We provide a lot of wearables for corporate events. We thought it might be helpful to give some tips on care...

1. Don't use fabric softeners with your moisture wicking fabrics - they coat the fibers and reduce their effectiveness. Why pay all that money for wicking and have it not be working?

2. Use good hangers - wire ones may damage the shoulders of the shirts. May also cause the clothes to sag out of shape.

3. Zip up zippers and close velcro closures and then turn them inside out to reduce these items catching on other wearables. Eliminate snags!

4. Sort...mom told you to do it and here's why...dark colors can bleed into light ones. Delicates can be damaged by rubbing against coarse fabrics. Protect against excess rubbing...

5. Wash lint producing items (like towels) by themselves to eliminate the fuzz factor.

There are many words and names of tech items that used to be considered made up but as their use becomes more common, they find their way there. Think about the ones you know: flash drive, iPod, Prius, Google, wicking,  etc. Like everything in life, language changes and evolves. The 2008 word of the year from Merriam-Webster was "bailout" and in 2009 "admonish". So, I am voting for the 2010 word: prevail. If not, chillax is my runner up. If you need some chizzy marketing ideas to help you prevail this year in your business, call us! Then, go to http://www.merriam-webster.com/ and enter prevail so that it wins 2010 word of the year! Let's evolve in a positive direction!

Confuzzled? Check out the top ten made up words here.

We are excited to be celebrating our 10th Anniversary...which is traditionally something tin or aluminum. We definitely have that! In the past years, we've gone from plastic water bottles to aluminum or stainless water bottles. We are filling up at the fountain instead of buying cases of water. We experienced the Dot Bomb and the latest recession. In between we've seen great growth and new customers. Our cell phones are smaller and smarter. The internet is faster and tvs are bigger. We've made it through our childhood and now look forward to our pre-teens...pimples and all!

Thanks for being a part of our growth for the last 10 years.

Earth Day is in a week and I've compiled my Earth Day resolutions:

1. Put reusable grocery bags in the car (keep forgetting them at home)

2. Bring in coffee mug when buying latte

3. Hang towels outside to dry

4. Change dead light bulbs to cfl bulbs

5. Bring plastic bags to recycling bins

6. Carpool more

7. Eat less meat

8. Do less laundry :-) Wear clothes longer?

9. Print less emails

10. Compost

 Need a great grocery bag? Check this out.

As I get ready to travel for Spring Vacation, I notice my favorite items and most of them are also promotional items. I have dug in our sample umbrella bin, pulled rain jackets off the shelves and ordered yoga pants and tanks tops. I have my luggage and sling backpack as well as a travel blanket. Throw in some hand sanitizers, sun screen and lip balm, and I am all set.

Travel items make great marketing gifts because they are useful and last!  Click here for some ideas!

What is Brolliology? The study of the bumbershoot, the brolly, the parasol, the umbrella! Brolliologists maintain that the umbrella is one of man's oldest artifacts. Mostly used for sun protection, rather than rain protection, the umbrella has not changed much over the last 2000 years. Nowadays, we tend to group them into folding and stick categories. The folding is more portable and smaller; while the stick is more fashionable and larger. Wind resistance is important too - with stronger ribs and vented material. Whether shading the royalty or keeping your head dry, the umbrella is a useful artifact for everyone. Consider giving them at your next event.

More brolly facts can be found here.

We are often asked to recommend embroidery versus silk screening on clothing, caps, bags and other soft goods. Here are some things to consider when deciding:

Embroidery:

1. Stitched onto the garment

2. Price per stitch (size matters here) - more stitches, more expensive

3. Multi color usually doesn't increase price

4. Color match not possible but will get close

5. Words should be 3/16" or taller for readability

6. Can feel more permanent and more high end

7. Personalizations doable

Silk Screen:

1. Printed onto garment

2. Printing on black material more expensive than on white

3. Each color adds a screen charge and run charge

4. Can print large areas at same cost as small ones

5. Small details in designs usually print

6. Printing photos or graduated color will work

If you have question on what's best for you, let us know. We can help!

February is National Embroidery Month - email us about our free offer.

How many things can you remember to buy when you go to the grocery store before you need to write a list? Fo me, it's three. So, rather than writing down a Top Ten list of resolutions, we've decided to dust off the 3 core values that we've always had at O2 Marketing and Design: Work Hard, Play Fair and Have Fun.

Work Hard: deliver

Play Fair: respect

Have Fun: enjoy

Embrace 2010!

Things to think about when giving business gifts to clients, employees or suppliers:

1. Decide on your budget - will you spend more on some and less on others?

2. Check your list. Will you give gifts to your top 10? Your top 25? Or all of them?

3. Do you want to give all your clients the same gift? Or do you want to give them individual gifts?

4. Do you want to brand the gift you give for lasting messaging? Or perhaps personalize it with their name or initials?

5. When do you want to give? End of the year? Beginning of the year? Quarterly?

6. How will you give the gifts? Presentation is important. Will you mail or UPS it? Or deliver in person? Do you want to have it wrapped or gift boxed?

7. Have fun with gift giving - it is meant to convey appreciation for your relationship. Celebrate your company's personality by creating a memorable moment.

If you need gift ideas, check out some here.

