by Kirby Hasseman
Welcome to our awesome blog post series for Hasseman Marketing called:
“Brand-ecdotes!”
Each week we will talk to a branding all star about what makes the Promotional Product advertising media so special!
This week we talk with Danny Rosin! Danny is the co-founder of Brand Fuel (a progressive and fun distributor in North Carolina). He also helped to create BandTogether, which is a super cool not for profit that raises money through their love of music to make their community better!
1. What is your all-time favorite Promotional Product and why?
From James Dean to Lebron. Marlon Brando to Pedro. T-shirts are memes, walking billboards, novelties, fashion statements, great bang for the buck, utilitarian…universal weekend wear. T-shirts were the gateway to me falling in love with and being a part of this industry. With a logo/design, they have incredible sentimental attachment.
Postscript for corporate swag buyers out there: Provide shirts that people want to wear versus have to wear.
2. Can you name a Promo Product that you have that STILL reminds you fondly of an event, person, organization? If so, can you tell us that story?
Before Brand Fuel ever existed, I was running pretty wild with my now business partner of 20 years, Robert Fiveash. As teenagers, we shared a lot. We played the same three sports in school (football, wrestling, lacrosse). We loved the same music (Ramones, Clash, CCR, Pink Floyd). We even dated a few of the same girls (but not at the same time).
We also co-lead a high school club that provided resources to children in developing countries through Operation Smile. When we started Brand Fuel, Robert gave me his 15-year-old Operation Smile t-shirt as a memento. I have kept it, using it as a prop when I speak with high schoolers who are leading similar Operation Smile student clubs 30 years after we started that first club. Anyone looking at it would say the shirt is on life support. It’s faded, worn and full of holes, like a Velveteen Rabbit. It is associated with so memories of my friendship with Robert. The shirt serves as a metaphor for the things we have shared. And it is a reminder to never forget where we came from and that there are many people much less fortunate that we should lend a hand to whenever possible. It’s always possible.
3. What is the current product you use all the time?
My OtterBox iPhone case by Branded Logistics. It keeps my multitasking device safe and looks righteous too.
The runner up is a journalbook. The most recent one where I write musings is made from a recycled vinyl Aretha Franklin album, from supplier Vinylux. My album journal is a head turner, makes people jealous (so I have been told) and is a conversation starter. That’s the power of promo.
4. What is an idea/product that you think organizations UNDER use?
Cause-marketing. I am a believer that the 5th “P” of marketing, soon after price, place, promotion and product, is PURPOSE. Organizations are shifting their marketing dollars to a more purpose-driven model where stakeholders (employees, environment and local community) versus shareholders matter more. When delivered with integrity, an investment in shareholder value will be associated with the positive result of healthier recruitment and retention for both employees and clients. B Corporations are leading this charge internationally. I encourage you to check out what our industry is developing through the PromoCares initiative, to get involved and then, use your business as a force for good.
5. What do you think is the best thing about Promotional Products as an advertising media?
When our industry is doing its job justly, no other form of media can match up. While promotional products are the only form of advertising people like to receive, a physical promotional product can also serve as the trigger for human to human connection.
The effective design, delivery and use of promotional products starts a conversation. Opens a door. Helps recognize an employee. Provides a canvas to feature loyalty to a school, for a band or a cause, for example.
When we aren’t putting logos on crappy, cheap items that end up in landfills, which is a liability for our client’s brands and our industry, our industry will be more associated with what our customers want – utilitarian marketing. Yes, more of that, please.
Wow! Special thanks to Danny Rosin for taking us along this week! Great stuff!
