The Top 100 of 2006!

So I just checked out Yahoo's Top Searches for 2006 and would you believe Motivators didn't make it into the Top 10 Bloggers? I feel shunned. I really don't, I'm just kidding.

But what i do have for you (aside from the question: why is the WWE the second most searched for thing in the world?)is the Top 100 Promo Items of 2006. These are our hottest sellers. The big guys. And I will say this...if an awareness bracelet were a celebrity, it'd be Britney Spears!

Top 100 Promo Products!

Police related promotional Items!

So last night, on the train I happened to "borrow" a copy of a newspapers. I enjoy train people who just leave their papers after they're done with them for the next group of people. It's like, well hey now I don't have to spend 50 cents. And that's fantastic. Especially when newspapers have puzzles, like sudoku and word jumble. I do love a good jumble.

But my point. (yes I have one.) I read in the "weird but true" section of this particular paper how a Police Department in Virginia was supplying local bars with pint glasses imprinted with their logo, hoping that patrons would think twice about drinking and driving.

Promotional Pub and Pint Glasses

Tradeshow Tip of The Week!

Little Shop of Horrors knew what they were talking about when Audrey II let out that infamous line: Feed Me Seymour! So when thinking of booth giveaways for your next tradeshow, think of potential visitors as man eating plants. Feed them.

Mini packs of jellybeans, goldfish, and chicklets are always a hit. People like chocolate chip cookies and pretzels and we have those! But then there's the candy. Any booth that gives me candy makes me happy.

So order some custom imprinted food and get the traffic to your booth!

Promotional Food Products

Pizza + Promotional Product = Good Stuff!

Apparently I was onto something with the pizza cutter promotional idea. A recent study done by the Promotional Products Association International (PPAI) measured the effectiveness of advertising campaigns when a promotional product is included. The client was a Chicago pizzeria. The product they chose was a magnetic calendar. In correlation with the campaign, the background of the calendar was that of the print ad. The testing revealed that of the three mediums, (print, TV, and promotional product) print came out the highest but the promotional product was far more popular and effective than the TV ads.

Interesting? Extremely. Now there's proof that people love pizza and free stuff! (Like we really needed proof!)

For more on the study, visit Chicago Pizza Study.

To check out some great magnetic calendars Magnetic Calendars

And for more information on the Promotional Products Association International, visit Promotional Products Association International.

A Holiday Gift From...Us?

So it's interesting to see all the different holiday gifts that companies are sending out. But what does a company that specializes in promotional products send out to their customers? There are so many different choices (over 27,000 to be more specific) so how do we choose? Are there long meetings involved with powerpoints and spreadsheets and pie charts? While I do enjoy spreadsheets and powerpoints are enjoyable, no such necessity is required when choosing our holiday gift.

Going on the factor that I spoke about just a few blogs ago, people love food. So thats what we give them. But since we're in the customization business, we gotta customize. So customization + food =



Chocolate!

And believe me it's delicious. This chocolate is melt in your mouth tasty. And the amount of boxes that have been in this office the past few weeks, it's been hard to resist. It's been more than tempting to take a box, drop it and say "Oh, this one's broken." Although dropping it might not exactly be as effective as throwing it against a wall, but we attempt to avoid throwing things in this office unless they're stress relievers or beach balls. Regardless of this, no boxes have been dropped to my knowledge. And if there have been, there needs to be a staff meeting with said box of chocolate at my desk. But at our annual company holiday party, we all got a box of our own.

So yay chocolate. And though it is too late for the holiday season, it's not too late for Valentine's Day!

Promotional Chocolate

A few of my favorite things...

I hate that My Favorite Things song. It's a classic and everyone knows it and I just plain hate it. But I do have some favorite things...



The Papermate Propel Translucent Ball Pen.

It writes smoothly and it's so comfortable to hold. And with the amount of pens that we have in this office, it's hard to pick a favorite. I have three big pen cups all filled with pens but there are only two that I reach for. My other top choice is the Dr. Grip. http://www.motivators.com/26249-promotional-item.html But since everyone seems to love that pen and it keeps disappearing off my desk, I was forced to find a new fav.

