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#334661 - 12/22/11 04:31 PM Christmas gifts for ADs and clients...
travlin'easy Offline
Senior Member

Registered: 12/08/02
Posts: 15556
Loc: Forest Hill, MD USA
Each year I provide my ADs, and some special private party clients, with a token of my appreciation. They provide me with a job every month, so I figured it would be a nice gesture. I've been doing this for a decade, and each year I try to find something special that they all would like.

This year I discovered a new wine called Coco Vino, which comes in at least three different flavors. Additionally, I was able to procure some miniature, sample bottles of the product that I used as gifts for some of the assistant ADs. The liquor store provides me with colorful gift bags and ribbons at no charge, and because I purchase a couple cases, they give me a generous discount as well.

With each of the large bottles I also attach a nice card, a 2012 calendar, and a new CD. Though it sounds expensive to do this, in reality, two jobs pays for everything. And, I'm able write everything off as an advertising expense.

Food for thought,

Gary cool
_________________________
PSR-S950, TC Helicon Harmony-M, Digitech VR, Samson Q7, Sennheiser E855, Custom Console, and lots of other silly stuff!

K+E=W (Knowledge Plus Experience = Wisdom.)

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#334670 - 12/22/11 08:40 PM Re: Christmas gifts for ADs and clients... [Re: travlin'easy]
tony mads usa Offline
Senior Member

Registered: 01/16/02
Posts: 14376
Loc: East Greenwich RI USA
Gary ... That's a nice gesture for those who hire you on a regular basis ... I don't go quite as far, but there are a few people in town who hire me on a regular basis, and I get them a nice box of chocolates from a store in town that makes their own EXCELLENT candy ...
It's the THOUGHT that counts ... Yes, No, ?!?!? smile
_________________________
t. cool

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#334682 - 12/23/11 07:09 AM Re: Christmas gifts for ADs and clients... [Re: tony mads usa]
travlin'easy Offline
Senior Member

Registered: 12/08/02
Posts: 15556
Loc: Forest Hill, MD USA
With 99 percent of the ADs being ladies, you can't go wrong with chocolate. smile

Gary cool
_________________________
PSR-S950, TC Helicon Harmony-M, Digitech VR, Samson Q7, Sennheiser E855, Custom Console, and lots of other silly stuff!

K+E=W (Knowledge Plus Experience = Wisdom.)

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#334685 - 12/23/11 07:50 AM Re: Christmas gifts for ADs and clients... [Re: travlin'easy]
captain Russ Offline
Senior Member

Registered: 01/02/04
Posts: 7285
Loc: Lexington, Ky, USA
I have a little lady who makes 500 butter rum cakes each season. People have an allotment. Mine is 25. You can't get any more. She decorates them with holly, berries, etc. When people ask if they can buy one, I say, "no, you have to hire me to play"! (LOL)!

Each big client gets one of them. I send a big Christmas flower arrangement to the owner at my House job. It traditionally is the first thing you see when you go to the establishment during the holidays.

I also don't forget the help at my house job. They can make or break you. This year, each waitress/waiter, bookkeeper, etc. gets a black and gold Cross pen.


I don't play nursing homes or assisted living places, but if I did, Gary's approach looks great!


HO, HO, HO, everyone!


Russ

(4 more jobs and counting)

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#334710 - 12/23/11 08:22 PM Re: Christmas gifts for ADs and clients... [Re: travlin'easy]
Bill in Dayton Offline
Senior Member

Registered: 08/23/04
Posts: 2202
Loc: Dayton, OH USA
Question Gary on the new CD's you include...Are you purchasing the mechanical rights for the songs recorded on these CD's? I understand there's more than one way to secure these rights. How do you suggest?

Nice gesture, by the way...
_________________________
Bill in Dayton

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#334719 - 12/24/11 07:17 AM Re: Christmas gifts for ADs and clients... [Re: travlin'easy]
Tom Cavanaugh Offline
Senior Member

Registered: 12/06/99
Posts: 2133
Loc: Muskegon, MI
Hey Bill,
If Gary were violating copyrights and royalties would you expect him to admit it to the whole world on this forum? He's not nearly as dumb as his wife thinks he is. Merry Christmas Bill and Gary.

