Made in America

Without doubt the pending 4th will have many more consumers thinking about USA made products, but do they buy? Sometimes- for many decades, Americans have purchased imported products because they are inexpensive.  However using domestically made products for your promotions is a great way to differentiate your brand and your company.

What 'Made in USA' actually mean??   

Made & assembled in USA with "all or virtually all" American made parts.

What are some of our favorites?

NORTH CAROLINA TEXTILES! Did you see them at our show on Wednesday? 

            Let's have a party- check out these popular items
Functional low cost? Many of these products are made in house
kitchen, education, events, drink ware, tools, ideas that measure up and are USA made
Socially responsible and USA made? Yes!  
Kitchen scrubbers- functional in a variety of spaces- watch this video 
How is a foam finger made?
Hospitality products! 
Spirit, educational, awareness
lapel pins- quick turn options
luxurious bags, blankets- custom made, USA, NC and disabled veteran owned

Ask our team to show you some USA options next time you are in the showroom!

All Roads Lead to Your Brand

July is Parks and Recreation Month and the NRPA is working to get people to “discover the power of play and adventure.”

In an age where people spend such an exorbitant amount of time connected to technology, we want to help your clients and their brands promote this concept of play and helping people enjoy the great outdoors! One way that people of all ages enjoy the great outdoors is bicycling.  We have an entire section of products dedicated solely to bicycling. The best thing about these products is that they aren’t just good for distance cyclists. These products can be used every day, by people of every age.

Our friends at EMT have the solutions!

 

Imprint in full cover on the entire surface of our helmet and seat covers means that your client can display messages and important reminders about bicycle and/or outdoor safety.  Printing messages in addition to a logo helps recipients relate to your brand and the values it represents.

We even have custom solutions!! Check these out we did for Merck- Custom Bike Jerseys

What Flag Do You Fly?

Do you fly a flag for your business or organization? How long will your flag last?

Experience has proven that this is an impossible question to answer accurately. It is like predicting the weather, airborne contamination, and the treatment of the flag.

Does it stay up in all weather conditions, located in an open space with full sun and high enough to capture wind daily?

While we can't control the wind, water or sun, we can control how we care for our flags.

• Occasional washing in warm mild-detergent water will prevent dirt and pollutants from attacking the fabric. To prevent mildew, let your flag dry thoroughly before storing it. 
• Have your flag repaired at the first sign of fraying, don't' wait for it to be blown to shreds. 
• Continuous day and night display will shorten a flag's life.
• If your flag is not illuminated at night, you should consider taking it down to appreciably lengthen its life. 
• Special event flags can be stored and used periodically but take care not to loose parts needed to display the flag later. 

Indoor flags will have a much longer life since they are not subject to the elements! 

Remember your flag shakes... trembles ...drapes ... whips... snaps ... ripples ... flutters .. quivers ...furls ... twists ... flaps ... and flies!

With the 4th of July coming up- we ask....

Do you know the proper way to care for and use an American Flag ? 

Three Cheers for the Red, White, and Blue

American Pride never goes out of style! How will your business celebrate the 4th?

Do you make your products in the USA?

Does your company give back to military organizations?

The Star Spangled Banner is sung hundreds of times a year at all kinds of events, and represents the freedom that is a part of being a citizen of the United States. People stand, take off their hats, and listen to the words being sung out. Independence Day is the biggest celebration of our country, and our flag colors are displayed everywhere.

This year, you can associate Independence Day with your company name, no matter your business. Here are some items that you can use to promote your name and your country our partners at The Lip Balm Company understand USA Made- they make their products here in the USA!

What do they suggest for your red,white and blue promotions?

Lip Balm
This lip balm has an SPF of 15, and comes with caps in red, white, or blue. Instead of passing out candy, give out these lip balms to help people protect their lips in the sun. Recipients will love the usefulness of the item, and with your company name on it, you will stay in their minds.

EOS Balm
EOS is also a lip balm, but made with natural ingredients. You can customize the balls to be printed with your logo or company name, and sponsor an outdoor concert series. Blueberry Acai, Pomegranate Raspberry, and Vanilla Bean are the perfect flavors for this type of event.

Outdoor events? How about sunscreen products? 

Spray Hand Sanitizer
Ensure that hands stay clean and fresh at your barbecue by placing these spray hand sanitizers next to utensils, napkins, and plates. Preventing sickness is important, so you might as well be festive about it!

Gel Hand Sanitizer
These festive travel-sized hand sanitizers combined with the lovely scent of Iced Pear are wonderful gifts to give to customers for coming to the opening of your new restaurant or to an outdoor concert. Give the bottles to guests and they will surely remember you every time they use it!



Can't decide which product? A combo pack makes a great gift! 
Which is your favorite??

