Strategic Sales Team Blog

Summer brings out the best of us & it’s the perfect time to socialize with our friends!

That’s why I am pleased to be one of the sponsors of the upcoming Magnus and Friends BBQ being held June 27th - a great opportunity to combine a table top show in the relaxing atmosphere of a friendly neighborhood Barbeque.

Cheryl & Neil have provided one of their offices that I will be using to display products from my outstanding group of Family owned businesses: Artmetal, Attraction, BCH Unique, Headwear Canada & a new addition to my group KB Innovative.

The BBQ will start at 11am and run until 3pm & we’re going to be offering all your favourite BBQ foods, burgers (incl veggie), dogs, sausages, chicken, summertime salads and for dessert a special summer treat  – Ice Cream!

I am really looking forward to this event and a chance to mix a little Business with Pleasure with all my friends – it’s time!

The BBQ is being held at Magnus Pen – 125 Nantucket Blvd. click here for map http://bit.ly/Julg83

Please note: in order to ensure we have enough food for everyone we need you to RSVP to cheryld@magnuspen.com by June 21st!

I look forward to seeing you at our BBQ on the 27th

THE TOQUE!

Ok maybe Hockey, but we wear toques to attend the games! Ice Fishing that’s Canadian and we wear toques when we’re doing that too. Skiing/Snowboarding that’s pretty Canadian and yes we wear toques when we ski/snowboard (although we should wear a helmet on the slopes).

Months of shoveling snow only to have the city plow come along and fill the end of the driveway back up, we wear a toque when we’re doing that. From mid-October/early November until the end of March everyone wear toques, young or old it doesn’t matter, the toque is our headwear of choice in Canada for at least 5 months of the year.

In fact the day the twins were born other than putting them in a diaper and bundling them in a blanket, right away they put a toque on their heads to keep them warm – 25 years later they’re still wear toques!

A little bit of trivia on the toque:

A town in Quebec is known as La Tuque, named after a nearby hill that resembles a tuque.

One of the more notable wearers of the tuque was Jacques Plante, the famed Hall of Fame goalkeeper for the Montreal Canadiens throughout the 1950s.

During the 2003 Heritage Classic game (which was played temperatures below -15 degrees Celsius), another Canadiens goaltender, Jose Theodore, wore a tuque on top of his goalie mask.

The most famous media characters to sport this kind of hat are the SCTV characters Bob & Doug McKenzie.

Robert Clothier’s character “Relic” in the long-running Canadian TV series The Beachcombers, and Hanna-Barbera’s character Loopy de Loop wore a tuque as well.

One of the biggest sellers at the 2010 Vancouver Olympic Games was our iconic Team Canada Toque.

What’s this got to do with the Promotional Products industry…  EVERYTHING!

Headwear provides the highest number of impressions of any promotional product in the industry according to the ASI “Global Advertising Specialties Impressions Study” The study shows that the average number of impressions for headwear is 1007 per month – bags are only 679. On average people keep headwear for 7.2 months compared to bags at 6.3 months or pens that on average they only keep them for 5.4 months!

Headwear and more specifically Toques right now, is the best and most effective advertising vehicle your clients can use to gain maximum exposure for their brand! Toques fit the right criteria for promotional success; the number one reason people say they keep a promotional product is its usefulness and during the winter months here in Canada there is nothing more useful than a toque!

No questioning if the product is fitting the right demographics – everyone wears a toque: women, men & children, old or young it’s the universal headwear choice for Canadians!

And, at Headwear Canada we’ve got you covered!

My personal favourite is the #4189 Cable Knit Toque with the band of fleece inside, the perfect toque with the added warmth of fleece around your ears and forehead!

Another great toque is the #4031 Cable Knit Trimmed Toque that also has a band of fleece inside.

The #4253 is also a great choice; this is a roll down Acrylic & Polar Fleece Toque that’s sure to keep them cozy & warm.

The #4259 is a skull Acrylic Toque with stripes on the bottom and is an attractive cap anyone will wear that is economically priced.

#4244 is our best value in Toques available in Black, Navy, Grey & Stone.

Looking for colourful options in a Toque check out our style #4243 available in 11 different colour ways!

The #4235 is a Micro Fleece Toque that is also available in 11 different colours!