November is here and brings thoughts of turkey, stuffing and mashed potatoes. It also has us reflecting on the people in our lives who we need to thank (and thank more often). We would like to THANK all our clients and manufacturers who supported us all year. 2009 is a year many of us would like to put behind us, but along the way, we had lots of fun and enjoyed doing what we do - helping clients attract and retain customers, prospects and employees.

We will be sending out a great custom calendar this year to keep us all organized for next year. If you want to make sure you get yours, contact us. We don't want to leave anyone out!

 Thanks!

T-shirts are a great canvas for advertising and team messages. You can print anywhere on them - front, back, sleeve, side, etc. They are relatively inexpensive and very functional. Things to keep in mind when designing:

Each location and color adds cost

Graduated color and half tones work for digital printing but not well for silk screening

PMS colors and monitor colors are different from silk screen ink colors

"Puff" ink can make a color more 3 dimensional

Embroidery over ink makes for interesting layering

There are stock imprint areas so check before you design

Consider the shirt size when creating the art - youth small has less space than adult large

We have designed many t-shirts for our clients. We are here to help!

Plug the tiny MoGo Bluetooth Adapter into your laptop’s USB port, flip down the kickstand to angle the mouse and then navigate using the MoGo’s concave buttons and scroll pad.  When you are done, slide it into your machines PC card slot to recharge.

For further details, click here.

The island perspective is the O2 Marketing model.  Every client interaction is an opportunity to show our passion for pleasing you, our customer.  We owe it all to you our customer and we never lose sight of that commitment.

Happy 7-7! Enjoy some 7-layer dip today:

1. beans

2. guacamole

3. sourcream with spices

4. shredded cheese

5. sliced olives

6. sliced tomatoes 

7. chopped green onions

Then, call us for 7 scoops for connecting with your clients.

And now, the video to follow up the actions taken for $5 Starbucks Gift Card:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0GshKagsVmk

 At least he is not giving his mother-in-law a foot massage for a Klondike bar...see recent ads for that!

The Archives of Internal Medicine published a comprehensive research study May 11, 2009 entitled "Effect of Exposure to Small Pharmaceutical Promotional Items on Treatment Preferences." They wanted to know: Does exposure to promotional products produce a more favorable attitude toward marketed pharmaceuticals? The findings: Yes they do.  The controlled experiment involved 352 third- and fourth-year med students at the University of Miami School of Medicine and the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine (where restrictive policies are in place limiting drug marketing). They were all exposed to branded Lipitor promotional products without knowledge that they were part of a study. Fourth-year students at Miami had a more favorable attitude (by a score of 0.66) toward Lipitor compared to the control group (0.47).  The effect was reversed at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine where restrictive policies are in place limiting pharmaceutical marketing.  The scores were derived from an Implicit Association Test.  

What does this mean to the marketer using promotional products for a campaign?  That your customer is 40% more likely to use your product or service if you have marketed to them using a pen with your product or service on it!!!

There are three main components to Email Marketing:

1. Connect - build your contact list - get permission from your contacts. Have them sign up or ask them.

2. Inform - build and send your email campaign with informative content but provide links for more comprehensive information

3. Grow - evaluate the results and refine the process - target your emails to different audiences

Email marketing is about staying in front of your customers by providing valuable information. On average it takes 2-3 "touches" for an existing customer to purchase again. Staying in front of them through email is part of the "touch" process.

Promotional products also allow you to stay in front of your customers. They can be one of your 2-3 "touches". Consider using both mediums in your marketing efforts. Emails disappear once they are read. Check out this article on promotional products. They have longevity.

1)      Southwest Airlines (Sound) - *Ding* You are now free to move about the country

2)      Automakers (Smell) – The new car smell . . . There is no such thing!  It is a manufactured scent that Automakers spray in their cars

3)      Coke (Taste) – No matter where you have a Coke all across this world they all have the same taste.

4)      Bank of America (Touch) – They keep the change campaign provides the sensory image of change in your hand

5)      Tiffany’s (Sight) – no matter what item you purchase from Tiffany’s you always see “the tiffany blue box”

Next time you sit down to create a great marketing campaign for your amazing new product or service.  Be sure to take into account at least one, if not all, of the five senses: Smell, Touch, Taste, Sight, and Sound?  If you need help . . . Give us a call!  We can definitely show you products that will give your marketing campaign a sensory EXPLOSION!

The Griffin is a legendary combination creature with the body of a lion and the head and wings of an eagle. Other combinations include the minotaur and the sphynx. In the gift world, people enjoy combo gifts as well - for novelty, value and function. Check these out:

Carabiner and pen             Flashlight, selt belt cutter & window smasher  mp3speaker bag

 The possible combinations are endless...contact us for more!

In these economic times we are looking for every way to save a buck from budget cuts to layoffs.  During this time employees are overworked, stressed, and seemingly waiting for the next hammer to drop.  Your company’s success is still predicated upon the people that work there.  From the bottom all the way to the top, each cog in the wheel is vital to absorbing this economic blow and pressing forward.  Morale is the only thing left to stand on, and a great way to boost company morale is with AWARDS and RECOGNITION!  Did you know that the government allows you to write off up to $400 per employee on awards and recognition?  Not only do you get to let Joe the Plumber know how important he is to the company’s success . . . You get a nice gift back from good ole’ Uncle Sam himself.  Therefore, before you cut your awards/recognition budget in hopes of saving costs,   remember that if you GIVE you will RECEIVE!