Jeremy Lin continues to make headlines despite a loss to the Nets. He still managed to put up a good amount of points and assists. How odd is it that the Kicks can beat top tier teams, but lose to sub par teams. I am eagerly anticipating tomorrow's game against the heat. I'm sure it will be electrifying. If the Knicks can beat the Heat, they can be a playoff contender. Lin's jersey has been the hottest selling item in the NBA so far. Vendor's set up there trade show tents with Lin's items everywhere you go. I've been seeing a lot of Jeremy Lin promotional T-shirts with different Lin words. So if your a Knicks fan, lets cheer for them in tonights game against the Atlanta Hawks.

One of my favorite parts about my job is talking to my customers about what they do, and why they are ordering. Last week, I spoke to Jayson who is an export service representative at Rosenbauer America. But what does Rosenbauer America do? They make fire trucks! They also made the truck that is Sentinel Prime in the Transformers movie! When I was told that, I was blown away, and needed to ask for some swag. Jayson was kind enough to send me a huge package of their custom imprint promotional products that they have ordered. Below is an image of what I was sent: A custom imprinted lapel sticker, customer imprinted patch and lapel pin, promotional golf tees, personalized calendar, a screen printed T-Shirt, and an engraved bottle opener (reason they called to re-order). I am so excited to have received all of these amazing giveaways!

You will have to excuse the Motivators Blog today. Sure, last night was the Super Bowl, which annually is the most watched television event in the US and in the World each year. Motivators, if you didn't already know, is headquartered in New York. So you will have to excuse the staff if we are all a little unusually excited about last night's game. In case you were living under a rock, our New York Giants beat down the rival New England Patriots. It was an absolutely thrilling game that literally came down to the last few seconds. Like I said though, this ISN'T just another Super Bowl blog. This is about the good people at Modells' Sporting Goods.

You see, moments after Eli Manning stepped off the podium in Indy with his Super Bowl MVP trophy in hand, I left to drive myself and friends home. On our way home, at about 1030 / 11 at night, we saw the lights shining through and cars going in and out. Thats right, they were selling the New York Giants 2012 Championship promotional apparel already.

So who was I to keep on driving by? With every staff member on hand it only took about 10 minutes to choose my promotional t-shirt and be on my way. There was every type of championship branded item you could imagine though.

And 50% off Jets jerseys. No joke.

So by 1130 I was home with my shiny new Giants Championship and in bed by midnight, right around the time many people were just getting to many Modells to purchase their apparel.

So to you Modells' in Douglaston, Queens thank you for opening up right after the Super Bowl and thank you for you fantastic service.

This past Thursday January 26th, Ken, Laura, Samantha and myself attended the SAAGNY winter showcase 2012.  The plethora of trade show items were amazing.  Any promotional product you could think of was there.  Any item you may want imprinted they had on display.  It really makes you think about how many of these items you come in contact with every single day.  We all had a great time walking the show and are looking forward to selling many of these item to our customers!

Ah, there's nothing quite like a good ol' "Who wore it best?" contest!  So when an extra shipment of promotional scarves and bandanas arrived at Motivators' New York office, people got really into really into it.  We dressed up our dogs, our kids, and our outfits with the prettiest green bandanas you'll ever see!  Check out some of the photos below: 

To see all the photos (and to vote for your favorite), click here!

          Hello there my faithful followers. I hope you all enjoyed your weekends and are ready for another work week. And what better way to pass ones time in the office than to read one of my tales of wonder. Oh, and this one isn't for the squeamish.

          From reading my previous blogs, you may know that I love to take on challenges. I love to do things that test my strength, determination, will, and bravery. The crazier they are, the better. So when Dos Equis announced, in line with their ad campaign of "The Most Interesting Man in the World", that they will be having a "Feast of the Brave", how was I going to pass that up?

          In celebration of Cinco de Mayo, from mid-April to the beginning of May 2011, Dos Equis was launching the "Feast of the Brave". The feast involves a food truck that will be in various spot of the five boroughs of New York. It will be serving tacos to the public for free. However, these are not just ordinary tacos. They will have "the most interesting" fillings such as ostrich, cow tongue, veal brain, cricket, and scorpion. Mmmmm, just like the way momma makes them. Thrill seekers wishing to try this can follow their whereabouts via Dos Equis Facebook page (which is how I learned about it) or through their twitter account. Dos Equis would have also have people at the trucks taking photographs of those brave enough to try the taco concoctions.

          On the first weekend in May, I log into Facebook to check on the daily activities of all my friends when I notice a post on my feed from Dos Equis in regards to the Feast of the Brave. They gave their locations and I notice that in the afternoon, they will be in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, which is close to where I live Queens. Perfect! I put on my Sunday's best, grab my lovely girlfriend, and we are off to the magical land of Williamsburg. The land of the interesting and eccentric.