We’ve done up a great flyer that can be branded with your company logo that will help you generate Toque orders, to get your personalized flyer just email your logo to leslie@strategicst.com

Last week Joanne & I attended the Incentive Works Show at the Metro Centre, I loved this show when it was the P & I Show, there were always some really cool ideas and the show had a different vibe to it. Today it is almost entirely travel/hospitality & event related and I was really disappointed to see the lack of promotional ideas at this show.

As we got to the top of the escalator there was someone there to greet us – although I don’t think they said a word, there was also a rack with show bags you could grab, so we did. Right away I noticed the supplier of the bags as there was a hang tag on them with their logo. No, they don’t sell direct I just see this as a really big missed opportunity!

At one end of the tag their logo is printed across the top and their website at the bottom, the copy goes “Thanks for practising corporate social responsibility in purchasing this product. “ It goes on with an environmental message, tells you the material it’s made from, then has this message: “Economically Priced * Looks and feels like cloth *Reusable * Strong and durable * No PVC coating * Lead free * Large variety of vibrant colour options * …” sounds to me like the supplier is selling to anyone that happens to get one of their bags.

Great marketing for the supplier, but what I don’t get is why the distributor who sold this order wouldn’t have put their own tag on the bags. Obviously the client has no problem with the supplier promoting themselves on their bags (they probably didn’t even notice) and the copy itself is a great environmental message. The cost to print hang tags is minimal in large quantities, I’m sure the supplier could have put them on the bags while imprinting them, for a price or there’s lots of places where the work could have been done at minimal cost. What a missed opportunity and how many more trade show bags are out there without your logo attached!

As we went down the first aisle on the right (I always go to the right) there were a number of companies with food samples and some of the food was really good but to this day I have no idea who they were except one. At the first booth they were giving out mini soufflés, as we stopped to eat a girl came up & handed us a business card with instructions to tweet a message in order to have a chance to win an Ipad. I tweeted the message but left the card on the table, it was a few days later when I remembered doing it, I had no idea who the company was so I went to my twitter feed and looked it up.

On the 28th someone from the company posted a message that they would announce the winner, “later this week” well it’s Saturday and still no announcement of a winner!

I walked the whole show and the use of promotional products was almost nonexistent – very disappointing! What I did see was a number of hotels with bowls of loose candy with spoons in them – seriously! One high end hotel had Lindt chocolates on plates around their booth, great for promoting Lindt but didn’t brand the hotel (at least it was a wrapped candy) but no lasting value.

And one exhibitor did have some imprinted stick pens on a table, as I stood there I watched a guy wait until the person working the booth turned his back then he quickly grabbed a few and walked on, maybe he’ll notice their logo or maybe he grabbed them for his kids going back to school who won’t care what logo is on them, much less book a room at the resort.

The only other two uses I saw was a booth with bee shaped stress balls although I couldn’t understand what the connection was. Joanne asked him why the bees and his response was oh they’re just what we had left over from a bee hive theme we did at another show???

And then the bowling alley promoting events at their location, there was a clear plastic bowling pin they were giving away (well actually they were just on a table and I took one). Inside there was a rocket rolled candy, a piece of bubble king gum and coupons for discounts on a group booking, problem is the logo was printed white on clear and tough to see and the website is so small you can’t see it.

There was also a real lack of branded wearables being worn by exhibitors, again I can only remember two uses, one was the group from Calgary who always wear their cowboy hats and matching white western shirts. The other one was the group from Nova Scotia in matching orange shirts, these guys left a not so great impression on me – a combination of too much beer and just plain bad manners I think!

Joanne Madsen Hillier

In their booth they were giving out samples of a local beer and while I’m sure people appreciated the sample I have no idea what the brand was, there are so many great products in our industry that could have been used to co-brand the brewery & Halifax that would have left a lasting impression on attendees.

I know the hospitality industry is a major buyer in our industry, which is why I was so surprised that so few exhibitors were utilizing promotional products to promote their brands – so many missed opportunities to stand out from the crowd!

Soon the lazy, hazy days of summer will be over and the start of the fall trade show season in our industry will begin. The first show of the month is the PPPC TOPS Show being held on September 7 & 8 – this trade show is only for members of PPPC, if you are attending the show please come by the Attraction booth # 366 so we can show you our new products ideas for this fall. I will also be working the Headwear Canada booth # 259, drop in to see how we can help you generate increased sales with exciting custom ideas!

