Happy ‘UNFORGETTABLE’ Mother’s Day!

So, Mother’s day is round the corner and you must be eager to surprise the special woman who made your existence a ‘larger than life’ experience! Well, we have got some innovative ideas to bring a mile of that lovely smile on your mother’s face. But remember that the best gift which you can give her is making her realize what she truly means to you, and how you care and honor her for all that she’s ever done for you. Try and relive the moments recalling all the stupid and mischievous things you have done in your childhood and as a teen. She will cherish these moments forever!

Cook Her Favorite Food: Try to remember all those main courses, desserts, etc which she used to love to gulp down :)  Just select something, do some authentic online search and treat her with the best mother’s day gift. One more fantastic gift would be an easy cookbook that contains all easy to make recipes. 

Self-Made Card: We are sure that nothing impresses or gladdens a mother more than your feelings expressed on a card. Simple words poured from the heart are worth more than gold for them. You can add why you are lucky having her in your life or simply, how much you love her. More importantly, the act of creating a card rather than buying one would be greatly appreciated by her.

An Exotic Gift: Make her day special by gifting a luxurious cruise trip or an expensive massage/spa treatment or a trip to a secluded beach resort. It could be anything which she has not experienced for a long, long time. This would be a refreshing change from her dull and monotonous daily experience. 

Personalized Gifts: Give her a selection of all her favorite music tracks on a DVD, you can design the DVD cover especially for this day. She is sure to relish this gift till no end.  You can also gift her a personalized desk clock or embroidered apparel. A printed tee with your image and text on it is also a great gifting option. Coffee mugs imprinted with a collage of happy moments are a wonderful way to start a morning!

Create Happy Moments: Search for old photo albums and create a wonderful collage of smile creating memories. All those sweet memories are sure to make her joyous and happy! Another brilliant present would be a digital frame that would continuously keep these images playing. If you have an old photograph of your mother, give it to a photo editor and get it recreated completely. Add a regal frame and leave it hanging till your mom arrives. Just imagine to what extent she will be surprised and exhilarated. She will love you for this exclusive gift! 

Declare it a Pamper Day: Don’t let her get off her feet the entire day. Clean the house! And the curtains, mats, drapings etc. Offer tea and some delicious breakfast in bed. Have lunch at a great restaurant. Treat her to her favorite confectioneries. Watch a movie and wind up by giving her a treat of tacos or smoked chicken!  

Plan an Adventure Trip: Plan a countryside trip, go rafting, go bungee jumping! There are many adventurous activities which she can take part in-of course there would be trainers available for each activity. These activities are a lot of fun and will surely give them loads of confidence.  

Whatever you plan to gift your mom, make sure you grace each moment of the celebration with every ounce of your interest and involvement. Nothing would please your mother better than having your undivided attention all the time, throughout the day!

 Happy Mother’s Day :)

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Oh My God! It’s Friday the 13th

It’s quite weird that modern age has still not been able to diminish followers of the various ‘fear factors’. One of them being the dreaded Friday the 13th! It’s incredibly funny, some people won’t drive the entire day, few won’t eat outside, others won’t buy new things and so on. It is very difficult to comprehend that this kind of behavior comes majorly from people of the developed nations. Quite unbelievable!
 
Numerous movies and sitcoms have further glorified the day, reining more terror into people’s hearts. While the producers have earned their money, the tag of ‘unlucky’ or ‘cursed’ has been compounded on this day more and more. So what exactly is the significance of Friday the 13th?
 
One of the most interesting legendary stories goes that it was on a Friday that Eve had tempted Adam to have a bite of the forbidden apple. And they had to bid adieu to paradise. Then Friday is the day when Christ was crucified. Moreover, even the temple of Solomon was ruined on a Friday! Coincidently, Butch Cassidy, the notorious American train and bank robber was born on Friday, April 13, 1866. On July 13, 1951, ‘The Great Flood’ created havoc in Kansas killing people and destroying 2 million acres of land. American actor and rapper Tupac Shakur was shot and killed on September 13, 1996 – Friday the 13th again.
 
According to a research 60 million people are affected by this fear worldwide!! The origin of this fear has sprouted by an incident in the 13th century where thousands of thousands of soldier monks of the powerful Knights Templar were massacred by French king Louis IV.
 
