A pristine blank page often beckons the mind to unravel threads of thoughts or images that result in prose or doodles. There’s something so optimistic about a new journal or padfolio and it can serve as the silent keeper of one’s secrets as well as the host of ideas and musings that can turn into something unique, special and influential.
Journals are also a welcome respite to typing on keyboards, providing a good break from constant screen viewing. According to JournalBooks’ website, “Planning, organizing and practicing mindfulness can all be accomplished with a JB journal. Whether it’s through practicing gratitude, mindfulness or tracking feelings, journaling has been proven to put people in a better headspace. Writing helps acknowledge and understand feelings, while also helping create healthy habits.”
Journalbooks offers the Bohemian Journal in teal (#BJ-880FC), featuring smooth faux leather hard covers with a sewn book binding. It includes a blind deboss imprint, 80 sheets of ruled, quality wood free paper, pocket on inside back cover, matching satin ribbon bookmark, and elastic privacy closure.
A key trend gaining more momentum is eco-friendly journals and padfolios.
Castelli, a high-end journal brand from The Magnet Group, has lush offerings, and several are perfect for businesses that want to promote their alignment with sustainability and green practices. An example is the ApPeel® Pico Saddlestitched journal, available in four hues of red delicious, granny smith, bella blue, neutral and black beauty (#M35XV). The cover and paper are made from apple pulp and other vegetable fibers that are ground and emulsified into an organic material. It measures 3 11/16" x 5 5/8" and contains 64 pages with green lines and a back pocket flap.
JournalBooks’ Eco ColorPop Journal with Tip-In (#ECP-58FC) features smooth, recycled paper, hard-bound covers, and includes a blind deboss imprint up to 16" sq. and one full-color one-sided insert, expandable accordion pocket, 80 sheets off-white, ruled paper with colored edges available in red, blue, orange, turquoise and white; matching elastic band closure, and pen loop.
According to JournalBooks’ website, the company has selected a group of eco-friendly journals to be part of PCNA’s EcoSmart® initiative. PCNA has partnered with 1% For The Planet, donating one percent of EcoSmart® sales to environmental non-profits. Purchasing these items is a double contribution to a better world.
BIC Graphic offers durable and attractive padfolios suitable for corporate clients. Its
Script Zippered Jr. Padfolio (#15135) is made of vinyl and available in black. It features front horizontal stitching design and two interior pockets to secure notes and cards, includes 5"w x 8"h writing pad, a vinyl pen loop and zip closure.
BIC Graphic’s Vertical Stitch Padfolio (#15914) features an interior organizer and an overall smooth finish, available in burgundy, gray and navy; leatherette cover with stitch design along the edge, interior organizer with slip pocket and elastic business card pockets and an 8-1/2"w x 11"h writing pad.
As businesses adapt to a work-from-home culture, providing journals and padfolios is a great idea to encourage continuity of progress and team culture.
CASE STUDIES
Warwick Publishing: “A real estate company was looking for custom printed branded folders (#FSP04) Standard 4-Color Pocket Folder, to use as a welcome packet for new clients, along with a special gift to give them as a value-add (#FP35) Mini Flip Pad Jotter. The folder was imprinted with the real estate company logo and tagline, "Welcome Home" on the front cover, with photo collage of sample properties from their portfolio. After collecting the customer's information, these welcome packet folders and flip pad jotters were given out to clients in person at meetings and open house events.
“Inside each folder, the real estate company included their business card, plus property listing fliers, an informational FAQ sheet for buyers and sellers, and other key paperwork. They paired the welcome folder with a branded mini flip pad jotter for their clients to take down important notes during property showings. As a result, they saw increased engagement with their brand and higher customer retention.”
Warwick Publishing: “An investment firm wanted to promote their new financial blog to their existing customers with a memorable branded item (#FP35) mini flip pad jotter that their account holders could use at their office or on the go. It was imprinted with the investment firm logo, tagline, and blog website link. The investment firm included the mini flip pad jotters in mailings to their account holders along with their monthly statement, and a brief memo explaining the purpose of their investment advice blog to give customers additional info and tips to help them with smarter investing and portfolio diversification.
“About 7-10 days after the jotters were mailed out, the investment firm saw a spike in both new visitors and overall organic traffic to their blog by tracking the data in Google Analytics. Their web team observed a sustained increase in the level of organic traffic to their blog and website for the next 12 months. The company was also able to determine which blog posts were the most popular with their customers and developed a content strategy to produce more content like it with the goal of capturing more readership and ultimately, more accounts.”
BIC Graphic: “A wellness retreat center was hosting its first yoga teacher training, a four-week immersive program. In addition to yoga practice, learning and mentorship; the training included learning modules to enhance their capabilities and prepare attendees for certification.
“During these learning modules, students were given KAPSTON® Jaxon Journal for Wellness Retreat (#16077) imprinted with the retreat center’s logo for note-taking and experience journaling. The blue color coordinated with the center’s branding while the high-end details aligned with expectations for the cost of attending the training. Recipients were grateful to document their training experience in a stylish journal that they were happy to keep long after the conclusion of the retreat.”