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May 31, 2011

Making Booklets – A Starters Guide to Simple Booklets

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

Corporate Make-A-Booklet Program CoversOne effective method of marketing is to get as much information about your products and services into the hands of your customers as possible. Sometimes you only want to concentrate on a single product or service, and others may be better suited as a general overview. Whichever approach you take, one way to deliver this information is by putting together a booklet. While having booklets made can become a major expense, however, making booklets in-house can be a very cost effective marketing tool.

When you think of a booklet, you generally think about a small sized book containing perhaps 20 to 30 pages with some type of cardstock cover. But that’s the easy part. Figuring out how to make a booklet can be the hardest part. Fortunately, there are tools out there that make the job not only less confusing, but a breeze.

First you have to keep in mind how a booklet is laid out. Setting up a template to hold the text can be mind numbingly confusing, so finding a template for a booklet can save you a lot of headaches. The good thing is they are available for your favorite word processing and layout programs. You can also use that template to make the covers for your booklet as well. After you’ve laid out the text and printed it, and printed the covers, you’ve accomplished most of the task. With those parts out of the way, the next challenge becomes making booklets to fit the size you want.

That is accomplished with a paper cutter. You can either use a standard office paper cutter which is capable of dealing with small volumes, or if you need larger numbers of booklets, you can send them out to a printing company to have them cut to size. By cutting them in the middle of an 8 ½ x 11 page you can get 8 booklet pages out of one sheet of paper.

And binding them is the last step of the process. Again, you can use a printing company to bind them there are binding machines available that will work quite well for small volumes of booklets. Not only will this save you money, but customizing booklets becomes a simple process because you do not have to rely on the printing company to handle the process.

Booklets can be very handy marketing devices to show clients a bit more detail about products and services that brochures simply won’t cover. When they’re looking for reasons to buy, booklets can provide those reasons in an economical, and relatively easy to produce way. Take a look at your marketing processes and see if your company can benefit from making booklets for your potential customers so they can be more informed about your offerings.

May 30, 2011

Making the Right Impression with Your Trade Show Display Boards

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

Trade shows and conventions are the place where everyone is looking for something. Being able to connect with people who are interested in what you’re doing or selling makes a trade show a veritable gold mine of contacts. However, if you don’t stand out and your booth isn’t making a good impression, that gold mine will pass you by. One way to make sure you get the attention you deserve is with trade show display boards.

Unlike flyers, brochures and samples, display boards are what catch attention first. Making them stand out is essential to having a successful booth. Whether they’re placed on an easel, hanging on the wall at the back of the booth or on the floor at the ends of the tables, trade show display boards make the first impression and create the atmosphere for the booth.

Regardless of what business you’re in, display boards give you the ability to show off your products, your company and your services to anyone passing by your booth. Using display boards to hook people as they come by is the perfect tool to build your contact base at the trade show. Reach everyone that comes by with great trade show display boards and you’ll have tons of new leads at the end of the show.

And display boards offer endless possibilities on how you work with them. Use them to display pictures of products, services lists, product information, attach document holders and use it as the distribution point for your flyers and brochures and even to display company info. Display boards let you show off anything you want and as large as they are, you can be assured that your messages will be seen.

Next time you’re at a trade show, take a look at how others are using their display boards. Not only will you get some good ideas from them, but you’ll also see what they’re missing. Being creative with display boards, how they’re laid out and what is put on them for display gives you an edge over your competition.  Get the most out of your trade show appearance with great display boards.

May 26, 2011

Tips for Planning a Retirement Party

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

Elation Foil Flat InvitationsIt’s hard sometimes to realize that someone has worked for your company for twenty, thirty, even forty years. When it comes time for them to retire, you want to show them how much their effort, dedication and long service is appreciate, plus give them a great memory to retire on. Planning a great retirement party for them may seem like a challenge, but with the right ideas not only is it easy enough to do, but it will be a very memorable occasion.