PPPC TOPS Show
International Centre
6900 Airport Road – Hall 1
Show Hours: 10:00 – 4:30

On Wednesday the PPPC Ontario Chapter will be hosting a reception for members from 4:30 – 6:30pm a great chance at the end of a busy day to relax and socialize together it’s also the perfect place to hang out with friends while waiting for Toronto rush hour to end!

Thursday, September 15th I will be attending the PIC Show in Ottawa being held at the Travelodge Hotel & Conference Centre, 1376 Carling Avenue – show hours are 9:30 – 2:00pm. This show is open to all distributors, just bring your business card to register on-site.

September 20, 21 & 22 I will be back in GTA attending the PIC Show with all my supplier lines, Attraction, BCH Unique, Blue Loyal, Headwear Canada & TrackitBack at the following locations:

Mississauga – September 20
Mississauga Capital Banquet Centre
6435 Dixie Road (at Courtney Park)

Concord – September 21
La Gondola Banquet Hall
227 Bowes Road (Keele & Hwy 7)

Toronto East – September 22
Grand Baccus Banquet & Conference Centre
2155 McNicoll Ave. (East of Kennedy Road)

Show hours in all 3 locations are 9:30 – 2:00pm – just bring your business card to enter the show.

September 27th I will be exhibting all my lines at the ASI Holiday Preview Show being held at the Capitol Banquet Centre in Mississauga – 6435 Dixie Road.

9:00 – 11:00am features a FREE keynote presentation by marketing guru Ron Buist!
Ron Buist, one of Canada’s foremost marketing professionals and now a best-selling business book author, is the former marketing director for Tim Hortons and has launched some of the best-known and most successful marketing campaigns in Canadian advertising history.

Trade Show Hours are 11:00am – 4:00pm, followed by a FREE Networking Reception from 4:00 – 5:00, the perfect chance to relax after a busy show day!

The ASI Holiday Preview is FREE (including the session by Ron Buist) for all distributors!

I look forward to seeing at these events!

Strategic Sales Team Suppliers

Attraction Inc.
672 Rue Du Parc
Lac Drolet, QC G0Y 1C0
PH: 819-549-2477/800-567-6095
FAX: 819-549-2477
www.attraction.com
Artwork & orders: customerservice@attraction.com:
Primary Contact: Sylvain Saucier ext 273
Sylvain’s email: ssaucier@attraction.com 
Additional Contact: Sonia Grenon ext 275  
Sonia’s Email: sgrenon@attraction.com
Key Contact: Julia Gagnon
jgagnon@attraction.com

BCH Unique
38 ave du Pont
St-Martin, Beauce, QC G0M 1B0
PH: 418-382-5500 / 800-463-4255
FX: 418-382-5512
www.bchrecognition.com
Email: sales@bchunique.com
Primary Contacts: Sylvie Nadeau  ext 266
Sylvie’s email:  sylvie@bchunique.com

Blue Loyal
1205-11980 Hammersmith Way
Richmond BC V7A-0A4
PH: 877-988-8727
www.blueloyal.com
Sales Inquiries: sales@blueloyal.com
Production and Art work: production@blueloyal.com
Graphics : chris@blueloyal.com
Primary Contact:  Valerie Watt
Vals’ Email: Val@Blueloyal.com
Owner: Mike Halpen 
Mike’s Email: mike@blueloyal.com

Headwear Canada
3190B Orlando Drive
Mississauga, ON L4V 1R5
PH: 905-405-9551 / 800-548-7942
FX: 905-405-9553 / 800-782-2672
www.headwear.com.au
Email: hc@headwearc.com
General Manager : Chris Baetz

TRACKITBACK.COM INC
1239 Manahan Ave., #200
Winnipeg, MB  R3T 5S8
PH: 877-347-7222
FX: 877-218-5372
www.loyaltyidtags.com
Primary Contact: Alan Lavoie  ext. 222
Alan’s email: alan@trackitback.com

Professional Biography of Leslie Ashby (Oesen)

Since joining the Promotional Products Industry in 1983 Leslie has worked diligently to ensure all of her business relationships receivethe maximum benefit thru their involvement with her. Today she is a well respected authority on sales and marketing within the industry by her peers.  

Career Highlights:  
      
She began her career in 1983 working for a start-up supplier Orflam Inc. after two years of outstanding sales growth the company was acquired by another industry supplier.

After Orflam was sold in 1985 Leslie joined Canada’s only national multi-line rep Fred Oesen and was responsible for sales representation for 5 industry suppliers to distributors in the GTA and surrounding area.

