FEBRUARY 2020
Upcoming Events

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Save $$ with member only coupons
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Make sure you maximize your membership with us by utilizing member only benfits like those listed above.
Did You Know that PPAI Online Education offers live webinars 
throughout the year?
CPPA News

Congratulations to the 13th Annual 
Peake Award Recipients!
  
CPPA  honored regional performers at the annual Peake Awards Ceremony, sponsored by J Charles Crystalworks, at Laurel Park in Laurel on Jan 28, 2020.
 
Each year CPPA proudly presents the Peake Awards to honor excellence and creativity in our association and industry.  The Peake Award Event honors recipients in nine categories in addition to any Excellence In Promotions (EIP) Campaigns submitted. The EIP awards are designed to recognize campaigns that feature excellence in the practical application of promotional items. 

Harold Wood Inducted Into the CPPA Hall of Fame
  
CPPA  is pleased to announce that Harold Wood was inducted into the CPPA Hall of Fame during the 13th Annual Peake Awards Ceremony on January 28, 2020 in Laurel.
 
The CPPA Hall of Fame originated in 2007 and was designed to recognize individuals that make an outstanding and lasting contribution to the regional association as well as to the promotional products industry. Individuals inducted have made a significant difference in the association, for our membership and ultimately in the community. Wood joins previous inductees: Jim Hayes, Steve Yaniga, Hersch Wellman, Mike Harper Senior, Murray Siegel, Robert Titelman Senior, Jolie Porter and Kendra McDougal.
Did You Miss Any of the CPPA Webinars? 
Recordings are available!  

Watch our webinars and receive PPAI  credit 
on your transcript towards your TAS, CAS, or MAS!

  
  • Greg Armstrong, ProForma -  Win! And Win Big!  Click Here
  • Jim Ristuccia, A+ Wine Designs -  Synergy, Strategy, Success & Teamwork:  Developing a Successful Distributor-Supplier Relationship  Click here
  • Ron Baron, Ad-A-Day -  You Can Sell at Prices HIGHER than Your Competition!  Click here
  • Bryony Zasman,  Learn About Zoom Catalog  Click here
  • Roni Wright,  Calm the Mind and Find the Power Within To Thrive   Click here
  • Randi Busse,  Turning Rants Into Raves, Turning On Your Customers Before They Turn on YOU   Click here
  • Ed Gulbenkian,  How to Sell Swim - There is Money in the Water    Click here
  • Joel Schaffer , Holiday Sales - Make Money in the Fourth Quarter   Click here  
  • Dylan Sullivan, Intro to: Weighing the Pros and Cons of Screen Printing, Embroidery, Direct to Garment, and Heat Transfers Click here
  • Brad Bartlett,  Direct Mail is Not Dead   Click here
  • Don Sanders,  Learn How To Sell Five Orders a Day   Click here
  • Cathy Cain-Blank,  How to Create Email Content That Drives New Business   Click here
  • Scott Nussinow,  Is Your Website Leaking Customers?   Click here
  • Bill McCormick,  LinkedIn Foundations for Promo Product Sales  Click here
  • Glenn Rudin,  Would You Do Business With YOU?!  Click here
  • KC Fields and Paul Sprunk,  Eliminate Your Apparel Competition  Click here
  • Scott Nussinow,  Outsource Like a Supplier All Star   Click here
  • Mitch Group & Jill Wattenberg, Y our Marketing Success Begins  With a Great Visual   Click here
  • Joel Schaffer, T he Public Relations Clinic  Click here
  • Lenny Polakoff,  Is Your House In Order? A Practical Guide to a Five Pillar Compliance Program  Click here
  • Dylan Sullivan,  How to Streamline Your Purchase Orders, Writing a Purchase Order ONCE!  The Right Way   Click here
  • Eileen Lynch and Adam Morales,  Writing Instruments: Where Do We Go From Here? Click here
  • Brad Bartlett,  How Can You Tap Into the Lucrative Point of Sale Market at Retail  Click here
  • Andy Evans,  Company Stores   Click here
  • Maurice Norris,  Legislative Review and A Look to 2020  Click here

Tekweld Wins Prestigious ASI Counselor Distributor Choice Award
 
Hauppauge, NY  -  Tekweld's Vice-President of Sales and Marketing, Ray Rodriguez, has announced that Tekweld is the recipient of ASI's 2020 Counselor Distributor Choice Award for the Sunglass Category. The award was presented at the Distributor Choice Award Ceremony held at the 2020 ASI Orlando Show.