Making a retirement party a truly memorable event does involve a little planning. One way to make it truly special is to have the retiree’s friends and family there when the person is honored. Take an opportunity and connect with their spouse so you can get a list of names and addresses. This enables you to send them custom invitations for the party which will give them an opportunity to share in the honor and appreciation.  Having a seating arrangement will help as well, especially when the retirement party is centered on a dinner. Utilizing place cards grouping friends and family together as well as people in the retiree’s department will help organize the festivities.Crown Standard Certificates

To honor the retiree, especially one that has had a tremendous impact on the company requires showing them just how much they’ve been appreciated over the years. While planning the retirement party taking the ‘gold watch’ approach is always a great way to do so, giving them a certificate of appreciation award that’s framed gives them something they can hang on their wall at home. And a commemorative lapel pin gives them something they can wear on their lapel that shows anyone who looks just how much they are appreciated for their service and dedication to the company.

Retirement is a big step in a person’s life and being able to have things like certificates and lapel pins brings back fond memories of the years at work. You receive a diploma when you graduate high school and college, so receiving a certificate award when you “graduate from work” has a very similar feeling for the retiree. While a party lets friends, family and co-workers express their appreciation either by handshakes or even at the podium, having tangible awards is something that the person who is retiring can take with them to remind them of their years at work and of the retirement party. With all the great retirement gifts available, you’ll be assured that the planned retirement party will be a success.

May 20, 2011

Elegant Wedding Thank You Quotes

Filed under: DIY Wedding Accessories — Tags: , — PDWriter @ 8:00 am

After all is said and done, after all the guests have gone home and after you’ve returned from the honeymoon, you’ll want to send thank you cards to everyone who attended your wedding , all who gave gifts and all who were involved in the process. This can run into hundreds of thank you cards so finding different ways to say “Thank You” becomes not just a matter of being different for everyone, but finding elegant wedding thank you quotes also keeps you from becoming frustrated and bored with the whole thing.

Here are some ways to express your appreciation without becoming too redundant.

–    For groomsmen and bridesmaids, you’ll want to express a bit more personal thankyou. For instance “We want to thank you for participating in our special day. Your friendship is something we both cherish forever.” You may want to include a little gift as a token of your appreciation as well.
–    Friends and family can have several different thank you phrases since this will be the group you’ll have the most cards to

Cream Roses Photo Notecard

send for. One phrase could go something like “Thank you for being a part of our wedding and sharing in our joy”
–    Another wedding thank you quote to use for family members could be “We are so blessed to have married into such wonderful families. Thank you for being present at our wedding and sharing in our special day.”
–    “Our lives have been enriched by your friendship and your presence at our wedding enriched that special day as well. We thank you for being there and for sharing our happiness.” Is a great phrase for thanking friends.
–    To guests and companions of friends who attended, a thank you card that says “Our wedding day was made that much more special because you were there. Everyone who attended helped to make our dream wedding into a wonderful reality.”

Elegant Lilies Specialty NoteCardsYou can use some of the love verses from The Bible as well as famous poems and quotations from celebrities and literary giants. The resources for finding wedding thank you quotes for thank you cards are almost endless, but the ones people will appreciate the most are the ones that come from your heart. The list above should give you some great ideas about what to say, and as you fill out the thank you cards, you’ll have your own feelings that you’ll want to express to each person who attended. Wedding thank you quotes are all about the heart, and you’ll find you’ve got plenty of ways to say “thank you” to everyone in your life.

May 19, 2011

Themed Birthday Party Ideas for Kids

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

Party Swirls InvitationEverybody loves a birthday party regardless of your age. While adults enjoy birthday parties of others more than their own, kids love all birthday parties and wish they could have them every day. While every day would be a bit much, having great birthday parties when they do come around with cakes, presents and games makes that birthday party great. Having a themed birthday party is even more memorable because a themed party makes it much more than just another birthday.

Having a theme party isn’t always about a cartoon character. Here are some ideas about themed birthday parties that you may not have thought of.