Make sure you never miss an update! Sign up for our VIP Newsletter here!
by Kirby Hasseman
I like to talk. Trust me. My wife will agree! But despite what people think, the best sales people, entrepreneurs (and friends) are good listeners. It’s so true that it’s become cliché. It’s simple. But that doesn’t make it easy. It’s something I have to work at. The best way I have found to do this is to “actively listen.” I try to take notes. And if you pay really close attention to me, you might even see me put my hand over my mouth to remind me to shut up! It’s my visual “tell.” But another way to be a better listener is to ask better questions. (As a side note, here are 5 great questions you should ask before your next Promo Campaign) I find that if I work to have great questions ready, I am better prepared to just listen to the answers. Look at it this way, the better the question, the more interesting the answers. “Successful people ask better questions, and as a result, they get better answers.” Tony Robbons. If I do a better job of asking questions, I want to know the answers anyway! Make sure you never miss an update! It’s time to sign up for our VIP newsletter here. We will email you (only once a week) with the latest content and specials. It’s your call. But life is better as a VIP.
by Kirby Hasseman
What do these three have in common?
Each of them are leading voices in their respective spaces and professions. Here is a super quick background on each.
Gary Vaynerchuk grew his family’s wine business from $3 Million to $60 Million before leaving to start Vaynermedia, a leading digital agency in the world. He is a best selling author and sought after speaker. Gary began his journey by creating a wine show on YouTube and created over 1000 episodes of Wine Library TV. Now he has a team of people that follow him around and create the “Daily Vee.”
Casey Neistat is a filmmaker and world-class vlogger. Casey has pioneered how many view vlogging and has over 9 million YouTube subscribers. (That’s about the same as Jimmy Fallon if you were counting). Casey grew this amazing following by creating a daily, high quality vlog series that highlighted his adventures and his life.
Seth Godin is one of the pioneers of modern marketing. He is a best selling author many times over and is one of the minds that introduced us to “permission marketing.” Seth grew an amazing audience by writing a blog each and every day…for years. Each and every day, Seth “shows up” to share his thoughts on marketing, business and more.
These three are people I admire in business today.
They are the top of their game. And each of them, in their own way, push me to work harder and do more. Each of them is totally unreasonable…and that is why they have succeeded. Every time I start to create a goal to raise the exposure of my personal brand or my business, I start with a big idea. I think of a goal that gets me excited or fired up. I think “why not?” That could be me! And I even start to think of the possibility of what might happen if I head down the path. And then I think, “ Maybe I should be more reasonable.” I start to create the internal debate that goes like this… “You have a lot going on. You have a family and you want to have some time off! You know you need to think about your quality of life. You need to be more reasonable.”
And that, my friends, is where exceptional goes to die. It’s the reason I am excited about creating content every day. It’s exciting. It’s scary. It’s even kind of fun. But it’s not reasonable! If you want to be exceptional, you need to be unreasonable.
If you want to make sure you never miss an update, make sure to sign up for the Hasseman Marketing VIP newsletter! You can do that here. It’s not unreasonable. 🙂
by Kirby Hasseman
The Delivering Marketing Joy Podcast is back! Our goal here is to attack 2018 with a vengeance! The Delivering Marketing Joy Podcast will provide some inspiration, motivation and education to make it happen! Consider this your 10 minute “kick in the pants” to get your week started off right! This week on the podcast, I dig into why I don’t get nearly as much done when my family is gone. Weird, right? It turns out that they provide me my purpose! Listen to the podcast today…and find yours! And if you didn’t get a chance to see them on the Ellen show, you can check out our Facebook page and watch! Thanks so much for listening each week! Make sure you never miss an update! Sign up for the VIP newsletter here. Oh…and if you want to spend a few minutes and shop for some great Promo, you can head to our site here.
by Kirby Hasseman
I was in a conversation recently with a person who was looking at their phone. Well, it was sort of a conversation. I would talk to them and they would occasionally nod and say “uh huh.” They continued to scroll through their social media feed and pretend to be in a conversation with me at the same time. Sooner or later I gave up and walked away. I am not sure they noticed. In that situation they did not “tell” me that I wasn’t important. They showed me. And I think that might have hurt worse. Make sure you never miss an update! Sign up for our VIP newsletter here.
