Get ready for recovery
Is it? Isn’t it?
Will it? Won’t it?
Is the worst of the recession over and are we getting ready for the long awaited recovery? Who knows? If I did, I wouldn’t be writing this blog – I would be sitting on a beach in the Bahamas. In these times of uncertainly, if you can be sure of one thing- it’s the businesses that are prepared for the recovery that will most benefit from it. So what can you do to get your company ship shape to take advantage of all the undoubted opportunities that will be coming your way?
Here are our top ten heads up
1. Review – be honest dispassionate; look at where the business is now and where it needs to be in the future.
2. Cut supply cost – look at your whole supply chain: look for new suppliers offering better deals, re-negotiate with existing suppliers, and buy strategically with fewer suppliers rather than add hoc with lots.
3. Cash is king-tighten credit controls, use whatever leverage you can and monitor regularly.
4.Cut OK costs-concentrate on areas with the most savings, get staff ideas (they often are closes to spending waste) and be ruthless with “nice to have” costs.
5. Cut stock-keep your inventory to a minimum-convert old stock to cash, and reduce slow moving lines.
6. Staff-think outside the box regarding job roles and personnel. Keep and reward that add value to your business, and clean out those that don’t.
7. Processes- examine your procedures and invest in more efficient processes. Look for duplication and bottlenecks.
8. Outsource? A great way to make a fixed cost into a flexible one. But make sure it’s right for the business.
9. Location-not a realistic option for some businesses, but huge costs can be sauced by moving departments/functions abroad or even elsewhere in the UK.
10. Look after key customers-get closer to your customers, offer real value, and keep them interested and talking to you. Make judicial use of emailers, direct mail, face to face and sales promotion. The Corporate Gifts Co can supply executive incentives from; sterling silver to clocks and from USB drives to desk accessories. Call today on 0845 430 2902
Posts Tagged ‘executive incentives’
Get ready for recovery
Wednesday, September 2nd, 2009Christmas is coming
Friday, August 28th, 2009Christmas is coming Notebook and pen
Cone wine stopper
Champagne stopper
Carriage clock
Deco clock
City desk set
Puzzle globe
Handbag mirror
5 x7 photo frame
In these very uncertain times, there is still one thing we know for certain; Christmas will be here again on the 25th December! And whilst this has certainly not been a year to write home about, there will be still many companies sending (and receiving) corporate gifts this yuletide. The promotions market is, of course, much more sophisticated than a hamper or bottle of Bells at Christmas, nevertheless, Christmas is still the busiest time of the year with last minute decisions and turnarounds at break-neck speed.
Companies still want to recognise customers and staff at the end of the year by showing their appreciation and loyalty for the past and ushering in hope of prosperity in the New Year. Business gifts at Christmas are also a favourite for winning new customers too.
If chosen carefully, a desirable and appropriate promotional item branded with your logo will stay in the mind and on the desk long into the New Year.
The Corporate Gifts Company specialise in silver plated and leather items perfect for yuletide marketing and sales promotion. Our stock is held on site and carried out in –house so that we can achieve those impossible turn around times needed in the run up to the big day.
Be careful not to buy a cheap “stocking filler” promo give-away that will be discarded with the junk mail (so often a false economy that rarely delivers the desired results) but choose a truly memorable and desirable silver plated or leather gift. We offer some fantastic packaging options to compliment our gift box available as standard. All you need to do now is choose. Here are our ten top selling Christmas executive incentives (in no particular order.)
Make your promotion special
Friday, August 21st, 2009Make your promotion special
Promotional campaigns come in all shapes and sizes. Quantities, target audience etc all vary; from hundreds of thousands of plastic pens at a few pence as give–aways, to a prestigious item for heads of state. When budgets are squeezed like now, there is always awareness that a “special” corporate gift for selected customers or staff can have a bigger impact and can be more cost effective than adapting a scattergun approach that is so often prevalent when times are better and budgets are more liberal. If you allocate the same budget but purchase fewer items coupled with a targeted approach, your promotional campaign can be cost effective with greater results
Segmentation of your database is key. You can slice your pie any number of ways (dependant on your goals and targets along with your particular market) from top spenders to key decision makers, or from most profitable customers to lapsed customers. Good data, of course, is essential, and put good use a series of highly targeted campaigns to defined customer groups will always be better than a blanket campaign to your whole database.
The Corporate Gifts Company
specialise in high – end business gifts and executive incentives ideal for targeted promotions. Engraving individual names onto a corporate gift such as a desk item adds little cost will have a huge impact. So, the next campaign you plan, try to segment into customer groups with different messages and choose your corporate gifts accordingly.
