by Kirby Hasseman
Every year for over 10 years, Hasseman Marketing has created an “End User” show and have invited our customers. It’s evolved and grown over the years and we are quite proud of it. It started as a “Customer Appreciation Show” and it still has those elements. But we have expanded it and now call it our annual Trade Show (you can register here). This year the theme is “The Great Outdoors.” Why? Because it’s a Trade Show build for our customers and prospects. But why should you come? We want this event to be fun AND add a ton of value. Here are a few reasons why we think you should attend. 1. Great Product Access: We invite some of our top (and favorite) supplier reps to showcase their lines at the show. I like to say “There is no way I could fit all of this in my trunk.” You get to see and touch and feel the product and see what it’s really like. We all know that many products look the same online or in a catalog. But when you get them up close you can really see a difference. This is the perfect place to make sure your brand materials are on point. 2. Idea Generation: As you walk around and see the latest and greatest in Promo, you will come up with some great ideas for upcoming projects. The reality is, the show is at a great time of year for year end gifts for your team or customers. But some of our best customers come every year and start to plan their marketing for the next year and beyond. 3. Great SWAG: Nobody leaves empty handed! We put on a fun event where (with the help of our suppliers) we invest in putting some really cool SWAG in your hands. In addition, we build the event around a theme so you can see how we use a bunch of different items around a theme! 4. Tasty Food: You have to eat right? We have food and drinks as well. Each year we get compliments about the tasty treats and we know this year will be no different. The event this year is on Thursday October 11 from Noon to 5pm at the Lake Park Pavilion (in Coshocton). Our goal is to create an event that provides value and fun…and you never want to miss. So if you want to join us (and you do), please feel free to to RSVP here.
Make sure you never miss an update by signing up for our VIP newsletter here. And if you want to get started on shopping for your next promotion,you can click here to start shopping now.
by Kirby Hasseman
It seems like everywhere I look I see people and organizations that want full-time results with part-time effort. They are looking for the magic button, the pill or the process that will magically turn a week of effort into a lifetime of achievement. Life doesn’t work that way. And to quote the Princess Bride “anyone who tells you differently is selling something.” Whether you want to improve your fitness, create a sales organization or build an audience, the rules are the same. You need to put in the work that no one seems to notice, for a long time, to become an overnight success. You have to put in full-time work. Every day. If you aren’t willing to do that, you have to question whether you really want to achieve the goal (whatever that is) in the first place. Want to make sure you never miss an update (or a kick in the pants)? Sign up for the VIP newsletter here.
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! Today on the DMJ Podcast we discuss the power of routines…both good and bad. Habits and routines can take over our behavior if we are not paying attention. So today we talk about why it makes sense to create good routines in your morning to get things started off right! Listen in now! Make sure you never miss an update by signing up for our VIP Newsletter here. Or you can subscribe to the podcast on iTunes, Sticher, Soundcloud…or where ever you listen to podcasts!
by Kirby Hasseman
In the book Finish by Jon Acuff, he argues that “perfect” is the enemy of “done.” He gives example after example of “perfect” talking you out of starting or continuing with your goal, because it would not be good enough. This is right on. Think about all of those new exercise plans. You start off like a ball of fire. You work out each and every day for a week or two. Then you miss a day. Then you fall completely off the wagon and give up. We have all been there. That’s why Jon says that one of the most important days is “the day after perfect.” It’s actually easier to keep things rolling when you are on track. But the moment you get off track, “perfect” convinces you to give up completely. I bring this up because it’s part of the reason I was able to convince myself to do this blog every day. I know that in order for Google to find a blog post in it’s algorithm, the post has to be at least 300 words. When I learned that, I felt like every post had to be 300 words, or what was the point? That was “perfect” talking. These posts (and any writing for that matter) needs to be as long as it needs to be to get the point across. No longer. So I gave myself permission at the beginning of this journey, that if the post was not 300 words, it was totally okay. It still counted. It was more important for me to show up every day. If I did that, the rest would take care of itself. So stop letting “perfect” talk you out of doing. Make a deal with yourself. As Jon Acuff would say, it will help you give yourself the gift of “done.” Finish is a great book (and a great audiobook) and you can find it here. And if you want to make sure you never miss an update, you can sign up for our VIP newsletter here.
by Kirby Hasseman
We live in a digital age. We have more tools and platforms to be connected with each other than ever before. In most ways, I think this is a really good thing. I do. I am connected with so many more people, from all over the country, than I could have been 20 years ago. Not only have we met at some function, I am able to keep up with their daily lives. I get to see their kids grow up. I see pictures from their vacations. It’s a way of connecting with people we simply could not have done just a few year ago (and we take it for granted). But it’s not the only way to connect. It’s not even the best way. I was reminded of this when Mark and Catherine Graham drove from Toronto Canada to visit with us this week. For those that don’t know, Mark and Catherine own commonsku, which is an order management software program designed specifically for the Promo industry. They are also really nice people. It was great to connect with them…in person. They came and stayed overnight. We had dinner and hung out and they got to see our routines and workflows in person. But why? We communicate with them regularly. We are connected on all of the social media channels. Why make the trip? I even asked them about it. Of course the answer is simple. The best way to connect–really connect–is in person. Not only did they get to learn what it’s like to do business in Coshocton, Ohio, but they got to go over some new changes to their platform that are really cool. And here’s the thing, despite the face that I am on their platform every day, I did not know about most of them! But with them in our office, our team took the time to learn them and learn the reasoning behind them. I had seen the updates and the emails. But I had not take the time to dig in. There is still so much power in face to face communication. It’s easier to send an email. It’s quicker to post it to social media. But so often, the message doesn’t really get through. Leave it to Mark and Catherine Graham, entrepreneurs in the TECH space, to remind me the power of being “social” in person. Make sure you never miss an update! We send out a VIP newsletter once a week with all of the content from the week in one place! Sign up for it here!
by Kirby Hasseman
Yesterday I made an announcement that I didn’t really want to make. I announced that we were closing the Tap Room at Hasseman Brewing in Coshocton. You can read that update here. While I am disappointed with the lack of traffic and support, I am very proud of what we have done with that business. We have created a great product. We have learned a lot. And we have created a small team of people that are really passionate about the journey. In addition, nothing really cool happens without taking a risk. Sometimes risks work. Sometimes they don’t. It’s life. But I think what is important in situations like this is, what do I learn from them? As I said in the blog post, we are not closing. We are changing. We will be selling bottles, kegs and are even exploring the idea of doing Private Label beers (I am really excited about that). As you might expect, there will be more updates on this as we move forward. But what does this have to do with you? Simple. At some point in our lives, we will all have a project that doesn’t work. It is frustrating and humbling when it happens. It’s depressing even. It’s easy to want to crawl into the fetal position and just hide. It’s natural. But it’s not productive. So what do you do when it doesn’t work? Honestly Assess: When something doesn’t go as planned it’s easy (and natural) to look for someone or something to blame. But that’s emotion. It’s important to look at what worked (we got better and more consistent making beer) and what did not (we did not have traffic to the Tap Room). Make A Decision On What’s Next: Once you have that, you can look at the options of what is next. We could have closed completely. But based on what we felt our strengths were, we felt we could keep it going in a more productive way. Execute: Then do. Obviously we are just beginning this stage. I don’t pretend to have that all figured out. Heck…it’s even more obvious that I don’t have it all figured out. But the world lacks people who execute. In my experience, good things happen when people take action. If you want updates on what we do next with Hasseman Brewing, you can sign up here. But if you want to keep up with all of the content we are creating at Hasseman Marketing, sign up for our VIP newsletter here!
