8/3/2019 What's cookin' in the PromoKitchen?

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iIN 1998, I STARTED in the promotional products industry as an inexperienced,

 yet enthusiastic, distributor entrepreneur. I was 23 years old.

It took me two years to figure out there was an industry association where sup-

 pliers and distributors met to do business. It took me another eight

 years to feel truly connected because I had trouble finding my foot-

ing in the industry. This all changed when I had had enough of sit-

ting on the sidelines and volunteered to lead a class on social media

at The PPAI Expo in January 2009.

My favorite education sessions at The Expo were always led by industry practi-

tioners, so I was enthused by the prospect of giving back by sharing my experiences.

By Mark Graham

What’s Cookin’ In The PromoKitchen

 THE NEW MOVEMENT IN PEER EDUCATION AND MENTORING

I was expecting 20 people in my first session—200

 people showed up. At that moment, my view of 

the industry changed forever.

Throughout the past few years, a group of 

 young leaders met through Facebook, Twitter and

LinkedIn. We shared a common interest: helping

each other to improve our businesses and the

industry at large. We also shared a passion forchange and what the future held for our respective

businesses. A few of us were bored and frustrated

 with our businesses after years of economic tur-

moil. Some even felt lost in the industry because

they hadn’t connected with like-minded people.

The time, we believed, was right to formalize our

discussions, debates and socializing into some-

thing that could help the industry.

Enter PromoKitchen.

PromoKitchen started as an idea in January 

2011 and, by year end, blossomed into a full-

fledged community with a passion toward sharing

best practices and mentoring others. As social media was a common thread

throughout the group, we came up with the idea

of starting an industry blog. Our vision was to cre-

ate a Mashable for the industry, staffed exclusively 

by volunteer leaders (chefs) who were passionate

about sharing their experiences with others.

The PromoKitchen community represents a

cross-section of professionals (suppliers, distribu-

tors and service providers) raising the standard of 

 working together by collaborating in an open,

accessible environment. Its founding chefs include

Bobby Lehew, CAS, (Robyn); Jonathan Irvin(EasyPromo3D); Mark Graham (RIGHTSLEEVE

Marketing and commonsku); Tonia Allen Gould

(TAG! The Creative Source); Lisa Horn, CAS,

(Content Matters); Tee Hamilton (Aye Creative);

Charity Gibson (Green Banana

Promotions); Danny Rosin (Brand

Fuel Promotions); Robert Fiveash

(Brand Fuel Promotions); Kim

Newell (World Wide Lines); Brad White

(Boundless Network); David Verchere

(PostHelpers); CJ Schmidt (Hit Promotional

COMMUNITY

M A R C H 2 0 1 2 P P B 35

Guest Viewpoint

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Products); Roger Burnett (Workflow One); Matt Kaspari, CAS,

(Kaspo); Devin Piscitelli (Aakron Rule Corporation); Mark Godsey 

(Gold Bond); and Michael Legel (Continental Plastic Card Co.).

PromoKitchen has twin missions: best-practice sharing and

mentoring. Here’s how we deliver on each: We publish content

three times a week on www.promokitchen.com. Articles are

classified into one of six categories: creativity, marketing, opera-

tions, productivity, sales and technology. We have established

editorial guidelines, and everyone is invited to submit ideas for

articles. Co-editors Bobby Lehew, CAS; Lisa Horn, CAS; and

Tonia Allen Gould apply their strong editorial skills to this task.

 We’re looking to address the white elephants in the industry,

encourage discussion around thought-provoking content andinterview the leading minds in the industry (see our interviews

 with Paul Bellantone, CAE, and Craig Morantz as good examples

of this).

 We also introduced a mentor program (www.promokitchen.com/

mentor-program-overview) where mentees and mentors are paired

together based on common interests. To date, we have attracted 20

applications, and the program formally launched in February. Mentee

and mentor applications can be completed online. All matches are

made by our mentorship chair, Kim Newell. We’ve been energized by many of the stories people have

shared with us, including this one from a distributor who applied

to the mentor program:

“I am looking for practical steps and guidance to turn our little

family business into a profitable one. I need to steer this ship in a

new and profitable direction. Thank you for those of you who

dreamed up PromoKitchen and are willing to pay it forward.”

 At The PPAI Expo in January, we hosted a launch party at the

House of Blues for anyone interested in making the industry a bet-

ter place. We attracted a capacity crowd of 360 people. It was

exactly what we envisioned: bringing together a group of young

and young-at-heart industry leaders looking to have fun, sharebest practices and connect. Long after the party ended, the con-

 versations continued online.

In two short months, PromoKitchen has gone from an

unknown and unproven concept to an industry-wide going con-

cern. We are excited about the future of this community, and we

are committed to providing rich content and a helpful hand in

order to maintain a strong level of professionalism and success

amongst our peers.

Mark Graham is the founder of RIGHTSLEEVE, one of the industry’s lead-

ing web-based distributors. He is also the CEO of commonsku, an enter-

prise social software platform for the promotional products industry. He is

the national winner of the Dell Small Business Excellence Award. In 2011,

Graham was recognized as one of PPB’s Rising Stars, honored as

Distributor Entrepreneur of the Year by Counselor magazine and named to

ASI’s Hot List.

Graham has been featured in several major media publications on his

approach to technology and social media, including PPB, Counselor ,

Wearables, Stitches and Advantages. He has given multiple presentations

on web marketing, branding and social media best practices to promo-

tional industry professionals across North America at events such as The

PPAI Expo, PPAI North American Leadership Conference, PPPC National

Convention, MAPPA Convention, SPPA Showcase, PPA Chicago, NPI Show,

PROMOTIONS EAST, Partnering Group, ASI Power Summit and at ASI

shows across the country.

ppb

36 P P B M A R C H 2 0 1 2

Guest Viewpoint

“Chefs” and guests celebrate at PromoKitchen’s launch party at The PPAI

Expo 2012.

Want to get involved? Here are somehelpful links:

See what’s cooking in the Kitchen:

http://promokitchen.com

Write for PromoKitchen:

http://promokitchen.com/write-for-promokitchen

Get involved in the mentor program:

http://promokitchen.com/mentor-program-overview

Like the PromoKitchen Facebook page:

www.facebook.com/promokitchen

Follow PromoKitchen on Twitter:

http://twitter.com/promokitchen

Scan these QR codes with your smart phone to watch

PromoKitchen interviews with Paul Bellantone, CAE,

president and

CEO of PPAI,and Craig

Morantz, for-

mer executive

at supplier

Polyconcept.