Receiving the award presented by ASI President Tim Andrews, Rodriguez, sporting a pair of Tekweld sunglasses, enthusiastically claimed, "Tekweld is incredibly honored to receive this award because it is voted on by distributors themselves and is based on their perception of our customer service, product selection, problem solving and their daily product searches on the ESP database. We have learned over the years what is most important to distributors and their salespeople, and we deliver it on a daily basis. For this year and the predictable future, we're the coolest of the cool when it comes to delivering distributors clients' advertising on sunglasses!" Tekweld has 46 sunglass styles, with 7 new styles introduced in 2020.

Every year, since 2001, Counselor Magazine has presented suppliers awards based solely on popular vote by industry distributors for predetermined product
categories. There are 50 product categories in the awards program. Sunglasses, Tekweld's winning category, was introduced to voting in 2015. Tekweld has been a finalist in this category each year since the category was introduced, winning for the first time in 2020. In addition, Tekweld was a finalist in 2020 in these additional categories: blankets, food gifts, health & safety, housewares, key tags & luggage tags, office & desk items and tech accessories.
A merican Solutions for Business Hosts 
5K Run/Walk  to Raise $5,100 to United Way
  
Fort Worth, TX  - American Solutions for Business recently held a 5K Run/Walk in conjunction with their national sales conference to benefit the United Way of Fort Worth.
 
Over 170 individuals donated and 125 participated in walking or running the race on Sunday, February 2nd. In addition, 13 suppliers stepped up as event sponsors to donate product and monetary contribution. These suppliers include: Ennis, Spector & Co., Logo Mats, KTI Promo, Bagworld, BEL Promo, SanMar, Dubow Textile, Showdown Displays, Alexa Springs, Raining Rose, Terry Town and Outdoor Cap.  

Participants received a swag bag full of active-inspired promotional products and branded apparel.
 
"We're proud to announce that not only did we have even more participants than last year, we greatly increased our donation to the United Way of Fort Worth," said Dana Zezzo, ASB's VP of Marketing, Vendor Relations & Events. "We will continue to look for ways to give back a practice that is so engrained in the ASB culture."


Tekweld Appoints Harrington Central Regional Sales Manager 
 
Hauppauge, NY  -  Tekweld's Vice-President of Sales and Marketing, Ray Rodriguez,
has announced the appointment of Regina Harrington to Central Regional Sales
Manager. Harrington will report directly to Rodriguez. Her promotion was effective
December 9, 2019.

"Regina comes to us with 16 years of promotional sales experience, most recently from an ASI top forty supplier," commented Rodriguez from the floor of the 2020 ASI Orlando Show. "Her established presence, strong communication and relationship building skills and familiarity with promotional products distributors in her covered states of Ohio, Michigan, Indiana, Kentucky and Tennessee gives Tekweld a huge sales advantage in this territory."

"I was incredibly excited to be asked to join the Tekweld family," added Harrington. When asked about her goals at Tekweld, Harrington confidently replied, "I am eager to submerge myself in its culture and spread the positive energy and synergies found within Tekweld to my distributor accounts."

Inside of the industry, Regina was nominated for Ohio Promotional Products
Association's Supplier Representative of the year in 2014-15. Regina graduated from Indiana University with a BA degree in Organizational Communications.

Kozar Named Tekweld Southeast Regional Sales Manager
 
Hauppauge, NY  -  Tekweld's Vice-President of Sales and Marketing, Ray Rodriguez,
has announced the appointment of Matt Kozar to Southeast Regional Sales Manager.
Kozar reports directly to Rodriguez. His promotion was effective December 2, 2019.

