking it, and that is really the secret to catching ‘em all. Have you ever shifted focus from one audience to another? What helped you with your new audience? Leave a comment below.

Promotionally Yours: FALL Promotions - Promotionally Yours, Sheri Breau...

Promotionally Yours: FALL Promotions - Promotionally Yours, Sheri Breau...: Fall Promotions Posted: 03 Aug 2016 06:04 AM PDT With trips to the pool and summer temperatures on the rise it might seem o...

FALL Promotions - Promotionally Yours, Sheri Breaux ~ #HaloBrandedSolutions

Fall Promotions Posted: 03 Aug 2016 06:04 AM PDT With trips to the pool and summer temperatures on the rise it might seem odd to start thinking of fall promotions, but before you know it will be Labor Day and we’ll be at the official start of fall on September 22nd. Make sure your brand is front and center this fall by promoting your organization during these events: Fall Sports Fall high school athletic events are perfect for promoting your business while supporting the home team. Team up with athletic departments to get your promotions in the hands of football, cross country, cheer and hockey spectators. Remember to choose imprinted products that appeal to fall spectators, items that can keep your audience warm while watching their favorite sports will definitely be used and appreciated. National Book Month National Book Month is designed to encourage reading across the country. While the term “book” now covers more than the bound printed pages, there are still plenty of ways to promote this cause and your brand. For those who still like the feel of a book in their hand, imprinted bookmarks, magnifiers or book lights will quickly find their way into a favorite reading spot. For those that prefer e-readers, cases, stands and screen cleaning cloths make it easy to enjoy a book on their favorite device. Halloween Candy and dressing up in your company mascot costume may be what first comes to mind when promoting your brand during Halloween, but other ways do exist. For example, full color plastic bags make great trick-or-treat bags with a large canvas to showcase your brand. Get involved with community Halloween activities and give away safety items like flashlights and reflectors to get the attention of parents who will appreciate your concern for their children’s safety. For more fall promotion ideas contact your HALO Account Executive today and check out our Really Big Promotional Marketing Calendar for promotional ideas for the next three months.