If you tell me that you have a budget of $20 000, I’m going to tell you how to get as much as possible for that price. If you are keeping that number a secret because you hope to only spend $10 000, then you should just say that $10 000 is your budget.

When you are unwilling to reveal your budget, my only option is to guess and flood you with more options than you have time to view.  I am flying in the dark trying to figure out if you need inexpensive items or  top quality ones. This delays the process of creating accurate quotes deliverable in a reasonable time-frame.

Budget defines the size, boundaries and feasibility of a project. Understand your budget and the trade-off between quality vs. price. Sure, price is important, but there is a trade-off. Quality work, on-time with limited or no re-work, comes at a price.  Do you want cheap imported product 5 months from now or quality domestic products in a few weeks?

Set a clear, realistic budget that matches the quality you want. If you’re not sure where to start, talk to an Account Manager who will be more than happy to give you a quote while clearly laying out the deliverables.

Earth Hour is a global event organized by the World Wildlife Federation (WWF) in an effort to have individuals and businesses  raise awareness for climate change.

In 2008 Visual Impact Promotions registered and joined over 50 million participants in over 35 countries worldwide in the first global Earth Hour.

In 2009 we joined an estimated one billion participants from 88 countries.

This year, Earth Hour will take place on Saturday March 27, 2010 at 8:30 p.m. local time. Some Vancouver restaurants will again be offering, “Lights Out.” They will have meals available by candlelight only for the evening, while other restaurants are promoting raw food.

The simplest way to get involved as a business is to turn off any non-essential lights and machinery before leaving on Friday the 26th or Saturday the 27th and to turn everything back on upon returning to work. For individuals, merely turn off any non-essential lights and appliances for the hour duration.

To register your business and/or residence and have your participation noted, contact the online branch of WWF for your country.

Here is the Canadian and International WWF web information:

Canada - http://wwf.ca/earthhour/

Global – http://www.earthhour.org/Homepage.aspx

So if the goal is to be one of the top results then how do you get there. That is the art of search engine optimization. Your ranking is based on a number of different factors. In the old days all you had to do was put some keywords in your header meta tags and register with Yahoo. (You still have to do this, but with Google and Bing as well.)  Now your rankings are also determined by links to your site and programs from search engines that scan your site checking for relevant content.

The last bit sounds easy enough, but all our shiney new tools don’t always play together so well. With the rise of database driven content management systems (CMS) anyone can populate a website without knowing anything about HTML. Unfortunately, many of the pages generated by these content management systems are not easy for the search engine programs to scan. (So you have an easy way to post to the web, but at the expense of Google knowing what you are posting and if it should affect to your ranking.)  Luckily there are tools and tricks to help the search engine programs index your site and boost your rankings.

The other thing that helps your rankings is links to and from your site. Imagine you are a plumber and your site links to your local plumbers association. Since you are a member, the association links back to you (and any other plumbers who are members). Each of these connections is helping your ranking by adding weight and credibility to your keywords. At least that is in theory how it works. Unfortunately some bad people figured out that you could make a bunch of bogus websites that interlinked to each other and boosted their rankings even though the sites were not actually relevant in content. This is called link farming and it is looked upon very badly by search engine companies. How bad? Like being banned from search result bad.

So you have a website and you want people to find you when they do a web search. You are not sure how to get better results and decide to pay someone to boost your results. There are lots of people out there billing themselves as search engine optimization experts. How do you find one that will get you results? First realize the search results change as content and accessibility to the content on pages is made available. One month you could be the first result and the next you are the third result. Even by doing nothing you could end up back at number two or slipping onto the second page. You have to accept that being number one requires always have fresh and relevant content for the search engine programs and a bit of luck. If you want to be the first result of a search then you have to invest a significant time to get there and stay there.  If someone says they can guarantee you a number one result always then they might be doing something that could hurt you later.  It is best to find someone who can explain to you what they intend to do and gives you realistic expectations.  You don’t have to be the first on the results page, just one of the first.

As a start-up company a lot of people often fall into the same trap we did – take business, any business. As if there aren’t enough things to worry about as a start-up, we had our Accountants breathing down our necks stressing the bottom line. This is exactly the kind of thinking that can torpedo a company. It is dire to realize that profit is just as, if not more important than the bottom line. Without profit a business will not last.

For a while we ran around barely covering our costs, meeting unreasonable deadlines and doling out quality products. Thankfully we realized that this was counter-productive, stopped and reassessed the way we did business. We started to work with companies who respected the fact that  they can get things good and fast, but costly; fast and cheap, but not good; or good and cheap, but not fast.