#Tech Trends

To proclaim that tech is the must-have accessory for this season is no  revelation. Every year, consumers continue to shell out for the latest trending technology and digital innovations continue to permeate more of our everyday tasks.  Most consumers depending on their  smartphones to stay connected, so it’s no surprise that complementary products are at the top of shoppers’ wish lists. To take advantage of the tech boom, add these Prime Line, in-demand products to your lineup.

• Bluetooth® Devices With smartphones dominating the market, consumers are seeking more ways to expand on a smartphone’s capabilities. One way to achieve the ultimate in connected living is with Bluetooth® technology. These wireless devices continue to draw fans and promise to be a part of technology that is here to stay. According to Statista, Bluetooth®-enabled  devices worldwide will grow to 10 billion  devices in 2018. ReportsnReports.com stated that the global Bluetooth® speaker  market is expected to reach $7 billion by 2019- how's that for increasing your brand awareness?

• In addition to speakers, Bluetooth®-enabled headphones are growing in demand, thanks to shoppers looking for wireless tech  experiences, as well as Apple’s elimination of the headphone port. Need more evidence? The NPD Group found that Bluetooth®  headphones saw a 42 percent year-over-year increase in sales in 2017. When it comes to promotional applications, Bluetooth® headphones are great for the  entertainment industry or for business travel applications. Bluetooth® speakers are also popular for college students and holiday gifts.

•  Smart Devices The connected home, the connected wrist, the connected water bottle—we’re living in a  connected world, and it’s smart devices that run the show. In the coming years, there will  be no shortage of smart products driving profits in the digital world. According to Gartner Inc., there will be 20.4 billion  connected products by 2020.

• One of the hottest sellers this year will be the smartwatch. Consumers love using them to track their fitness regimes, send quick texts and monitor their sleep. In 2018, unit sales are expected to almost double to 141 million,  according to Statista. In addition, fitness tracker revenue is expected to reach $2.57  billion by 2018, making connected wrist  accessories a smart bet for corporate meetings and wellness programs.

#Augmented Reality

Augmented reality (AR)—10 years ago, this technology would have seemed like a concept  that only belonged in “The  Matrix” movies. Flash forward  to 2018, and this technology is no longer just a concept, it’s  the next big thing for the  promotional products industry. In fact, according to Digi-Capital, AR and virtual reality are  expected to grow to $108 billion by 2021, with mobile phone AR leading the way. Doesn’t this seem like a business opportunity you could get behind? With tech giants like Apple making AR more accessible to the everyday consumer, it’s easier than ever to break into this market.

If the idea of incorporating AR into your promotional business seems inaccessible and  intangible to you, fear not.  Here’s everything you need to know about AR.
 
What is Augmented Reality? In order to use promotional products that incorporate AR, you have to understand the media. Our friends at Prime Line help to showcase how to incorporate this trend into your marketing & public relations projects. In simplest terms, it takes an outside computer-generated image and overlays it in a user’s current view. An example of this technology at work is the hot sensation, Pokemon Go, an  app that utilizes a player’s  smartphone camera to overlay images of fictional creatures on a user’s phone, making it look like there are Pokemon directly in the immediate surroundings. Another example is Disney’s  promotional “Star Wars”  campaign. Fans of the saga can use a mobile app to unlock exclusive experiences at 20,000 stores selling merchandise  worldwide. And for SXSW,  National Geographic promoted its new series “Genius” by using AR headsets to let viewers  experience Albert Einstein’s theories and research right in front of their eyes.

How Can It Help My Business? While AR might seem too  complex to layer in your marketing efforts, it’s actually  the perfect way to bring a  company’s branding to a wider audience.

• A company launching  a new product that requires a demonstration to truly sell its advantages could give ARenabled promotional products to prospective buyers. By scanning a promotional product with an AR app, prospective buyers can witness the interactive features and sophistication of these products from the comforts of their homes with their  smartphones or tablets. Rubik’s® and Magic Concepts items enabled with AR can  activate an experience such as an animated logo or product that appears in an alternate  reality or in the real world. In  a real-world scenario, the  user can interact with the logo or product and manipulate it to create amazing pictures that can be posted directly to social  media. It also offers AR  experiences that can activate a video or URL when scanned.

In the near future, other AR  enabled products such as  T-shirts, bags and journals are expected to be available in the  promotional products industry.

Will Your Branding Flop or Shower Sales?

Cannonball!!!!!!!!! Who does recall the fun of a cannonball or belly flop contest at the local pool? One of our son's loved the annual July 4th belly flop at our pool. He was usually a prize winner! I'm not sure which was wider the red mark on his stomach or the grin on his face.

Are you ready for summer? 

Outdoor leisure events are in full swing, offering ample opportunities for you to provide quality, branded gifts to employees, referral partners and top clients.

While your brand interaction might not spray water on viewers like a belly flop, you don't want to be "all wet" or a "flop" when it comes to engaging your target market.

Go ahead, make a splash!

