Back in August of 2005 I first admitted out loud what I had felt for some time. I wanted to own my own business.

For my entire working career I had worked for someone else.  Furthermore, my efforts had not only been under-compensated, but under-appreciated as well.  As a manager with Radio Shack I had turned around the worst store in the district only to be rewarded by being put in the "new" worst store in the district and told to do it again (taking a cut in pay while I did it).  I devoted 18 years of my life to a company, first as a Sales Rep, then Sales Manager, then Vice President of Sales and eventually being Vice President of Operations of a $4.7 million company.  I was rewarded for my efforts by being "downsized" as the result of a merger gone horribly wrong. I came to the conclusion that the only way I would be in control of my destiny was to grab the reins and take charge.

Many of you already know the series of disasters that followed.  Suffice it to say that by February of 2006 we had relocated to New Mexico.

While I still had the dream of being my own boss, the reality of living in a new area with no contacts set in and I went to work for a very nice firm as Director of Operations.  During my tenure the company had a great couple of years - my boss was named SBA Small Businessperson of the Year, One of New Mexico's 10 Most Influential Women, and the 38th fastest growing company in the state. I was offered a partnership, but something whispered to my soul that my path was leading me in another direction.

I decided to start my own business, dedicated to helping other companies succeed by improving their image and branding.  In the past year Turbo Threads has consistently met it goals and is on track to being an unmitigated success.

But I didn't do it.

If the past four years have shown me anything, it is that I am NOT in control.  The concept of controlling my destiny was an illusion. I, myself, am nothing.  I own nothing.  The credit for my successes goes to another.

My Lord, Jesus Christ, has watched over me through my trials.  He has comforted me in the loss of my job, my home, my possessions and my father.  In the darkest times He has been a light leading me to the security of His boundless love and grace.  I have done nothing to deserve this.  The blessings of my life - my family, my new home, my new community, my new friends, my vocation - are all due to His grace and compassion.

So you see, I don't own Turbo Threads.  I am just the steward put in charge of it.  I pray that God continues to allow me to do His work through this vehicle, but even if He doesn't, that is okay.  It only means that He has something else planned for me, and I am good with that.

    

The Shirt Expert is very proud to present the new Turbo Threads web site!

To be honest, most of the improvements are cosmetic.  It was kind of embarrassing to be designing web sites for other companies and have ours look so bad, so we spent some time and energy into sprucing up our web home.

Some of the stuff we have done is "under the hood."  We did some search engine optimization to help keep our site high in the search listings.  We brushed up on our Flash animation skills and used three different tools to make the various animations sprinkled about.  Special software helped up optimize our photos and graphics so that the pages don't take to long to load.

We did change our online apparel catalog.  We used to have two, but that was causing some confusion.  We also removed the "Our Favorite Shirts" page.  While it was nice to have the prices posted, users were having problems downloading the PDF files.  We do have plans to add some more pricing examples to our "Current Specials" page as a replacement.

You may have noticed that we are now offering our clients business printing.  We really don't want to be in the paper printing business, but so many of our clients wanted to "one stop shop" and get all of their marketing stuff from us that we went into partnership with a very large print house that is offering us very good pricing.  As an example, we can do 500 business cards, FULL COLOR FRONT AND BACK, on 14 point stock for $29.95.  Need 1000? How about $39.95?  Full color fliers (one sided) for $.17 each at 1000 pieces.  How about 1000 full color, two sided, heavy stock, trifold brochures for $250?  These are really good prices and the quality is just phenomenal.

So please take some time to browse our web site and let us know what you think! 

    

Some of you may know that The Shirt Expert majored in Political Science in college. Things political have been an interest of his for a long time.  When it comes to running a business, however, being political can alienate potential (and existing) customers.

    

I am sitting in my office, finishing up paperwork, and getting ready to get away for the weekend.  On the radio, a seemingly endless stream of commercials assails me with notice of Memorial Day specials.  There are great buys at car dealerships, furniture stores, sporting good stores, and even specials from a local plumbing company. I am struck by the inanity of it all.

Congress decreed Decoration Day in honor of those who gave their life during the War of Northern Aggression.  After World War I it was expanded to include those who had made the ultimate sacrifice in any military conflict.  It was originally designated to be observed on May 31st.  It was not officially called Memorial Day until 1967.  The next year Congress, in its infinite wisdom, passed the Uniform Holidays Bill which declared that the holiday be moved to the last Monday in May.  I believe it was at this point that the focus of the holiday moved from being one of serious reflection and gratitude to the hedonistic consumer based bacchanal we are celebrating this weekend.

As of July 2007, 1,194,198 American men and women have given their lives for their country during military service.  While they fought for a wide variety of causes - independence, states' rights, against fascism, against communism, against Islamo-fascism - I doubt that any of them made the ultimate sacrifice so that we could get a really good buy on a sofa.