–    Have an ice cream party. Instead of a lot of fattening cake and other munchables, have Birthday Party Invitationslots of different kinds of ice cream for everyone to enjoy. Explore a wide variety of ice creams as well. Get some different, even esoteric varieties to try since everyone knows chocolate, vanilla and strawberry.
–    Cupcake parties are totally different too. Instead of kids fighting over who gets the biggest slice of cake, cupcakes are all the same size and can be decorated any way you want.
–    Carnival parties with all kinds of animal and clown decorations make for a neat theme for a birthday party. Kids will love games and activities based on the carnival too.
–    Sports themed parties are great for the budding athletes. Decorations and cake designs abound for these kinds of parties and the kids love it
–    “Wrong season” parties make for a hilarious time. If the birthday is during the summer, make it into a Christmas party or during the winter, have a 4th of July celebration. Not only will the kids have a great time, you’ll have a blast setting it up.

Bright Streamers InvitationsThemed birthday parties are always fun to host and to be a part of. Working outside the box with themes means your party won’t be like anyone else’s and the kids will have a more memorable time because of that. While kids love any kind of birthday party, having one stand out in their minds long after the event takes place mean you gave them a really happy memory to hang on to.

Take the time to check out all the great themes you can have for a party. You’ll be surprised how many ideas you can have in just a few minutes that will be fun, easy to set up and enjoyed by everyone who comes. Starting off a great party by having themed invitations enables you to have every part of the process match your theme and will make for an even more anticipated birthday party. Have fun with planning it and you’ll have fun throwing it.

May 18, 2011

5 Great Memorial Day Party Ideas

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

Patriotic Pinwheels Border PapersAs a celebration and dedication to the men and women who have served or are serving in our armed services, there is no more important day than Memorial Day. Having a party is a great way to share such an auspicious occasion with those friends and family that are either in the service or have been or are family members of someone who is. As with any party a little planning needs to take place, and the best place to start planning is at the beginning.

Here are some great Memorial Day party ideas to get your planning started:Salute Fold Up Invitations

  1. If you’re having a private get together, then finding patriotic invitations should be at the top of your Memorial Day party ideas.
  2. With invitations, you can either include a phone number, email address or response cards so those who will be coming can let you know that they’ll be attending. This simplifies your planning process since you’ll have a good idea of how much food you’ll need and how much you’ll want to invest in patriotic decorations to set off the party.
  3. Doing a community event at a gymnasium or civic center is a totally different concept. Turning out flyers with a patriotic theme and getting them placed in areas they’ll be seen in a timely manner is definitely a necessity if you don’t want all your great Memorial Day party ideas to go to waste.
  4. Hanging flyers on bulletin boards and posting them in other public areas is a great start but doing a flyer campaign like canvassing a parking lot and putting them under windshield wipers gets the word out as well. With the right amount of effort, your Memorial Day party ideas can add to the excitement of the holiday and the celebration time with neighbors and friends.
  5. Being able to custom design your own patriotic invitations or flyers is a lot easier than you may think. Even if you’re running behind on your planning, you can save time by using the online Print Now feature. This enables you to pick your Land Of The Free Border Papersinvitation or flyer style, upload graphics or photos and layout the text exactly how you want. Then using your paper or invitation blanks, you can immediately print off as many invitations or flyers as you need. By using the online tools you can print as few or as many as you need without having to worry about wasting any paper or ink.

Memorial Day is a day where everyone feels the pride for those who serve and even the sadness for those who have paid the ultimate sacrifice so we can enjoy our freedoms. Get your Memorial Day party ideas together now to ensure your party is fun for all. Celebrate your patriotism with your friends, family and neighbors. Support our troops and to have a good time in the process.

Raise the Bar: Don’t Accept Poor Employee Performance

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

Charisma Green NotecardsEach day, when employees come to work, they’ve got choices to make. Most of the time those choices involve doing a good job, getting tasks accomplished and in general being an asset to the company. However, there are times when employees may not feel quite as “plugged in” to the company and its goals. That means their performance may not be quite as positive as the company would like. Finding ways to bring employee performance back to the standards that are expected is essential.

