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Fast Track Products Newsletter

Welcome to Fast Track Products Promotion Corner Newsletter, our monthly newsletter to keep you informed of the latest trends in promotions. Read Promotion Connection to spark ideas and find out about upcoming marketing opportunities for your organization.

Promotions That Make Sense

Birra Moretti Translates to the U.S. Market

Birra Moretti is an extremely popular beer in Italy, but that didn’t mean it would be an instant hit in the American market. This was the concern of the brand’s importer, Total Beverage Solution, after it picked up the Moretti business and sought ways to boost interest from beer distributors.

"We thought, how can we get the Italian message across real quick, in a fun way?" says Tom Jeffrey, partner with Hook, the marketing company that worked on the campaign. "Football was just starting, and my partner Brady said, 'What if we get a football, but make it look like a soccer ball?' "

After a few prototypes, the "foccer ball" was born. It got a great response from the distributors and was a perfect fit with the brand, which is especially popular among Italy's soccer fans. Birra Moretti even sponsors a soccer team, which the importer hopes will catch on among America's football fans.

Since the foccer balls had to be deflated when shipped, Hook also had small, branded pumps produced to go along with the balls, creating a complete package for distributors.

After the strong response from distributors, Jeffrey and his team decided to incorporate the ball into how the brand was marketed to the consumer, as well. They promoted the balls on the in-store displays for Birra Moretti along with taglines like "Pass a Moretti" and "The Perfect Blend of Football." Consumers could buy the ball online for $20 plus shipping.

The success even led Hook to get a patent on the football-shaped soccer ball. Jeffrey says, "We make a lot of stuff for clients, like coffee mugs, but then we made this and it was the first of its kind. I said, 'I wonder if we can patent that?' So we met with our lawyers and they said, 'Yes, absolutely.' "

Campaign Gives Consumers Something to Sing About

Sometimes the best way to reach customers is through their ears. Power Music, which sells workout mixes of high-energy songs for everything from kickboxing to yoga, recently partnered with two well-known brands for a new promotion.

While Power Music’s customer base has primarily been in the group market, including gyms, sports centers and private trainers, with its new campaign the company was seeking to engage individual consumers to use the mixes for their personal workouts. Since many of these people might be uncomfortable with paying to download a mix from Power Music’s Web site, the marketing team decided an effective strategy would be to offer a free mix.

Power Music partnered with The Biggest Loser and Subway to create a custom 30-minute mix that can be downloaded at www.podworkoutmusic.com/SUBWAY. The mix was promoted on the Power Music Web site and in stores where its other mixes were sold. While Power Music has worked with The Biggest Loser in the past, this is the first time that Subway, a sponsor of the show, has joined the effort, co-branding the mix with its logo and promoting it on its Web site, as well.

The result has been phenomenal, according to Cory Pease, director of marketing for Power Music, who said it’s been the company’s single most successful mix in driving lead generation for future sales. “When you have strong, recognizable partners like The Biggest Loser and Subway, there’s a built-in interest and trust for the consumer,” he says.

To download the album, visitors must register on Power Music’s site, which allows the company to reach out to them with their newsletter and other promotions. More importantly, it gives the consumer an opportunity to try a workout mix, often for the first time.

“We’re not only giving them an idea of what we have to offer,” says Pease. “They also know how to download it and get comfortable with the whole process, which makes it easy for them to come back and pick up a new mix the next time.”

Zappos Quacks for Employee Birthdays

Zappos.com is known not just for its innovative online shoe business, but also for the original ways the company leadership engages the employees. To help keep employee morale strong, the company began giving staffers a special recognition on their birthday – a branded CelebriDuck.

CelebriDucks are a twist on the familiar rubber ducky toy, turning the duck into a famous star (like Elvis or James Brown, complete with duck bill) or giving it special accessories, like a football jersey or sunglasses. The Zappos duck wears tennis shoes and a birthday hat and carries a birthday cake.

“It’s really about the thought – that Zappos is appreciating their birthday,” says Jamie Naughton, the “cruise ship captain” in the company’s human resources department. “We do that in every aspect of our business.”

Zappos had been giving employees $25 gift cards on their birthdays, which worked when the company employed about 100 people, but was just not scalable when the company grew to thousands. With the larger staff, Naughton says the gift cards would often not be used, or perhaps worse, they were used but the purchase was quickly forgotten. “We can give you a $25 gift card to Target and ask you, ‘What did you buy – was it laundry soap?’ It doesn’t seem as impactful,” she says.

