A rather successful team

I recently got hooked on a television show called “Leverage” (thanks, Mom!). For those of you who haven’t seen it, it’s about a team of “bad guys” who use their combined skills to play Robin Hood. As I’ve been making my way through season 2 I realized how the various team members and their talents could be applied to a company and its employees (or the sole owner and their many hats).

“The Grifter”
In the series, Sophie is the experienced grifter or con artist. She’s the actress of many faces who can manage to hook a mark and earn their confidence. She also often lends her expertise on “reading” people to her fellow team members when they take up her normal role.

In a business, you have someone similar, be it a sales person, customer service rep or the social media team. These are the folks that put forth the face of the company and build relationships with clients. Unlike Sophie, these team members are genuine in their excitement about meeting people and helping them find the products or services they are looking for.

“The Hacker”
Hardison is the Leverage team’s computer expert. He’s not only a hacker but has a great deal of technical knowledge about computer systems as well as a wealth of geek knowledge that challenges my own!

In today’s digital age an IT department/person is an integral part of any company, be it in house or through a computer company or a combination of both. When the database crashes or the copier decides to rebel it’s important to have someone to call on who knows how to get things back up and running smoothly in a short amount of time.

"You deleted the internet?!"

“The Hitter”
Leverage member Eliot is often the muscle of the team. He’s an excellent actor and has a knack for being able to get his fellow team members out of sticky situations without firing a single shot (though we’re not counting the number of broken bones).

With luck your business doesn’t actually have a literal need for a “Hitter” but more than likely there’s a member of your team who works more behind the scenes. Be it your production team or a dedicated order entry person, these folks get their hands dirty each day to make sure that everything runs without a hitch.

“The Thief”
An expert thief, Parker is quite accomplished at evading security systems during break-ins and has a love of daring feats such as rappelling off of rooftops to escape or gain entrance to a heist. Though somewhat socially awkward, she has talent for knowing the fine details of her job and how to best use them.

On the opposite end of the spectrum of a “Thief” but often just as unassuming as Parker, there are often people in a business who provide the little things that brighten a day or just help grease the cogs. Maybe it’s as simple as planning a company lunch one Friday or the person who leaves the package of colored post-it notes on your desk but they often manage these things quietly and with a smile.

“The Mastermind”
Nate is the “leader” of the Leverage group. He’s the one that pulled the team together knowing how their talents would work and he often chooses jobs and roles for everyone not only based on the marks but how well he knows his team. Though they often have a plan in place he trusts that if the time for improvisation arises, his team members will be up to the job.

A good manager has the same knowledge of the team in their company. They know the skills that everyone has and the potential they have lurking beneath the surface. Such managers give their employees room to improvise, trusting that they’ll rise to the task.

It's all about teamwork

Whether you wear one or several of these hats, like the folks in Leverage, you know that all are parts of a whole. Though each can work a job on their own, they do their best work together.

Amusing to see what can be learned from a television show about a bunch of bad guys turned Robin Hoods.

What do you think? Are there other folks who fit the bill for each of these team members? Drop a line and let us know!

(photos via TNT.com)

Seen a few of these around?

I normally try to avoid posting blogs with the same reference twice in just a week but this one couldn’t be helped!

In the month of January I became aware of a new, almost silent, viral marketing campaign that started in the UK and made its way to several other countries, including the US. What’s most interesting about this particular bit of marketing is that it seems to have been started by fans and not the studio attached to this particular television series, BBC’s Sherlock.

Around the world signs, notes and photos are cropping up in random places such as bulletin boards, telephone poles, stuck to walls and mirrors, left on tables, shelves and books and so on. All these messages say essentially the same thing: “I Believe in Sherlock Holmes” and often mention a hashtag #believeinsherlock. Checking twitter for that hashtag will lead you to many posts where folks are commenting and tweeting pictures about how they believe in Sherlock and that Moriarty was real.

I believe!

Though I can’t go into the details of what the messages mean (as that would mean spoiling the second series of the show for those who haven’t seen it) it’s been interesting to see how fans all over the world have taken up the call. And still, the part that amazes me the most is that it wasn’t started or hinted at by the studio and its marketing team (at least, not that we know of). This is a fan movement that has become a bit of viral marketing for the show.Even yours truly has taken up her own part in the viral marketing. I’ve already started leaving notes and signs on boards and randomly in places that I think they might be noticed.