Make your promotion special
Workplace Fraud – the enemy within
Thursday, May 14th, 2009Expenses fraud has probably existed since the the very first expense form was ever created. Perhaps the most topical and burning question in the UK today is how our polititians have had their noses in the expenses trough. I’m surprised everyone’s so surprised and outraged; surely everyone who works in an office or corporate environment knows everyone’s at it.
Only a few months ago, The Chartered Management Institute released a new guide to help combat corruption and fraud in the workplace after it was revealed that 48% of UK offices have suffered fraud – and that’s just the ones we know about.
Apparently there are three problem areas that create fraud-friendly conditions; a lack of internal controls, unclear reporting structures and a “blame culture”. Well, most UK companies must suffer from at least one of those!
So here at The Corporate Gift Company we specialise in providing business gifts and executive incentives that promote achievement and encourage best practice. So what corporate gifts could we suggest to discourage an expenses fiddle here, or a bit of fraud there?
Well, how about our best selling “City Desk Set” ; perfect for making a note of all those expenses and there’s even somewhere to keep the receipts.
Or what about the very popular “Decision Maker Pen Stand” to help you do the right thing!
Or the diverting “Wobble” pen – for those who can’t stay on the straight and narrow.
Just a few ideas! What do you think?
It’s all about the Service, Stupid.
Monday, April 20th, 2009At a recent exhibition for the promotional gift industry (Trade Only), the BPMA (British Promotional Merchandise Association) ran a survey of visitors’ rationale for supplier selection. Surprisingly, even in these credit crunched times, the most important consideration is not price but customer service.
Perhaps on further consideration it is not so surprising; when every promotional initiative needs to work and work well, of course cost is very important, but more important is the belief that your promotional product or business gift will be delivered on time and with correct and appropriate branding.
The Corporate Gifts Company have 18 years of experience in supplying promotional gifts – with that sort of track record, we’re just the sort of company you need to ensure your corporate gift is delivered on time. We have ISO9002 (the international quality standard), Investors in People and a comprehensive CSR policy.
Stock on site; we hold all our stock in our on-site warehouse, so when we say the stock is available, it means it’s there on the shelf allocated to you, not half way round the world at the mercy of freight or customs.
If something is likely to go wrong it will be with the branding of your promotional gift; The Corporate Gifts Company have an in-house branding department so we stay in complete control of your order which gives you total peace of mind.
Communication; The Corporate Gifts Company’s considerable experience in dealing with fast turnaround orders for branded promotional gifts means we know it’s vital to provide our customers with regular and timely information, from order acknowledgement to receipt of artwork to artwork proofs and delivery information.
All this means that you can trust the Corporate Gifts Co to deliver your promotional product on time and exactly as you order it – and in these difficult times that peace of mind is priceless. Call our expert team today on 0845 430 2902.
NEW PROMOTIONAL GIFTS WEBSITE
Sunday, December 28th, 2008Today, our team embarked on the design and production of a new website specifically for promotional products. As you will no doubt know (as you’re actually on the site now) our current website www.corporate-gifts-co.com specialises in affordable design-led high end premiums and executive incentives, but we recognise that our standard range is not always appropriate for every corporate event or promotional activity.
Of course, we have years of sourcing expertise and are always delighted to help our customers find exactly the right business gift for their particular promotion, but it is difficult for customers to grasp when our crrent website promotes mainly high quality silver and leather gifts.
The new website www.promotional-gifts-co.com will, therefore, concentrate on offering value solutions, high volume promotional products and giveaways; everything from pens to baseball caps, and umberellas to polo shirts.
What will make us different from all the other general promotional websites out there? Well, as part of the Corporate Gifts Company family, you can be assured that our service and quality will be second to none and our 20 years of experience of delivering promotional solutions on time and to budget will set us apart from the crowd.
Launch will be early January, so, as they say, watch this space. But in the meantime, if you do have any general promotional product enquiries, then call our experienced sales team and we will be able to source the right product for your promotion.
SO WHAT IS ENGRAVING FOR PROMOTIONAL ITEMS?
Friday, December 5th, 2008I’m sure most of you will have an idea of what engraving is, but I guess the majority will probably think of the little chap at the Open Golf Championship hand engraving the winners name at the last minute, or maybe the guy in the shoe repair shop who has a 50 year old manual engraving machine in the corner of his shop.