I am taking a pledge.  I will not patronize a business that is conducting a "Memorial Day" sale.  Such a sale demeans the commemoration of what should be a solemn, sacred day of remembrance. I know that my refusing to participate in the degradation of this holiday won't stop it from happening, but maybe, if enough people come to feel the same way I do, we can restore Memorial Day to the honorable commemoration it was intended to be.

    

The Rio Rancho Chamber of Commerce has a monthly Mingle and Munch Lunch and about once a quarter has a Networking Extravaganza as part of it.  The first 20 people to RSVP to the event get two minutes each to make a presentation to the group to promote their business.  The group then votes for their favorite speaker in three catagories - Compelling, Informative, and Creative.  The winner in each catagory gets a prize.  Never one to turn down a challenge, the Shirt Expert put together a piece describing the products Turbo Threads offers:

Lots of T-Shirts, custom printed
Brass lapel pins, newly minted
Pencils, mugs, and beer can holders
Leather bound writing folders

Custom caps, and shirts and jackets,
Pens that look like tennis rackets,
Business cards and stationery
Balloons that are inflationary

Key Tags with a little light
To get you in your door at night
Letter slitters and calculators
Flyswatters for exterminators

Umbrellas that will keep you dry
Custom kites that you can fly
Duffle bags to haul your stuff
Made of cloth that’s really tough

Luggage tags for when you travel
Knitted socks that won’t unravel
Ballpoint pens with bright highlighters
Just the thing for all you writers

Window decals, bumper stickers
Spatulas and lotto pickers
Golf balls with your logo on ‘em
And don’t forget the printed condom

Teddy bears with little shirts
Tradeshow signs and table skirts
Custom Flash Drives for your ‘puter
Reflectors for your motor scooter

Kitchen stuff for when you’re cooking
Binoculars for when you’re looking
Bookmarks help you know your place
Signs you write on and erase

A case to hold your DVD’s
A nifty tool to cut your cheese
A rubber disk to open jars
A tool to cut off your cigars

Dispensers for your paper clips
Other clips to hold your chips
We carry lots of other stuff
But I can tell you’ve had enough

I could list more on and on
But my time is almost gone
So if you want to hear some more
Call 999-1234

The Shirt Expert won in the creative catagory.

    

The Shirt Expert remembers some 20 years ago when Screen Stars 50/50 t-shirts were da' bomb.  They were popular because they came in a bunch of colors, they were cheap, they were plentiful, they were cheap, everyone  carried them, they were cheap, and they were made from 50% polyester and 50% cotton.  Did I mention that they were cheap?

The other big kahuna in t-shirts back then was Hanes and their Beefy T - a 6.1 ounce ringspun cotton t-shirt.  If  you had the money, you went for the Beefy T, if not you were stuck with the Screen Stars.

Sure their were other t-shirt manufacturers (remember Onita, anyone?), but Hanes and Screen Stars had  the majority of the market.

The Shirt Expert learned a lot about t-shirts back in those days.  If you were printing with plastisol ink, you didn't want to sell red 50/50 t-shirts with a white imprint.  Seems that the dyes used in 50/50 t-shirts weren't all that stable and would sublimate into the ink, turning your white imprint pink.  My screen printing friends tell me that today's 50/50 t's do it less, but still do it.

So why would anyone actually want 50/50 t-shirts?  There are several myth's and half-truths that lead people to still request 50/50 t-shirts:

They don't shrink - Just about anything with cotton in it will shrink.  In the old days the 100% cotton t-shirts were often made of crude fabric that shrunk and became thin.  Manufactures came out with 50/50 t-shirts as a solution.  Over the years, however, great strides have been made in cotton fabric and most cotton is heavier than it used to be.  Additionally most cotton t-shirt you might purchase today are preshrunk, so their is very little sizing difference between 50/50 t-shirts and 100% cotton t-shirts.

They don't wrinkle - Let's be honest - leave even a cotton blend sitting in the dryer overnight and it will come out a wrinkled mess.  Besides, these are t-shirts, not tuxedos - no one  will even notice a few wrinkles.

They hold up better - Not really.  Especially not the imprint!  Cotton is much more fibrous than the polyester used in t-shirts.  Cotton will absorb the ink, polyester just gets coated.  Ever try to paint plastic?  It might go on okay, but when it dries you can usually peal it off.  Similar situation with printing on a poly blend.  Over time the plastisol ink flakes away from the polyester and your print begins to go bye-bye.

They are more comfortable - Unlike the polyester in moister-wicking shirts, the polyester in t-shirts actually hold moisture against your body.  Yuck.  Exercising in 50/50 t-shirts is like exercising while wearing a plastic bag.

They are cheaper - They are actually about the same price as heavyweight 100% cotton t-shirts.

So what do you think...is there a legitimate reason to not send the 50/50 t-shirt the way of the dinosaur?

