by Skylar Hasseman
(Coshocton, OH)—Coshocton based marketing firm and promotional products distributor Hasseman Marketing & Communications is growing again. Hasseman Marketing is excited to welcome Skylar Hasseman to their team. Skylar joins Hasseman Marketing after working all over the United States as a Professional Dancer, she will take over a new position titled Marketing Coordinator.
“We are so excited to welcome Skylar to the team,” says owner Kirby Hasseman. “She has a great personality and I am excited to have her start working with our sales team to help grow Hasseman Marketing’s brand.”
The Marketing Coordinator is a new position for Hasseman Marketing. In her duties here, Skylar will work solely on branding and marketing Hasseman Marketing in order to utilize marketing services and social media management from Hasseman Marketing. She will manage social media accounts, create video content and work to “story tell” online.
Skylar has worked hard to be able to travel and dance professionally for most of her life, and now she is excited to settle down and start a new future in marketing.
“I am so excited to begin this new journey on the marketing train at Hasseman Marketing. I can’t wait to help market and promote not only our clients, but also focus on branding Hasseman Marketing. The team at Hasseman Marketing is one of a kind, and I look forward to spending each day.”
Hasseman Marketing headquarters is located at 432 Main Street in Coshocton, Ohio. They can be found online at www.HassemanMarketing.com. In addition, you can follow them on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/hassemanmarketing. You can also find more out about our staff at https://hassemanmarketing.com/about/.
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by Kirby Hasseman
The weather is officially making the transition from spring to summer in many parts of the country. The temperature is warming up and so is the desire to get together. People are hungry to have real contact again, and we predict that will lead to some amazing opportunities for outdoor events. This creates some cool opportunities for you and your brand. With more organized events, you can use some great summer swag to recognize employees, appreciate customers and even create awareness with your prospects.
Here are a few pieces of summer swag that are sure to delight the masses.
Sunscreen
Over the course of the past year, hand sanitizer has been a “go-to” promotional product that says “I care.” And it still should be. (We still want to stay clean and safe, right?). But during this season, Sunscreen is the perfect product that sends that same message. This is a super functional piece of branded merchandise that shows you care. If you are having a summer employee event, a golf outing, or are excited to sponsor an outdoor festival, these can be perfect. You can find a few options here.
Beach Towel
When you think of summer, what is better than a beach towel? The answer…not much. We talk about the “worst thing that can happen to a branded beach towel here. They have a huge imprint area, are incredibly functional and the average lifespan of a beach towel is 7 years! How about that for bang for your branded buck? This towel is sand-proof and quick-dry. It’s different and is sure to turn heads. Learn more here.
Vacuum Drinkware
When most people think of summer, we think of sitting on our deck (or by the pool, lake, beach, etc) with a warm breeze in our face and a cool drink in our hand. Right? The right drinkware piece has become essential for enjoying summertime to the fullest. The right vacuum drinkware can keep the hot drinks hot and the cold drinks cold. So if you can provide your employees, customers, and prospects their favorite new drinkware piece, you are going to have a special place in their heart (and on their deck). Here are two drinkware pieces that are sure to delight. And since you can imprint with full color, you can have all kinds of fun with branding too!
Wearables
There are so many items that can fall under branded “wearables,” so let me narrow it down here. I am thinking of t-shirts, sunglasses and branded caps! These are quintessential summer ware! But we are t-shirt snobs. We can tell you all you ever wanted to know about them here. You can’t just hand out some cheap, scratchy shirts if you want your folks to wear them. If you want a summer shirt, think performance, wicking, and soft!
And the same is true for a summer hat! You want to give something to your tribe that they will want to wear. Oh…and don’t be afraid to get creative with your decoration. You don’t just have to splash your logo on the front. You can…no problem. But what about creating a meaningful saying or slogan on the front with your logo on the back? Consider creating a movement with your merch! Yes…we have wearables on our store here too.
Cheers! Here’s to a fun and productive summer with your team and your tribe. If you want to talk about other fun summer ideas, click here to set up a chat! We would love to help. Make sure you never miss an update! Sign up for our VIP newsletter here.
by Kirby Hasseman
When I first entered the world of promotional products (or branded merchandise) I was so hungry to create business and opportunities that I would do nearly anything to make a sale. Oh, nothing illegal of course, but I was not choosy. I was not particular about the clients I took on or the vendors I worked with. I just needed to put food on the table, so “a sale was a sale.” In that season of my career, that was what I needed to do.
But as time went on, I learned and evolved.
I learned that one of my jobs was to curate products. That’s pretty straightforward. There are millions of options and our clients simply don’t have the time or the knowledge to sift through them all. If I could narrow the search to just a few appropriate selections, I would be serving my clients. I could help them create a cool branded campaign that fit in the budget and (hopefully) moved the needle for their desired results.