The Press and Pic Clip Dispenser




This is one of my favorite distractions. You press down the magnetic plunger in the middle and voila! Paper clips. I could just be easily amused or have the attention span of a fruit fly, but it's fun.

Broccoli Stress Reliever



I'm one of those people that likes their broccoli very well done (aka mushy) so it's really not surprising that I enjoy a mushy broccoli stress toy. Stress relievers are also items that abound in this office so it's hard to find a good one. The head of the broccoli is comfortable to hold and you get some good finger exercise when you squeeze it.

I simply remember my favorite things and then I don't feel so bad. Yep, still hate that song.

We loooove pizza!

Anytime there's pizza in this office, I find it. I have a sense of smell like a bloodhound. Well at least when it comes to delicious food. But pizza, I can hunt down exactly who has it without even leaving my chair. Ok, well maybe thats a little extreme.

But there's one promotional item that I could definitely use at mi casa. A pizza cutter. It doesn't necessarily have to be promotional, but I'm notorious for 411-ing numbers of places that I've lost the menus for. I could just program the numbers into my phone, but I keep forgetting to. So how helpful would a pizza cutter with the pizzeria's number on it be? Of course, I'd probably lose that to, but it's still a good way to compete with all the Chinese food places that give out calendars!

Promotional Non - Stick Pizza Cutter

Warm Coffee for the Easily Distracted...

Sometimes, even when things are right smack in front of my face, I forget to pay attention to them. I was one of those kids whose mother tied the red string around their finger so they wouldn't forget *insert kid friendly task here* and I'd just go home with the string around my finger, and the task not completed. I've since gotten better, but only with things that need to be done immediately or have some importance. Like my job.

But there's a tricky thing with coffee. Unless you drink it immediately, it gets cold. Unless it's iced coffee in which case, you're in the clear. Until it gets warm. Funny how those two sort of cancel each other out, but again not my point.

About 5 minutes ago I picked up my coffee cup to throw it out only to realize, it still had coffee in it. Cold coffee. There is nothing more yucky than cold French Roast. So in conclusion, I need this. And if you're like me, easily distracted or just too busy to take a sip you need this. Or if your employees are such hardworkers that they're too busy to take a sip, they need this. It saves on wasted coffee and trips to the coffee maker.

Wanted: Porky The Pig Duck!

I have a little rivalry with a certain coworker here. It's always been funny, how nasty we are to each other especially since it's all in fun. There's been some beachball warfare. We're always telling each other to stop slacking and start working. Last Friday morning he told everyone that if they wanted anything from the deli, to just let me know. So upon returning to my desk I found requests for sesame bagels and buttered rolls. I ended up going because I wanted a Snapple, but its the principle of the thing.

Well now he's taken it too far.

Porky the Pig Duck is missing from my desk. He told me the next time I see Porky, he'll be hanging from a noose. I'm slightly worried because there's been a couple of giraffe stressball beheadings and I will not let Porky the Pig Duck be subjected to the same fate as the giraffes.

So this is a plea. Give Porky the Pig Duck back or it's on. If that Pig Duck is hurt in any way, shape or form...

THIS MEANS WAR.

It's funny how attached to a little toy people can get. But good for branding, no?

Calendars...Who doesn't use them?

The answer to that question would be no one! I mean back in the late 80s early 90s, I was too cool for calendars, what with my Casio watch that told me everything from the temperature in Belize to the time in New Zealand. It told me the date, too. But now, I'm slightly more adult (only slightly) and I actually use a calendar. For example I can tell you that todays date is December 15 because I have 2 calendars! That's right 2! One's a funny desk calendar that makes me happy, and one is my puppies and kittens wall calendar. Because I do love puppies and kittens.

But aside from how smart I am for knowing the date (don't know if that really makes me smart, just literate), I also know that over 80% of people who recieve a promotional calendar remember the company advertised on the calendar. I mean I have plenty of imprinted stuff in my office. Paperclip dispensers, rubber ducks, pens, stressballs all adorn my space. But short of the stuff thats branded with out Motivators logo, I couldn't tell you who's who or what's what. But I know and have known for quite some time that Cindy's Veterinary Clinic in Harmony, North Carolina is who I have to thank for my wall calendar.