    

The Shirt Expert knows about busy times.  Every industry has them.  For retail stores, it is Christmas.  For accountants, it is tax season. For the imprinted sportswear industry, it is spring.

A quick aside to let the Turbo Threads customers know that we are working some kickin' spring specials.  Just a hint, we are putting on sale the most popular item we sell.

Back to Busy Time - it is funny how for many of us business owners the busy time is followed by The Dead Time; that time of year when things get really slow.  For some, like accountants, it is welcome relief.  For others, it is a time of high anxiety.  If you are one of those who wonders how they will make it through the Dead Time, here are a few tips:

• Be a grasshopper - You know the story of the grasshopper and the ant, where the grasshopper stores away during the summer and lives easy during the winter, while the ant played all summer, and found himself starving in the winter.  The grasshopper did two things every business owner should do - bust your hump during busy times and sock away as much as you can.  I have seen too many businessmen blow the good-times profits on toys (boats, RV's, ATV's, etc.) and find themselves unable to make payroll when there is a slow down.  It also seems to be easy to think that the "great" is the "normal" and to let things just coast.  Which brings us to tip two...
• If you're not growing, you're dying - When we get busy, we think we are growing, but we are really just reaping the rewards for our hard work up to this point.  Remember when you were just starting out and you did everything you could to get new clients.  At some point you probably found yourself so busy that you stopped trying to gain clients and were satisfied with just keeping your clients.  That's the day your business started dying.  No matter how hard you try to keep them, clients go away.  If you aren't adding new ones, constantly, your business is shrinking.  You need to keep reaching out to potential clients even when you think you are too busy to handle new business.
• Make a new busy season - Too often we work our comfort zones.  We just accept the annual cycles of busy and slow and work it out the best we can.  I knew a guy who ran a company that sold Christmas trees (talk about seasonal work) and he found himself looking for work to do in the off season.  He hooked up with a fireworks distributor and used his contacts to set up fireworks stands leading up to Independence Day.  One thing lead to another and he branched out into selling pumpkins for Halloween.  In the spring he sets up stands selling flowers for Mother's Day.  He went, in his mind, from a company that sells Christmas trees, to a company that sells Seasonal Items.  Start thinking about products and services you could offer that are related to your existing business, that you could expand into, that can fill up the Dead Times.

You have to think ahead, or you'll be left behind. 

    

The Shirt Expert almost doesn't know where to start!

Welcome, Lara Baird!

Lara Baird has joined the Turbo Threads team as our newest Image Consultant.  Lara has many years of experience in apparel decoration and as well as great technical skills and a good eye for graphic design.  She is very active in the community, volunteering her time at her children's schools as well as with several youth sport leagues.  As an Image Consultant she will be working with businesses and organizations to improve their image using custom logo ed apparel and promotional products.


The Retail Page

Many of our clients have asked for a more streamlined way to handle having their employees (or members, or students) buy shirts.  It can be very time consuming to have to collect sizes, money, etc, and put together an order and then, when the shirts are done, distribute them to the right people.  Turbo Threads now has a better way.

After your initial order, Turbo Threads can add your company or organization to our Retail Site - a part of our web page dedicated to filling individual orders.  Your employees, or members, can conveniently order and pay for their shirts.  We can arrange to have their orders shipped directly to them, or they can be picked up at our office, or we can hold them so you can pick them up and distribute them at an event.  Payments are processed via a secure connection through Pay Pal, so you know your transaction is safe.

This is a great way for you to make sure your employees can get new shirts when they need them and for you to clear up that space you use for storing shirts!

The Shirt Expert Blog

I'm sure have noticed that the Shirt Expert isn't where it used to be.  He has joined the 21st century and started recording his ruminations in a blog.  What is really cool about the blog, besides being able to easily go back and check out that entry from last month, is that you can subscribe to the blog and get email notice of new updates.

"WHY WOULD I WANT ONE MORE PIECE OF "SPAM" IN MY INBOX?" you may ask.  Besides offering insightful advice and commentary on small business marketing, the Shirt Expert will also often be offering free stuff to the first "X" number of people who reply or comment on his entry.  We are not talking about a free pen here - we are talking about polo shirts, jackets, blankets, all sorts of good stuff.  It won't be for every entry, those that are offering free stuff will be clearly marked, but it will be AT LEAST ONCE A MONTH!

Additionally, we will be offering special discounts and deals on custom imprinted and embroidered sportswear ONLY to those who subscribe to the blog.

So Subscribe to the Shirt Expert blog, add "turbothreads.com" to your safe senders list and get some great stuff for free! 

