What If Our Clients Were Like Our Dogs?

I confess that I am a dog lover. I have three dogs, Barlow, Spud and Kobe, each with their own odd personality. Barlow, black lab rescue, plays a role in one of my favorite videos, The Most Expensive Product Review Ever. Spud, a long-haired miniature dachshund, loves to participate in video product reviews. In this video, To Groom or Not Groom, I ask for your input on the FreePromoTips Facebook page. Is it time for Spud to be groomed, or does his scraggly, working-class look work for him?

Read More

There’s No Money on Your Side of the Desk

A lot of distributors in our industry are spending many long days behind their desks. They’re entering orders, keeping the books and creating to-do lists—and doing it all over again the next day. But the truth is there’s no money on your side of the desk. You will never become wealthy sitting behind your desk doing $20-an-hour work day-in and day-out. If you want to achieve wealth, you have to go out and get it.

Read More

Promotional Products as an Engagement Strategy: Part 2 of 3

Because promotional products are tangible, physical, multi-dimensional and customizable, they can be effective for engaging an audience through all five senses.

Read More

Ads on NBA Jerseys: An Inevitability?

The NBA may be stating that they’re no closer to on-uniform ads than they were in 2011, but that doesn’t mean they won’t show up eventually.

Read More

What Makes a Champion?


As a consultant, I am often asked, “what are the characteristics of successful people in the industry?” One interesting note—it has nothing to do with gender, age or tenure in the industry. Instead, it has everything to do with the character and integrity of an individual. I have noticed through discussion and observation several factors that I believe truly make a champion. And by the way, becoming a million dollar salesperson isn’t the Holy Grail barometer of success. Success can be measured and identified on many, many levels.

Read More

Frequently Asked Questions about Compliance

For a word that means so many different things to different people, it makes sense to ensure that we’re all on the same page when it comes to our understanding of compliance. Particularly so when it comes to the manufacture and supply of promotional products, where the meaning and application of the term differs from company to company. And with the industry focus shifting more and more toward compliance, I thought that for this week’s column a review of some of the most frequently asked questions that we get about compliance might be helpful.

Read More