by Kirby Hasseman
It’s that time of year. What time of year, you ask? It’s that time of year that the mornings get cooler, the leaves begin to change colors, and football is on TV! Hooray! It’s also the time of year that most organizations need to start thinking about “thank you.” It’s time to make sure your customers, employees, sales team and board members know how much you appreciate them. (It’s time to bridge the Appreciation Gap…I talk about that here). But what do you get them? How do you make it special? We can help. Today we take a look at some really cool executive branded gifts your team will love. Sonosphere Bluetooth Speaker: This is the perfect executive gift for that person that spends time at their desk. The Sonosphere will serve as a constant reminder of your appreciation for them. And since the minimum is 1…you could even personalize it. iLuv Personal Assistant/Bluetooth Speaker: Speaking of tech, how about tying your bluetooth speaker into your personal Alexa assistant? Yes…that would be cool. Your special guests can do just that with this cool piece! RamblerPack Backpack: Simple. Functional. On trend. This backpack fits in all 3 of these categories. Make sure you can head from the office, to the gym, to wherever and do it in style! Check out details on this one here. Urban Peak Gift Set: I love this gift set so much I got it for my team last year! This awesome cooler bag (great functional size) pairs with all of the drinkware you could need! It comes with 3 Vacuum sealed pieces with the 30 oz, the 20 oz and the 3 in 1. This is cool for everyone on your list! Coleman® 36-Hour 42-Can Marine Soft-Sided Cooler: If you want my favorite cooler on the market right now, you have found it. I even wrote about it here. This is a great size because it holds 42 cans, but is still manageable. It keeps ice for 36 hours and it has a cool accessible top that I love. You can find more info here. Thumpah Bluetooth Speaker: Get the party started, well, thumping with this super cool bluetooth speaker. If you have someone that wants to experience music on the go, this is your go to item!
Westbridge Leather Rucksack: this piece is sure to impress. Okay…so that is a great place to start! There are plenty of other options available! Need more ideas? You can shop online here. Or we can help you as well. Just click here if you need more ideas or if you want to set up a consultation. Finally, make sure you never miss an update. Sign up for our VIP newsletter here.
by Kirby Hasseman
“For myself I am an optimist — it does not seem to be much use being anything else.” Winston Churchill 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! Today on the podcast we discuss why I don’t see the downside of being an optimist. We also dig into a book called Becoming Supernatural by Dr. Joe Dispenza. There’s a lot to discover and a lot to discuss. Listen in now…and let me know what you think! As always, thanks for listening in! If you want to check out the book Becoming Supernatural from Dr. Joe Dispenza, you can do that here. Thanks for listening! Make sure you never miss an update by signing up for our VIP newsletter here.
by Kirby Hasseman
I am a believer is routines. Whether you have good ones or bad ones…you have them. And often, they are the driving force behind your life. I talk about that in detail here on the DMJ Podcast. That is why I have set up intentional routines in my morning. It’s a way I can get control of the first part of my day. And in my experience, the attitude in the first part of my day has a big impact on the rest of my day. But recently my family introduced a “routine destroyer” into my life. The havoc-wreaking hurricane of cuteness is called…a puppy. A puppy does not care in the least about my morning routines. It cares about barking, whining, peeing, pooping, chewing, scratching and sniffing. Pretty much every single noise they make signals that something bad is happening. They are constantly busy and constantly distracting. (I am just sitting down for the 4th time to continue typing this). There is a reason God made them cute. This is not a post to say “woe is me. My routines are screwed up.” Well, it’s not JUST that! It’s just a dose of reality. No matter what you do to create intentionality in your life, things will interrupt. If you work to be positive in your life, negativity will still fight to break through. I believe in setting up routines in the morning, but life is getting in the way. It happens. But now what? First, I think it’s important to understand that this is a season. Finn (yes that’s his name) will not be a puppy forever. As the old saying goes “This too shall pass.” It’s important to not get too frustrated (as hard as that is) in the moment. Next, I need to work with my new reality to create a new, intentional routine. I honestly don’t know what that is…yet. But I will figure it out. And once I do that, I will be able to get back to “normal” again. Finally, I can’t use this as an excuse. Yep…this is throwing me off. It’s harder to maintain my writing schedule every morning. And? It’s incumbent upon me to keep going anyway. We all have things that get in the way. It’s still on us to put in the work. It’s time to make sure you never miss an update! Join our VIP list here. We send out an email every Monday to give you a list of all the content for the week! Get it all in one place. Oh…and if you want to look for the best Promo the industry has to offer, you can check that out here.