Free marketing started and made viral by the very folks you are selling to? What company could argue with that?

What do you think of such tactics started by fans and customers? Do you think it might be effective to spread the word about a product such as a television show?

(photos by Juliette)

Consulting Detectives

In the world of BBC’s “Sherlock” word of mouth is often more than enough advertising for the world’s only consulting detective, Sherlock Holmes and his counterpart, the world’s only consulting criminal, Jim Moriarty. Their fame and notoriety spreads like wildfire, often thanks to each other.  Sherlock’s name is known through Scotland Yard and Moriarty’s name is whispered quietly and the “name no one says”. In any case, both are known and known well in their select circles.

Of course, as a fan of the new series (and of the original Sherlock Holmes novels) I began to wonder what kind of promotional products they might use if both Sherlock and Moriarty wanted to expand their client base. I came up with a couple of ideas for both of them!

Hangtags
Not exactly a subtle calling card but for some reason I can see Moriarty making sure that the criminals in his network have plenty of hangtags to leave behind at the scene of a crime, just hanging on a door or in a car. They wouldn’t even need contact information, simply the name “Moriarty”. Though they would obviously be picked up by the police first it’s quite likely that the news of such an item hanging on the door of a crime scene would spread and be heard by other folks in need of a consulting criminal.

Jim Moriarty - Consulting Criminal

Dog Tags
Though I doubt that Sherlock himself would ever think about using a promotional product, John Watson is the practical side of the duo and I’m fairly certain he’d make use of them in order to drum up business. With his military background I think that dog tags would be a natural choice for him. He would be able to pass them on to current clients at the end of a case. I imagine the clients hanging them from a mirror or in their cars until a friend or acquaintance might have need of a consulting detective and passing the tags with John and Sherlock’s contact information along.

Screen Printed Metallic Decals
For an idea that would be perfect for either the detective or criminal, these decals would be perfect. A gold or silver background and a simple black imprint with either the name “Moriarty” or perhaps “221B” or just the profile of Sherlock would be instantly recognizable in the world of BBC’s Sherlock. I’d imagine Moriarty simply leaving them in random places as he passes knowing that the folks who could use his services would recognize his name. Again, I don’t think of Sherlock as using them but I can see John making sure they are placed in locations where many folks would see them every day. The repeated exposure would make sure they are the ones that come to mind should folks need the services of the world’s only consulting detective.

There are many other promo products that come to mind that these characters might make use of but these there the three that stood out.

What products do you think they might be inclined to use to spread word of their respective talents? Drop us a line and let us know!

(this post by Juliette who is somewhat addicted to BBC’s Sherlock)

Photos via BBC

Last week I had an interesting conversation with a couple of friends while waiting to see the wrestler Mick Foley perform standup comedy at a local club. I was searching through my backpack for a pen and she whipped one out of her purse for me. As I took it I noticed it was imprinted with a medical/drug company logo and before I could say anything she actually gave the full spiel for the drug. I couldn’t help but laugh that she knew it by heart.

Out of curiosity I asked her opinion of receiving promo products like the pen that I was holding. (Bear in mind that she didn’t know that I worked in the industry.)

Guess what, my PromoHomies?

She loves them! Pens are her favorite items to be given and all she has to do is look at the logo on the item to remember the service that it advertises completely.

I hadn’t expected to get into a conversation about the effectiveness of promotional products at a comedy club but it made me happy to hear, first-hand, how well they work.

Have you gotten into similar conversations with folks who aren’t in the industry and aren’t customers? What have you discovered from their answers? Drop a line in the comments and let me know!

P.S. For anyone who wanted to know, Mick Foley had some awesome comedy to share and he stayed to chat and sign things for folks! This wrestling fan/PromoHomie was quite pleased.

(photo by Juliette)

Happy Holidays from all of us!

We wanted to wish all of you a safe and wonderful holiday this season! May your holidays be full of happiness and cheer!

