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Printing The Correct Color On Your Promotional Advertising Calendars

October 24, 2013 by  

The printing industry loves color.   We love color on our calendars.   Customers love color on their advertising messages.   Color is what makes our lives more interesting and exciting.

But how does a company with a very recognizable logo get the right color every time it is printed?   Consider the logos used for popular soft drinks.   Would you recognize if they were printed in the wrong shade of red or blue?   Have you ever stopped to think how that situation is avoided?

Well, it’s rather simple.   There is a standard in the industry called Pantone® that essentially assigns a number to every possible color.   So, when a customer tells us they want their logo in #469 Brown and #109 Light Yellow we know exactly what colors the finished product should be.   Essentially, to accomplish this task is the proper mixing of established ratios of quality inks.   The system also provides a mechanism to ensure quality control of the printed product by using guides and monitoring equipment.

We often work closely with customers who desire these very strict standards when it comes to color reproduction on the products they purchase.   It’s what allows one company on the East Coast to print coffee mugs with the very same appearance as the calendars we print here in Minnesota.

When a customer tells us to print their logo in Kelly Green such directions are really not that helpful.   There is no standard for Kelly Green and what one printer might deem to be correct another printer might consider to be too dark.

To avoid such confusion the Pantone® system allows us to print colors correct the first time.   Now, typically when it comes to mixing inks to precise standards there are some additional charges involved.   However, we have an assortment of colors we consider standard that seems to suit most of our customers.

So, the next time you are looking for some color on your imprinted message don’t be surprised if we ask you what Pantone® Matching System (PMS) color you want printed.   If precise colors are not that important, we can easily handle that.   But when getting the correct color match is crucial, rest assured we have a mechanism in place to ensure those quality control standards will occur.

For additional information on promotional imprinted advertising message color possibilities please give one of our helpful customer service representatives a call.   We have the resources available to get your colors printed correctly the first time.

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There’s More Than One Way To Put (Calendar) Art On The Wall

October 17, 2013 by  

I’m guessing the need for art dates back probably to the caveman era when early man grew tired of looking at the same old blah-appearing walls all day long.   Take a little blood from harvested game animals for some red, perhaps some plants to stain various shades of green, and I think you get the idea.   Those early walls turned into rough examples of art in nearly no time.

Fast forward a few eons and that early need for color and style on our walls really hasn’t changed too much.   Oh, sure, today’s art in most cases doesn’t resemble anything like what a person would likely have found on those early drawings, but the concept is still the same.   We like color and style where we live and nothing serves that purpose better than art.

Now mind you there are many different forms of art.   In fact, what one person considers to be true artistic beauty another person might find difficult to appreciate.   Hence, another wonderful aspect to art–we don’t all appreciate the same things.   What appeals to many people by stirring passions inside fails to have that same effect on many others.

When it comes to putting art onto calendars it is only a marriage made in heaven.   Unlike most expensive art which a person might hang in their house for most of a lifetime, calendar art is different and made to be fresh.   In other words, why look at the same art image for years when a new month brings a new adventure to the eyes and to the mind.

At CalendarsNow.com we have been providing customers with a wide assortment of calendar art for nearly 25 years.   Some of our art offerings on calendars is new and fresh, but by design some others are old and very nostalgic.   Here’s a few tidbits of marketing wisdom we’ve learned about art calendars you might also want to consider:

  • If your customers and prospects are typically 50+ years choose an art theme that rekindles memories.   While nostalgic art calendars can appeal to all ages, the typical target audience for this genre of calendars is the more mature class.
  • Don’t overlook the power of wildlife art.   As it turns out wildlife art when used on calendars can be a power attraction.   Most people like beautiful, majestic animals in shown in their natural ecosystems.   Wildlife artists have a flair for capturing this powerful presence and thus bringing an otherwise two dimensional image to life.
  • Theme art, such as Western or Native American styles of artwork, works well on calendars because they offer both color and sometimes dramatic action scenes.   When customers value freedom and open spaces this style of calendar delivers.
  • We’ve also noticed how many people love the abstract.   They don’t want art that mimics a photographic image…instead they want colors and shapes that spur their imagination into overdrive.   This avant garde group of art aficionados tends to be bold in their personalities and their presence in life.   If you have customers who do not fit the cookie cutter mold that majority of people fit into, then calendar art with an unusual appeal could be the perfect choice.

