20 Years and Still Having Fun...

This past month Artistic Toy celebrated a very important moment in history. The first employee to cross the 20 year anniversary with the Company.

This is monumental for a small business that has operated under a new name and new management for only 4 years.

Helen Haring of Easton, PA started working for Art's Toy Manufacturing, Inc. in 1989. She has served in many exciting roles including switchboard operator, new employee liaison, quality control inspector, production manager, box packer, t-shirt imprinter, sewer, and product assembler.

Helen has set a standard for hard work and quality control at Artistic Toy. She will not allow anything pass through her department unless she would feel comfortable giving the product to her grandchildren or other members of her family. Helen has an attention to detail and relentless pursuit for efficiency that cannot be touched by anyone. With Helen on our team, we never worry that a rush job or big order will not ship on time.

We asked Helen what was her secret to working 20 years at the same place and she replied without hesitation, "You gotta love what you do!" Helen's simple and yet profound advice inspires all of us find what we love to do and have fun doing it.

Helen has helped me realize that we have more than special plush toy products that needed to be promoted. Some of our greatest treasures are right inside our office doors and if we don't take the time celebrate, we will miss what is truly remarkable about our business. Thank you Helen for all your hard work and inspiration.

Jim Socci
President

Sperm Plush Toy Triggers 7% Duty & CPSIA Exclusion

The U.S. Customs TEAM 717 has determined that they will re-classify some of Artistic Toy's plush toys as NON-Toys because they don't meet the the US Custom's definition of a toy. Our salespeople and customers need to be aware of this because it triggers a 7% duty to be paid on non-toys. The Consumer Product Commission (CPC) and the Promotional Products Industry need to be aware of this due to manufacturers getting conflicting messages from different government agencies. At the same time, more evaluation is required by manufactureres to stay in compliance.

Artistic Toy follows the basic classification guideline that all their products qualify under the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act's (CPSIA) definition of Children's Toys; "a consumer product designed or intended by the manufacturer for a child up to 12 years of age for use by the child when the child plays"

U.S. Customs uses a general rule of thumb to define toys. "A toy must bring amusement to children or adults to be classified as a toy for US customs importing."

When U.S. Customs, determines that an Artistic Toy plush toy is a NON-TOY then a 7% duty is due. The new Customs reclassification will also trigger Artistic Toy to examine the NON-TOY classification and see if it will provide relief from the CPSIA law.

There could be some potentially good news for customers because it was assumed all Artistic Toy products were Children Toys and would require CPSIA enforcement. Upon further review by U.S. Customs, it was found not all of the products are considered toys. This non-toy ruling triggers some discussion and possible exclusion from the CPSIA regulations.

Below are some products examined by US Customs:

1. Sperm Toy - RULED NON-TOY - Subject to 7% Duty. Customs believes this product will sit on someone's desk, deemed miscellaneous textile product (6307.90.9889 HARM Code), and will not provided amusement of children or adults.

2. Baby Paper - RULED NON-TOY - Subject to 7% Duty. Deemed to be miscellaneous textile product because they couldn’t readily see it as a toy and how it would be played with by infants.

3. Boobie Blanket- RULED TOY - NO DUTY - After physical examination determined that duck head on blanket qualifies product to be toy.

In the case of the Baby Paper and the Boobie Blanket products examined by U.S. Customs clients will be need to comply with both regulations(7% Duty + CPSIA). According to U.S. Customs the Boobie Blanket qualifies as a Toy because the duck head is seen as a toy a child would play with. You might be confused right now; however, could find it encouraging to know that there is a Ruling Database that can be researched and appealed for US customs decisions. Although you should be aware the appeal process can be long and costly.

The client who ordered the Sperm will be unhappy to know they now have a 7% duty to pay; however, they will have a favorable argument to exclude their product CPSIA's regulations because it would fall outside of the scope of the law. (i.e. Children's Product, Children's Toy, Child Care Article)

"Cause".... It Works!!!

The holiday season is coming and your client wants to put together a marketing campaign that transcends community involvement. Take a look at how a national retailer built a cause promotion using a variety of soft stuffed plush toys to help the community, attract shoppers, and increase register sales.

This is a great concept targeting a $5.00 price point that generates a lot of support from customers. This plush toy program has helped contributed to over $126 million raised for children across the country.

See Kohl's website for more details on the program.

Free Custom Toy Winner - August 10

This week's InstaQuote winner of the FREE CUSTOM Toy prototype is Cecil Bryan from FEA Merchandise. Cecil has a good lead on a 5" mouse that he thinks could turn into some recurring business. We will start creating the pattern, picking the fabric, and perfecting this character.