Jacob Marley

One of my all time favorite Christmas traditions from my childhood is the Scrooge/Christmas Carol marathon that my mom, sister, and I partook in every Christmas.  We would all settle down in from of the TV set with at least 3 movies of our favorite miser, pull out all the Christmas presents (except what we purchased for each other) and had a wrapping party.  Sometime this would span a couple days, sometimes it was a night long affair.  While we’re not all able to get together for Christmas much with all of us living in different states all over the country, it is a tradition that I have kept going with my family down here.  This year, I can’t help but think of work while watching the movies and seeing how each ghost can relate to this industry.

The Ghost of Christmas Past

Scrooge’s history is immutable.  It cannot be changed and will always have the same impact.  He moves from a time when Christmas was able to be enjoyed because of the actions of his sister and Mr. Fezziwig.  But as he grew older and more consumed with the endless pursuit of wealth, the joy of Christmas dimmed.

Everyone has a badge style that is their default style.  When they first discovered it, it was the joy of their badge life.  When a client came around looking for a new badge for their company, the first one off their lips was this style.  Whether it was a simple engraved badge (like the Los Angeles) or a complex shape like the New Orleans, it was the one to go to.  Perhaps other styles were overlooked because they required more effort or cost more.  Just like Scrooge got into the mindset that Christmas was all about the money spent and not the why, perhaps it’s time to look at a new style.  It may cost more, but it may just provide that additional impact that brings your client back begging for more.

Scrooge

The Ghost of Christmas Present

Scrooge gets to see everyone else having fun and enjoying themselves in different ways, both with and without money (mostly without).  Whether it be the simple joy of sliding down the icy patch in the road or the gathering of plenty of friends and games, the plentiful sources of joy begin to show Scrooge that maybe money isn’t the sole source of happiness.

In the same way, maybe there is one thing that you excel in with the industry and it is your bread and butter.  Don’t get caught just in that track.  Look around and see what other people are doing.  Be open to seeing new ways of promoting.  Like Promo Blocks for offering a door prize or a Crystal View sign as a new way of designating a desk for a high turnaround company.  The customization options are vast.

The Ghost of Christmas Future

If he doesn’t change, Scrooge is destined for the heavy chain that Marley wove for himself and Tiny Tim is destined to die.

Like Scrooge and Tiny Tim, the cost can be heavy if a forward look isn’t involved in purchasing.  There’s always someone who loses their badge (or throws it in the washing machine).  Or maybe someone wasn’t able to sign up for a badge before the cutoff.  Whatever the reason, ordering just one badge right after your main order has been completed can feel like a heavy chain (or a task so erroneous that you would rather not do it at all).  With a little foresight and a Badgewarehouse you can avoid that frustration and look forward to business being covered for a long time to come.

What about you?  Any products that are your defaults that you may branch out from or trends you’re seeing and would like to jump on?

(photos by Juliette)

The Dark Knight Rises

Tis the season….for viral marketing!

If you’ve been following our blog and social media sites then you probably know that I’m not only a huge geek and Batman fan but I love a good viral marketing campaign. Earlier this year I wrote about the “The Dark Knight” viral marketing that even years later left an impression as the best one I’ve seen (and participated in). Since then I’ve been curious to know if the final installment of the series, “The Dark Knight Rises”, would also have a viral marketing campaign of its own.

As of last week, I was rewarded.

The campaign kicked off this week with various documents being sent to a couple of magazines and then twitter accounts for the movie popping up and giving out clues. Fans who found the website of the first clue, www.operationearlybird, saw a countdown that ended at 10am PST on Friday. After that folks were able to see a map of the world with various cities lit with a green dot. Those cities marked the locations of a special screening of the prologue of “The Dark Knight Rises”. Fans were able to reserve up to 2 passes each for the screenings (most of which took place last night, the 13^th). As the screenings filled the dots changed to yellow, orange and finally red.

Operation Early Bird Map - 12/12/11

I’d have to say that this first stage of viral marketing was pretty successful as the map later showed most of the screening locations as full and as I happily sat in line for three hours to see a single 6 minute clip on the IMAX. Also we were rewarded with a cool promo product – t-shirts! So far the campaign seems to be following the rumors that it will be similar to the one for “The Dark Knight”.