          I park my car and start heading up Bedford Avenue, patrolling the streets, feverishly looking for the truck. I walk several blocks north, and there it was, in all her beauty. I see this burgundy food truck with a giant scorpion hanging off the side of it. I see young women dressed in promotional apparel with the Dos XX logo embroidered on trying to entice people to have a taco. As I get closer and begin to read off the menu in mind. Which one do I try first? I know! I will see which one puts the most disgusted face on my girlfriend first, and work my way down from there. However, to my dismay, I begin to see most of the choices up there are already sold out. All they had left was cow tongue and crickets. Damn!

          I go to the window and place my order. They ask for my name and tell me to wait by the side of the truck until my food is complete. This is the worst part, the waiting. I know it may have been only a few minutes in normal time, but it felt like hours to me. I am watching people around already eating their tacos. Some had the cricket taco, and some had the veal brain. Both didn't look that appetizing at all, but definitely would have been worth the try. Finally my name is called and I am handed my taco, along with a promotional napkin printed with the Dos XX logo. I take one last look at my meal, fold the shell, and begin to consume.

          It tastes.... well, I don't quite know how to describe it. It wasn't as bad as I thought it would be, but definitely wasn't as good as it could have been. It had a spongy texture to it, which felt weird to bite. However, the sauce gave it a  nice kick. All in all, I would say that it was palatable. I decided to go back and try the crickets, but the lady in front of me took the last cricket taco. It was fun to watch her try to eat it with the legs hanging out the other side. You can hear the crunch of the cricket several feet away from her.

          This was definitely a fun and "interesting" experience, as is all the Dos Equis events I have come across. They really know how to push the limits of "The Most Interesting Man" campaign, and it really shows. It keeps their audience engaged, and coming back for more. This will not be last encounter with Dos Equis and "The Most Interesting Man in the World".

With a steady rise in e-commerce, there's almost always a sale. Whether it's during the holiday season or shortly after, June or September, there's always an opportunity for savings if you search for it.

Motivators is introducing free shipping for hundreds of Leed's items on the website. Motivators already has low prices and has the occasional promotional code for extra savings but this sale is a great way to pick up any last-minute gifts and is our way of thanking you for a successful year. So whether you want a custom imprinted watch or a promotional mouse pad, Leed's has the finest around.

Who could ask for a better Sunday? Monday was a holiday and there was a full slate of pretty important football games for the masses to watch. For New York football fans, you had two must win games, one for each team. Sure the Jets would need a little magic, but that didn't make their game any less exciting.The Jets didn't win, but it didn't matter in the end because all the magic Jets fans needed to occur didn't. For Giants fans, it was either win against the Cowboys and head to Met-Life Stadium the following week to watch the G-Men live while holding their promotional stadium cups or lose and go home to watch Dallas while drinking from their logo beer glasses they keep in their cabinets. It was a fantastic game that even had a bit of nostalgia in it with a play by Eli Manning and Victor Cruz reminiscent of "The Great Catch" from the 2007 Super Bowl. The Giants would of course come out victorious and now have a at least a chance to be the ones wearing the Super Bowl Champions promotional apparel when all is said and done.

I don't know if it's the iron, the board, or my lack of interest while waiting for that little metal thing to heat up but I hate/can't iron.  Everytime I go on vacation or to an event where an ironed shirt/pants/suit is required, I always have to have someone iron my items.  That was until my good friend Laurie told me about our custom garment bags.  The clothes fit perfectly into it and fold neatly in half for wrinkle free travel!  This promotional product had made life easier for me and whomever I may be traveling with!

What will you be doing for New Year's Eve? 

Every year, over one million people pile into Times Square to see the famous New Year's Eve crystal ball drop at midnight.

This year's theme, "Let there be friendship," is symbolized with the 300 or so crystals that were placed on the ball just yesterday.

If you're one of the million that will hug or kiss that special someone at midnight in Times Square, you can expect to be standing around for hours on end.

Luckily, myself and Heather Cross, an about.com guide, are here to remind you what items are best to pass the time on New Year's Eve.

• Warm, promotional apparel will be a must to survive the bitter weather. The low for New Year's Eve in Times Square is 33 degrees. Motivators carries promotional fleece and custom imprinted outerware are perfect, especially for the 20% chance of precipitation we might be expecting. 
• Bring a camera. People tend to forget to bring a camera and those who do will forget to back up their old photos on a promotional USB flash drive.
• Promotional snacks are a must-have to keep your hunger satisfied. Promotional nuts are a great snack that can last a while and fill one up.

There's certainly other items you can bring but Motivators is here to remind you about the essentials.