As you might imagine, we work with a lot of folks just starting their Marketing, HR, and Sales careers. I can tell you from personal experience that entry-level positions in these fields normally involve the execution of many administrative-type tasks (for example, managing the promo closet). These activities are important, but can also be very time consuming. Unfortunately, that doesn’t often leave much time to work on the big picture, strategic stuff that we really want to tackle.

Thankfully, there are a number of FREE online tools at your disposal to help you claim some time back from your day. The four apps below, even in their stripped-down entry-level versions, help our team keep their arms around multi-step projects and activities. This, in turn, allows us to remain focused on creating value for our customers. Each of these programs also features a companion mobile app and, best of all, they are scalable—they grow as your team expands or your projects become more complex.

Check ‘em out:

• TRELLO

Imagine a world where...

If you haven’t noticed, annual conventions and customer conferences are becoming increasingly popular in the B2B world. In fact, I’ve already attended two myself this year. As marketers, we relish the opportunity to hold customers/prospects captive for a day or more, knowing that we have a good chance of upselling, cross-selling, or at least increasing loyalty. It’s high-stakes, however, as the cost of putting on these events can equate to the GDP of a small country. As such, it’s critical that we make the most of these events.

For our money, RFID attendee tracking is the best way to maximize ROI, and the affordable branded RFID wristband you see pictured below is the key. It does 7 things for you:

1. It’s so much cooler than a name badge. You have the opportunity to stand out from your peers and competitors and bring some “wow” factor before they even get to the conference. Imagine the impact of mailing the wristbands to attendees before your event! Now dream about photos of that wristband appearing all over social media with your “Con” hashtag.

2. If your...

Earlier this year we attended the largest Promo & Apparel show in the world. During our three days on the convention floor, we observed several themes and product trends that are going to be prevalent this year. Stay up to speed by clicking here to see our Top 10 Trends list! You can also click on any spotlighted product within the list to learn more about that item.

During one of our normal, deep lunch discussions, we asked our newest Collegiate Account Manager, Ariana, how her transition from full-time student to full-time career has been…because many of us are too old to remember what that was like.

What was your most difficult adjustment?

College may prepare you for the duties and tasks required in the workforce, but no one talks about how you must adjust your daily life according to these new responsibilities. For many of us, adjusting to the whole “9-5” lifestyle was the most difficult part of the onboarding experience. Every weekday I am expected to work a full day, utilizing my time to build up my client base, research new products, and analyze sales reports with my team to better serve our customers. The first couple weeks I wasn’t accustomed to the long, consistent hours and it was an adjustment to wake up at the same time every day for work – especially when you’re used to waking up at random times based on your class schedule. Now that I’m three months in, I can honestly say I love it!

...

Let’s face it, not everyone has a sizable budget for promotional items. If you’re like me, there’s been a time in your life when you’ve had “SWAG Envy.” Someone else at a trade show, maybe even a competitor, had a more expensive, trendy giveaway item making their booth the talk of the show. There are worse things in the world, but let’s be honest…it’s a total letdown.

Here’s reassuring news: I’ve seen people spend ridiculous amounts of money on items and not generate a single sale out of their investment. I’ve also seen people spend a modest amount of money on less exciting items and achieve a fantastic return. There are any number of cool giveaway items out there, but remember that your end goal with a promotional product is to become top of mind. In other words, you want to generate Brand Recognition and beyond that, Brand Recall. What really matters most then is the Total Number of Impressions created by the item.

I bet you can think of at least one promotional product you received that seemed so exciting but ended up being a bust. I once received a...

A few months ago my girlfriend received an offer to join a global technical services company. Her role as a Technical Editor allows her to work remotely here on the East Coast, which was a great selling point for her (and selfishly, for me too). During her onboarding, she received all of the obligatory legal-sized envelopes full of paperwork and documents outlining benefits and such. Along with those, she also received something that caught her completely off-guard…in a good way. While she was getting acquainted with her new MacBook Pro® (so jealous), an email arrived from her Human Resources department with directions for accessing the company's internal web store. The message also included a purchase code for a free “New Hire Package.” Seriously?

Of course, she immediately clicked on the link to investigate this mysterious “New Hire Package." When she read out loud the list of items included in the kit, I honestly couldn't believe it. I read the screen with my own eyes and it was exactly as she said: a backpack, softshell jacket, Contigo® water bottle, journal book,...