So, a promotional item that you can get for under $1 can be remembered more than most.

Something to think about while browsing our calendar category....

Promotional Calendars

A Traveller's Must Have!

So we all know the most obnoxious part of flying. It's not the crying babies (they're pretty bad, but they can be blocked out with headphones). It's not the headphones that you have to pay for, (but really that does go hand in hand with the babies.) There are two words that can drive the typical traveler absolutely bonkers. Those two words: BAGGAGE CLAIM.

Everyone's suitcase looks like yours. You say to yourself, who's going to have a lime green suitcase. Believe it or not, a lot of people. And the search ensues. "Is that mine? I think? Oh, oh, wait let me run and check. No not mine!" There's a bunch of overly hyper people who can't wait to get where they're going, running around the baggage carousel like chickens with their heads cut off. Then there's the group of shovers that wedge their wheelie cart right over your foot. You don't need your pinky toe as much as they need their daughter's Powerpuff Girl's suitcase. And there's the people who act as if they're running the NYC marathon chasing a suitcase around the extremely speedy conveyer belt. That always boggled my mind. It's a conveyer belt that moves in a circle. It's not like your suitcase is going to disappear into a blackhole of suitcases never to be seen again.

There is a way to make all this go away. No there's not, I'm totally kidding. But there's a way to make finding your luggage easier.

With the Grip It Luggage Identifier, all you have to do is wrap it around the handle of your luggage and it stands out from the rest. Now if only someone could get rid of the shovers....

Promotional Grip-it Luggage Identifier

The Man Bag!

So one of my favorite characters on Friends is Joey. The sheer stupidity that is Joey makes me laugh. So over lunch we were discussing one of my favorite episodes, entitled The One with Joey's Bag. Rachel gives Joey a makeover for an audition and to complete the look she gives him a unisex bag, that looks strangely like a purse. Joey loves his "man bag" but it costs him his audition.

But this brought up the topic of bags, and more specifically "guy bags". Not many guys here bring bags to work. I can think of two. One of them brings a leather backpack, and the other a messenger bag. But the rest of the guys are bagless. And I was thinking...is it the man purse phobia?

Guys wouldn't have to stuff their pockets with everything known to man. Wallets and car keys can get bulky, boys. There are plenty of alternatives to stuffing jacket and pants pockets.

So check some of our trendy man bag options. A few suggestions:

Promotional Drawstring Bags

Promotional Messenger Bags

Promotional Sling Packs

Promotional Backpacks

Car Life Tips...

So recently Nissan did a series of commercials featuring a scruffy guy in his 20s who seemed intent on trying to prove "the man" wrong. The premise was that his Nissan dealership had told him that he could basically live out of the car, if need be. Shot documentary style, the commercials showed things like him in his bath robe brushing his teeth outside the car and plugging various electronics into the car. He showed how the car can maneuver dangerous curves. He placed a few cones, a garden gnome and a piece of toast in a teeny lawn chair to represent the things he had to swerve to avoid. I wouldn't want to hit the teeny lawn chair, or the gnome! Good choices.

And good concept by Nissan. It reminds us that we have a tool of survival as well as a mode of transportation. So with that in mind, I went on a survival kit kick. I checked out all of our little survival kits and my pick for the best one is The Deluxe Winter Survival/Cold Weather Kit. With a flashlight, first aid materials, a thermal emergency blanket, and hand and toe warmers, this is the kit you need! It's a great item for car dealerships, auto repair shops or anyone to give out with the upcoming cold weather.

This thing is chock full of anything you would need should you ever be stranded But that's easy! Keep some water and a few powerbars or snacks in your trunk. Twinkies are hardly health conscious, but if you ever get stranded they're calories and they could probably survive a nuclear holocaust.

Pop tarts too.

Deluxe Winter Survival / Cold Weather Kit

The Motivators Umbrella Dance

Now it's no secret that I enjoy getting free stuff. I'm not cheap...but I enjoy free things and not paying alot for stuff. Hmm, so maybe that does make me cheap. That's not the point though.