Fact or fiction, the justification of this fear is overwhelming! On a lighter note though, thankfully this fearsome day just comes 1-3 times in a year. Some of the hotels in US don’t have a thirteenth floor and some airlines don’t have a row 13. Unfortunately, the year 2012 has three of them!
 
The most fearsome part about Friday the 13th is pronouncing the medical name given to people having a phobia of this day – Paraskavedekatriaphobia! Dreadful isn’t it?

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Pinterest: Expressing and Exploring Through Images

The internet is abuzz with the popularity of a new social media network. It’s fun, entertaining, addictive and expressive. It’s called Pinterest. If images and photographs fascinate you and if you like to relate your personality with them, Pinterest is for you! A recent research carried out by lemon.ly, a visual data company, revealed that Pinterest hit 10 million US unique monthly users faster than any independent website. 

Pinterest gives you the freedom to get connected with people having the same interests and passion as you have. You can pin/post all your loved images on your pinboard. A pinboard is like your visual canvas, a collection of your emotions and attitudes. The best part of Pinterest is that you can categorize your images and label them. This helps people in filtering images as they browse by your profile. They can view, comment or like an image. But what’s really amazing about this social site is that people can repin your image onto their profile. This action fuels more people to get linked with your images. Isn’t that amazing? Apart from this, you can post webpage’s and videos too!    

So next time you want to share your tiny tot’s picture playing on the field or a newly bloomed flower in your backyard or your dream car or a creative mosaic, do it on Pinterest! You will be overwhelmed by the responses you get.

Thanks to Pinterest, many businesses are acquiring appreciable visibility and referral traffic. Since no one misses a brilliant photograph, traditional methods such as posting product images often lead curious consumers to your website. But it’s important to remember when on Pinterest, you have to maintain an emotional quotient with your followers. An enthusiastic pinboard content and frequent indulgence with members ensures that your products are noticed and sold. Communicating with your followers on non-promotional topics definitely helps in maintaining a long-lasting relationship with them. Researching about people’s preferences, behaviour and comments will help analyse the best ways to promote your products.

Be it showcasing your silliest of interest or the best of your products, Pinterest makes the optimum use of social media to reach out to maximum number of people. Individuals meet more like-minded people and businesses gain more customers. Pinterest users can share images on social media networks such as Twitter and Face book as well.

Post images, search images, repin images and experience the magic of images. This is what Pinterest is all about!

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Understanding Online behavior - Explained by ArtworkServicesUSA infographically

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TOP 10 FREE SMARTPHONE APPS FOR THE PROMOTIONAL INDUSTRY DISTRIBUTOR

1. SAGE MOBILE:
SAGE is the first one to allow distributors to research products on smartphones. You can access their Project Center and view the exhibitors at a tradeshow while you are out of the office. It seems though that you would need to be connected to the internet to access any information. You also need to have a subscription to Sage Online, so while downloading the app is free, using it is not.

2. AWSOME DIRECTORY:
AWSome Directory is a free tool for promotional distributors from Artwork Services. Distributors can call, email, map, see booth nos., and connect to websites. It means you don’t need to remember anything, all the information is right there at your fingertips. There are offers, specials and coupons from suppliers that can be seen right before calling them. The contact book works without a data connection and the app doesn’t need any subscription. It also categorizes a few suppliers in the FindIt section. It is an essential communication tool, not a product search tool. AWSome is available
for Anrdoid and Iphone & at www.awsomeapp.com

3. DROPBOX:
Any file you save to Dropbox also instantly saves to your computers, phones, and the Dropbox website. With 2GB of Data free for each account, you can easily keep your catalogs, product images, presentations, etc. accessible from anywhere. Dropbox works with Windows, Mac, Linux, iPad, iPhone, Android and BlackBerry. It works even when offline so that you always have your files. Dropbox transfers just the parts of a file that change (not the whole thing) but make sure to set bandwidth limits if you don’t want Dropbox won't hog your data connection

4. FACEBOOK & LINKEDIN:
Facebook and LinkedIn do not need any introduction. What both these services do is allow you to create your social connections online so that you can follow what your friends or business connections are doing. Be sure to choose your connections wisely and set your update settings based on the purpose of the particular account. Also use this tool to create and regularly update your company page on the go (link it with twitter), keep track what other distributors are doing, follow suppliers and access other industry resources that are on this platform.