When employee performance slips, many companies would have a tendency to use thePuzzle Pieces Casual Certificates stick part of the carrot and stick approach. Reprimanding employees, putting black marks on their performance analysis and even threats of firing aren’t unusual. However, using the carrot part of the carrot and stick method may actually be more beneficial. Employees that may not be hitting the mark may be more interested in an uplifting pat on the back more than they would a reprimand.

That’s where using tools like employee recognition to boost morale and pick up spirits can make a huge difference. Using award certificates to give recognition for meeting and exceeding quotas or completing large jobs shows employees they’re appreciated. Reaching out with thank you cards and notes in their paychecks that express that appreciation go a long way towards boosting morale as well. Even having perks like a preferred parking slot as a reward for a job well done or as the “Employee of the Month”

Water Drop CertificateRewarding employees with appreciation and recognition means a lot to employees. That shows them that the company is paying attention to them as a person instead of just another employee. Not only that, but when an employee is singled out for recognition, not only does it boost their morale, but other employees see the recognition and realize that they too are being looked at as people. This encourages them to become more productive and better at their jobs as well, perhaps in hopes of being the one being recognized with a certificate or in the newsletter next time.

May 12, 2011

15 Wedding Anniversary Ideas for Couples

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

It's Your Anniversary Greeting CardsWedding anniversaries are a special time for couples. Even though times may be busy and lives may get complicated, both husbands and wives appreciate being honored by their mate on their anniversary date. We all know the hilarity that situation comedies pull out of husbands forgetting the anniversary, but in reality, those comedic situations don’t happen quite that often. And finding great wedding anniversary ideas for couples isn’t as hard as sitcoms would make out either.

Here are 15 great ideas for any couple that honors the occasion and makes for a great time too.Jardin Fold Up Invitations
1.    Following the traditional gift ideas is certainly one way that works. This is the year list that starts with paper for the first year, cotton for the second, etc. This shows that you believe in the traditional values in the marriage.
2.    There is a modern list as well. This starts with the first year being plastic, the second cotton and calico, etc. This shows more modern values for your relationship.
3.    There are alternative gifts as well. The first year is clocks, the second is china, etc. Using this list shows a more expansive view of marriage and relationships.
4.    As well as these gifts, gifts of jewelry also have a yearly designator. For instance the first year is a simple gold piece with a Peridot alternative. Year two is garnet, year three is either pearls or jade, etc. These also show a traditionalist view.
5.    Flowers are also on the yearly list. Classic Scroll Vinyl BannerPansies are year one, Cosmos for year two, etc. although Roses will go over anytime.
6.    A nice, romantic way to celebrate is to recreate that first date, whether at McDonalds or at the museum, that first date is always special.
7.    Dinner and a movie coupled with the gift makes for a great evening to celebrate.
8.    If you can work out a vacation during the anniversary date then reliving the honeymoon makes for a truly special celebration.
9.     For couples that have kids, hiring a babysitter or having them stay over at a friend’s or relatives so you can have a complete night of peace just for you makes for a great anniversary idea.
10.    When anniversaries start to accumulate, it is nice to make it into a family affair, especially when there are grand and great-grand children.
11.    With life how it can be at times, doing anniversary activities on the right day isn’t always possible. Instead of rushing through things, one anniversary idea is to reschedule to a weekend and make the whole weekend about the anniversary.
12.    Make the anniversary a two day affair. Have one day all about the husband and one day all about the wife, but both days are shared completely. Spa visits, shopping, sports activities, whatever both partners like to do.
13.    If schedules stay tight, one great thing is to put together a picnic at the park or by the lake.
14.    Anniversaries can be a time to do something new. If you met well after high school, make your anniversary a “teenage date night” and go skating, see a drive in movie or watch a high school football game.
15.    Do a romantic evening at home. Fix dinner together, watch a movie cuddled on the couch, have drinks in front of the fireplace and do flower petals and candles in the bedroom. Make it a fantastic evening.