So last week, we got free Motivators umbrellas. Well, hey now. That's perhaps one of my favorite Motivators gifts. Second to my Motivators fleece, which is actually making me warm right now. Now I don't know if we're all a little crazy here, but when leaving with our umbrellas my coworker and I decided to skip to our cars while twirling our umbrellas. A unidentified art director refused to join us. She shall remain nameless. Did we look stupid? I'd say most definitely since it wasn't rainy. But we had fun twirling our free Motivators umbrellas.

The lesson here: While promotional umbrellas may not be free to you, who ever recieves them will twirl them happily.

Happy Twirling!

1 Taco, no sour cream, no e-coli.

Is it just me or is e-coli everywhere? First spinach. Now I like spinach but I can handle not being as strong as Popeye the Sailor Man to avoid "abdominal cramping" and some of the other less than tasty symptoms of e-coli poisoning. But now you're interfering with my delicious, delectable and not to mention cost-effective tacos.

But while you're off avoiding Taco Bell, check out some of these great e-coli-free promotional products.




For $28.19 (per set) you can give the Edge of The Border Gift Set to anyone who's avoiding who's too scared to eat Taco Bell. It includes tortilla chips, salsa and a cactus lollipop, among other goodies!




For $34.90 each you can get the original Lean Mean Fat Grilling Machine! Our custom imprinted "The Champ" grill is a great gift! And be sure to remind people that meat should be cooked to an internal temperature of at least 160 degrees.

So stay e-coli free this holiday!

Wake Them Up!

So it's early in the morning, here at Motivators. Not that early, but still. I was also out til early this morning. So there's one word that pretty much describes me right now and that word is "tired". I am VERY thankful for caffeine right now. Less thankful that I burnt my finger fishing out the sugar packet that I dropped in my coffee, but I can get over that. So my item of the day is....*drumroll*

I know I blogged a couple weeks ago about the Melitta Take Two Coffee Maker, but coffee is so widely consumed, I just can't ignore the branding opportunities. And trust me...it'll be used. It's coffee! And it comes in 40 different flavors! It's sure to please everyone. Well, everyone who drinks coffee!

What's HOT!

So I was checking up on Yahoo's Buzz Log to see what people are searching for on the net and I was intrigued by the caption on Yahoo's homepage that said Top Unsexy Gifts. That's just a really interesting group of search results. But shock of shocks, it included the top products out there. Numero uno was Uggs, those hideously ugly yet warm and comfy boots from Austrailia (I've actually heard that they're back ordered). Christmas sweaters and Crocs, which are shoes that are even uglier than Uggs, but extremely comfortable are also on the list.

And how excited was I when I saw mugs and thermoses! We have those! We can give you those! And we can imprint your logo too! And personalize them! And they'll be customized just for you!

So really, why shop elsewhere?

And to gage my excitement about seeing those on the list of top products being searched for, think Elf. Will Ferrell, who plays Buddy Elf hears someone mention Santa and he gets so excited and says "Santa! I KNOW HIM!"

Welcome to Motivators, what's your favorite color?!

Promotional Mugs and Thermoses

And if you didn't get my highly comedic references, Elf will be on the USA network Dec 12th at 9:00PM and Dec 13th at 4:00PM. You can check out a trailer here.

Can promotions fix this problem?

I recently came across another online blog that amused me. It's a website called wiihaveaproblemo.com and focuses on all the horrible things that have happened because of Nintendo's latest gaming system, the Wii. Ok, so in the Wii's defense, it's not entirely the Wii's fault. First of all, if you don't understand how Wii works, let me explain. Instead of playing with a typical controller, you use this little remote. Let's take golf as an example. You hold the remote, you line up your shot and you physically take the swing. The remote acts like the club and the ball on screen goes flying. While the benefits of this system are great (think exercise), apparently the wrist strap on the remote (which you're supposed to wear for safety issues) isn't strong enough to stand up to the hardcore gamers out there.

