New Law Bans Certain License Plate Frames
Makers of customized license plate frames could be forced to change the size and style of their products following an amendment to a law in North Carolina. The new law, which was enforced for the first time Tuesday, prohibits the covering of the state name, year sticker or month sticker by a promotional frame. "This is just part of the business and you have to roll with the punches," says Rick Russell, owner of License Plate Ad Co. (asi/67350). "We continue to adapt our styles."

The law, one of 52 recently-passed statutes in North Carolina, does allow for the use of transparent frames that don't interfere with toll collection systems that take pictures of license plates. Between now and November 30, 2010, violators will only receive a warning for using a restricted frame. After the grace period ends, the penalty will include a $100 fine and $130 in court costs.

While license plate frames are common for promoting car dealerships, colleges and sports teams, sponsors of the legislation have argued the frames make it more difficult for police to collect registration data. The North Carolina law follows similar legislation recently enacted in other states. Earlier this year, a comparable license plate law went into effect in Arizona, following the actions of legislators in other states including New Jersey, New York and Connecticut.

Boundless Network Obtains Additional Financing
Texas-based distributor Boundless Network (asi/143717) has announced it has received $5 million in funding through existing investors, raising its total venture financing to $13 million. The raised capital, provided by firms Austin Ventures and Silverton Partners, will be used to support and sustain Boundless' infrastructure and growth. "With this new funding we will continue to expand our technology platform to better enable sales professionals within the promotional products industry to grow their business in a scalable way and help companies save money on branded merchandise," said Jason Black, CEO of Boundless, in a statement.

Known for its rapid expansion, Boundless has acquired 13 companies in the last 23 months. Boundless has also recently agreed to several new promotional contracts with brands that include Motorola and medical device developer CareFusion. "Boundless Network's rapid growth despite the recent economic conditions is validation that the promotional products industry is ready for innovation," said Thomas Ball, partner at Austin Ventures. "This investment demonstrates our confidence that Boundless' technology platform will enable it to rapidly scale its business."

Employing 130 salespeople in several regional offices, Boundless serves 6,000 clients. In October, Boundless underwent a management shakeup with the announcement that CEO Sherman Atkinson and Senior Vice President of Sales Tom Rizzi were no longer with the company. Black cited "a shift in strategy" for the changes. According to Black, Boundless expects to have revenues of $31 million in 2009.

Podcast: Counselor's Industry News
Every week, the ASI Internet Radio Tuesday Morning Show delivers an audio version of the industry's top news. Click here to listen to the segment from this week's show. The topics: an alleged criminal scam by an ex-supplier, industry revenues in Canada, and new updates to ESP Online. Click here to listen.

Branders.com Secures Capital
California-based Branders.com (asi/145021) has received an additional $5 million in venture capital from four of its current investors. Menlo Ventures, DCM, Venture Strategy Partners and Altos Ventures have all contributed to the $46 million in total capital that Branders has acquired to date. "Branders.com pioneered the online promotional marketplace and is now growing it by offering the lowest prices imaginable, online or off," said H. DuBose Montgomery, managing director of Menlo Ventures. "Customers have really responded to their value proposition."

Established a decade ago, Branders.com claims its serves 100,000 customers, including the White House and many Fortune 500 companies. The company offers thousands of products online from an estimated 80 industry suppliers. While statements assert Branders is profitable, the company does not provide revenue figures. "This has been an incredibly satisfying year for the Branders.com team," said Jerry McLaughlin, CEO of Branders. "We've been able to help more companies than ever achieve their marketing and retention goals within extremely tight budgets. We are proud of our industry-leading customer retention rates and are committed to bringing our clients the best possible products."

Podcast: Creative Holiday Gift Ideas
On Tuesday's ASI Internet Radio Show, the hosts took questions from listeners who were looking for tips on effective, low-cost gifts that they could give to their clients this year. Wondering how you should thank clients this holiday season? Check out this podcast.

Click here to listen to the holiday gift advice segment from Tuesday's show.

If you'd like to check out a recording of the whole online radio show, go to www.asicentral.com/radio. And, don't forget to join us next Tuesday, December 8, for our next broadcast. Log on to www.asicentral.com/radio at 10:30 am eastern time and give us a call at 215-953-4979 or e-mail us at radio@asicentral.com to participate on the show. We want to hear from you.