by Kirby Hasseman
How many of you have ever started a new year (or a new quarter, or a new week) with the very intense desire to improve your fitness? Raise your hand…everyone. You had decided that “enough was enough.” You were going to put in the work. You were going to follow the plan. You had a goal in your mind. You had new “workout shoes.” You were fired up and you were committed. And you failed. Sound familiar? It does to many of us…me included. We know what to do. We just struggle with the discipline to do it. You know the quote I use all the time… The greatest distance in the world is the distance between “I know” and “I do.” I think the same is true for success in content marketing. As a matter of fact, I see a lot of similarities between success in fitness and in social media! Don’t believe me? Here are 10 ways Content Marketing and Fitness are the same! 1. Success takes a long time: One of the common misperceptions that causes frustrations in both is that results happen quickly. They don’t. The best plans for both start extremely slow and show only incremental progress at first. 2. You need to focus on the day…not the goal: If you continue to look at the marathon, you will get discouraged quickly. You don’t need to run 26.2 miles on day 2 of training for the marathon. You just have to run 2. The same is true with content. You don’t need a million followers. You just need to do the work today. 3. Consistency is Key: You can’t work out for a week and take 2 weeks off and have 6 pack abs (trust me, I know). The best success comes from consistent work. 4. It’s important to track progress: Most training plans have you weigh yourself at the beginning (and take pictures). That way, when you are frustrated, you can see how far you have come. The same is true with content. Start with your traffic baseline. The progress will be slow…but then you can look back later to your progress. 5. Most people start fast…and can’t keep it up: I started P90X the first time and went out of the gates like crazy. Then I could not lift my arms for a week. We have all see the company that started off with a Facebook page like crazy…and then have not posted in 2 months. 6. Most people use the same excuses about why they can’t do it: I know. You don’t have time. Bullshit. Yes you do. Do it or don’t do it. Your call. But time is not your issue. 7. The best plans do a little every day: You don’t have to go out the first week and run 25 miles. It’s often better to start slow and build up. The same is true on the content side. Start slow. There is no point firing out at a pace you can’t maintain. 8. The best people are intentional: You don’t have to (and probably shouldn’t) work out every day. You need to create rest days to let your body recover. But you need to do it on purpose. If every day becomes a rest day, then the routine is over. If you follow a plan, it’s much easier to stay on track! 9. The first 3 months are the hardest: In the program P90X, it’s 90 days for a reason. In that time you can create a habit in your day to workout. And you START to see results then. The work isn’t done. But that’s when it starts to become a part of you. 10. Most people know what to do…but aren’t willing to do it: Fitness and fad diets are huge business. We all want the shortcut. But if we eat less (or better) and work out more, most of us will get results. The fact is, we know that. Most of us are just not willing to DO it. These are just 10 ways that Content Marketing is like Fitness. There are more. So let’s put the excuses to bed. Create a plan. Then, let’s get to work! Make sure you never miss an update (like a mental workout). Sign up for our VIP newsletter here!