    

The Shirt Expert always enjoys the hoopla concerning the commercials shown during the Really-Big-Football-Game-We-Aren’t-Allowed-To-Name-Or-Goons-From-The-NFL-Will-Shake-Us-Down-For-Big-Bucks.  There are hundreds of articles written about what ads were the best, the worst, the funniest, the most touching, etc, etc. They even have a TV special the night before the Game-Which-Must-Not-Be-Named that reviews last year’s commercials and great commercials of years past.  It is a Madison Avenue advertising orgy.

With 98.7 million viewers, the 2009 Game-Which-Must-Not-Be-Named was a record-breaker.  The cost of a commercial was record-breaking too, $3 million for 30 seconds.  If your goal was to be seen by a lot of people, $3 million dollars got you almost 100 million viewers.  Congratulations.

Now, of course, not all of the viewers watched all of the commercials.  Many of the advertisers had a target market that they thought would be watching the Game-Which-Must-Not-Be-Named that was only a fraction of the total viewership.  There was also no guarantee that your commercial was going to run at a good time.  You could be scheduled to run late in the game, where in many years the outcome of the game is already known and many have changed channels.

So, if they were going for viewers, they have to hope their target audience is watching the Game-Which-Must-Not-Be-Named, watching the commercials, watching the commercials when their ad runs, and engaged enough to pay attention.

For this they pay $3 million.

Any marketer worth their salt will tell you that impressions, not viewers, is what makes a successful advertising campaign.  To count viewers you rely on data provided by the advertising medium – newspapers have circulation figures, TV and radio have ratings – but there is no way to know how many of those viewers were actually your target audience, or how many actually read, watched, or listened to your advertisement.  Impressions refers to counting the number of times your message is actually seen by an individual.

If we were to calculate the number impressions of a Game-Which-Must-Not-Be-Named commercial, we would have to know what percent of the audience was our target, and how many viewers were watching the television when our commercial ran.  Since there is no way to accurately determine these numbers, we will have to make some educated guesses.

For the sake of this exercise we are not going to take into account the costs to produce the commercial, nor are we going to attempt to calculate impressions based on the rebroadcast of the commercial.

So let’s say we run an employment web site and our target audience is job seekers.  We know that polling data shows that 20% of the population is either actively or passively looking for a job.  That means that about 20 million people watching the Game-Which-Must-Not-Be-Named are potential customers.  Our commercial is scheduled to run during the second quarter, so we don’t have to worry about a drop in viewership based on how the game is going.  There is a 5% drop in viewership based on going to a commercial and surveys show that 50% of those watching the game pay attention to the commercials.  This brings our estimated actual impressions down to about 9.5 million potential customers.  Divide that number into the $3 million they charged to run the commercial and you have a cost of about $.32 per impression.  Not bad.

Sure beats the heck out of a $6.00 t-shirt, doesn’t it?  Not so fast…

The $6.00 t-shirt isn’t the impression, it is the vehicle that MAKES impressions.  It is the gift that keeps on giving.

Let’s say that we run an employment web site and our target audience is job seekers.  We do a little leg work and discover that there is going to be a huge job fair in New York next month.  We decide that we are going to give out t-shirts at the job fair.  They estimate that there will be 10,000 people attending this fair so we decide that we will give out 5000 t-shirts.  Total cost, $30,000.

The fair is a success and we have given away all 5000 shirts.  Each person that got a shirt saw the advertisement on it at least once at the show.  The people handing out the shirts were also, each wearing a shirt, and were seen not only by the 5000 who got shirts, but by all of the other attendees at least once.  So the number of impressions at the show was:

People who looked at their shirt as they got it: 5000

Impressions from people walking by: 5000

Impressions form people looking at the people giving them shirts: 5000

Total: 15,000 impressions

Now let’s say that each person who got a shirt wore it 12 times over the next two years.  Each time they put it on was an impression (they looked at it) and they probably glanced at it 3 additional times in the course of the day.  That is approximately 48 impressions over the two year life of the shirt for the owner of the shirt. Multiply that times the 5000 shirts distyributed and you have a total of 240,000 impressions.

It is an attractive shirt and half the time it is worn is out of the house.  Let’s be conservative and say that 10 people see the shirt every time it is worn in public.  Over the two year life span that shirt will be seen (impressions) by 120 people.  Multiply that by the 5000 shirts distributed, and you get 600,000 impressions.

Add them all together and you get a $30,000 campaign which generates about 855,000 impressions, or a net cost of $.035 per impression.

We have a Game-Which-Must-Not-Be-Named commercial generating impressions at $.32 each, and t-shirts generating impressions at $.035 each.  Obviously promotional products are almost 10 TIMES more effective at generating impressions than a Game-Which-Must-Not-Be-Named commercial.

One more thing, people tend to become emotionally attached to possessions.  They have a positive feeling about it and the company it represents every time they see it or use it.  Just try getting that kind of an emotional response from a newspaper advertisement or TV commercial – seen once.

When it comes to cost effective advertising, NOTHING beats imprinted sportswear and promotional products!