Marketing and Sales

Fred Albrecht is an accomplished business owner, mentor and coach, who together with his wife, Suzette, built a $40 million business in the promotional products and print industry, Proforma Albrecht & Co. “Relationships matter more than anything,” Albrecht says. “It’s all about building a company one great person at a time."...

In 2021, the “What” matters less. “We don’t have a budget for that” or “We’re not doing that event this year” should not be the conversation. “How are you getting new customers?” and “How are you saying ‘thank you’ to your employees?” will drive more fruitful conversations. It requires a paradigm shift. We can no longer focus on low prices and...

Instagram is expanding its e-commerce platform for creators, making it easier for them to sell their branded merchandise and creating what Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg calls a “creator middle class.” Certain users could sell products directly on Instagram for a little while now, but this expansion will bring full “creator shops” and...

IMAGEN Brands, Mason, Ohio, has announced the addition of Laura Guerrero as national account manager. Guerrero joined IMAGEN Brands in mid-March, bringing her extensive sales background and promotional product knowledge to the supplier. Guerrero brings more than 12 years of experience to the role and has worked in the…

This month, I decided to bring in a new voice to show what it takes to make it in this ever-changing industry. Crissy Manwaring, an industry veteran and expert specializing in business development and recruiting talented salespeople, was kind enough to sit down with me to discuss what it takes to truly be successful in promotional products sales...

BAMKO reported another quarter of growth, with the Los Angeles distributor posting net sales growth of 124.9% and total sales of $58.9 million for the first quarter of 2021. PPE represented $26.8 million of that total. The numbers are a continuation of BAMKO's strong 2020, which saw the distributor increase full-year sales by 88% over 2019...

Proforma, Cleveland, announced that it will hold its annual Convention and Family Reunion live and in-person at the Gaylord Palms in Orlando, Fla., Aug. 8-11, 2021. The Convention theme for the event will be “Together,” embracing the opportunity to come together as a group after the extended period of distancing...

We have a great idea: promotional pizza. No, not the pizza box. The pizza itself has a logo on it. Maybe it’s burned into the cheese or something? Maybe you can spell it out in toppings? We’re still workshopping it. While you chew it over (heh), take a look at five other great promotional products that already exist...

The popularity of online marketplaces like Amazon.com, eBay, and Etsy has continued to grow each…

The Premier Group Network board of directors has announced Bob McLean, interim president of PPAI, as the guest speaker for the organization’s annual business meeting taking place today, Tuesday, April 27. McLean will welcome Premier Group members and share a brief state of the industry report...