by Kirby Hasseman
My friend was frustrated with me. And I didn’t blame him. It was my fault. Let me explain. I had reached out to a friend in my industry. He was successful. He had some of the results I wanted. So I took the leap and reached out to him to ask him some advice. As is so often the case in these situations, these successful people are happy to help. They WANT others to succeed. So he took the time to answer my questions. But then something weird happened. I argued with him. Don’t get me wrong. I didn’t call him names. I just didn’t listen. I spent the time telling him “why that would not work for me.” Finally, with a sigh, he just said, “I don’t know what to tell you. That’s just how I do it.” What he didn’t say, because he was too gracious was, “But you asked me, asshole.” We do that a lot don’t we? As we are working to climb the ladder of success, we want shortcuts. We want to tap into the wisdom of others, but we don’t always want to put in the work. We spend a lot of time in our own heads, explaining why that would not work for us. “Sure that works for them, but they are rich.” But were they always? “I could not do that because…” “I don’t have time to do it that way…” “Yeah but…” “My customers would never pay for that…” Regardless of the excuse, it’s exactly what they are. That’s why, I think, we struggle to take the advice of those we ask. It just seems too damn simple! We want there to be a magic formula that will guide us to success. But as I often say, simple is NOT the same as easy. It’s not about the idea. It’s about the execution. It’s about putting in the work. So the next time you ask a mentor, buy a book, or listen to a podcast for advice…take it. Don’t argue with it. Don’t make excuses. Get out of your head and do the work. Make sure you never miss an update! It’s time to sign up for the VIP newsletter. You can do that here. We send out a weekly recap of our content in one email. And of course, if you want to look for some great gifts, check out our website here.
by Kirby Hasseman
Welcome to our awesome blog post series for Hasseman Marketing called:
“Brand-ecdotes!”
Each time, we talk to a branding all star about what makes the Promotional Product advertising media so special!
This episode we talk with Brandon Pecharich! Brandon who is a Senior Sales Director at Promo Corner lends his expertise to Brand-ecdotes!
1. What is your all-time favorite Promotional Product and why?
Backpacks. I have a very strange addiction to backpacks and I don’t care who knows about it, HA! A million and one reasons to use a backpack. I have had some really crappy backpacks in my day, but guess what…I STILL HAVE THEM. The addiction is real y’all. Currently, my ‘Errday backpack is the limited edition Chemo Duck custom Penryn Pack(R) from Origaudio. Number 81 here…what you got?
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?
Promotional Products are like smells, right? You see the product and read the imprint that usually has a date or reminder of where you got it and all of a sudden…you are back in that memory. I have a bar key…big bottle opener…that I got at the 2006 RMRPPA Fall Show in Keystone, CO. It was donated by Logomark and I know that because like a good supplier they added their info to the Event logo. This bar key has made it through 5 moves, 2 of which were to different States. The reason I have kept this bar key is every time I use/see it I am reminded of the first time I traveled alone for a tradeshow and how amazing this industry is on all levels. Almost everyone that I met and spent time with at that show I am still in contact with…what’s up Anna Marie Madai and Brian Ketterlin?!?! From all the help with set up, transportation, to the Golf pairings and evening outings, everyone was welcoming and FUN! I learned some “tricks of the trade” that I still use today…but those are for another blog post! 🙂
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3. What is the current product you use all the time?
In terms of the most total time used during the day, I am using a 32oz Viking tumbler that I received at an HPPA bowling tourney. My team won first place, BTW. However, Errday I use a Gold Star Vision Brights pen, Prime Line comfort touch journal, and Bay State Bamboo Coasters...and Many Many More!
4. What is an idea/product that you think organizations UNDER use?
The idea of kitting. When companies put a budget together and figure out the cost per person, most of the time they try to spend the whole lot on one product per person. While this can lead to an awesome Bluetooth speaker, Portable battery for electronics, or BA backpack…that is only one product. Low impression rate, limited kool-aid drank. If organizations would take the time to put a kit together with 4-5 lower cost errday products, the daily impression rate increases and kool-aid is guzzled. Put it to y’all this way, for your birthday do you want to tell your friends you got, A. one big prezzi or B. this and that and these and those…etc?
5. What do you think is the best thing about Promotional Products as an advertising media?
Brand recognition through subliminal messaging on products used Errday. A billboard is in your face. TV commercials are annoying, funny sometimes, but mostly a nuisance. Promotional Product advertising is like your best friend. Always there for you through the fun times, hard times, and that one time in jail.
And…that’s another awesome edition of Brand-ecdotes! Thanks to Brandon Pecharich for taking the time to jump in!
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