"Matt's previous 5 years of promotional products sales experience in the southeast, previously with an ASI top forty supplier, allows him to hit the ground running for Tekweld," said Rodriguez while formally announcing Kozar's addition at the 2020 ASI Orlando Show. "Matt's proven ability to cultivate strong business relationships, positive attitude, strong work ethic and organizational skills make him a strong asset, not just to Tekweld but also to our distributor accounts he calls on daily." Kozar will be covering the states of Georgia, North Carolina and South Carolina.

"I am beyond thrilled to be joining the Tekweld team," stated Kozar from his office in Raleigh, NC. "I was drawn to Tekweld based on their fantastic reputation in the industry." He continued, "They grow their business by putting the customer first and quickly adapting to industry changes. I am incredibly excited to bring my sales experience and product knowledge to help bring Tekweld to the next level."

Newly married, Kozar graduated from North Carolina State with a Bachelor of
Science degree in Business Administration. He was the Carolinas Association of Advertising and Marketing Professionals (CAAMP) Supplier Rep of the Year for 2018. Matt was also Field Sales Rep of the year for 2015 and 2016 while working the southeast region for his previous promotional products industry supplier.
Industry News
Promotional Products Education Foundation
Scholarship deadline is March 15, 2020

276,750 Reasons To Apply For A PPEF Scholarship

Do you have a student heading to college this fall? The Promotional Products Education Foundation (PPEF) believes every student deserves to build a better future, regardless of their financial situation. Through its strong fundraising efforts, PPEF will be granting $276,750 in scholarships this year to qualified students.
 
Since 1989, PPEF has awarded more than $2.1 million in college scholarships to students working in the promotional products industry and students with a parent who is working in the promotional products industry. PPEF provides college scholarships to the promotional products industry that are generously funded by the contributions of companies and individuals within the industry. The deadline for submissions is March 15, 2020, at midnight CT.
 
How you can create an effective email marketing strategy without breaking the bank..
  
Running a small business means keeping track of dozens of moving parts and wearing multiple hats. Of the various components that demand attention, acquiring new customers is among the most critical.

Enter email marketing, which remains an integral way to grow your audience and boost sales. Unlike with social media, one important benefit of email marketing is that it enables businesses to own their subscriber and customer data, says Adii Pienaar, VP of commerce product strategy at  Campaign Monitor. That's key; When used correctly, this information allows companies to build direct relationships with customers.
Email marketing also provides a customizable platform for targeted messages and prompts. According to a 2019 report from Campaign Monitor, 38 percent of U.S. consumers have taken a monetary action as a direct result of an email.         Read More
PPAI Awards & Recognition
Deadlines listed below

Promo Companies Work To Manage Coronavirus Disruption
Authorities continue to wrestle with the coronavirus outbreak which, along with a human toll of more than 73,000 people infected in China, is upending manufacturing, transportation and supply chains worldwide. Many companies in the promotional products industry are taking proactive steps to support their clients, vendors and Chinese partners.

"The situation is evolving in China and around the world," says IMAGEN Brands President Paul Lage, MAS, in a company statement. "One of the questions is, how is this going to impact our business? We have been in contact with our vendors, and they realize there will be some issues. Many of the factories are still not open. We anticipate that many might resume their regular operations in early March. Others may not reopen until April. In the meantime, orders for their products are still coming in, and they are starting to accumulate some significant backlogs. Therefore, this potential disruption may last until early summer until we all get through this issue."

The timing of the coronavirus outbreak has proven to further complicate business operations, coming as it did during the Chinese New Year, when millions of people were traveling to visit family members. Lage adds, "We are fortunate to have inflated our inventory prior to the Chinese New Year. We don't see any issues in the short-term and will be monitoring the situation closely." He says the company will post inventories and any updates about this situation on the website at IMAGENBrands.com.

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