So, my fellow marketing geeks, will you be following this particular viral marketing campaign? Do you think it will do as well as the previous one for “The Dark Knight”?

(photos via TheDarkKnightRises.com & OperationEarlyBird.com)

Holiday Cheer!

When not making name badges and Promo Blocks, the folks at the Imagery Group love to celebrate seasons and holidays. This year I took a quick survey of favorite holiday movies. Some people immediately shouted out one particular movie, other folks couldn’t pick just one. After tallying up the votes I am happy to present our list of top ten holiday movies and the honorable mentions!

10. Edward Scissorhands
Like Die Hard, this is one that may not immediately come to mind as a Christmas movie but I can’t imagine letting the season pass without watching it at least once. The soundtrack alone is perfect to play while decorating the tree or just wanting to feel the wonder of the season.

9-6 tied!

9. A Charlie Brown Christmas
It’s hard to believe that they sell that sad little Christmas tree in stores these days. But who doesn’t remember the sweetness of this particular movie, especially when Linus wrapped his blanket around the base of the tree to give it support?

8. Miracle on 34^th Street (the original)
Another classic and definitely great one to pair with “It’s a Wonderful Life”. There’s something about this particular movie that brings out the warm fuzzy feelings of the holiday season.

7. Various Scrooge movies
There are so many movies based on “A Christmas Carol” that it’s hard to catch them all! Still, most of us at the office enjoy at least one of the bunch. (I’m partial to Mickey’s Christmas Carol and the Patrick Stewart version and one coworker adores the Alistair Sim version!)

6. Die Hard
Not only is it my favorite Christmas movie but it’s also the first one that got shouted out when I posed the question to several folks one afternoon. I admit, it’s not Christmas until I’ve seen John McClane go head to head with Hans Gruber.

5-2 tied!

5. How the Grinch Stole Christmas
Yep, there are several of us that enjoy spending a few hours lost in Whoville and watching the Grinch find his heart. Both the cartoon version and the newer Jim Carrey version are worth a watch!

4. It’s a Wonderful Life
This is one that I don’t usually watch every year but for other people it’s a yearly must-have. It’s a Christmas movie that reminded us to not only be careful what we wish for but to also appreciate the effect we’ve had on the people in our lives.

3. The Nightmare Before Christmas
Always good to watch both at Christmas and Halloween, this Tim Burton film never fails to make several of our Imagery Groupers smile. Plus it had a soundtrack that only encourage singing along!

2. A Christmas Story
It’s a classic and though most of us get more than enough of this one thanks to marathons at Christmas, it’s still well loved and taught kids the dangers of licking frozen poles. And though it was made fun of in the movie, who doesn’t want a leg lamp?

And the number one pick?

1. National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation
This one easily got the most votes from folks here at the office. Looks like no one can resist a good Christmas comedy!

Honorable Mentions

Though these films didn’t make the top 10 they are definitely worth mentioning!

Holiday Inn
Elf
Emmet Otter’s Jug-Band Christmas
Polar Express
Home Alone
Bad Santa

And though it’s technically an episode from a television show, I just have to mention the first episode from the second series of Doctor Who, featuring the Tenth Doctor: “Christmas Invasion“. This episode now has one of my top favorite Christmas songs (written specially for the episode) called “Song for Ten”.

Did we miss any particular movies that you guys have in your “must see” holiday list? Let us know!

Hammering out the details

We know that selling name badges can be difficult. There are a ton of things to know about how badges are made and what processes and materials would work best for what you need. In the past we’ve blogged with (what we hoped are) helpful posts about different aspects of the “badge making process”.

To help you guys this holiday season and to give you an extra tool to start off the new year we’ve compiled all those awesome and informative blog posts into one list!

Materials
Go, go gadget plastic knowledge!
A Gaggle of Plastics

Engraving
Engraving is engraving, right?

Printing
Printing Here, Printing There, Full Color Printing Everywhere!