It is important to work with companies who are respectful and don’t expect everything for nothing. There are a lot of companies who prey on new businesses. They try to get as much as they can for as little as possible and end up sucking those businesses dry for all their resources. Then they move onto the next start-up, that has not yet learned this lesson.  We’ve seen it happen. So be aware and don’t let this happen to you.

Business Cards continue to be one of the most effective ways to advertise your business. Professionally designed business cards have a “WOW” factor that cannot be ignored. They are easy to distribute everywhere you go. A business card is an extension of your character and the message it conveys is one of the most important pieces of business communication available.

Web Presence is an essential tool for your business. Nothing is more embarrassing than having a client ask what’s your web address.  Remember to include your Web address on all your printed materials and include your complete contact details on your Website, so that your print and electronic advertising reinforce each other. Whether you plan to sell your products online through an e-commerce website or just advertise a portfolio of your services online, we offer great solutions for your business.

Social Media people are pretty polarized about the social media craze. Social media has taken the world by storm. It’s a collection of people, photos, videos and tweets that equal massive connections. Still don’t know how it can benifit you or your company… “Hell hath no fury like an angry customer with a Twitter account.” At least listen to your customers and what they have to say about your business.

Giveaway Swag creative, innovative and fun and keeps your name in front of your prospects.

New Web Design As the new year kicks into high gear many of our customers have realized that last years layout might be in need of some updating. The new year is always the perfect time to start your new web site design.

In the past few years we have been introduced to and subsequently introduced new eco-friendly products made from hemp, organic cotton, corn, recycled paper, recycled plastic, bamboo and soy, to name a few.

This year, the newest eco-products to join the ranks are made from Elephant Poo.

Since the Elephant diet is so high in fiber, the dung makes great material for paper. Dung is an excellent renewable resource because Elephants produce approx. 220 lb daily. As long as they flourish in a clean environment with a good diet, they can live up to 70 years.

The dung is collected, rinsed, boiled (ensuring a thorough cleaning), mixed with other natural fibers (from banana trees and pineapples to make the paper thicker and stronger), then it is dried, peeled and paper production begins. No Elephants are harmed during the collection or production because the dung is already expelled from their bodies.

Also, a percentage of the profits from each item is contributed to the welfare and conservation efforts for Elephants.

Contact us for information and pricing on Elephant Poo paper products.

Embroidery is the process of embellishing a product, by sewing a design onto it. By the nature of the process, Embroidery is restricted to fabric-based products.

Screen Printing is the process of embellishing a product by printing a design with ink. This process is a bit more versitile, because of the amount of surfaces that can be Screenprinted.

Both processes have pros and cons. For example, if the Screen Printer isn’t of a high quality the print will wear off after only a few washes. Similarly, if Embroidery is caught on anything it can end up looking tattered pretty quickly.

Embroidery tends to have a higher perceived quality, so the tendancy quite often is to stitch products that are of higher value to begin with.

An important consideration is that Screen Printing will soften after the first wash. Embroidery on the other hand, will always have a backing on it which will rub against and possibly irritate the skin (depending on the location of the print). So if someone is working in a T Shirt, it would be more sensible to choose Screen Printing.

At the end of the day, it comes down to deciding which is more effective and practical for your needs. Either way we work with the best Screen Printers and Embroiders in the business, ensuring the highest quality and lasting results.

Studies indicate that since people are so inundated with email, Newsletter creators will have to ensure they are creating messages that are pertinent and concise.

Here are a few basic guidelines for effectively communicating your message:

• KEEP IT SHORT You’ll want to wet your audiences appetite with copy that will get them to click through to a landing page on your website. Each article should have a unique landing page to your site.

• RELEVANT CONTENT Know your audience and generate great content for them. If your open and click-through rates start to drop look more closely at your content.

• REMIND READERS Why they are on your mailing list. Do this at the top of the newsletter with a simple message like, “you are receiving this because you expressed interest in our products or services.” Include the company or individuals name. Also indicate that the newsletter is safe and that they are not being spammed.

• SUBSCRIBE / UNSUBSCRIBE PIPEDA Canada’s strict privacy laws; giving People the option to unsubscribe is mandatory. Make it easy for your Readers to remove themselves from your mailing list. For more information on PIPEDA  visit http://privacyforbusiness.ic.gc.ca

• IDENTIFY YOURSELF As clearly as possible give your full company name, logo at the top and contact information in the footer.

• CLEAR CALL TO ACTION A marketing message should be clear, simple and obvious. Your Newsletter should prompt your audience to read the articles. Lead readers to information on your site, or prompt them to take further action.

10. Stainless Steel Water Bottles

9. Shopping Bags

8. Card Holders

7. Roadside Auto Sets

6. Flash Drives

5. USB Power Adapters

4.  Electric Wine Bottle Openers

3. Sling Style Back Packs

2. Solar Powered Chargers

1. Flu Kits