Then I realized I was also curating something else…my vendors.
After a great deal of time in the business, I realized that not all suppliers are created equal. This is not as simple as some suppliers are “good” while some are “bad.” That is a wild over-simplification. The reality is, we are all better at some things than others. Some of our suppliers have an amazing selection of low-priced branded merchandise. A few of our suppliers have totally creative art teams that can dazzle us with mock-ups. And a few vendors can turn our branded products really fast, but they are not the cheapest. Each of the suppliers has its strengths and weaknesses.
That leads me to an important lesson.
When it comes to branded merchandise, you can have it:
You get to pick two out of three.
While this lesson almost certainly applies to many industries, I can say for certain that it does to branded merchandise. As a distributor in this industry, it’s our job to do our best to guide you to the product AND supplier that can most effectively meet your need. As much as we want the industry to be amazon, it’s not. So if you want a branded campaign to be done in a week, there are options. They just probably won’t be the least expensive (or they won’t be done right).
As a side note, as I write this the challenge is doubly difficult. It seems nearly every industry is being affected by challenges in the supply chain (can’t get the product) or the labor force (can’t get people to work). It’s a reality we are all facing.
So my advice to you…plan ahead.
While that has always been the case, it’s really true right now. Stock is here today…and gone tomorrow. So please give yourself lots of time to make sure the item you want for your next campaign can make it on time. And if it’s not, it gives time to find a replacement.
If you want to schedule a time to discuss your next campaign, feel free to click here to set a time to chat. And if you want to make sure you never miss an update, join our VIP list here.
by Kirby Hasseman
If you have been paying attention to our communication lately, you might have seen the conversation around a new program called Better Business University. We are extremely excited about the new platform. And while you might have heard about it, many people still have questions! We get that. So in this blog, we wanted to address the top 5 questions we are getting about Better Business University.
What is Better Business University?
Better Business University is an online platform of business education that is real-world-based and very affordable. We will have a yearly subscription and give people complete access to all classes. The classes are video-based, so you can watch at your pace and on your schedule. As we add more classes…no more cost. Our goal is to reach 10,000 entrepreneurs, leaders, and sales pros to help them elevate their game.
Why Is Hasseman Marketing Involved?
At Hasseman Marketing, we have always been about helping other organizations grow. That might mean assisting you with a marketing campaign, or helping guide our prospects and clients to grow personally. That is why we spend so much time and energy creating content! We feel that Better Business University is the perfect next step to help our prospects and customers level up!
What Courses are Available?
As of this writing, there are 5 robust video courses. The courses available now include:
- The Give First Economy
- How To Get More Done
- Create a Website That Works
- How to Market like a Rock Star (on social media and through content)
- Build Your Brand with Branded Merchandise
We will be adding more courses soon, and there will be no additional fee for subscribers on the platform.
Who Is Better Business University For?
We are calling Better Business University the “Entrepreneur’s MBA.” We have created the program for entrepreneurs, leaders, freelancers, sales pros, and anyone else interested in leveling up their skills and their career.
What is the Cost?
The goal of BBU is to help 10,000 entrepreneurs and leaders level up. In order to do that, we have made it very affordable. The yearly subscription will be only $249 for the entire year…and you will have access to all classes. As we add more courses, there will be no additional cost! We think that is an incredible value. But during our launch week (May 3-7) we will have a special offer that is even better.
If you are interested in learning more about Better Business University, please check out the Facebook page here…or head to the website here.
by Kirby Hasseman
There are plenty of reasons you might want to do business with Hasseman Marketing. We have that bubbly personality, our engaging smile, the ability to tell dad jokes, and more. But our goal is certainly to provide more reasons than just being fun at a party! We want to make sure we stay up on all of the latest trends that will affect our business…and yours. That is why we come to you today to discuss some of the trends we see in promotional products and marketing now.
The Costs Will Be Rising
We hate to be the bearer of bad news…but here we are! Challenges with shipping items into the country are no secret. For the past few months, getting large ships into port has been a challenge. We can blame any number of factors…but more and more shipments have been affected. Combine that with the ship that was stuck in the Suez canal that backed up shipping for days and cost billions, and you have a recipe for increased costs. It’s not just in the promotional industry to be sure. But it will be coming, as soon as later this year. This is not a doomsday prediction. Everything will be fine. But just be prepared. As a matter of fact, if you are planning for events later in the year, you might get ahead of the game by getting orders moving sooner rather than later.
Work From Home Is Still A Thing
While some companies are calling people back to the office, a large number of organizations may have changed the way they work forever. While I personally wonder what this means for company culture moving forward, many point to increased flexibility and productivity. And let’s face it, for many organizations it means a decrease in rent! What does that mean for you? It means you still need to consider delivery in your promotional products campaigns. Some suppliers have really become amazing at creating drop-ship programs that can reach your team or customers right where they are. Make sure you factor that in your cost and your timeline when you create your next campaign.