June is National Safety Month, with organizations like the National Safety Council providing FREE tips for safety in the workplace, home and on the road; spread the word and BE SAFE! Safety is a great message for many of our clients to incorporate into their summer promotions.

If your client base plans to hit the water in a boat, at a pool or on a beach, you won't want to miss our open house on the 27th for some new ideas! Prime Line will have solutions for consumers that keep your brand close at hand. RECALL & RETENTION comes from interaction; engagement translates into sales as well as brand loyalty.

How do you go about planning an effective summer campaign?

It all starts by sitting down in the showrooms. Take price off the table and talk about what you want to achieve. As the conversation develops, we apply our expertise, suggesting products that will fit your distribution plan & maximize your objectives to achieve your goals.

Here is a quick review of what we need to craft a plan:

1. Clear direction on what you what to achieve
2. A firm understanding your budget, which includes the number of products or kits in your distribution, as well as how the distribution will take place.
3. Consistent message. Extracting the key words that create a visual impact.
4. Making the best use of imprint space for the message or theme.
5. Determining the best way to present your product/materials, including determining if collateral materials will help the message.

Looking for a splashy appearance at the office?

Need some fresh office or conference ideas?

By the way, are you registered to attend our Open House on June 27?

How to Create Lasting Impression

When most people think of mats, they typically think of a boring black mat that goes inside or outside the door to a business. Your branding message takes center stage every step in the day when you use full color branded floor mats. Given the number of options for styles, there is literally the right mat color, shape, size and price for you; even custom shapes!  How does a mat address challenges? How about: 

•  anti fatigue 
• heavy traffic areas; soaking up gallons of water for safety
• indoor fun or directional point of purchase
• outdoor seasonal/festival fun
• Welcome home
• Own your tradeshow floor space- images, fun selfie spots, directional; no floor decals to apply or remove
• Thanks for your patronage or partnership
• Look at our sponsors! 

 .....mats are the grass growing beneath your feet if you are not covering it with your brand story. Our expert partner Logo Mats, LLC provides rubber-backed floor mats that can be personalized to display a information about your company. Beyond safety in preventing slipping or falling, branding the floor grabs customer's attention; creating a lasting impression.

Our first signage was an outdoor mat. When you consider we can hose it off, it can bear all the elements and years later still be looking good, it's a pennies a day investment to welcome our clients to our new home. 

In fact, in our move to the new location, we parted with our first indoor mat from Logo Mats, purchased 11 years ago with our first company logo. Guess what? It looked as good as the day we purchased it. How's that for longevity and quality? 
 
Floor mats can be placed inside or outside your business. The best option for an indoor mat would be the DigiPrint HD, a carpeted mat with a rubber back. This mat is the first pick for commercial-grade branding. The best outdoor option is the SuperScrape Impressions, an all-rubber mat. The SuperScrape Impressions, as you can infer from the name, does a stellar job at removing dirt and water from the shoes of people going inside.
                           Indoor












                           Outdoor
For those of you that really only want one logo mat, you will be happy to hear that our partner offers a one-mat minimum. 

Need it fast? Logo Mats also has one of the fastest lead times in the industry, only three to five days; shipping 1 day ground to NC! In case you are worried about wear and tear, mats from Logo Mats LLC on average last two to five years, depending on what product you purchased- however the warranty is super and our indoor mat lasted 11 years!

What about costs? There are a lot of myths about renting floor mats instead of buying them. It is believed that renting is more convenient, cheaper, and that they are delivered in pristine condition. All of the above are false. Floor mat rental includes a service agreement that can range from weekly to monthly. When you own your own floor mat, you can clean your mat as much as you want, based on your company's needs. Mat rental is more expensive that owning one in the long run. Renting a standard size mat can cost up to $800 over five years, while owning one mat costs $250 for longer than five years. When renting a mat, quality is compromised. The mats can vary in appearance and structure, which negatively affects how much safety it provides. Buying a mat ensures that your brand looks great for a long time.

People who stand all day at their jobs, like warehouses, hospitality, hair dressers, health care locations and food service are excellent places  to mend the aches and pains of standing all day.  The solution is  The Anti-Fatigue mat is a wonderful solution to this problem. The mats provide not only relief while standing, but also a good impression for your brand. The HogHeaven Impressions is the most popular anti-fatigue mat Logo Mats offers. The mat is cushioned and features a diamond patterned surface for extra traction. The Cushion Max Impressions is similar to the HogHeaven Impressions, except this one features a beveled edge for safety. Both mats can have photographic-like images printed on them for branding purposes.

        
                 HogHeaven Impressions                            CushionMax Impressions

Owning a logo mat is the perfect way to promote your brand in a unique location, let us show you how this type of branding should be working for you. Join us on June 27th from 10-1 at our new location for our Open House....featuring LOGO MATS! Register Here Now!