In 1987 she was recruited by Elegance Leather to take over the position of National Sales Manager. She successfully grew sales the first year by 142% and continued to generate double digit growth for Elegance until she left in 1991 to co-found TEAM Task Force with Fred Oesen.

Launched in 1992 TEAM Task Force was the only national membership driven sales & marketing agency in Canada. The Agency was created in response to the growing need for a more in depth sales and marketing strategy for suppliers.

TEAM Task Force was acquired in 2006 by ASI and Leslie was hired as VP of Distributor Sales for the new ASI Canada. With her involvement ASI Canada has more than doubled their membership in Canada.

With her three year contract fulfilled Leslie has now formed Strategic Sales Team, a multi-line agency located in Toronto, Ontario. The agency will provide sales and marketing support for a number of suppliers in the promotional products Industry.

Association Involvement:

1995 nominated to the PPAC Ontario Board and voted to serve as President in 1998 after only three years on the Board.

Leslie was awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award from PPPC Ontario Chapter in 2007 for her dedication and service to the industry.

 Contact Info: 647-345-2055 leslie@strategicst.com

The Headwear Professionals have the most extensive range of stock styles found anywhere in the industry. Drawing on 30+ years of experience we have developed a Headwear range that will definitely fit every required purpose. Our standard range of over 150 styles is reviewed and updated seasonally to move with the ever changing trends in Headwear. The Headwear Professionals stock all of these styles on location to ensure quick and timely delivery to customers anywhere on the globe.

Services Available:

In Stock: over a million dollars of our standard range are held in our warehouse in Mississauga. Stock headwear can be embroidered within 3 – 5 days, or shipped blank to your decorator. To view our extensive line of stock headwear visit this link: http://ca.headwear.com.au/standardRange.cfm?

Fast Track: The Headwear Professionals have always prided themselves on supplying our customers with a quality product within the timeframe required. The world has got smaller, as have delivery times. The one thing that remains unchanged is that pricing is still important. Our Fast Track Program provides our clients with the ability to order from our stock style range with decoration with a Fast Track delivery time of 2 – 3 weeks direct from the factory. View our Fast Track styles: http://ca.headwear.com.au/fastTrackRange.cfm?

Express Service:  You want it fast and customised, then this is the program for you. We have an easy 5 step program that allows you to access over 180 styles within a 4 – 5 week timeframe direct from our factory. Mix and match a huge range of stock colours and fabrics with your choice of decoration. Our Express Range is customisation and production at its fastest. View our selection of  Express Headwear styles http://ca.headwear.com.au/expressRange.cfm?

Custom Headwear: If you can imagine it – we can create it! Our dedicated team of professionals will turn your ideas into reality. With a global wealth of knowledge, combined with 30+ years experience we can create a unique customised design for you and your clients. Working with some of the world’s largest fashion brands, our teams are constantly pushing the boundaries of new ideas. Our design team can create a headwear package from the ground up, providing your organisation with a range of styles that will fit any purpose.

Click here for customized techniques: http://ca.headwear.com.au/customisation.cfm?

If you are looking for ideas on creating custom headwear for your clients check out our Facebook page – http://www.facebook.com/headwearcanada we are constantly updating this page with new custom designs – it’s the perfect place to see examples of custom headwear created for businesses around the globe.

Every month we will be posting a special offer on our facebook page – all you need to do is “Like” our page to get the monthly special!

Whatever your headwear needs are 
the Headwear Professionals have you covered!

Why present headwear concepts to you clients? Because in Canada, Caps have the highest number of impressions per month:

stats compliments of ASI - Cost per Impression Study!

 

It’s been over 7 weeks since I started Strategic Sales Team and a crazy busy time it’s been.

First there was the Imprint Canada Show the first week of January, with over 3,000 people attending this was a very busy show. On Friday it was so busy in the booth that I didn’t even get a break until 5:30 a half hour after the show was over.

Saturday I woke up in a panic when I looked out my window to see a foot of snow in the driveway. The one good thing was no one was on the road and I made in to the show in record time (even got to stop at Tim Horton’s for a coffee, coffee at the Congress Centre is awful). While the show was quiet until about 11am the balance of the day was busy.

The show was a great way for me to connect with people in the industry and introduce them to my new business venture as early as possible in the New Year.

The next big event was the PPPC Show January 21^st to the 25^th, on Saturday I attended the Education Day featuring the Disney Institute. Over 300 people attended this event, many people I saw there I’ve never seen at any other education function.