Name List Formatting
Name List Workshop – Lesson 1: The basics
Name List Workshop – Lesson 2: Splitting one column into two
Name List Workshop – Lesson 3: Combining two columns into one
Name List Workshop – Lesson 4: The final cleanup

Badgewarehouse
A Quick Explanation of our Badgewarehouse

Order Process
Your Order’s Journey – Part 1
Your Order’s Journey – Part 2

QR Codes
Code Monkey! – QR Codes and Name Badges
Revisiting QR Codes

As we add more posts about our processes we’ll be sure to update and repost this list for easy reference!

Are there any aspects of name tag creation that you’d like to know more about? Drop us a line on here, Twitter or Facebook and let us know!

Gotham's Rogues Gallery

I have a habit of comparing things to superheroes or villains. It’s almost as bad as my habit of trying to identify engraving fonts on the name badges of random strangers. It seemed natural that eventually I’d start comparing our different styles of name badges to some of my favorite DC villains. After all, if the members of Batman’s Rogues Gallery had to wear name badges, what would they pick?

Oswald for Mayor!

The Penguin

I see Oswald Coppblepot as a man who prefers an upscale, elegant badge that matches his skin tone. To me, that screams “The Aspen Name Badge!” With the brushed silver color of the aluminum he could easily have a an elegant logo in black and white that would stand out from the crowd whether he’s shaking hands in a political campaign or holding bank clerks hostage at umbrellapoint.

Poison Ivy

Who doesn’t want a badge that’s environmentally conscious and still makes a statement? For Pamela Isley, better known as Poison Ivy, I imagine she’d like the elegance of the Los Angeles Plastic Badge with an engraved logo of a deadly plant. Why do I think this one might be her favorite? No printing goes on this badge and the plastic is recyclable.

Two-Face

Former ADA Harvey Dent has to have a way to showcase his split personality, just in case his very distinctive appearance doesn’t do the trick. What better than a two-sided full color tag like the Nashville Badge? Much like his lucky coin, this badge may better let his henchmen known ahead of time what personality is currently running the show.

The Riddler

Edward Nygma proved as much of a challenge as his riddles often do when I tried to pick out a badge for him. Then it hit me, The Budget Badge! It’s reusable and so it’s perfect for a variety of aliases (that all relate to riddles) and its full color so he can make sure to have a green border with black question marks around the edges. Though the question marks won’t fool anyone this badge might also come in handy to leave at crime scenes with different clues written on them. How’s that for branding?

The Scarecrow

Jonathan Crane, former doctor at Arkham Asylum, now often finds himself imprisoned there for crimes committed under his criminal alias, The Scarecrow. He still retains a great deal of dignity from his previous “lawful” life and as such I see him preferring the elegance of the New York Brass Badge. The bright gold of the brass would have an old-fashioned appeal and the engraved name would complete the look for the doctor-turned-villain.

Clowns are fun!

Harley Quinn

Choosing a name tag for one of my two favorite rogues, Harleen Quinzel (but call her Harley, everyone does) was harder than I thought it would be! After a great deal of thought I realized the answer was staring at me from our catalog: The New Orleans Badge. It’s a custom shaped badge on 2-ply plastic. I can already imagine the basic rectangular shape with a diamond sticking up from the corner. Perhaps all done on white plastic with a black and red logo and her name laser engraved in a Comic Sans font would suit her perfectly!

The Joker

The Clown Prince of Crime wouldn’t settle for any ordinary badge and he needs one that proclaims his identity from a distance. I think the Mesa Name Badge would work perfectly. With the full color custom shape he can have his very identifiable Joker head logo as the shape of the badge itself and as the imprint! The name could fit perfectly in that smile, perhaps in a font that even looks like teeth! It’s a badge that he could leave as a calling card when he runs out of playing cards at the patent office or when fleeing the scene after Batman foils another heist. And I’m sure there are plenty of citizens who would be instantly terrified at the sight of that shaped name badge attached to their door!

And of course, with how often these infamous rogues need to flee crime scenes and end up taking advantage of Arkham Asylum’s rotating door policy, they’ll need to make sure they either have a stock of these badges in their hideouts or they’ll want to use Badgewarehouse instead; after all, hideouts do get raided!

I know I left out many other villains that folks love but I’d love to hear your suggestions for the ones that aren’t on this list! Leave a comment below and let me know what you think!

(this post brought to you by Juliette who can relate almost anything to Batman Villains)