Indeed, art as shown on calendars has many benefits.   It not only draws attention to the calendar, but often it does so in a dramatic, mind-capturing fashion.   It only stands to reason that when an imprinted promotional advertising calendar contains art it can stand out when hanging on the wall to get noticed.   After all, if you are marketing your business or brand with a calendar isn’t the main goal to get noticed?

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Consider QR Codes When Advertising On Calendars

October 16, 2013 by  

With the increasing use of smartphone technology comes both some conveniences and opportunities.   No longer is it necessary to remember long or complicated website addresses or URL’s…not with the advent of QR Codes (short for “quick response” codes).   Now, getting a customer or prospect to check out a new website is as easy as holding the phone in front of a square box of dots and dashes.

Yup, it’s really that simple.   With the correct app on your phone (and there are many of them for all smartphone platforms) QR reader apps will turn a confusing web address into a mobile friendly link easily explored from any handheld device with an optical reader.

So, why use QR Codes as an advertiser on a calendar imprint for business promotion?   Here are some quick thoughts you will want to consider:

  • Allows the advertiser to turn a complex web address into something requiring no thought by the customer or prospect.   In fact, a QR Code can direct folks to a specific landing page on your website which allows marketers to measure just how well the calendar is working as a promotional tool.
  • QR Codes can be accessed (scanned) and stored for later use in the smart device.   The traditional option is to hope calendar users remember the correct format for how the web address appeared.
  • Moreover, once a QR Code is scanned into a device it will be an additional reminder to check out the web address if they didn’t have time initially to do so.
  • QR Codes can be enabled so that when scanned the user is taken to a mobile friendly version of a company website where the online experience can be optimized.
  • Use of QR Codes give the public impression that a company is very technology oriented and savvy.
  • QR Codes allow a business to direct the user to specific sub-domains found on a corporate website where special offers can be targeting various customers and prospects.

Perhaps best of all, using QR Codes for an imprinted promotional advertising calendar order is available at no extra charge.   We do ask, however, that customers supply to us their camera-ready artwork for the code.

Have no idea how to generate a QR Code for your business?   No problem.   There are many free services to be found on the Internet to produce such graphics.   Just type in “QR Code Generator” in the search box of any search engine and you’ll likely be directed to several options.   Most are even free, but be careful they are not tracking you or the hits you hope to get with the QR Code.

In closing, if you are still having difficulty understanding what a QR Code can do for you think of it as working similar to a bar code found on nearly all products purchased in the store.   When you go to the check-out person they scan each bar code and can tally up what you want to purchase that day.   QR Codes work much the same way, although they appear and function much different.   Essentially when you have a QR Code for your business printed on a calendar it is a code for any smartphone user to find you and learn more about your company or products being offered.

Honestly, in this 21st Century why every business doesn’t have and use a QR Code is quite surprising.   Especially when we will include them on your next calendar at NO EXTRA COST.

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Choose A Calendar Style Your Customers Can’t Live Without!

October 15, 2013 by  

Did you realize how most of us are creatures of habit?   We get into a routine and suddenly something in life becomes comfortable, predictable, and very familiar.   We gravitate toward the things that provide those favorable emotions.   Some might say…we get stuck in a pattern and that suits many folks just fine.

Same holds true with calendars.   You would be surprised how many calls we get each fall from folks looking to buy just a single calendar.   Now, as explained in a previous post we can’t do that, but it reinforces the extent some folks will go to not to give up their favored calendar.   After all, they may have been using the same calendar for years and the prospect of going without or using something else is…well, let’s just say not acceptable.

One of the goals in marketing is to find that product that customers can’t live without.   Now, in this case it is a product that you give as a gift to the customer, but the same holds true.   When a customer or prospect uses an imprinted calendar you give out for promotional advertising purposes and they keep coming back for a replacement each year you have a good thing going.