There are lots of great ideas for anniversary ideas to express a couple’s love for each other and to bring the romance up a couple notches. Take a look at this list, think about the times shared and have a great anniversary.

Products shown above are

It’s Your Anniversary Greeting Card

Classic Scroll Vinyl Banner

Jarding Fold up Invitation

May 9, 2011

Pick the Perfect Font for Any Occasion

Filed under: Designing Your Business Communication — Tags: , , — PDWriter @ 8:00 am
Formal Party Flat Invitations

Every day we look at fonts of all types whether we realize it or not. A font is defined as “a complete assortment of type of one style and size”. In other words, a font is the letters you see that make up the words you read. Whether you’re reading a newspaper or book, looking at emails or even the crawl running along the bottom of the screen on ESPN, you’re looking at a font. Choosing the right font for every occasion is important.

Imperial Letterhead Papers

Not only does a font deliver information in words, but it also delivers a “feeling” with its style. There are literally tens of thousands of fonts available and choosing the “right” one can be a real challenge. Depending on the purpose of the document or paper, there are a few font styles that work quite well for a variety of uses.

If you want an easy-to-read document, then you’re looking for what’s called a “Sans Serif” font. That means there are no little “tails” off of any of the letters. While they usually aren’t very fancy, they are easy to read and less expensive to print. Samples of this type of font are Calibri, Arial and Berlin Sans. Any font that has “Sans Serif” in its title will be of this style.

For a somewhat more business-like flair, you’ll want to use a font with serifs. These fonts are a tad harder to read, but have a more professional look than the “draft” sans serif styles. Perhaps the best known font of this style is Times New Roman which is the most common closely followed by Courier, unless you’re in banking where Copperplate was also very common.

Intricate Flat Invitations

For formal occasions like weddings and formal party invitations you can expect to see a script or calligraphic style font. These are very flowing, cursive style fonts which add a layer of beauty and grace to the documents. These often get used in logos and letterheads to portray a level of elegance to the business. Fonts like this are MT Script, Monotype Corsiva and Lucinda Calligraphy.

Choosing the right font for the occasion can be just as impactful as the words being used. You don’t want something too formal for casual documents, nor do you want a casual font for a formal or business document. And there are “play” fonts like Comic Sans Serif which you can use to make fun signs and even symbolic fonts like Widgets that you can use for math symbols and even shapes. To have a successful document, whether it’s a business letter or a wedding invitation, using the right font for the job will get it done.

May 6, 2011

Keep It Simple for the Most Effective Menu Card Design

Filed under: DIY Wedding Accessories — PDWriter @ 8:00 am

Pristine Tea Length Menu CardsAny wedding where there will be a meal served, whether at the rehearsal or at the reception, having meal options for the guests is a good thing. Some will prefer salads, some chicken, some beef and some may even have dietary restrictions that need to be compensated for. This means having menu card designs that not only match the overall theme of the wedding but offers those choices adds another level of sophistication to the entire wedding process.

While it is easy to get carried away with menu cards, keeping them relatively simple makes for a much more impactful approach. Instead of carrying through with graphics from the wedding theme, simply keeping the colors will be effective enough. This isn’t like the wedding program or invitationAllure Flat Menu Cards packs where you want the theme of the wedding to really come across, menu cards and place cards need to effectively present the menu information.

Keeping the fonts from the invitations is usually fine unless it is a very scripty font. If the font is difficult to read, there may be some guests that will not be able to read it properly. If this is the case them making the font larger or switching to a font that is easier to read, or even using the script font as the headers and a block font for the selections may be more reasonable.

Imperial Flat Menu CardsMenu card designs that keep the overall wedding process intact are the key to having great menu cards. They’re not the biggest part of the process, nor are they the most important, but they are definitely a key part of weddings that have meals involved. You’ll appreciate a simple menu card design as its one less difficult decision that has to be made and your guests will appreciate them too. By the time the end of the wedding is reached, they don’t want to have to think very hard either. Enjoy all parts of the wedding and simple menu card design ensures you’ll enjoy that part too.

