McDonald's Threatened With Lawsuit Over Promo Toys
A California watchdog group has served McDonald's with a letter expressing its intent to sue unless the restaurant chain removes toys from its Happy Meals by mid-July. The group, called the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI), believes McDonald's is luring children into its restaurants with deceptive ad campaigns, while essentially promoting obesity. "McDonald's is the stranger in the playground handing out candy to children," said CSPI litigation director Stephen Gardner. "McDonald's use of toys undercuts parental authority and exploits young children's developmental immaturity. It's a creepy and predatory practice that warrants an injunction."

In response to CSPI's allegations, McDonald's has defended its Happy Meal toys as "just one part of a fun, family experience" at the restaurant. McDonald's has also pointed out that its Happy Meal menus now offer healthy options, like apple slices and juices, in place of French fries and sodas. "We couldn't disagree more with the misrepresentation of our food and marketing practices," said William Whitman, a McDonald's spokesman. "McDonald's is committed to a responsible approach to our menu, and our Happy Meal offerings. We have added more choice and variety than ever before, a fact that has been widely reported and recognized."

McDonald's is not the first high profile company that the CSPI has targeted. In 2006, the organization threatened cereal maker Kellogg's with a similar lawsuit, alleging the company engaged in marketing practices that were "disease-promoting" and "brainwashing" toward children. Rather than fighting a potential suit in court, Kellogg's acquiesced to the CSPI's demands, agreeing to stop using branded toys in connection with foods that fall short of meeting certain nutritional standards. "As a practical matter, this commitment means that parents will find it a little easier to steer their children toward healthy food choices," said CSPI executive director Michael Jacobson, following Kellogg's eventual compliance in 2007.

In its latest notice letter, CSPI maintains that McDonald's toy promotions violate state consumer protection laws in four states and Washington, DC. The organization says it will sue McDonald's in 30 days unless the restaurant agrees to remove toys from Happy Meals. The lawsuit threat comes a month after Santa Clara County in California banned local fast-food chains from giving away promotional toys with meals that exceed a certain calorie count. The action also comes on the heels of McDonald's recalling 12 million promotional glasses earlier this month when they were found to have excessive levels of cadmium.

Video Report: Industry News Of The Week
Every week, Counselor PromoGram offers a video news report that highlights the industry's top stories. Called Industry Update, each episode details the most important trends and news items impacting the ad specialty market.

In this episode, we discuss why marketers are fleeing to new outlets for their ad campaigns and we analyze the impact of China's shift in monetary strategy. Plus, why is McDonald's under fire again for the promotional items it hands out? Watch this episode of Industry Update to find out.

Click here to see the trends and to watch Counselor PromoGram's Industry Update.

If you have any news you'd like to see covered on Industry Update or in Counselor PromoGram, please send it to newsdesk@asicentral.com.

Toronto Businesses Back To Work After Quake
Ad specialty distributors and suppliers in Toronto were rattled but quickly back online after a 5.0-magnitude earthquake struck the Canadian city yesterday afternoon. "Nothing in production was interrupted," said Michael Gisser, executive vice president of Superex (asi/90231), a supplier based in Toronto. The delay in work was minimal. "Five minutes later we all had our laughs and got back to work," he added.

Still, the quake – which produced no reported injuries or damage but was felt throughout parts of Canada and several U.S. states – was an unusual occurrence for the Toronto residents. Mark Graham, whose distributorship Rightsleeve (asi/308922) is located on the top floor of a five-story office building, was meeting with a sales rep around 1:30 when "all of a sudden we felt this shaking, this movement below our feet," he recalled. "It was really weird." The company quickly evacuated down the stairs and joined the mass of people in the street. "We were outside for a half hour, joking about it. And then things seemed to be calm, and we went back into work," he said.

Gisser was in, of all places, the bathroom when the quake occurred. "My eyes felt kind of funny, and the toilet's moving back and forth and I feel movement. And I'm thinking ‘Oh my god, I've got to see my doctor,'" he said. "Then I come out and I was asked ‘Did you feel that?' and I said ‘Thank god it wasn't just me.'" The company's 75,000-square-foot warehouse wasn't affected by the natural occurrence. According to the U.S. Geological Survey, the quake was the largest in Western Quebec since 1935, in a region that produces minor earthquakes three or four times a year.

Podcast: How To Maximize Online Search
On Tuesday's ASI Internet Radio Show, Daniel Gaugler, vice president of marketing for PrintingForLess.com (asi/79558), called in to share his insights on how distributors can get more out of their online marketing efforts. Wondering how to get to the top of search engine listings? Listen now to this clip from the show. 

Click here to listen to the search engine optimization 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, June 29, 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.

New Discounts Announced With Sprint
ASI announced this week that it is offering enhanced discounts through its member discount wireless program with Sprint. Effective immediately, ASI members will receive 15% savings on select corporate liable plans and 10% savings on select individual liable plans. Plus, members already enrolled in the ASI member Sprint program will automatically be switched to the new program to receive the enhanced rates.

Click here to take advantage of this exclusive ASI member program and start saving on your wireless services.

If you have any questions about the Sprint discount program or any of ASI's Member Benefits programs, please send an e-mail to benefits@asicentral.com.

Nominations Open For 2010 Counselor Power 50
Counselor is now compiling its Power 50 list for 2010 – our recognition of the industry's most powerful individuals – and we're looking for feedback from you. Click here to see the list of last year's Power 50 and let us know whether you think the members are more or less influential today than they were a year ago.

Plus, this is also the place to nominate new people who you think should be on the 2010 Power 50 list. Scroll to the bottom of the survey to submit new candidates for the Counselor Power 50 list. Please write their name and company in the space provided.

Click here to take the survey and make new nominations.

ASICentral: Top 100 Markets For Ad Specialty Sales
A recent exclusive Counselor study unveiled the best cities for ad specialty distributors to do business in right now. For the interactive online version, we decided to extend the list to the largest 100 markets and give them not only a rank, but a grade too.

Want to know where the best – and worst – cities are for ad specialty sales? 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: .

ASI Online Learning Center
Did you know you can take self-paced, on-demand courses at ASI Education's Online Learning Center? This is the newest and most convenient way for distributors, decorators and suppliers to get educated. In our newest course for distributors, "Cold-Calling Clinic: Get More Appointments Now," we'll teach you how to use cold calling as an important tool that can take your selling skills to the next level, including five ways to reduce rejection and key tips for connecting with your prospect. Click here to take the course.

Click here to get a sneak peek of just one sales strategy you'll learn in this course.

Coming next month: Break Into Five Hot Apparel Markets

In The News
All Types Advertising Inc. (asi/118980) has a new shipping address: 12 Carol Ct., Pomona, NY 10970. The company's phone and fax numbers are unchanged.

Terry Collection (asi/90912) has moved and expanded its corporate offices. The new address is 5201 Ravenswood Road #101, Ft Lauderdale, FL 33312. All phone and fax numbers and e-mail and website addresses remain the same. The company's production facility remains in Zebulon, GA.

People On The Move
BCH Unique (asi/37700) has named Gary Rosenberg of Eager Sales Group as its multiline representative covering the Northeast territory (CT, MA, ME, NH, NJ, NY, RI and VT).

S&S Watches & Clocks (asi/84360) announced the resignation of national accounts manager Samantha Bridgers.

Spector & Co. (asi/88660) announced that it has hired Julie Cates as an additional account manager to serve the greater Toronto area.

WorkflowOne (asi/333647) announced that it has promoted Tom Dailey to vice president of operations.