5. EVERNOTE:
Evernote for iPhone lets you create notes, snap photos, and record voice memos that you can then access any time from your iPhone, computer, or the web. Instead of carrying visiting cards around that you might lose, think of scanning the visiting card on your phone with Evernote. Instead of trying to remember conversations or requirements, record them and add notes to this recording. With practice this tool is quite addictive and eventually indispensible.

6. TWITTER:
Twitter needs no introduction. Follow key twitter users who provide useful information. An early indicator is how many followers they have. Look at lists to which these users belong to find other influential people to follow. Tweet to provide real-time customer service, to promote your brand and give out interesting information that would make others follow you.

7. SKYPE:
Call, video call and instant message anyone else who is on Skype for free with Skype for your iPhone or iPod touch.

8. PROMO MARKETING:
Promo marketing provides product information for advertising specialty distributor salespeople. The app has monthly issues of their magazine with pictures and descriptions of promotional products, along with features on specific markets and emerging product areas.

9. RED LASER:
Many suppliers now have QR codes in their catalogs or other promotional materials. Some even have them on samples. We have now created entire QR code ecosystems for some progressive suppliers from sample to shipping. RedLaser is a free application to scan these QR codes and reach the corresponding web pages quickly. At the same time with Red Laser you can scan barcodes in your local Walmart or BestBuy to comparison shop and find product information on your mobile device.

10. MOTIVATORS:
Motivators Mobile offers distributors the convenience of their website, Motivators.com, in an easy-to-use mobile application. You can browse their selection of promotional products by category and send the details to friends or colleagues.

Also check out, ZOOM CATALOG:
There is another native app that is available but is not a free app. Browse, search, and share promotional product supplier catalogs with the ZOOMcatalog App. The ZOOMcatalog app and helps you find and share promotional products and ideas in your office or sales meetings through a host of supplier catalogs. The list of supplier catalogs included in the app is here: www.zoomcatalog.com/alpha.

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Why we are the most preferred Service Providers for the Promotional Industry

A big THANK YOU for those who participated in the survey. Hope you enjoyed our special gift.
Your choices only reaffirm our faith in providing you better services, top quality & affordable pricing.

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THANKSGIVING DESSERT RECIPE by ArtworkServicesUSA

This Thanksgiving surprise your family with a wonderful and delicious cake. Needless to say, you would be at the edge of your seats to go out shopping and buy something for yourself. So give yourself a chance to explore your inner talent of cooking when you are at home. Here we are with one of the finest recipes to cook a Classic Chocolate Cake.
Here we go >>>

Classic Chocolate Cake with Creamy Chocolate Frosting

Cake:
6 ounces CHOCOLATIER 53% Cacao Dark Chocolate Baking Bar, melted, cooled slightly
1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) butter, softened
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 large eggs
1 cup milk

Creamy Chocolate Frosting:
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened
2 ounces CHOCOLATIER 53% Cacao Dark Chocolate Baking Bar, broken into small pieces
2 1/2 cups powdered sugar - divided use
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/8 teaspoon salt
2 to 3 tablespoons of milk
 
1. Firstly the oven is to be preheated to 350°F (175°C). Grease and lightly flour two 9-inch-round baking pans or one 13 x 9-inch baking pan.

2. Cake make: Combine flour, salt and baking soda in a small bowl. Beat sugar, butter and vanilla extract in large mixer bowl. Add eggs; beat for 1 minute in melted chocolate. Beat flour mixture into creamed mixture alternately with milk. Spoon and spread into prepared baking pan(s).

3. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes (30 to 32 minutes) or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool for 20 minutes; invert round cakes onto wire rack(s) to cool completely.

4. Frost it with Creamy Chocolate Frosting.

5. For Creamy Chocolate Frosting: Microwave butter and chocolate in small, uncovered, microwave-safe mixer bowl on HIGH (100%) power for 45 seconds; Stir. Sections may retain some of their original shape. If necessary, microwave at additional 10- to 15-second intervals, stirring just until smooth; cool to room temperature.

6. Beat 1 cup powdered sugar, vanilla extract and salt into chocolate mixture until creamy. Gradually beat in remaining powdered sugar alternately with milk until smooth.
 
Prepare 12 servings
 
Estimated Time: Preparation - 30 min | Cooking - 25 min |

Happy Thanksgiving to all our readers!!!

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