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January 27, 2011

Event Programs Don’t Have To Be Boring

Filed under: Seasonal & Special Events Ideas — PDWriter @ 8:00 am

Pristine Specialty ProgramsWhen it comes time to have an event where a lot of things are taking place, like a school musical, a wedding or a show, the first thing we get when we walk in the door is a program. Some event programs do a great job of listing everything that’s going to be going on, and some don’t do quite as well. Some programs are little more than a folded piece of paper and are as boring as they get. But with a little imagination and the right paper, they don’t have to be boring at all.

People who put on events want everyone in the audience to know what’s coming up. Thatway people can take part when need be, or just so they know who’s coming up on stage next. Having an event program that does that well not only gives the audience the cues they need, but also gives them a certain level of entertainment andinformation in the process.

Allegro Programs

Printing event programs is easy to do. You can get paper specifically designed for programs and download templates for your favorite word processor so you can lay it out easily. That way if you get program paper with a nice border or with an interesting fold pattern, you don’t have to fight with the layout to make sure it’s right. These templates make it easy to place graphics, to set up text and to make sure everything looks perfect before you print them off. After you get the layout right, just hit print and in a few minutes, you’ll have made some great event programs.

Baccalaureate ProgramsThe great thing about printing your own event programs, aside from the fact that it is actually fairly easy to do is the fact that they are inexpensive as well. Buying blank program paper and doing your own setup and printing costs only a few cents per program and you can make more if they’re going to be needed. This saves a lot of headaches since you do not have to send the job out to a printing company and go through the proofing process and having to wait for production.

No, event programs don’t have to be boring, nor do they have to be expensive. Check out all the great paper designs available and see what you can do to make your own. You’ll be surprised at how great they’ll be.

January 26, 2011

Rewarding Your Students in Cost Effective Ways

Filed under: Student Recognition Ideas — PDWriter @ 8:00 am

Star Student Award Casual CertificateWhen it comes to encouraging students to do their best, nothing works better than a little incentive. Knowing there are awards and rewards available for good work and consistent effort helps students to maintain their focus and motivation to complete tasks and to deliver good work. Fortunately, being able to reward students for their efforts isn’t an expensive prospect, as there are lots of great things you can give them.

Academic Award Casual Certificates

1. Award certificates are a very inexpensive way to give students an “official” pat on

theback for good work

2. Rewarding students with coupons that are good for free things or for money off on treats is a great way to encourage continued progress

3. Using “free passes” to give students a “no homework” reward or some other perk is another virtually free way to reward good students

Alpha Blocks Post it Notes4. Another neat award is to give students Post-it notes with the school name on them, or even their own name. These are also very inexpensive gifts to reward students with

5. Other things you can give students as encouragement are things with the school name on them like shirts, hats, pens and pencils. This not only gives the student something useful, but builds school spirit as well

There are lots of great ideas available to reward students for effort and good work. As you can see from the ideas above, they don’t have to be expensive ideas at all. Students love to have their efforts acknowledged and love to know that their hard work is actually building toward something tangible. Sometimes education doesn’t seem to be “real”, so having some kind of reward or goal to work towards keeps students motivated and working.

As for resources for these great rewards, there are lots of great places online that have everything you need to keep students in gear. Go online and check out some of these sites and see what kinds of ideas you can come up with for incentive programs for your students. You’ll be amazed at how well they work.

January 20, 2011

Promoting a Golf Tournament

Filed under: Marketing & Sales Promotion Techniques — Tags: — PDWriter @ 8:00 am

When it comes to playing golf, a true golfer will play anytime, anywhere and just about with anything. That’s one reason why putting together a golf tournament is usually a breeze, since everyone who plays golf wants to get on the links. Promoting a golf tournament is usually a breeze too since anything with the word “golf” in it automatically attracts their attention.

Regardless of the reason for a tournament, whether it be as a for profit event for the golf course or as a non-profit event to benefit a worthy cause like breast cancer research, anyone who likes golf loves a golf tournament. In order to have the maximum amount of monetary throughput, promoting a golf tournament in virtually any and every way possible is required.

Country Club PostcardsWhile big courses and companies can afford to do radio, television and newspaper ads, many smaller companies, or sponsors for benefit tournaments simply can’t. That’s where both inexpensive and creative ways to promote a golf tournament comes into play. Benefits especially can get a lot of attention by using some of these techniques.