Naughton says that the employees hold on to the branded ducks, and many put them on their desks, serving as a reminder of the positive company culture. It certainly fits with one of the company’s core values, to “create fun and a little weirdness.”

Zappos is now extending the birthday program to include each employee’s spouse and children; every member of the family will receive a Zappos birthday card in the mail. “It’s something that’s a little more ‘wow’ when you get a birthday card and realize it’s from your wife’s company,” says Naughton.

Lifting Spirits With Promotional Products

Cancer is a difficult subject to discuss, even though it touches the lives of so many. So when Philadelphia’s Fox Chase Cancer Center (FCCC) began planning for a new campaign to connect with its patients and families and attract outside supporters, the planners sought out a simple and uplifting message.

After extensive discussions, the planners decided on the theme, “Love Versus Cancer,” and launched an accompanying Web site (www.loveversuscancer.org) at the beginning of February. The site invites visitors to send e-cards, share videos and learn about the FCCC.

Promotional products are a key component of the campaign. The FCCC’s leadership worked with As You Wish Promotions to develop buttons, stationery and T-shirts featuring the “Love Versus Cancer” logo. When visitors register on the Web site, they receive a free button, while those making donations of $100 or more get a magnet to put on their car. Logoed T-shirts are also available to purchase online, as well as in the FCCC’s gift shop.

“When you leave the computer, you leave the campaign,” says Lisa Bailey, director of social media and communications for FCCC. “So the promotional products let the campaign live in other places.”

The effort has involved a significant expansion of the FCCC’s social media presence, creating a special YouTube video of a pet therapy dog and branding its Facebook and Twitter accounts with the “Love Versus Cancer” theme. Since shifting to this theme, the FCCC has seen its social media memberships skyrocket and a boost in supporter sign-ups and donations.

The success of the campaign so far has the FCCC’s leadership looking for ways to expand it further. They have already gone through the initial order of 6,000 buttons and are looking at incorporating “Love Versus Cancer” wristbands, as well.

“When someone is diagnosed with cancer, so many more people are touched than just that one person,” says Bailey. “This is a way to let those people share their love, share their thoughts and get involved.”

Make It a Date to Remember

Thousands of organizations and Presidential Proclamations set aside specific days, weeks and months for political, cultural and historical events and causes. Many of these occasions offer you an opportunity to promote your business, organization or product.

May

May 11th is Eat What You Want Day

Have salespeople deliver snack baskets to their customers when they visit on this day.

Create a promotion based on the Eat What You Want Day making the connection between feeling like you can't eat what you want and you can't seem to get what you want when it comes to (plug in your product or service category). Tell them that on May 11th they can not only eat what they want, but they can have what they want when it comes to (plug in your product or service) by scheduling an appointment with one of your sales reps. When the rep makes the call on May 11 he or she brings a logoed basket of goodies or cookies.

Some other designations for May that you might be interested in are:

National Physical Fitness & Sports Month

National Garden Month

Keep America Beautiful Month

May 1st: National Space Day

May 2nd: National Truffles Day

May 3rd: National Day of Prayer

May 4th: International Firefighters Day

May 5th: Cinco de Mayo

May 6th: Nurses' Day

May 7th: Kodak Cameras 1st for Sale

May 8th: No Socks Day

May 9th: Mother's Day

May 10th: National Shrimp Day

May 11th: Eat What You Want Day

May 12th: Kite Day

May 13th: National Apple Pie Day

May 14th: Anniversary of Lewis and Clark Expedition

May 15th: Straw Hat Day

May 16th: Love a Tree Day

May 17th: 1st Merry-Go-Round Built

May 18th: Rooster Day

May 19th: Bike to Work Day

May 20th: Flower Day

May 21st: Armed Forces Day

May 22nd: Buy-A-Musical Instrument Day

May 23rd: Penny Day

May 24th: Victoria Day (Canada)

May 25th: National Tap Dance Day

May 26th: National Blueberry Cheesecake Day

May 27th: Golden Gate Bridge Fiesta

May 28th: Whale Day

May 29th: Escalator Patented

May 30th: 1st Hovercraft Launched

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