Monday, June 8, 2009

Artina Wins Awards :)

Artina Promotional Products (and yours truly) is pleased to announce that our little blog has won an award. May 29th our blog was awarded a MAME award from the BIA of Central Ohio. MAME (Marketing and Merchandising Excellence) honors the top achievers for the membership of the BIA. There are a variety of awards, some are specific to the home-building industry, others are inclusive of the associate members.
The Artina blog is a fairly new feature to the Artina website and is designed to provide the latest news in the promotional products industry as well as to educate our clients about the myriad of uses for our items.
Artina was also recognized for the Ideas in Promotion Show with a MAME award for best one-time event. This is also an educational event held for our clients each Spring.
So, if you haven't read the blog or been to our Ideas in Promotion Show...check them both out.

Friday, May 22, 2009

Fitness and promotional products

Did you know that this week was fitness week? I didn't either, so don't worry about that. Even though this week was the "official" fitness week, you can incorporate fitness into your work life every week. Many companies are promoting wellness programs with discounted gym memberships, weight loss challenges etc. Promotional products are a great way to promote your programs and keep people motivated to lose the weight and get in better shape. People spend more waking hours at work than anywhere else, so workplace wellness is critical for setting the tone for their eating and exercise habits.
Employers also realize several benefits to providing a workplace wellness program.
1. Enhanced recriutment and retention of healthy employees.
2. Reduced health care costs - from 20-55%
3. Decreased rates of illness and/or injury.
4. Reduced employee absenteeism - by 6-32%
5. Improved employee relations and morale.
6. Increased productivity - 2-52%
Also, depending on the scope of your program, tax benefits may be available to you as the employer for offering the wellness programs.
So, that being said, you offer the wellness program, how do you get people to use it? There are a variety of promotional products that can serve as reminders, aids and incentives to participate in the program. Visit us at www.artina.com or give us a call at 800.433.5587.

Tuesday, May 12, 2009

Promotional Products and Marketing in a tough economy

Why do promotional products deliver the best return on investment in an unsettled economy? Why should they be a vital part of your marketing mix?

1. They increase sales...62% of customers do business with the company after receiving a promotional product.
2. Brand awareness...84% of customers remember the business that provided them with the promotional product.
3. Return on investment...at .004 per impression, promotional products have the best CPI of popular advertising mediums.
4. Improved relations...42% of customers view the business more favorably after receiving the item and virtually none indicate a negative feeling.
5. Frequency and repetition...a key to advertisting. Promotional products are kept on average for 7 months and many are used in business every day.

Check out www.artina.com for the latest in ideas to promote your business.

Wednesday, April 22, 2009

Artina Merges with Align Interactive

Artina Promotional Products is proud to announce that Align Interactive (formerly CTPro and Kingston) has joined forces with Artina to service its’ promotional products clients and online store programs. Artina is an industry leader, with experience ranging from promotional products and awards to apparel programs for countless clients in a variety of industries.

Artina is in it’s 42nd year in business and is very strong with finding and providing creative solutions to various client needs, events and business challenges through the use of promotional products. Align Interactive’s strengths have been in e-marketing and e-commerce; particularly the development and marketing of public facing web stores and online company stores. The companies’ strengths mesh well, and combined, bring a great breadth and depth of service capabilities and offerings to their clients.

Three members of the Align Interactive team have moved to the Artina Promotional Products office in Powell as of the first of April, and have already begun fulfilling customer orders as Artina. Included in those three is Jeff Ivany, owner and President of Align, who joins Artina as an Independent Consultant, as well as two other team members who have been instrumental in developing client relationships and servicing their needs.

Thursday, April 9, 2009

Recognition Programs

Does your company have an employee recognition program? Are you considering one? Are you considering to eliminate or cut back on the one you have?
Employee recognition programs are more essential now than ever. Why?
1. Recognition boosts people's esteem and performance...they need to feel important and satisfied.
2. It signifies that someone notices and cares about their performance and them. It can lead to new motivation, improved performance and increased self-esteem.
3. Recognition is more important than ever...the competition to hire and keep the best workers is at an all time high. Not only that, but ordinary people need to produce extraordinary results. 4. Recognition creates role models and heroes for the rest of the team. It recognizes the kind of performance that is noticed and other employees aspire to that.

Artina Promotional Products provides a wide range of recognition programs with not only symbolic awards but other types as well. Check out www.artina.com for ideas or give us a call at 800.433.5587.
Keep an eye out for the next post where we will delve further into the Recognition Program topic. In the meantime, we would love to hear about some of your recognition programs or any questions you may have.

Tuesday, March 24, 2009

Calendar advertising

As you are evaluating your marketing budget this year, I am sure you want to be sure that you are getting the most bang for your buck. There are many choices out there, but, have you considered calendars? Calendars provide careful targeting, clear messaging and long-term visibility. These attributes make them a high-impact, low cost advertising medium.
Did you know that the average person looks at a calendar 12 times a day, when you do the math on that it's 4380 times per year. 83% of customers purchase items from the advertiser that gave them the calendar and 94% of all business people can recall the message on their calendar.
With such a powerful impact on not just the people that receive the calendar but all those that see it, why wouldn't you spend some of your advertising budget on calendars. There are many ways to customize a calendar, from adding your name at the bottom or top to a completely custom wall calendar. The options are endless.
You may think it is too early to think about ordering calendars, however, many calendar manufacturers offer early order discounts and they will hold the order to ship at a later date. So, you get to take advantage of the price break, but you don't have to figure out where to put them.
Call Artina Promotional Products at 800-433-5587 or contact us via the web www.artina.com to discuss how calendar advertising can work for you.

Tuesday, March 17, 2009

National Volunteer Week

National Volunteer Week is fast-approaching, this year's dates are April 19-25. The theme for the week is "Celebrating People in Action." National Volunteer Week is an opportunity to celebrate those individuals that dedicate themselves to taking action and helping to solve problems in their communities. Without volunteers, many services that are offered by non-profits and other organizations could not function. So, it is important that those who take the time out of their busy schedules be recognized for the hard work that they do.

This week is a chance to give thanks to those people in whatever way your organization can. Many organizations recognize those individuals with a promotional product. Promotional products are a great gift and leave a lasting impression on the recipient. Some organizations choose to offer something that is useful, mugs, lunch bags, etc. However, others go the route of something a little more along the lines of an award, for example actual awards, paperweights, pen sets, etc. Depending on your budget, your promotional products representative can help you select the item that is right for your organization. Whatever item you decide on, be sure that your volunteers will know that you appreciate their efforts and it will help to keep them coming back.

We would love to hear some of your most successful Volunteer Week promotions, so please feel free to comment.

If you are looking for just the right gift for your volunteers, please call Artina Promotional Products at 800-433-5587 or visit us on the web at www.artina.com.