1.    Postcard mailers, perhaps the least expensive mailer available, postcards can deliver a ton of information in a very small Tee Time Border Paperspackage. Tee times, dates, costs and locations as well as a map if need be can easily fit on a post card.

2.    Door hangers, send high school kids, especially if they’re on the golf team, out and about in neighborhoods with door hangers. You can put almost as much info on a door hanger as you can a post card.

3.    Parking lot flyers, having all the information on a flyer and having people walk around the lot and put them under windshield wipers will definitely garner attention for the tournament.

Tee to Green Business Cards4.    Business card ads, have business cards promoting the tournament with a website address dropped everywhere. Restaurants and businesses that have cash registers are great places to leave a small stack of cards. Leaving them everywhere ensures at least someone will look.

5.    Have at least a one page website put together with info and directions. Even though golfers are usually less than spectacular in the computer department, if they’re interested in finding a local tournament, having a page show up will definitely get looked at.

There are lots of ways to promote a tournament like this. Even using word of mouth to spread it around the community can save a lot of time, headaches and hassles.

January 19, 2011

How to Word a Certificate Award

Filed under: How to Design Certificates — Tags: , , — PDWriter @ 8:00 am

Traditional Standard CertificatesEmployee recognition is an aspect of corporate America that is becoming more and more recognized as an essential tool in retaining quality employees. Every time you acknowledge an employee’s accomplishments or abilities, you’re validating them and letting them know that the company is paying attention to what they’re doing. Issuing positive acknowledgments like certificate awards not only makes the employee that receives it feel good, but it gives other employees the motivation to try harder. That’s only good business acumen.

But wording a good certificate award can be a confusing and daunting prospect. Trying to Scrollwork Standard Certificatesfind the phrasing to be both appreciative of the employee receiving the award and encouraging to other employees at the same time seems downright impossible. However, that simply isn’t the case. Wording an award that is both motivational as well as appreciative is actually quite easy.

Truth be told, as long as you’re being uplifting such as “This company recognizes –Employee- for their efforts and loyalty, and hopes to see that same continued effort in the future” then both purposes are served. The employee receiving the award gets to appreciate the recognition that their efforts are being seen, and other employees get to see that recognition and the encouragement being offered. There are a lot of ways to bring those attitudes out, and doing so will continually reward the employee being given the award and motivate those who get to see Excellence Specialty Certificates that award hanging on the recipient’s office wall.

The benefits of a good employee recognition program are many. They manifest themselves in continued good productivity and great employee retention. If your company has a good employee recognition program, odds are you’re working for a great company.

January 18, 2011

7 Things to Avoid In a Professional Thank You Note

Filed under: Marketing & Sales Promotion Techniques — Tags: — PDWriter @ 8:00 am

Elegant Thank you Specialty NoteCardsThank you notes can be one of the trickiest things on the planet to come up with. You don’t want to come off too impersonal, but you don’t want to be too personal either. You do want to express your appreciation to the client or vendor that you’ve done business with, however you don’t want that appreciation to overstep or sound stilted. When it comes to making a professional thank you note, here are some tips that will help:

  1. Don’t get personal with their name. Unless you’ve known them as friends for Classic Thank You Greeting Card Setyears and know they don’t mind, addressing someone as “Dave” or “Jen” as a diminutive of their name may be offensive.
  2. When using stock thank you cards, make sure there’s nothing about them that could be misconstrued as overly political or have religious overtones
  3. Speaking of religious overtones, unless you know someone’s faith, you run the risk of alienating a lot of clients if you use any religious references in your notes. While expressing faith is one thing, putting it into a thank you note may not be appreciated
  4. Don’t sound desperate or beg for their business. Stick to the point and thank them for the business they’ve already given you. Some may even see the thank you card as a plea for more business in and of itself
  5. Keep it simple. A long, drawn out note of any kind, let alone a thank you card is going to be overbearing
  6. Don’t send a generic message that is obviously sent “to everyone”. Even though you don’t want to be too personal, even a professional thank you note will at least use their name
  7. Don’t make them cheap looking. Use good paper or card stock and a quality font. When you’re expressing appreciation to a customer or vendor, you want them to respect your company

Thanks Personalized NoteCardsThere are lots of other things to avoid that are quite obvious. Language rules, check your spelling, don’t use slang or other words that may offend the recipient and above all, don’t expect a reply back from them. Customers and vendors do want to know you appreciate doing business with them, and will continue to do so when they need to. Professional thank you notes aren’t hard to do, and definitely show people you do care and appreciate them.