Doing Brand Good Is Important
We have talked about this for over a year now. Brands want to not only tell their story. They want to leave some bread crumbs of “brand good” behind. This means creating promotions with a purpose. You can do that in a ton of ways. One of them is to support suppliers or products that have a giveback component to each item. There are more than you might think. One example is the Basecamp line of products from Sweda. Every purchase from this amazing brand donates money to the Wounded Warrior product. They donated $100,000 in 2021! You can learn more here. There has never been a better time to use your brand to do good.
Online Learning Is Here To Stay
While no one is more excited to get back to in-person events than me, online learning is here to stay. The technology has been here for years, but now we have come to accept that we can level up our game from home…then use it right away. This has created the chance to learn at a much more affordable cost. That’s great news. That is why we have helped to create Better Business University. Our goal is to create a low-cost learning option for those that want to level up…and help their team do the same. You can learn more about this project here...and help us shape it as well.
These are just a few trends that we see in promotional products and marketing. As I said, we love that you do business with us because of our sparkling personality, but I hope this adds some value to the relationship as well! If you want to chat more about any of these, please reach out to your rep or click here to schedule a time to chat!
by Kirby Hasseman
When I first got into the promotional industry, I had a sales trainer (who also happened to be my dad) ask me a simple question. “What is the worst thing that can happen to a promotional product?” Being the young smartass I was (as opposed to the older one I am now), I grabbed the calendar he was holding out, looked at it, and then threw it in the trash can in the corner.
Smiling. He looked up at me and said “Exactly!”
He went onto explain that I noticed the promotional item. I looked at it. Then I discarded it. “That is the worst thing that can happen to a calendar (or any piece of branded merchandise). But that is the best thing that can happen with most other advertising!” This might sound like a simple story, but it has powerful implications for your marketing. When you are deciding how to market, you should consider the results you get with promo and other advertising.
I tell you that story to tell you this one. Sometimes there are problems when ordering branded merchandise. I have actually talked about that before here. So let me tell you about the time a Beach Towel order went sideways…and what happened.
It started like any other order.
I met with one of my favorite clients. Lisa Reed, Executive Director at RHDD, and I have a great relationship. I work hard to understand her business. She talks about that here. In addition, she asks me to push her on deadlines. She has so many details in her brain running RHDD (an amazing organization that serves people with Developmental Disabilities) that sometimes she needs me to help keep her on task on promotional projects.
I tell you this because of what happened next.
Lisa and I had discussed getting beach towels to recognize her team. She wanted to do something other than just her logo. She wanted a message recognizing how much she appreciated her team. We had bounced around a few ideas and landed on a message that said “My boss kinda thinks I am a big deal!” We had our theme and worked on a design to make it fun on the towel. In addition, we had discussed our deadline. Lisa had an event where she wanted to hand the towels out…and it was coming up quickly.
I sent over the proof for approval and did not hear back. As I mentioned, Lisa is super busy, so I sent another reminder. Still nothing in response. After I sent the proof over a third time with no response, I was starting to get nervous. The deadline was coming up fast. I got a message from the supplier that if we did not the proof approved today, they would not have their towels on time.
So I made the decision to approve the towels.
The supplier worked their miracles and the towels arrived on time for the event. There was one really significant problem. Lisa and her team had decided they were not going to do the beach towels. They had not approved the proof because they did not want to move forward. It’s not that they did not want to recognize their employees, they were not just not sure about the design. Lisa called me to tell me the “good news/bad news” situation. The good news is that the towels arrived on time. The bad news is, they had decided they did not want them.
Lisa was gracious and kind. It was my mistake. While I was trying to do the right thing to take care of my client (and keep them on deadline) I had most certainly over-stepped. But after seeing the towels, she decided to give them to her team anyway. At the designated event, Lisa and her leadership team gave the towels to her employees. The response at the event was great…but then something cool and unexpected started to happen.
One by one, when her employees went on vacation, they started to post pictures of themselves on the beach with their new towels! Without being asked, the team tagged RHDD on Facebook to show how much their boss “thinks they are a big deal!” For an organization that is proud of their employees, this was magic.
As a matter of fact, I would say “it’s kind of a big deal!”
While the situation was not ideal (I will never do that again), the outcome was really great. It does go to show you that, when you recognize your employees using beach towels (or other branded merchandise), good things happen. Even when the delivery does not go as planned, the outcome really can be powerful.
Special thanks to Lisa Reed for her leadership and understanding on this project! If you are looking for a great place to work that really does value their team, you can learn more about RHDD here.
And if you want to discuss an appreciation project for your team, let’s talk!