Character Starts Now!!!

Artistic Toy launched a new program to "Help Build Character". Every week through the month of August Artistic Toy will be reviewing submissions through it's InstaQuote(TM) system and award 1 FREE custom plush toy prototype each week.

The special program is designed to help salespeople present new marketing ideas to clients and understand why Character Marketing is a superior marketing medium that big and small businesses can utilize to capture market share and make an impact on their audience.

The Monday August 3, 2009 FREE Custom Toy Winner is Karen Hahn from General Advertising Products.

The challenge will be to further develop a mattress character. We all know how important the Sheep is for Serta, so now we are going to see what we can do spark brand recognition for this mattress company.

If you have an idea for a Character please check out our videos and templates on this webpage. Also Submit your ideas via InstaQuote before this Friday (8/7) to be eligible to win next week's FREE Custom Plush Toy sample.

Artistic Toy's New Friends

Our REFER A FRIEND program is off to a great start. I would like to take a minute to thank the people who think well enough of Artistic Toy to recommend friends to start doing business with us. It's these type of people and comments that get me excited about what we do every day.

Please enjoy these gracious comments from our friends:

Becky Moore (Impressionable Solutions) REFERS Julie Kneubuehl (Amazing Promotions)

Julie,
Here's an email from Artistic Toy/ASI#37122 you might enjoy. I ordered a sample from them for a marketing idea this past March & it was really cute. It was the Baseball Bear Mailer. With all of my marketing talk, this Baseball Bear is one of the neatest ideas I've come across and I hope to use it as a marketing tool eventually. Anyway, I know you can order samples if you'd like. I don't know if there's a fee for all the samples but my Baseball Bear is more elaborate in it's functionality. They have some links on ideas for marketing using the toys. Click on the Breast Cancer Bear & see this adorable pink bear for an October Breast Cancer Awareness idea. I would schedule a mammogram just to get this pink bear!

There's an idea for a school fundraiser that you might like to look at. Anyway, check it out. I've spent some time on their website & they have some cool ideas. When I ordered my Baseball Bear Mailer, they were very helpful over the phone. My sample baseball bear even has our company logo printed on the bear's shirt! How cool is that? There was a cost for my sample bear but it is the coolest bear I have! They also have a refer a friend program & you can get that same bear that I paid for - for free! I hope you get a chance to check their ideas out. - Becky

Linda Mangun (Peak Promotions - Aubrey, TX ) REFERS Shari Ave (Peak Promotions - McKinney, TX)

Jim - I started her by sending her the Fireman flyer and she has already sent it to 3 fire departments. Yeah!
We signed her up for your mailings and I told her you are a marketing genius and will help her sell.

If you have a good friend in the business please check out our REFER A FRIEND program by clicking here.

Thank you,

-Jim

PROMOTIONS EAST 2009 - Panel Discussion Delivers Great Value

Here are 15 key takeaways from five industry leaders to help recharge and motivate your current strategies :
1. Focus on "OAR MTV" in your Client Meetings (Outcome, Assess Value, ROI, Message, Target, Vehicle)
2. Challenge clients to redirect spending. ("What's your ROI on your Newspaper Advertisement")
3. Know What You Do for a Living. ("I help clients attract customers and retain employees.")
4. Overcome the NO Budget Objection. ("Can You Explain to Me Your Objective Again.")
5. Use LinkedIn to research prospects, find shared connections, setup breakfast meetings, and receive introductions.
6. Don't put up road blocks when working with self motivated salespeople.
7. Keep in Touch with Clients... There is no substitute for Belly-to-Belly Meetings.
8. Believe in what You do and use more promotional products in your business.
9. Always take advantage of opportunities to mentor people in the industry.
10. PPAI Studies - Now More Than Ever
11. Hot Industries to Call On: Healthcare, Software, Training and Education, and research Venture Capital companies that are looking to market themselves.
12. Stay focused on your plan.
13. It's not an objection, it's a fact as they see it.
14. Promotional products work so well, they won't let doctors use them.
15. Get Back to the Fundamentals like Direct Mail and Making Phone Calls.

Sherri Lennarson, MAS (Bankers Advertising Company) moderated a panel discussion that provided solid strategies to succeed in any economy with the contributions from a well prepared group of panelists. Joe Scott, MAS (Scott & Associates), Fred Snyder, MAS (Geiger), and Kippie Helzel (CPS/Keystone Line) shared her thoughts and spoke on behalf of Julie Levi (Progressive Promotions).