Bruce Fox Blog

Estimated Read Time: 6 Minutes

Every business event requires planning – from the laid-back lunch meeting to the opulent corporate awards ceremony.

Quick turn-around events usually require minimal planning: just book the meeting space, order lunch, invite attendees, and ensure the room is stocked and ready.

However, once you launch from those minor events or meetings, more intricate and detailed planning is required. So for those events that take more planning, you create a checklist on what you need – venue, catering, décor, and countless other items.

However, where are the awards on that list? Near the bottom, right?

Unfortunately, that’s pretty typical. But let me ask you this – what is the event for? If you have awards, then that’s likely the focus of the night.

So why would you want to leave the awards until the last minute, meaning that you will have a rush job and stuck with whatever you can get? Or worse.

That’s a nightmare for any event planner.

Thus, here are some tips to help avoid disaster and create an experience that will leave everyone delighted.

Estimated Read Time: 26 Minutes

We’ve all had it happen - the dreaded sales objection.

But they’re a standard part of the job and bound to happen.

That’s why we’ve put together a guide to handling sales objections. You’ve got to respond in a way that alleviates those concerns or uncertainty to allow the deal/project to move forward.

Estimated Read Time: 4 Minutes

So, when you think of an honor wall, what do you imagine?

Do you envision universities, hospitals, or churches honoring their donors?

Do you think of Fortune 500 companies showing off their top salespeople?

Do you picture organizations and companies displaying their board members?

All of those are common and highly popular versions of honor walls.

Estimated Read Time: 9 Minutes

When building an awards program, it can feel overwhelming. However, you know that having a well planned and effective recognition program increases value, desirability, employee retention, and much more. 

So where do you start when building an effective awards program?

Since every organization is different, we will provide a series of questions to help get a program started, then you can grow and develop your program as needed.

These questions will assist you in defining and refining the program, which will make writing out the framework and overall program plan a breeze.

Estimated Read Time: 6.5 Minutes

It happens every day: You get a request for a certain promotional product, and quickly tap into ESP, SAGE, and other tools of the promotional products trade.

In highly-specified searches, these resources are extraordinarily helpful, and you can quickly build a flier or create a sell sheet to send to your customer. The task of distributor salesperson as sourcing and order agent has been fulfilled.

This procedure works for all promotional products categories, including recognition awards. General search results for “awards” will yield pages (and pages and pages…) of glass globs in nearly every shape imaginable. Plaques and trophies and awards of all types. A veritable cornucopia of pre-conceived, your-logo-here possibilities.

But what if the mission is not so specific? What if your client is adamant about operating outside the realm of stock awards? What do you do when you can’t source the “it” you’re looking for because “it” is as close as you can get to describing “it”, and “it” makes a lousy search term?

So, what do you do when you suffer search engine failure?

Estimated Read Time: 7 Minutes

You hear the phrase often enough – “trophy value.”

But what does it mean?

In the promo world, it offers recipients recognition and a long-lasting feeling of appreciation for their hard work and loyalty. According to DCR Strategies, “Much like winning an actual trophy, such as in a sporting event, a trophy value reward serves as a cherished memory that continues well after the life of the reward itself, creating long-lasting satisfaction.”

That makes sense, trophies create a cherished memory. They create a sense of pride when done right. They are a symbol to others of your success and triumph.

Estimated Read Time: 9 Minutes

You don’t need super powers to help your clients. Although we all have those days when having super powers wouldn’t hurt.

However, despite us all wishing for telekinesis, teleportation, or time control, you don’t need any of those things to be a hero to your clients.

You just need these 5 skills – each will make you look awesome and leave your clients in admiration.

Estimated Read Time: 12 Minutes

As the industry propels forward, we have seen countless changes. 15, 50, and 80+ year anniversaries, companies growing and closing, and mergers and acquisitions are plentiful.

Yet, despite the changes that are now, this industry will only continue to keep moving. So, it is our duty to look beyond the questions of tariffs and the latest trends. Like all businesses and industries, you must take the time to look to the future – where is this industry going?

ASI has released a few articles with some promo leaders’ predictions which we will discuss first. Then we’ll throw our two cents into the hat. You can keep the change.

Estimated Read Time: 13 Minutes

At Bruce Fox, we have a wide variety of services that we provide, but one such service that has increasingly become more popular and utilized is our Fulfillment service.

A Summary of Our Fulfillment Services

Need the product to be 100% made in the USA? We can do it – right here in our New Albany, Indiana facility.

Need something shipped from overseas and stored here? We can do that, too.

Our Capabilities Include:

• On-site, dedicated warehousing facilities which allows us to manage and maintain your inventory.
• Utilize a stock and release method to take advantage of quantity pricing for custom products.
• Most release requests, or “callouts,” are typically shipped within five business days; many in 48 hours or less.

Estimated Read Time: 9 Minutes

Did you know that Years of Service is the number one type of recognition organizations have in place?

Yet, employees are no longer staying at companies for 30 plus years. Gone are the days of our forefathers when employees would get one job and stay there for their entire careers.

Now, employees regularly change jobs due to poor management, better benefits, more pay, flexible hours, and other personal or career opportunities. According to the Bureau of Labor and Statistics, the average person holds 12 to 15 jobs in their lifetime and that number is only projected to grow.

And with the demand for qualified employees thriving, who can blame them?