For our industry, there is nothing better than the month of May. It isn't because of the lengthy Memorial Day Weekend or the exceptional weather. (although they also factor into it) Our big industry-wide trade show hits New York City and most of us get a chance to duck out of work to attend. See what Brandon had to say on it here.

Although not for another few days, I have spent my time (at work and at home) preparing for the 2 days of non-stop networking and marketing potentials. Here's just some of what I have done so far. Be sure to read carefully - it could come in handy for any trade shows you may have coming up.

1. Take Notes
Our ASI show gives us a chance to see new and trending product. I examine hundreds of products every time I go and choose the best ones to add to our website later on. Although we are often supplied a notebook and pen during the sign-in process, I find them to be too bulky to make quick notes. Instead, I use something similar to the Leeds Recycled Paper Jotter. This product is less than 3" x 3" and fits easily in my back pocket. In a matter of seconds, I can take out the pad, jot notes and put it back without any struggle.

2. Consider Using A Pen/Stylus
Complimenting piece of advice #1, I am bringing with me a miniature stylus/pen combo. Since getting it, I found that I can leave it concealed in my pocket and create notes very quickly - whether on a pad or on your tablet/smartphone. This also allows quick and easy switches between the old and new forms of note-taking.

3. Clean Yourself Up
Although it doesn't show now (I have a heavy 5 O'Clock Shadow going on) looking presentable at trade shows is a must. I will be ironing/washing my uniform beforehand and bringing mints/gum. As always, I will be doing my daily morning-time routine. (shower, brush teeth, etc.) Without all this, you'll be notorious for all the wrong reasons.

4. Read Your E-Mail
Since last week, I've noticed my Inbox at work filling up with requests to visit certain booths. Some promise for new products and opportunities to network while others create incentives (contests, giveaways, etc.) to bring you in. No matter what, research these companies/individuals. It gives you a chance to learn about what is being offered by the business/organization and can even help in creating a game-plan ahead of time.

5. Rest
Ignore the famous idiom "There's No Rest For The Weary" and take a few minute rest. Doing too much can cause you to crash and become far less resilient the next day or even during the latter end of that same day. A quick rest can allow you to organize some of your notes/business cards and even an opportunity to chew the fat with other potential clients/customers informally.

6. Keep Business Cards Safe
I had a problem last year where I didn't have a proper place for business cards. As a result, there were business cards that became so lost or unkept, that they showed up months after the trade show ended. This year, I will be removing my credit cards/business cards/discount cards from my wallet. This gives me ample business card space in something I am sure to check sooner than the bottom of a bag or the inside of a notebook. 

Preparation is key for a successful trade show run. Be sure to plan ahead, use the above advice and always think on your feet. Feel free to post your advice in our comments section.

Tired of impersonal e-mails that not only clutter e-mail accounts but can cause harm to your computer? You may not be the only one.

Despite a small decrease in letters transferred by snail mail each year, there is a small cult-following of people who prefer paper-cuts and stamps over passwords and attachment sizes. These letters tend to not only be more personal but give the recipient a more secure and binding document than an e-mail or text message.

For those who check their mailboxes outside more than their mailboxes inside, consider attending the National Stationary Show taking place at New York's famed Jacob Javits Center. It's going to be filled with national and international vendors who enjoy and work with paper tableware, custom calendars, greeting cards, invitations and much more.  

From May 19 (Sunday) to May 22 (Wednesday) be sure to grab your tote bag and fill it with the finest paper products. Registering is very easy (especially if you have a LinkedIN account) and there is even a "Newbie's Guide" to the National Stationary Show.

As I mentioned briefly in passing over one month ago, this year's PPAI Expo East trade show is hitting the most beautiful adult playground on the eastern seaboard - Atlantic City.

Why mention the PPAI Expo East again? Simple: they sent me a reminder. It wasn't in the form of a letter, e-mail or pop-up ad. The organization did what it does best - used a promotional product - to advertise its event.

It is hard to keep up with the amount of trade shows and events with PPAI sponsorship or PPAI underwriting. The PPAI Expo East slipped my mind and the mind of many of our employees. We received this mailer which would normally have been tossed aside to be seen later or possibly lost in with other files and papers. What piqued my curiosity was not what was written on the outside but what was found on the inside.

The pamphlet opened to reveal a great travel accessory. In addition to being similar to Motivators' full-color luggage tag (which I recognized almost instantly) I loved that all the information on the pamphlet was summed up on the luggage tag (which is good because I accidently ripped part of the mailer opening it); the name of the event, the dates and website - all in stunning digital color. If that doesn't get your attention, nothing will.

The bottom of the luggage tag also features space advertising one of the many sponsors for the PPAI Expo East. If you've always been in the market for advertising this way but turned off by some product/mailing prices (trust me, it isn't as much as you think and is worth the extra money) you'll find that getting another sponsor will off-set the cost significantly. 

Start brainstorming with your marketing department and bring your ideas to our sales team - the experts in mailers and promotional products.

It's been said that anyone who's anyone in the world of promotional products attends the Promotional Products Association International (PPAI) Expo. That's because it's the largest, most-attended trade fair in the industry.

The 2013 show will take place Jan. 14 - 18, and will likely be the biggest yet. So what makes the PPAI Expo so popular? Let's go over some points:

1. It's Vegas, baby!

I've been told that the PPAI Expo is usually so busy that attendees hardly have any free time. Still, that the trade show takes place in Las Vegas each year is surely part of why it's so huge. Who doesn't love an excuse to visit Vegas?