It was a great event and a great way to start the trade show – very motivating! The trade show on Sunday was steady with approx. 1400 people walking the show. Monday was an early start for me as I attended the Social Media session with Mark Graham.

When I started my company the one thing I didn’t think would be an issue for me was incorporating Social Media. But I’ve found it easier said then done!

Mark Graham from Rightsleeve is what I consider a pro at using Social Media to create awareness and grow sales for his company.

I was disappointed that there were so few people that attended the early morning session; I would have loved to see the session done as a lunch presentation when more people would have attended.

I am very impressed that Mark takes the time to try and educate his peers on how to utilize this marketing tool. Mark’s company is very effective at both using social media marketing and monitoring their presence within social media.

It’s interesting that one of Mark’s session is titled “Who has time for %#@* social media?” Hence the title of this blog – Social Media it’s a challenge! The first challenge is time, spending every day on the road sometimes not getting back home till late – I’ve found I have very little time to work on social media.

I don’t have a large staff that can work on the various social media platforms for the company. While I can manage to post content and pictures I’m not totally comfortable with the variety of applications that can be utilized to manage all the social media sites.

Or, maybe all of this is just excuses for not doing what I should be doing!

I’m thrilled that Mark Graham will be doing another session at the Ontario Chapter meeting in March on Social Media. Marc Phillips from PPPC Head Office also made a commitment to do an online training session, although I’m still waiting to hear when!

There’s no doubt keeping up with social media is a challenge, but before I give up I need to stop making excuses and try harder to utilize the platforms available as a marketing tool.

January 1^st 2011 is an exciting day, it is the day I launch my new business venture – Strategic Sales Team!

I am writing this post on New Year’s Eve, this is a day that I spend reflecting on my life, it is a day to remember the lessons of the past, put the bad behind and focus on the good as I move into a New Year.

This year I am going way back, right back to 1983 I was thinking about the first trade show I attended in this industry. What most people don’t know about me is that I’m actually an introvert; I remember how scared I was attending the opening night cocktail party. I only knew 2 people in the industry at this time and both of them were no where to be found, I felt like a fool just standing there looking around for a friendly face.

It didn’t take long before I was approached by a man named Richard Nemes, as we chatted it came up that I lived in Winnipeg prior to moving to Toronto a year earlier. Richard took me under his wing that night, he introduced me to Brian Shippam also from Winnipeg and from there the night is a blur (could have had something to do with the wine). What I do remember was that all night long each person I was introduced to took the time to introduce me to someone else.

During that very first convention I made friends that have lasted right up to this day, thanks to the generosity of strangers. I think that is one of the most valuable things we all get from this industry, friendships that can last a lifetime. While we may not speak as often as we should there are literally hundreds of people I can call on whenever I need help, advice or just want to chat.

One of the things I get the most joy from is when friends and people I have met call on me for help or advice; I sincerely appreciate the trust people have in me. While I don’t claim to know it all – I don’t, what I do provide is a sounding board to discuss options. One thing many people do know about me is that if you don’t want to hear the truth, (or in most cases my version of it) don’t call on me. I also have a reputation in this industry for being opinionated – some might even say “opinionated” would be an understatement!

A few years ago I printed out the following and I keep it on my desk: Grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference! I look at this every day, in fact sometimes when a situation is stressing me out I stop and read it – has it stopped me from being opinionated – no – but it does help me decide what things are worth fighting for.

During my time in the promotional products industry I have had the privilege of learning this business from the inside-out from our most knowledgeable leaders. I have attended hundreds of educational sessions, chapter meetings and networked with the most innovative & creative people in this industry. My success in this industry is a direct result of that involvement and the people that I have come to know.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank each and every person that has come into my life since the beginning who has taken the time to invest in my career – you know who you are, or at least you should, so I’m not going to post a list!

Creating Strategic Sales Team was made possible with the support of my friends, colleagues & business associates and I look forward to working with you and sharing my knowledge and expertise during 2011 and beyond.

Best Wishes for a Happy, Healthy & Successful New Year!

www.strategicst.com

Brief History:
1983 joined the industry working for Orflam
1985 Fred Oesen Sales Agency – Multi-line Rep, my territory was the GTA
1987 Elegance Leather – National Sales Manager
1991 Co-founder of TEAM Task Force
2007 VP, ASI Canada