July 19th, 2009
Take A Chance, Dip Your Toes In
Let’s face it. Dipping your toes in the water and introducing your Brand on Social Media platforms can be downright scary. We’ve all heard the questions- What will consumers say? Where are the controls? How will we be exposed? All relevant questions and reasonable. But, they’re not progressive.
The real question you should be asking is… Continue Reading…
Categories: Advertising, Media, Technology
July 14th, 2009
Old Laws vs. New Technology
As you might know, the laws that govern the promotion industry are often complex and unclear. Throw into the mix the myriad of new technologies and you get a giant “legal question mark”.
In the old days, the formula was fairly straight forward: a promotion became illegal if all three of the following elements were present in a concept: Continue Reading…
Categories: Legal, Technology
June 29th, 2009
And you thought Direct Mail was dead
In an interesting article in the July Issue of Promo Magazine written by Peter Meyers, a survey of 1,529 households shows that young professionals in the 18-34 demographic prefer to receive information in the mail over other electronic options. The group pegged privacy as one of the main reasons for this.
The survey conducted in February, showed respondents in the 18 to 34 demographic proclaimed nearly a two-to-one preference for receiving product information by direct mail over e-mail or online, across all categories.
For the entire article visit http://promomagazine.com/mag/0701-privacy-cited-penchant-direct-mail/
Categories: Advertising, Technology
June 5th, 2009
You Never Call Me Anymore
Everyday in the offline world, we are bombarded with thousands of advertisements – usually asking us to do the same thing: remember this URL (preferably when you are in front of a computer) or call us for more information. How often do any of us do that? Seriously, do you remember the last time you ate some chips and then went online or phoned in to enter the Potato Chip Dream Vacation Sweepstakes? Continue Reading…
Categories: Advertising, Media, Prizes, Technology, Uncategorized, Winners
June 5th, 2009
Whatever happened to freedom of speech?
I recently read an article titled “Advertisers brace for online viral marketing curbs”. The article speaks to the possibility of the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) revising guidelines on endorsements and testimonials submitted by bloggers and users of social networking sites who receive samples of companies’ products. The main target of the new guidelines appears to be Continue Reading…
Categories: Advertising, Legal, Media, News, Technology
May 27th, 2009
Travel Tips from the Front Lines
So, your Promotion has ended, and now you are charged with the task of booking your Grand Prize winner’s travel. Keeping in mind that your winner may never have ventured farther than the outskirts of their hometown, it would be wise to provide them with more than just their airline tickets & hotel confirmation number. It’s all about the experience for the winner – think about it… being a Grand Prize winner is a huge deal! To ensure that your winner has the best possible experience, a little hand-holding will turn a good experience into a GREAT experience. Some things to consider… Continue Reading…
April 27th, 2009
How Many Winners Do You Really Need?
Often when clients approach us with a new concept, the age-old question “How many winners should we have?” comes up. It’s the debate of perceived odds of winning with oodles of prizes versus offering a single major knock-your-socks-off prize. Both effective? Yes. Which is better? Depends.
We’ve seen effective promotions on both sides of the coin. The answer to prize structure scope truly depends on promotion marketing objectives. Continue Reading…
April 23rd, 2009
How do companies afford million dollar prizes?
Have you ever wondered how Sponsors make big campaigns with million dollar headlines? Promising to give away $1,000,000 or a new home to one lucky winner? How can they afford it?
Typically, when a million dollar prize is awarded it is insured by a third party. This third party will calculate Continue Reading…
Categories: Prizes
April 23rd, 2009
Some Ways to Run a Promotion AND Beat the Recession
These days more and more clients are calling us to ask, “We want to run a promotion but keep the costs low, how do we do that?” or “Can we do that?”. In our 16th year administering promotions, we know a little something about running promotions on a budget: Continue Reading…
Categories: Budget Friendly, Prizes, Tips, Travel, Winners
April 23rd, 2009
Is A T-Shirt Enough!?!
‘What’s the right draw, the right quantity, the right prize?’ Difficult decisions in planning is one of the most complicated parts of a promotion, however it’s often an afterthought in many promotions. People don’t enter promotions to win just a T-shirt, think about who your customers are and what excites them about your brand. Historically cash, trips, and cars were the most popular prizes in the promotional world. But they are getting slowly edged out by experiential and practical prizes.
For example, if you’re a sports company and can leverage athlete relationships, a trip to meet a famous athlete would be the best choice for your prize. It’s also important to not overload your prize structure with giving away too much. Continue Reading…