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Mike's Blog
By Michael Cornnell
About Michael
Michael Cornnell is the senior editor for Promo Marketing magazine and Print + Promo magazine. He is the best writer in the world (maybe), and also the least modest (probably). His blog is about things you find endlessly interesting, especially if you work in the promotional product industry. Read it forever.
Not So Technically Speaking
The High Cost of a Low Training Budget
May 16, 2013If you train your staff, there's a risk they'll leave; if you don't, there's a risk they'll stay.
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Jeff's Rant
Why...?
May 16, 2013Why... be connected? I've often talked about my love of trade shows and the value of business relationships, which are...
Promotional Fashionista
How to Celebrate National Bike Month
May 15, 2013May is National Bike Month. Here are five bike-friendly products and apparel to purvey for the next two weeks....
Be Dazzled
The Amazing Fashion: 3 Gatsby-inspired Looks
May 14, 2013The Great Gatsby finally opened over the weekend. Does the unbridled glamour of 1920s-inspired fashion translate to the promotional products...
Selling Smarter
Help! My Customers Know the Codes
May 14, 2013A promotional products distributor recently wrote me and asked how to handle clients that have figured out the industry's pricing...
Beyond Words
A Blog of a Different Color
May 13, 2013When we communicate with others—through a presentation, through graphics or through text in an article—the use of color can truly...
Embellished
Call For Sources: Michigan Suppliers and Distributors
May 10, 2013Do you work in Michigan, or do you sell into the restaurant industry? I want to hear from you....
Kiwi's Coaching Corner
Think Like Your Client
May 9, 2013Getting out of the commodity game requires hard work, thoughtful work and requires learning new skills and work habits. You...
Be Bold, Be Different, Be Memorable
The Fearsome Green Profit Margin
May 7, 2013Or "Detective Fiction, Sales and the Art of Listening."...
The Hot Button
Have You Cleaned Out Your Teenager's Gym Bag Lately?
May 1, 2013Performance clothing has changed over the past 10 years: silkier, stretchier, more mesh, even less stinky in some cases. So...
Big Picture Promo
The Shift to Empowerment Marketing
Apr 25, 2013Empowering is the act of giving away your power to those around you so you can elevate the group as...
Friday Sales-thought of the Week!
Reverse Engineer Your Sales Success
Mar 18, 2013Steven Covey reminds us that when setting goals ... "Start with the end in mind." That is to visualize the...
Editor's Notes
The Perfect Match
Mar 5, 2013The Super Bowl has also become the Ad Bowl, where brands duke it out to see who has the funniest,...
Compliance Chat
When a Picture Says a Thousand Words: Bangladesh
Nov 30, 2012It takes a single negative image to undo even the most successful campaigns in the eyes of your customers—and many...
My Two Cents
CPSC General Counsel Clarifies Distributor Responsibilities for Children's Apparel
Oct 8, 2012There aren't many distributors who would describe themselves as manufacturers. But under CPSIA, the majority of promotional products distributors—at least...
The Sales Challenge
Think and Succeed
May 29, 2012What would happen if you woke up in the morning and your first thought was, "I am never going to...
Creating More Purposeful Sales Conversations
Under 100 Days to Achieve 2011 Goals
Oct 20, 2011It's hard to believe, but there are fewer than 100 days left to achieve 2011 goals! Are you on track...
Industry Voices
In a Recession, Dress Up To Cheer Up
Jan 20, 2010A few weeks ago, I had dinner with Executive Apparel's president and its director of product development in Orlando, Florida....
Sales Channel Conflict: How a Furniture Wholesaler Resolved the Issue of Selling Direct
An importer in an industry similar to ours comes to a decision on this risky, make-or-break-your-business issue.
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Entertainment Meets Marketing: Amazing Gatsby, Pop Art and Rock Music Promos
Entertainment and promotional marketing: A pairing that normally reminds us of being forced to eat Hulk-colored Taco Bell at gunpoint while Rihanna sings something about love and Go-Bots in the background will, on occasion, produce something worth looking at. Call it a miracle or call it people actually putting more than two-seconds effort into their jobs, but sometimes, entertainment marketing can produce some beautiful and engaging pieces.
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Last Week for Top Distributors List!
Anyone who's part of a 10-million-per-year-or-more distributorship, if you or your CFO/marketing person hasn't gotten me your form yet, you need to get on that! This week is it! After that we're off to the printers and your chance for glory and fame will be gone, like low gas prices or a functioning federal government. (That's right, political humor on a Monday! This week I'm taking no prisoners!)
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3 Great Promotional Products for Mother's Day
Mother's Day will be here before you know it. In case you're stuck on ideas for products, here are three mighty and mom-worthy product suggestions, pulled from the all-knowing and endless brunch buffet that is Promo Marketing search.
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Harvard Business Review's "7 Rules for Managing Creative People" - A Rebuttal
The Harvard Business review recently published a blog titled "7 Rules for Managing Creative People." Sound interesting? Well too bad, because the article's actually terrible, and here's why!
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