January/February 2021
President's Column
Alyssa Inkrott, Raining Rose
I hope that everyone’s 2021 is off to a great start! After the year we had in 2020, I think we can only go up from here. The past month has been a busy one for me. I was lucky enough to spend a significant amount of time with my family over the holidays and even had a chance to visit and spend time with some of my closest friends in Florida at the beginning of January.

Although the pandemic is still at the forefront of our lives and keeping us from seeing each other in person for a little while longer, I’m optimistic that we are on the up and up and will be getting closer to “normal” again soon.
Upcoming Events to Begin the Year Anew

Friday Facebook Live!
10:30 am every Friday through March. We feature a different supplier every week. Catch up on past presentations or see who's coming up at UMAPP.org. Click the Facebook mug on the home page. Suppliers: all slots are filled at this time.
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February 17, 2021 | New Event!
"Up Close and Virtual" online booth show
Deliberately scheduled for mid-February so you can catch up on what you've missed during the busy Direct-2-You Expo. Take advantage of a smaller show of industry superstars that will provide a seamless experience for you to get your business done in the most effective way.

Join us at 10:30 am for our keynote speaker, Paul Bellantone, CAE, President and CEO of PPAI as he talks about the state of the industry. Catch up with Paul before he departs PPAI in March.

Both events are FREE for UMAPP member distributors ($10 for nonmembers)

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April 15, 2021 | UMAPP Room Show
New venue! Our first in-person show in 2021
Crowne Plaza Minneapolis West, Plymouth, Minnesota
A beautiful facility with indoor exposed brick, fabulous food, and all Room Show meeting rooms with plenty of elbow room and together on one level. Plenty of free parking and each meeting room has windows! Distributor registration will open in March. Social distancing requirements will be implemented for the safety of all of our members.
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August 18, 2021 | Summer Golf Outing
Postponed from August 2020
StoneRidge Golf Course, St. Paul, Minnesota
(between Woodbury and Hudson, WI)
11:30 am | Lunch  | 1:00 pm | Shotgun start
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August 19, 2021 | Brand Connection Expo | End Buyer Event
Postponed from August 2020
Connecting your clients with new ideas
New venue! Inwood Oaks Event Center, corner of Highway 94 and Radio Drive (Woodbury/Oakdale)

Watch for more information to be arriving in the next few months about sponsorships, hole in one contest, and registration for the end buyer show.
UMAPP's Collegiate Scholarship for 2021-2022
Applications are online and ready! If your company is a member of UMAPP, you or your collage-age children are eligible to apply for a $1,000 academic scholarship to a two-or four-year higher education accredited school. UMAPP partners with the Promotional Products Education Foundation (PPEF) to manage this project for us, so applications go through this foundation for review. Deadline: March 15.

Note: High school seniors should complete the 4-year application (even though the UMAPP scholarship is for one year) and current college students should complete the 1-year application and choose "UMAPP" as the regional when prompted.

Best Practices For Following Up After A Trade Show 
Reprinted with permission from Promotional Consultant Today. 
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Top-Shelf Tip No. 11:
“Either you follow up or you fold up.” Bernard Kelvin Clive
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Most trade shows, conferences and summits have gone virtual, but the follow up is still the same. Even though you may not have met with prospects and clients face to face, it’s still important to reach out strategically and quickly after an event. You don’t want those connections and conversations to get lost in the shuffle as everyone gets back to work. 
Did you know?
. . . strenuous physical workouts tire the brain, too? In addition to making the body feel tired, a heavy training load leads to mental fatigue - reducing activity in the lateral prefrontal region of the brain, which is responsible for making decisions. Study by researchers at Pitie-Salpetriere University Hospital, Paris, published in Current Biology.

. . . flying may be safer than you think? The US Department of Defense says that thanks to the filtration systems in place on commercial airlines, 99.99% of coronavirus-infected particles were filtered out of an airplane's cabin in six minutes, even when every seat was taken. Study by researchers at at US Department of Defense, Arlington, Virginia.

. . .older people are doing better than ever, physically and cognitively. Researchers compared the physical and cognitive performance of people ages 75 to 80 to data on the same age range 30 years ago. They found significant improvement in muscle strength, walking speed, reaction time, verbal fluency, working memory and reasoning. Study by researchers at University of Jyvaskyla, Finland, published in Aging Clinical and Experimental Research.

"There is nothing like a challenge to bring out the best in man." Sir Sean Connery, 1930-2020
How To Resist Shiny Object Syndrome
Reprinted with permission from Promotional Consultant Today. 
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Top-Shelf Tip No. 252:
“Starve your distractions, feed your focus.” Anonymous
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Many sales professionals grapple with shiny object syndrome. It’s a habit that causes you to get sidetracked by new and exciting tools and ideas rather than focusing on important but perhaps less enticing tasks. Shiny object syndrome can often leave you feeling overwhelmed since you never fully complete your projects.

If you tend to get distracted by new ideas or tools, Celestina Chua, founder of the Personal Excellence blog, has some suggestions on how to stay on track. In this issue of Promotional Consultant Today, we share Chua’s tips for staying focused and avoiding shiny object syndrome. 
 
Industry News
Read all the latest industry news, including Paul Bellantone's departure from PPAI and the passing of an industry icon, Kerry Turner of HPG Brands / Best Promotions USA
UMAPP Benefits for Members
There are countless reasons to belong to your regional promotional professionals association, some of which include the intangible benefits such as relationships, business knowledge shared, belonging to a community of like-minded professionals, but there are some TANGIBLE benefits, too. These keep money in your pocket.

As we get closer to the deadline for dues renewal, keep in mind some of these tangible benefits that will be a noticeable savings for your company.

Never miss a good deal here. Nearly 200 pages of supplier coupons, discounts, and more. This valuable book saves distributors hundreds . . . thousands . . . of dollars a year. One UMAPP distributor (H.A. Gross of Plaza Printers in Iowa) saved $800 on ONE order using this book. Sign into your UMAPP website account to access.

Pro Tip: Save the link to your desktop for easy access.
VIDEO


For current UMAPP members only! Just one of the benefits of companies joining UMAPP is the discount that SAGE offers. Click the graphic to go to their home page, and let them know you're a UMAPP member.

Through our partnership with Constant Contact, UMAPP members can save 20%-25% on a subscription.

CLICK HERE to get started.

UMAPP's distributor members receive 25% off ZOOMcatalog membership. Distributor membership includes access to all the ZOOMcatalog tools including the ability to personalize supplier catalogs, build custom catalog search engines with all or select supplier catalogs, use the ZOOMcatalog supplier directory, use the ZOOMcatalog online coded calculator, and access to downloadable supplier catalog PDFs. Membership also includes access to the membership section of the ZOOMcatalog Mobile app. Distributor premium membership is available for $20/month, however it will be available to association members for only $15 per month.
What is UMAPP?
You are receiving this email because you have participated in our events, joined our mailing list, and/or are a UMAPP member. The Upper Midwest Association of Promotional Professionals (UMAPP) is a promotional professionals regional association for companies and staff in the states of Minnesota, North and South Dakota, Iowa, and Western Wisconsin.
Upper Midwest Association of Promotional Professionals UMAPP.sue@comcast.net
UMAPP.org | 651-734-9767