Tom
_________________________
Thanks,

Tom

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#334722 - 12/24/11 07:29 AM Re: Christmas gifts for ADs and clients... [Re: travlin'easy]
travlin'easy Offline
Senior Member

Registered: 12/08/02
Posts: 15556
Loc: Forest Hill, MD USA
Bill,

The CD contains a dozen, traditional, Christmas songs, all of which were purchased from an advertising company that paid the copyrights. The CD has a personal Christmas greeting on the label from me. There are several companies that sell these, including National Pen Company, whom I deal with regularly.

Merry Christmas everyone,

Gary cool
_________________________
PSR-S950, TC Helicon Harmony-M, Digitech VR, Samson Q7, Sennheiser E855, Custom Console, and lots of other silly stuff!

K+E=W (Knowledge Plus Experience = Wisdom.)

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#334753 - 12/24/11 04:26 PM Re: Christmas gifts for ADs and clients... [Re: travlin'easy]
Bill in Dayton Offline
Senior Member

Registered: 08/23/04
Posts: 2202
Loc: Dayton, OH USA
of course not, lol...

Over the last few months I've begun to hear about alternate, yet legal ways to secure the mechanical rights to record copy-written music. Gary mentions purchasing his songs from an advertising company who paid the copyrights. This sounds different from the way I've done it with the Harry Fox Agency in NYC.

I'm hoping to do a CD project in the 3rd or 4th quarter of 2012 and would like to know if there's other ways to handle that part of a recording project.

Gary, would you elaborate on this advertising agency, contact info, etc? Sounds like they might be worth checking out.

Thanks...
_________________________
Bill in Dayton

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#334754 - 12/24/11 06:20 PM Re: Christmas gifts for ADs and clients... [Re: travlin'easy]
travlin'easy Offline
Senior Member

Registered: 12/08/02
Posts: 15556
Loc: Forest Hill, MD USA
Bill,

It's the National Pen Company. I've been dealing with them for a decade now, and the Christmas CD promo package included a Greeting Card and Christmas CD with about a dozen, traditional Christmas songs. I purchase calendars, pens and pocket planners from them as well.

As for doing your own CD, it can get fairly expensive, particularly when you consider the minimum requirements for the royalties. If I recall, the figure was about 2,500 copies, but I could be wrong about that.

Good Luck,

Gary cool
_________________________
PSR-S950, TC Helicon Harmony-M, Digitech VR, Samson Q7, Sennheiser E855, Custom Console, and lots of other silly stuff!

K+E=W (Knowledge Plus Experience = Wisdom.)

Top
#334757 - 12/24/11 09:30 PM Re: Christmas gifts for ADs and clients... [Re: travlin'easy]
Bill in Dayton Offline
Senior Member

Registered: 08/23/04
Posts: 2202
Loc: Dayton, OH USA
Thanks for the clarification, Gary. I misunderstood that YOU recorded these songs. My bad...
_________________________
Bill in Dayton

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#334791 - 12/25/11 10:11 PM Re: Christmas gifts for ADs and clients... [Re: Bill in Dayton]
Songman55 Offline
Member

Registered: 06/24/05
Posts: 892
Loc: Baltimore, MD USA
Hi guys, I think there might be a new way to do this copyright thing. I seem to remember reading something recently from a new company with CD Baby that handles this and deals with smaller numbers of CD's. I do original piano CD's but I'm constantly pressured from my NH circuit clients to do a Cd of songs I perform. In the past the cost has been way too much to recoup from that kind of market. I'll do some research next week and let you know what I find out.

Joe
_________________________
PSR S950, PSR S900, Roland RD 700, Yamaha C3 6'Grand, Sennheiser E 935 mic, several recording mics including a Neuman U 87, Bose L1 Compact, Roland VS 2480 24 Track Recorder
Joe Ayala

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#334800 - 12/26/11 04:53 AM Re: Christmas gifts for ADs and clients... [Re: Songman55]
Bill in Dayton Offline
Senior Member

Registered: 08/23/04
Posts: 2202
Loc: Dayton, OH USA
Thanks, Joe...
_________________________
Bill in Dayton

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