From The Trenches

Safety Officer
Author: Tama Underwood (January 2012)
Tim Brown, CAS, had no clue what he was getting into five years ago this month when he joined Mason, Ohio-based distributor Cintas (UPIC: CINTP001) as its supplier relationship manager...Full Article

Brand Man
Author: Tama Underwood (December 2011)
“Nobody’s ever got it made,” says Stan Clark, his knife and fork poised over a steak dinner at Eskimo Joe’s, the bustling bar and restaurant he opened more than 35 years ago near the Oklahoma State University (OSU) campus in Stillwater, Oklahoma...Full Article

Self Published
Author: Tama Underwood (November 2011)
An advertising sales veteran, Heidi Thorne was introduced to the industry by an ad agency client. Her relationship with the client didn’t last, but her love for the promotional products business did...Full Article

One Of A Kind
Author: Tama Underwood (October 2011)
This summer, Delia Biljon earned her Certified Advertising Specialist (CAS) designation. The first-ever CAS designee in South Africa, Biljon is an enthusiastic entrepreneur who previously worked in the banking and education industries...Full Article

Making A Difference
Author: Tama Underwood (September 2011)
Twenty-one years ago, Margie Price, MAS, attended her first PPAI Expo. She had no clients and had never sold a product. “It was two floors of possibilities,” she remembers...Full Article

Get Ready
Author: Tama Underwood (August 2011)
To everything there is a season—even for entrepreneurs eager to create thriving businesses. The case was no different for Wendy Franklin, MAS—a born entrepreneur who knew even in high school that she would start her own business one day...Full Article

Early Adopter
Author: Tama Underwood (July 2011)
You’ll never meet a more likeable narcissist than Bobby Lehew. Of course, only Lehew would consider himself a narcissist—that’s what makes him so likeable...Full Article

Dan Collins: His No. 1 Job Is To Cultivate Great Salespeople
Author: Tina Berres Filipski (June 2011)
Dan Collins, chief operating officer of San Diego, California, supplier AddVenture Products (UPIC: COMPREST), likes to refer to himself as a simple guy who went from soldier to salesperson and into the C-Suite...Full Article

Oh, What Possibilities
Author: Tama Underwood (May 2011)
What could you achieve if you truly thought anything was possible? Could you hit $1 million in sales virtually right out of the...Full Article

Elliott Calendars: Marking The Days For More Than A Century
Author: Tina Berres Filipski (April 2011)
Chances are you’ve heard the name Jasper Meek who, according to history, launched the promotional products industry back in 1886 in Coshocton, Ohio, with the sale of an imprinted book bag to a shoe store...Full Article

Sweda Celebrates A Milestone
Author: Tina Berres Filipski (February 2011)
President Gerald R. Ford was in office, America was celebrating its bicentennial and Rocky was a knockout at the box office the year Sweda Company LLC founder Marv Ruwin first opened the doors on his 300-square-foot facility in Los Angeles, California...Full Article

Creativity In Motion
Author: Tina Berres Filipski (January 2011)
When your clients include DreamWorks, Disney and ESPN, the bar for creativity is already set pretty high. To sweep them off their feet, you’ve got to deliver over-the-top creativity paired with spot-on customer service...Full Article

Building Relationships: International Business And Gift Giving
Author: Ted Dennison, CAS (December 2010)
With the current business environment, many of our clients may be required to do business in foreign lands where customs and practices can be quite different than in the United States...Full Article

Let Your VOICE Be Heard…You CAN Make A Difference!
Author: Dave Regan, CAS (October 2010)
Do you have something to say? Do you believe that PPAI will benefit by hearing your perspective? If so, check out the new Volunteer Central website...Full Article

A Golden Marketing Opportunity
Author: Marsha Londe (May 2010)
Use Pyramid entries to enhance your business and enhance your selling technique Oscar! Emmy! Tony! Each represents best in class, superior performance, talent and creativity...Full Article

Two Of The Most Important Words In Marketing
Author: Mike Beckman (March 2010)
When marketing a business, it is always important to choose your words carefully. Whether it’s describing your business, painting...Full Article

Drill Bit Marketing
Author: Mike Beckman (February 2010)
Are you a seller of goods or a contractor of ideas? While polishing up for my upcoming CAS exam I came across a sales principle that really ma me think...Full Article

Promotional Products Plus Mobile Marketing Equal Loyalty And Repeat Business
Author: Joseph G. Scott, MAS (January/Expo 2010)
“There’s no loyalty in the business any more. Distributors will go with another supplier to save a couple of pennies.” —Anonymous supplier “There’s no loyalty in the business any more...Full Article

Go For The Gold!
Author: Marsha Londe (August-September 2009)
Pyramid Award Is A Marketers Dream Come True Oscar! Emmy! Tony! Each represents best in class, superior performance, talent and creativity...Full Article

Be A Winner!
Author: Marsha Londe (AUG-SEP 2008)
Oscar! Emmy! Tony! Each represents best in class, superior performance, talent and creativity. Our industry’s Pyramid Award represents those same winning qualities—it recognizes the results obtained through the creative use of product...Full Article