Times have moved on, but people still equate engraving with quality, and moreover the overall quality of the item or gift. So when buying promotional items, what does engraving mean in terms of reproducing your corporate logo?
There are many types of “marking” methods for advertising gifts, cheaper promo items tend to be printed as this is very cost effective. Leather can be embossed or blocked. Glass can be engraved or sand blasted. Etc, etc, etc. When it comes to metal items the most common method of branding is either diamond or laser engraving.
Here at the Corporate Gift Company we use diamond engraving. Laser engraving is particularly good in some circumstances and it’s resolution is particularly good on fine detail. As it actually burns the surface of the metal, however, it can effect can look “burnt” and a bit yellowy. Even when it is good it looks like a grey print. In which case, why not print it instead? Print is associated with promo giveaways, so if you are paying £20 for a promotional clock or desk item, why would you choose a branding method that cheapens the product. After all, a promotional product is all about perception and impact, so it is important to enhance the perceived value of your corporate gift, not lessen it.
At the Corporate Gifts Company we have 10 state of the art computerised diamond engraving machines to give you the quality and turnaround times necessary to make your promotion a success. Logos are plotted, vectorised and digitised using specialist software and the item is then engraved reproducing your logo as you’ve never seen it before. But even though the engraving machines are computerised, it still uses a diamond tip to mark the surface of the metal, giving the logo a shimmer that no other marking method can match, enhancing and increasing the perceived value of your corporate incentive.
Of course it’s a matter of personal taste, but 20 years of experience tells us that if you want to make the biggest impact with your executive gift, then diamond engraving is the best choice.
Call our sales team today on 0845 430 9202 to find out how we can translate your logo for maximum promotional impact.
THE SEVEN “TOUCHES” OF MARKETING
Sunday, November 16th, 2008On average it takes seven “touches” to convert a cold customer to a sale. Sounds daunting doesn’t it? If you’re using only one vehicle for your message (eg traditional advertising), that’s a lot of exposure, a lot of cost, probably over a prolonged period of time. Smart companies utilise more than one “channel” to get to their marketing target. 360 degree marketing in the modern jargon, although it’s good old fashioned common sense when you think about it.
So what “channels” are available to corporate companies for their promotional activities? Advertising, emailers, exhibitions, face to face meetings, post mail shots or catalogues, pr, and promotional advertising gifts. Obviously that’s where the Corporate Gifts Company comes in.
Corporate advertising products are an essential part of the marketing mix. They are, however, often the poor relation in the marketing family, left until last minute without much thought or attention. If it does indeed mean that seven touches of marketing activity are required to convert prospects to customers, then it’s obvious that marketeers need every weapon in their amoury.
Choosing the most appropriate promotional product, therefore, is essential and as much time, effort and care should go into the selection of your business gifts and advertising items as any other aspect of your marketing budget. Appropriate is the key word, of course, and like any marketing activity an ill considered “off message” piece of marketing can actually harm your company’s product or reputation.
So what about some examples from the experts? Who’s that, you cry. Why, the Corporate Gifts Co, of course.
How about these cufflinks for a conference including men and woman? http://www.corporate-gifts-co.com/acatalog/corporate_gifts_cufflinks.html . Rediculous you say. Of course you’d be right, but this is a true story. These are, however, perfect for an executive male option, and if you choose something for the men and something for the ladies, it really says you’ve put some thought into it.
How about this smart, contemporary yet traditional clock. http://www.corporate-gifts-co.com/acatalog/corporate_gifts_deco_clock.html Can’t go wrong? A safe bet for virtually any promotional activity, unless some or all of the intended targets are Chinese (where the clock signifies death).
This great hip flask http://www.corporate-gifts-co.com/acatalog/corporate_gifts_3oz_hip_flask.html, used for an AA promotion! Alright I made that one up (in fact it would be disasterous for either AA’s, alcholic and motoring). But great for a Christmas promotion.
Business card cases are one of the most effective and popular business executive gifts and the Corporate Gifts Co has a fantastic collection of these promotional stallwarts. http://www.corporate-gifts-co.com/acatalog/corporate_gifts_card_holders.html . Just make sure your target audience actually uses business cards – not great for the guys on the shop floor.
But don’t be alarmed at this potential minefield. Over the last 20 years The Corporate Gifts Co has seen it all (promotionally speaking), and our experienced sales team are available to help you make the right choice for your promotional gift, whatever the audience and event. Call them today on 0845 230 2902 and make sure this part of the “seven touches” of marketing is done right!