May 4, 2011

Customization Templates for Award Certificates

Filed under: Employee Recognition Ideas — PDWriter @ 8:00 am
Ribbon Award Standard Certificates
Elite Specialty Certificates

As important as customers and clients are to a business, the backbone of any successful business is its employees. Good employees are hard to find and keeping them can be even harder, especially in these economically challenging times when bonuses and raises are few and far between. This gives HR departments an added challenge when it comes to employee retention. One way to boost morale and to encourage employees to stick around is to develop a solid employee recognition program. A popular part of these programs are certificates of appreciation.

Blank certificates are inexpensive and there are FREE certificate of appreciation templates available for download for your favorite word processor. This means that certificates can be printed up in a matter of minutes because all the hard work, layout, and wording have already been completed. All that’s left is to put the person’s name and the date on it, hit the print button and you’re done. Generating several certificates for an awards program can be accomplished in only a few minutes!

Renaissance Standard Certificate Paper

There are templates for virtually any occasion you can think of. Appreciation for attendance, excellence, safety, and production are just a few of the dozens out there. And if you’ve got an occasion that requires a certificate of appreciation template that isn’t out there, since they are templates, making changes to cover your needs is a snap. Most templates can be downloaded from the company that makes the blank certificates. The best part is that they have designed the templates to the exact specifications of the paper so there is no chance of error.

And to dress up the entire process, putting the finished certificate in a frame takes only a couple of minutes for each one. Great frames can be purchased for as little as a couple of dollars each. Combined with the minimal cost of the blank certificate, being able to give out certificates of appreciation is one of the least expensive, but most productive ways to implement an employee recognition program. Low cost, ease of production, and flexibility with the certificate of appreciation templates makes presenting those certificates the most beneficial part of your program.

May 3, 2011

How to Conduct a Mail-In Survey

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

Kids at Play LetterheadOne level of marketing means getting feedback on various aspects of the business. Being able to poll customers about the quality of products and service will enable you to see where areas of improvement are so you can have an even more effective business. But finding the best way to conduct a mail-in survey can be a problem if you’ve not done one before.

The approach to take on a survey like this would be to define what you hope to accomplish. Depending on how much information you want to derive, deciding on what kind of mail out you want to use will also be affected. The best way to ensure you get as much response as possible, it is suggested to do a one page letter explaining the survey, a singleKids at Play Envelopes page for the survey and also include a stamped, self addressed envelope. Adding the envelope removes the expense of the recipient having to go to the hassle of finding an envelope and the expense of postage.

While you may want to get a lot of data from a survey, limit it to a maximum of 10 to 15 questions, and make the questions answerable with a yes or no checkbox. If a survey is too complex or requires a lot of choices, the recipient will rapidly become bored with it and not complete it. While that may seem like a stingy limitation, consider the surveys you’ve received and why you did or didn’t complete it. That will create a basis for yours.

A lot of information can be delivered from just a few well developed questions as well. One way to refine your survey would be to do a limited test run on a small number of clients. This will show you where possible improvements in the survey can be made. The goal is to have as close to 100% response rate as possible, and having a survey that is easy to complete is key.

There are other ways to encourage survey completion as well. Use an incentive of a discount or of a free product or gift for those who return the surveys. This may seem like a bit of a bribe, and in a way, it is. But there are no real rules on how to conduct a mail-in survey, and the need for the information the customers can give you back will be of far more value than the “bribe”. Check out all your options to get the most from your survey.

May 2, 2011

Fantastic Newsletter Designs!

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

Use newsletters to communicate to your employees about what is happening from safety to birthdays and anniversaries.  Newsletter can also be used to communicate to your customer about product and business information.

Swirly Sun NewsletterSwirly Sun Newsletter

Bright Future NewsletterBright Future Newsletter

Friendly Neighborhood Homes NewsletterFriendly Neighborhood Homes Newsletter

Hands Holding Plant NewsletterHands Holding Plant Newsletter

Sunflower Garden NewsletterSunflower Garden Newsletter

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