January 17, 2011

Top Do’s And Don’ts for Job Searches

Filed under: Designing Your Business Communication — Tags: — PDWriter @ 8:00 am

Carrara Business CardsIn today’s economy, if you’ve got a job, you have to keep it if at all possible. That doesn’t mean you can’t be doing other job searches looking for a better one, but until you’ve got that new job nailed down, you can’t count on finding that new job before quitting. And if you’re one of the scores of unemployed, finding a new job is a major priority. In order to optimize your chances, there are several things you can do to improve them and several things to not do that would hurt. Here’s a quick list.

1. Make sure your resume is up to date. And don’t make it unnecessarily complicated. HR people don’t want to plow through page after page. Hit the last couple jobs and any high spots, then an education and reference page. Limit your resume to 2 pages tops.

2. Keep a pocketful of business cards and hand them out to anyone that may be a lead, paperclip one to your resume as well. When you hand them out, let people know of your job searches.

3. Be persistent when checking back on a job, but don’t overrun the person taking Earthtone Tiles Business Cardsresumes. Give them a day or so to get to your resume before calling to check, unless you know they’ll be doing something with them sooner. Call back every day or so until they ask you back for an interview or state the job is filled.

4. Don’t be afraid to take a job beneath your skill level. Jobs right now are at a premium and while there are jobs available, it may not be what you want, but being employed at least will show you’re making an effort to maintain employment. The statement “It’s easier to find a job when you have a job” is true.

Scroll Business Cards5. Talk to everyone you come in contact with. Even in grocery store lines. You never know who’s in your business that can connect you during your job searches. If you come across someone who can be a lead, make sure you give them a business card.

The point to job searches now is networking. Online forums and other resources like Facebook and MySpace can be a source for leads too, so make sure you’re exploring all your options. Opportunities to connect within your industry are all over the place, and connecting online may lead to an opportunity you wouldn’t find any other way. There are jobs out there, but you have to be willing to make the effort to go get them. Don’t be afraid to extend yourself to get that next job as that’s what it’s going to take.

January 12, 2011

Inexpensive Certificate Awards for Any Occasion

Filed under: Employee Recognition Ideas — PDWriter @ 8:00 am

Academic Award Casual CertificatesWhen it comes to giving inexpensive awards for any occasion, there are almost as many choices for awards as there are occasions to give them. There are all kinds of certificate designs and styles from the rather plain all the way through the super fancy that look absolutely awesome and the recipients will be pleased to get. And they can be used for any occasion as well, since you are buying blank certificate stock, so you can define what they get used for.

For instance, doing certificates for school projects and as awards for special events is a breeze. All you have to do is select the appropriate pre-designed certificates and you’re almost done. After that, all you have to do is fill in the recipient’s name and the reasons for the award print it off on any laser or ink-jet printer and you are done. There are templates for most of the stock certificates that load up in your favorite word processor that makes taking care of the layout and wording a snap. After that, just have the certificate signed by the principal or event sponsors and you’ve just created a fantastic award that anyone would be proud of.

And certificates are inexpensive as well. Certificate stock is very inexpensive, and even if Orleans Standard Certificatesyou add in labor dollars to have them laid out and printed, they’re still going to be about the most cost-effective award you can give. Even if you put them in a nice frame for a full presentation, you can still expect the entire award to cost less than $10. That makes inexpensive certificate awards cheaper than just about any other award you could give.

Regardless of why you’re giving a certificate for, whether it’s as an award at a dog and cat show, for success at completing a class or course of study, or as an award for a fishing or hunting competition, the ability to create the awards in a very few minutes means you can give the actual certificate at the close of the event. You don’t have to wait weeks, or even months, to distribute the actual certificates to the winners. This kind of instant gratification is a great Decorative Specialty Certificatesencouragement for future events, and means the recipient can show off the award when they win it.

There are other awards you can give, but in terms of bang for your buck, and to give the recipient something they’ll appreciate for years to come, an inexpensive certificate award is certainly one of your best options. Take a look at the certificate stock available and see what would be best for your next event. You’ll be amazed at what all you can find, and what occasions you can apply it to.

January 7, 2011

Wedding Invitation Wording for Military Titles

Filed under: Wedding Wording & Etiquette — Tags: , , , — PDWriter @ 8:00 am

Stylish Specialty Flat InvitationsWhen writing military wedding invitations, many of the same etiquette rules apply as in general or non-military weddings. The difference however, is in the use of military titles. While some brides who are in the military choose to omit mention of military titles in their wedding invitation wording, it is also perfectly acceptable to include her military title in the military invitation wording. In a military wedding the bride/groom’s rank and service is used as well as that of their parents. For enlisted military personnel, rank is omitted. Military titles should also never be abbreviated.