Call For Entries: Counselor Product Design Awards
Counselor magazine is looking for innovative products for its Product Design Awards competition. Suppliers are invited to nominate their favorite eye-catching products in the following categories:

In order to enter, please submit the following three items: 1. A sample of the product. (We recommend that the product be exclusive to the supplier that is submitting it, although this is not a requirement.); 2. A quick description of the product, including any special features; 3. The category that the product should be considered for. There is a limit of one submission per category, per company. All submissions will be judged on the following areas: design appeal, functionality and the ability to attractively feature a logo (when appropriate). Winners will be featured in the June issue of Counselor.

Please send all entries to: Karen Akers, Awards Editor, Counselor Magazine, 4800 Street Road, Trevose, PA 19053. Questions? E-mail Karen Akers at kakers@asicentral.com. Please note that only products from North American suppliers will be considered and that submissions will not be returned unless specifically requested.

Prepare For 2010: Free Webinar Today
Looking for trends to be aware of as you prepare your business for 2010? Come to our free, live educational webinar today, from 2 p.m. eastern time to 3 p.m. Moderated by Michele Bell, editor of Supplier Global Resource and senior editor of Counselor, the event is titled Get Ready For 2010: Top Sales And Market Trends.

New Course Available on ASI Education's OnlineLearning Center 
Be sure to register at http://www.asicentral.com/asionlinelearning for some exciting new courses available exclusively to ASI members. Brought to you by ASI Education, Online Learning is the newest and most convenient way for distributors to get educated. Here are some of the courses from our New Distributor Success Track available now:

NEW
Wearables Crash Course. In this course, you'll learn about the top five best-selling wearable categories, along with decorating and selling tips. Then, we'll give you an overview of the most popular decorating options. Plus, you'll learn about some of the hot new buzzwords in wearables, such as performance fabrics and eco-friendly fabrics. And, we'll advise you on how to find the right decorator and digitizer. Finally, suppliers are eager to help you show your clients how their logo will look on apparel, so that's where samples can be key to getting that sale. By the end of this course, you'll be on your way to selling even more wearables, which make up 30% of the $20 billion in annual ad specialty sales.

Course Track: New Distributor Success
* Nailing Down the Basics
* Marketing Your New Business
* Steps to Selling Success
* Creative Case Studies
* Avoid These First-Year Pitfalls
* Managing Your Business
Coming Soon: 
* Building Profitable Client Relationships

ASICentral: E-Mail Contest Winner Announced
A few weeks back we challenged you to a contest involving business e-mail skill and savvy, and asked you to prove your mettle by editing a poorly written message. With the promise of your name being printed in PromoGram, the response was tremendous, and our editors had to sift through hundreds of e-mails to get to one very lucky person: Merinda Goodman of C.C. Creations!

Not only did she edit every error correctly, but she added some light humor to her responses. Congrats Merinda! For more, including the answers to the poorly written message, click here.

Got questions, comments or any type of feedback regarding anything ASICentral, don't hesitate to contact us at feedback@asicentral.com. Also, follow ASICentral at .

In The News
Cotton Connection (asi/46777) is offering free freight on select T-shirts, fleece products and tote bags through December 31. For details, go to: www.cottonconnection.com.

Logo Mats Inc. (asi/67849) has introduced the Enviro PLUS logo mat, made of 89% post-consumer and post-industrial materials.

Outdoor Cap (asi/75420) has announced that Incentives West will provide sales representation for the company in CA and the Pacific northwest.

Schreiner Chicago (asi/85653) has announced that its pen production process was filmed by the Discovery Network and will appear on the program "How It's Made" on January 8.

ASI SHOW

The following are the dates and locations for The ASI Show in 2010:
Orlando: January 3-5
Dallas: February 1-3
San Diego: February 24-26
New York: May 4-6
Chicago: July 13-15
Holiday & Incentives Expo, Las Vegas: September 14-16

Plus, don't miss the ASI Advantages Roadshow, the industry's #1 traveling show. Visit www.advantagesroadshow.com for the complete schedule!