The result of a high speed, airborne Wii remote? Not good. Broken TV's, shattered laptops, I'm sure a window (or like, 11) have been lost in this latest technological advancement. So it got me to thinking...if a faulty strap is the real problem (people could just NOT be wearing them), short of sending a new strap at no extra charge (Nintendo is already doing this), what can they do to win back their very angry audience?

After all, these accidents were most likely caused by the hardcore fans who sat out for days to get this system. So it'll be interesting to see what (if anything) Nintendo does promotion wise to appease people who've busted expensive LCD TVs and laptops. In the future I think they should start selling Mario shaped stress relievers. Or even a promotional stressball remote holder. They could encourage people to take the stress out on that, rather then their TV's, laptops, ect.

So my lesson...give safer games this holiday season. Travel Backgammon may not be so high in demand, but its alot less likely to break your TV.

Games and Toys

Stress Relievers

Searching for something? No Batteries Required!

While watching my favorite night of TV on Tuesday, I caught the most recent L.L. Bean commercial. Two kids go hunting around the house for their Christmas presents and scurry into the closet. They don't turn on the light, because then their cover would be blown. Instead, the little boy (a Macguyer Jr., if you will) pulls out his handy wind-up flash light. He winds and he winds and he winds...and then he presses the button (it's gettin climactic now...) The light floods the closet and there's a bag with a note that reads:

"You're not even close. Love, Mom."

Silly Mom! Kids are out of luck. But cute way to promote the wind-up flashlight! And might I just add, it's useful the other 364 days of the year as well! I used mine just the other night while searching for something in the disaster that is the trunk of my car. With just a minute, it gives 30 minutes of light. Long enough for me to find my racquetball glove. (It didn't actually take THAT long, but my trunk's pretty messy.)

It's a great promotional product that's useful. And, hey... L.L. Bean seems to like it!

Promotional Wind Up Flashlight

Charmin Flushes The Competition!

How does one really create a successful promotion around toilet paper? I mean, it's toilet paper. It's a bit awkward to hand rolls out on the street. Firstly they won't fit in a purse and I don't know about you, but I don't want to be walking around carrying a roll of toilet paper.

Proctor and Gamble however, came up with an idea to promote their Charmin brand of toilet paper. They created The Charmin Restrooms in Times Square. Manhattan, which is overly packed with tourists this time of the year has some, less than luxurious bathrooms. And if you don't know the proper places to go, you're up a creek without a paddle. Or a potty.

So Charmin solved this problem with their latest holiday promotion. They call it their "gift to New York". The bathrooms are located in the heart of Times Square, right next to the famous Virgin Megastore. They're designed to the nines. Carpetting, plasma TVs and even Dancing Charmin employees entertain you while you're waiting to go. There are even shiny disco balls. The bathrooms are free to use and stocked with, of course, Charmin toilet paper. The best part is they're cleaned by an employee after each usage. (Personally, I think I'd take the holiday job as the Elf at Macy's over that one, but to each his own.)

But it just brings to the mind that, clean and sanitary places to "go" are important to people. An additional giveaway Charmin could have used? Miniture bottles of hand sanitizers.

Promotional AntiBacterial Items

Sucessful Promotions: Rodents Required

How ticked off am I that I already have an HP computer? Not that I really have the money to go and buy one, but Hewlett Packard has teamed up with one legendary rodent for an unbelievably awesome promotion.

On November 14, HP launched the "Days To Dream" sweepstakes. In conjunction with the world's most famous mouse (Mickey, not Mighty) they teamed up to give away various prizes every day with the purchase of an HP computer. If you buy the computer before 11:59:59PM, you're automatically entered in a drawing to win that day's prize. Of course, there have been a few days when there haven't been any prizes, just Disney themed fun on the website (daystodream.com) I myself just enjoyed a virtual ride on Expedition Everest.

In total, HP and Disney are giving out 110 prizes including an HP Digital Entertainment Center, an LCD TV and plenty of Disney parks vacations.

So if you didn't waste your time waiting for hours outside Best Buy for a cheap laptop on Black Friday, check out HP's site. You could just win a trip to see the Mouse.

But if you just need some fun computer accessories, we can hook you up.

Promotional Computer Accessories