2. Professional development

With both free and paid workshops available, industry professionals have many opportunities to learn at the PPAI Expo. Those earning MAS/CAS credits can even take their certification exams.

3. The exhibits

A big part of the PPAI Expo is obviously touring the exhibit floor. Attendees will get a look at top companies in "screen printing, embroidery and digital technology" and "demonstrations of the newest products and equipment." Nice!

Are you attending the 2013 PPAI Expo? If so, what makes it so important?

Although it is not yet December, much of the Northeast is seeing regular temperatures in the high 30's. It's hard to imagine how anyone can cope with brisk temperatures come January.

That's why I am here to tell you about the ASI Orlando Tradeshow. Every year, the Advertising Specialty Institute hosts several tradeshows designed specifically in mind to get industry members together and to showcase some of the newest promotional products on the market. Our Motivators employees go to these shows every year in the hopes to use and touch these products first-hand - before we put them up on our website.

The ASI show will be hitting The Sunshine State in early January - and this is not a show to miss! This show is the first of 2013 and will give attendees the opportunity to see (and even order) items that will be high in demand for 2013. What will it be this year? Whatever product is in demand, you can be one of the first to have your company logo printed on it.

The ASI Orlando show takes place between January 5 and January 7 at the Orange County Convention Center. For more information, please visit the ASI Orlando show website.

If you have a love for cinema, then you may want to take a trip out to California. But before you move out west to become an aspiring actor/actress, be sure to check out the American Film Market & Conferences. 

Taking place on a beautiful campus overlooking the water in Santa Monica, California, the American Film Market and Conferences will feature buyers and investors of the arts. Additionally, there will be special industry events, discussions and many other ways to get your name out there. The festivals' best selling point is that it is exactly 6 months after the Cannes film festival - allowing those in attendance to not be distracted and to be "ready for business." With better weather than Cannes and a more centralized location, there's very few reasons not to attend the festival.

So be sure to bring your promotional products and get ready to meet the film industry's best of the best. 

Instagram is an instant photo-sharing social-networking website. As of April 2012, Instagram sees 81 photo comments per second, 575 photo "likes" per second, 35 million regular users and 5 million photos uploaded each day. 

With the technology that makes transferring, sending and editing photos a breeze, it seems like anyone can be a photographer these days. 

For those who are professional photographers and rely on more than just an iPhone and Adobe Photoshop, consider meeting like-minded people at the PDN PhotoPlus International Conference and Expo. 

This conference and expo, which takes place at the Jacob Javits Center in New York City from October 24 to October 27, will feature seminars on various subjects of photography - things from guerilla lighting at weddings to family portraits and even preparing college graduates for the field. If you want to show off your products, promotional products or even your photos, consider joining the exhibitors list. 

From my experience with many promotional products trade shows, I feel that the display plays a very important role. Your trade show exhibit says alot about your company and how you choose to represent yourself. A great display represents cleanliness, knowledge and experience. In my opinion the display must captivate and engage the client to visit your booth. There are many creative and unique ways to set up a tradeshow display. Pop up booths, table top stands, banner stands, full floor kits, tents, and signs, these are just a few of the tradeshow materials that can greatly assist you with standing out in the crowd at a tradeshow. How do you want to portray your brand?

As some of my earlier posts may have hinted to, I have had some experience when it comes to standing on both sides of the tradeshow booth. This gives me the slight advantage of knowing what it is like to be asking questions and answering the same questions. 

But where do I get up-and-coming information on tradeshows? My primary source is the Tradeshow News Network.

The TSNN is a highly cited website by the Motivators Tradeshow Blog and has the largest database of tradeshows in dozens of categories. Whether it is a sport fishing tradeshow in Alabama, a medical technology tradeshow in Hawaii or looking for an industry tradeshow on the other side of the world, the database allows you to search by name, locale or even the month.

No one understands the inner workings of a trade show like the contributing writers of Tradeshow News Network. Once in a while, a very informative article on the DOs and DON'Ts of the tradeshow lifestyle.

Two such articles, entitled "10 Tips to Check Off for Your Next Trade Show" and "6 Post-show Practices You Should Be Using" are written by Lisa Apolinski and Christina Hernandez respectively. The first discusses what features you may want to use during your next tradeshow and what can be passed on. It gives many new ideas and shuns things that employees/employers still use to this day. Christina Hernadez's article focuses on what to do with the newfound information and contacts after the tradeshow is done and over with.

So grab your promotional products and read both articles linked above. The two articles are must-reads. As always, be sure to check this site for more hints and promotional product ideas. 

It seems that almost every week we hear about a new life-changing book and at least once a month we hear about a book that is causing so much of a stir, that it is flying off of shelves and next to impossible to find online. We're always hearing stories of a person or celebrity that is writing/publishing a book - despite having almost nothing interesting to say. In the same way, there are common, everyday people with stories and ideas so profound that remain undiscovered for long periods of time. 

That's why the concept of BookExpo America is such a desired idea.  The trade show, which takes place at the Jacob Javits Center (NYC) in June 4-June 7, will have a slew of events/vendors - many of which are new and many more that are considered exclusive. The BookExpo America event will include 2-3 days of streamed lectures, a revamped education program including how to do optimal PR/marketing for a book or author and how to best train members of the industry and even include stages for authors to come read and talk. 

So if you intend on getting your name out there, be sure to bring promotional products with your information and log onto the BEA website. From there, you can register for the trade show and even get flight information to attend the trip.