For brides and grooms who are members of the armed forces, the following formats apply for military wedding invitation wording.

NAVYPristine Flat Invitations
Commander and Higher
Commander Steven James Smith
United States Navy

Lieutenant Commander and Below
Steven James Smith
Ensign, United States Navy

Petty Officers and Seamen
Steven James Smith
United States Navy

ARMY, AIR FORCE, MARINES
Captain and Higher
Captain Jane Marie Jones
United States Army

LieutenantFelicity Flat Invitations
Jane Marie Jones
Lieutenant, United States Air Force

Noncoms and Privates
Jane Marie Jones
United States Marines

 

Regardless of rank, military weddings are amazing occasions that be celebrated and respected. Using the correct wording for your military wedding invitations will help set the tone for the entire event. Use the above tips to do it correctly. Still have more questions? We recommend this site to address any further concerns. Congratulations! We wish all military brides/grooms-to-be many happy years together.

January 5, 2011

Fashion a Meaningful Employee of the Month Certificate

Filed under: How to Design Certificates — Tags: , — PDWriter @ 8:00 am

Renaissance Standard Certificate PaperToday, finding ways to keep talented employees is a necessity for every company.

Having a meaningful employee recognition program to motivate and encourage improvements is a sure-fire way to keep your talented employees.

One way to show employees they are appreciated is to have an employee of the month program, and give an employee of the month certificate or award that gives them a permanent record of that appreciation.

Why Appreciation?

Employees want to know their efforts and loyalty to the company are appreciated. And while those Achievement Specialty Certificateswho excel should be financially rewarded, often times large bonuses and salary raises aren’t in the cards. Why should you do?

When you’ve got programs in place that are designed to show employees recognition, they strive to do a better job, and having employee of the month certificates that reflect that appreciation is an easy and inexpensive way to help keep employees motivated and loyal.

Excellence Specialty CertificateCertificates don’t have to be complex.

All that is required is the person’s name and an explanation of the award, in this case the Employee of the Month. Make it on good quality bond paper to start, or even certificate paper, which usually has fancy edging. Not only will this show employees the appreciation they deserve, but will impress on them the quality of the award you’re giving. Making it suitable for framing or even going that extra step and framing it, gives them something they can hang on their wall and show to others that the company does pay attention to their employees.

All in all, awards and certificates will give the employees that added impetus to do much more during their day. Employee of the month certificates gives them the acknowledgment on a month to month basis that their efforts are appreciated. Employee recognition isn’t difficult or expensive to do, but as a method of quality employee retention, it’s a necessary step.

January 4, 2011

Inexpensive Marketing Ideas: 8 Ways to Promote Your Business

Filed under: Marketing & Sales Promotion Techniques — PDWriter @ 8:00 am

When it comes time to find ways to market your products and services, there are literally thousands of things you can do. Unfortunately, it seems like it costs more money to promote your business than you can recover from the advertising. However, there are several inexpensive marketing ideas you can use that really work. Here are a few for you:

    1. Brights Table TentsOne key is to make sure people see your name in as many places as possible. Sponsoring sports events on banners will be seen by hundreds of people during the event
    2. Buying space on local restaurant table tents and menus will put your name in front of people every day

Balloon Dreams Border Papers

  1. One way to put the business name in front of people is by putting flyers on windshields in grocery store parking lots
  2. Hire some high school kids and hang door hangers with your business name on it. This is very successful if you offer a discount or free product.
  3. Having inexpensive giveaways like pens and pencils with the business name and logo on it or Post-it notes and fridge magnets are always good to draw people
  4. When you go anywhere, make sure you leave Studious Business Cardsbusiness cards somewhere people will see them. If you use the business card promos you see all over the web, that is definitely one of the most inexpensive marketing ideas.
  5. Buy ad space in high school sports programs and annuals if they sell it. This reaches people for years.
  6. Use Craigslist to advertise indirectly on. If you offer something for sale and use it to reference your business, it’ll be seen by hundreds, or even thousands, of people

There are lots more tips and tricks out there for inexpensive marketing ideas for your business. While there may be a little money involved in some of them, there are quite a few that are totally free.  Marketing your business doesn’t have to cost a lot, and the return on the investment can be huge.

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