So, what is the secret in finding just the right calendar to strike a chord with customers or prospects?   Consider these points:

  • Purchase calendars with a theme your customers like instead of yourself.   After all, they are the ones whose wall it will be hanging on.
  • Look for bright colors in the calendar images.   Color builds excitement whereas drab colors tend not to stir passions as much.
  • Determine if your prospects or customers have limited wall or desk space back in the office.   Or perhaps most work from an auto or travel a lot mostly using a briefcase.
  • Do your customers seek a specialty calendar?   For example, many accountants or banks will give pocket calendars away that essentially include an envelope to place and organize monthly receipts.
  • Some customers seek humor from their calendar.   We offer several calendars that are sure to tickle even the most stoic funny bone.   Humor, much like reading the comics for many people, is something people want to continue with year after year.
  • A favorite artist can also make a wonderful impression on calendar recipients where year after year they come back asking for more.

With just a little thought and perhaps some additional homework, it can pay big dividends to research what kind of calendars your business’ customers or prospects yearn for and desire to receive on an annual basis.   The test is always to get them coming back for more.   That’s when you know you have a customer-favorite calendar style on your hands.

Our customers are often surprised to learn that marketing with calendars and doing it properly requires some planning.   If you strive to maximize your promotional value gained by handing out or mailing calendars to folks it often requires some strategy.

As always, the customer service representatives at CalendarsNow.com are glad to assist with your planning.   We’ve sold millions of calendars over the past two decades which has afforded us to learn a thing or two about how our customers can succeed with calendars.   All it takes is just a no-obligation phone call to get the planning started to see if calendar marketing is right for you.

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5 Reasons Your Brand Should Appear On An Advertising Calendar

October 11, 2013 by  

There are many items, often called “promotional products,” that can feature a company’s advertising message, but few live up to the marketing performance that an imprinted promotional calendar can provide to a business.   Consider these reasons why your business should take a second look at using calendars as a marketing tool:

  1. Calendars get used.   A recent survey shows that 92% of the people who receive an advertising calendar will keep and actively use it.   Part of the reason for this is everyone needs a calendar to manage their busy lifestyle.   Unlike many other promotional products that get shoved in a closet or stowed into a drawer, the calendar gets displayed in open spaces for everyone to see.
  2. Calendars offer repeat exposure to a message.   Almost all calendar users will admit to observing a calendar at least once each day.   But did you know that over 60% of calendar users admit to looking at a calendar between 2-10 times each day?   It’s true.
  3. Calendars offer subtle endorsement of your brand.   When someone displays your calendar it tells everyone who might see that calendar how they have a special relationship with you.   As a general rule, folks don’t display products given to them by businesses lacking favor or trust.
  4. Calendars often hang in high-traffic locations.   Generally calendars get placed where the need is greatest.   This usually means they get located where the most eyes can see it–near cash registers, customer service counters, meeting rooms, kitchen tables, etc.   During the course of the day a single calendar could possibly make hundreds of impressions on the eyes of new prospects who happen to view your brand or message.
  5. Calendars work for 365 (or more) days then allow for message updates.   One of the beautiful aspects of an appointment wall calendar is the images get updated monthly.   But another great aspect of an imprinted advertising calendar is how it self-expires in a year.   The big benefit here is you get to update your promotional message with fresh copy and it’s a known fact most calendar users like to replace a currently used calendar with a style that is already familiar with them.

There are many reasons as a marketer to use calendars as a tool for your business promotion.   Printed advertising calendars are not only appreciated by your customers and prospects as gifts, but you can depend on them getting used to build your brand’s awareness.

We often tell people how calendars offer billboard advertising in key spaces where a marketer could not otherwise promote their message.   Oh, sure, giving out a coffee cup with lettering 1/4″ high has its purpose in the promotional world, but certainly a calendar with 1″ or taller letters speaks much louder and commands immediate marketing attention.

When you stop to consider how most calendars only cost a marketer a penny(ies) per day, per calendar to broadcast their message, it’s easy to establish how calendars don’t cost a business, they reward a business during the normal course of their use.

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