I was listening to my favorite Stevie Wonder album the other day, Songs in the Key of Life, no question one of the greatest albums ever made, and all of a sudden in the middle of Pastime Paradise the disc starts to skip!  Now, I am starting to get upset because everyone who lives in my house, other then myself, has a bad habit of not putting CD's and DVD's back in the case after they have finished with it.  So, my first thought was that somebody had scratched my CD; however, after wiping down my disc with a piece of cloth from an old t-shirt I discovered that it only needed to be cleaned.  But surely, if you have a CD or DVD long enough you will experience some measure of wear and tear to your disc, such as smudging or scratching, and you may not be able to afford an expensive repair machine such as this apparatus which has a retail sale price of $995:

Thus, I recommend to you the inexpensive Leeds CD Maintenance Set which at a minimum order requirement of (36) has a current sale price of $3.17 per item.  The set includes cleaning solution, a brush with key-ring, a player head cleaning disc, (3) colored CD markers, and a CD case with (12) double sided CD sleeves.  This item will help keep your CD collection in pristine condition.   

Leeds CD Maintenance Set

After watching Justin Timberlake's hilarious bit on SNL this weekend, I went in search of some awesome SNL promotional products. After all, who can forget Molly Shannon's Mary Katherine Gallagher or Adam Sandler singing the Hanukkah song? SNL has had quite a few classic moments over the years, even recently with Tina Fey playing Sarah Palin. I personally was a huge fan of the "Mark Wahlberg talks to Animals" sketch with Andy Samberg, and even more of a fan of the fact that mark Wahlberg actually came on and made fun of himself by talking to a donkey. The statement, "Say hello to ya motha for me" will never be the same and I'm sure I will smile everytime I hear it. And then of course, Justin is most famous for his SNL skit involving a rather unique holiday gift suggestion. (Sidenote: one can get a "box" kit on SNL's website or a promotional magnet that details the, um, "gift giving" process.) However, even though they've got some great promotional merchandise, I personally love this one. It's a blast from the past, but everyone should remember it. I personally have fond memories of sitting in our break room at the old office and hearing Jesse imitate Chistopher Walken, proclaiming that he had a fever. And the only prescription was...more cowbell.

And of course, if you need to fill your prescription, Motivators is happy to be your personal supplier. We've got all the promotional cowbells you could possibly want!

You probably will not believe me but on Thursdays episode (11/13/08) of The Office, the first skit has Dwight taking down notes on the Leeds Windsor Reflections Jotter Item# 3059! I must admit I got a little too excited about it and rewound just to make sure. It gave me a strange sense of excitement that an item we sell is on one of my favorite TV shows. As a result I suggest two things. One, watch The Office, and two, buy a jotter! They are extremely useful! 

Now, aside from humor, I don't actually know what the purpose of this is or why they would want to associate Alec Baldwin with toilet paper, but here it is. Alec Baldwin toilet paper. You know, for all you stalkers out there that absolutely love Alec baldwin and must have anything and everything Alec related. Clearly this is a collector's piece. I wonder if this was Alec approved or not. Definitely one of the weirdest yet funniest promotional products I've ever seen.  

Thanks for inviting me to write a guest post for your new blog and I hope my topic today will get you thinking even more about your business. Many ASI members are telling me that video is starting to transform how they’re selling advertising specialties and they’re thinking about using videos to increase sales faster. Some already use them extensively.We’ve embraced using video at ASI and you can watch several on the homepage of asicentral.com that provide personal introductions to our staff and demonstrate business-building features of our products. But, using video was unchartered territory for us not long ago - maybe for you too - and we’re constantly refining and trying compelling new ways to deliver video that keeps viewers engaged. In a recent business radio program about using video, I shared some tips that we’ve learned at ASI that you can apply to your videos or ones you’re starting to make. Tips for producing and using videos that sell:

• Keep it simple - show the most unique features of a product to keep viewers interested.
• Make videos brief - several short segments are easier to digest than one lengthy one.
• Repurpose - post a video on your Website, but also email it to prospects and run it in a loop on a screen in your trade show booth.

Let me know your thoughts about the radio program and producing videos - I’d like to hear your experiences.  Post a comment.

Winter time is hear and the snow is a falling.  Recently places like Mammoth have gotten snow. The northwest has recieved a 60" dump in the mountains and locally Killington ski resort has opened.. WHOOO HOOO. Get the wax out and prep those boards.  Around this time every year to get everyone pumped up for the ski/snowboard season, local indie thearters show ski movies and usually give out some promo items to promote the movie.  This week we saw the new Warren Miller film " Children of Winter". Really cool movie.. if you have an opportunity to see it.. GO.  If you don't like the winter or skiing or snowboarding, I would call you boring and will not share my snack at lunch with you next time we meet, but the movie will amaze you- what the young kids are doing and how skiing has come a long way since the wooden skis.  As we were entering the movie we got our swag bag, because we were one of the first few that had gotten in line.  In the bag we got some cool stuff, bottle of water, bottle opener, a cool hat and the best ( drum roll please ) tickets for a day of skiing !!! Sweet.  Check out the trailer below..I paid for the whole seat but i only needed the edge!

I'm not at the AARP stage in my life just yet. In fact I've got a few years to go, but apparently if I do join, I'll receive a free travel kit. From the looks of it, it looks pretty nice. It's a got a slot for holding my passport, important travel documents, it's got a few different pouches. It looks like good stuff. And I can get access to AARP insurance programs, advocacy in washington, retirement benefits, and a bi-monthly subscription to the world's large circulation AARP magazine. Pretty sweet deal. I'll admit it, I get suckered in with offers of promotional products. And well, promotional travel kits, that's a good deal. I mean, it sounds like if I joined up with AARP, I'd be set. But I think before I do that, I'll see if I can stop my grandma from entering my email address on forms she fills out...