Jump start 2009… Each year at this time I put pen to paper and identify new business goals. How can you embrace the many opportunities the new year brings? Ask yourself…what would the business robot do?
Three things in life… During this season of giving and receiving what three things come to mind that are most valuable to you? Here is a list to consider…
Happy Holidays… For those of you who still need to send holiday greetings we have new holidays e-cards uploaded! Choose a design and send it to everyone on your list. Download the December desktop background here.
“Dear George:
Remember, no man is a failure who has friends. Thanks for the wings”
– Love Clarence
 

Did I Proofread? Your corporate brochure looks awesome! But how does it read? As a design firm we specialize in making your marketing items look good. We don’t just stop at how they look though. To maintain your professional image it is critical for your text to be clean and accurate too… Read more

We had to show you proof of our tip! The errors in the e-newsletter text that was sent out is an example of a last minute change that was not proofed by another set of eyes. It is often those multiple sets of changes that get us in trouble. Spell check each proof multiple times, then the last round comes in and you skip a step thinking because you just changed one word…. always, another set of eyes!

WISE… Women in Successful Enterprises. Do you know any wise women? Are you wise? Do you want to help us define our look? Join us December 15, 2008 at the Douglas J Aveda Institute for some holiday pampering and the introduction of W.I.S.E. Read more
Give Thanks!What are you waiting for? Send someone your thankful for a thanksgiving ecard! The holidays are fast approaching!
“Its been a long time coming, but tonight, because of what we did on this day, in this election, at this defining moment, change has come to America.”
– President-Elect Barack Obama
 

Don’t Forget! If you haven’t filled out your quarterly desktop calendar response card yet don’t risk being removed from the list. Thanks to all of you who have responded we really appreciate your input! If you have lost the card in your “I will get to it later” pile please take a moment to answer 10 quick questions in the online form we have created just for you. We keep our mailing list lean and mean. We need to hear back from you to include you in our 2009 calendar mailings. Thanks for your time and feedback!
Love our desktop calendars?… so did MSPRA. Scroll below to see the poster version of the desktop calendars we create. Click on the image to view more details. Calendars can be displayed as posters for those who don’t want to mail multiple times throughout the year. Or the poster is trimmed to a three month desktop folded calendar that is mailed every quarter. We can mail them for you to your mailing list or you can address them and mail yourself. This copyrighted design is an original concept by Connection Group, Inc. Sign up to receive ours if you haven’t yet or contact us for a custom design of your own. Keep in touch with your clients and prospects daily! Call us today for your holiday promotions. Connection Group has unique and creative solutions to help you successfully connect to your audience – professionally and economically.
BOO!… Scare someone this halloween or just let them know you’re thinking of them. Send them an original Halloween ecard! Another scary subject is the amount of people who don’t vote. Remember to get out and vote November 4 and send a voting reminder ecard to someone today! Your vote DOES count!
” Where there is no imagination there is no horror ” ~ Arthur Conan Doyle, Sr.
Have a safe and happy halloween!

How many client proposals do you have out there right now? Sometimes it seems eons pass before a response comes in. There is a fine line between pestiness and persistence when following up with bids. Here are five tried-and-true techniques…
8 More Weeks of Campaigning….Can we have some non-partisan fun here? Thanks Diane for sharing this clip. With all the mud slinging we have contended with this year humor is refreshing… unless you consider the point of the $ spent on these campaigns. www.peteyandpetunia.com/VoteHere/VoteHere.htm
Stay connected…For those on our print calendar mailing list the final quarter is in the mail. Please complete and return the response card with your name – this will help keep you on the mailing list next year. Your feedback helps us serve you better! Download the current desktop background here.
“The greatest good we can do for others is not just to share our riches with them, but to reveal theirs.” – Zig Ziglar
 

How do you stay connected to your cleints and prospects when gas prices are soaring? Have some fun with direct mail promos! Before they hit the mailbox read how to increase responses…
AWEsome News…Connie has recently been selected to serve another year as Marketing Coordinator for the Alliance of Women Entrepreneurs of West Michigan (AWE). Read more about AWE…
Somebody needs to hear from you! What are you waiting for? Visit our e-card section – or stand out in your member forums with a unique avatar… Remember when you stand up, you stand out!

“Well behaved women never make history.”
– Maria Shriver

Tips: Stay connected with your address book…
Sometimes we are too close to our day to day business to realize there is room for improvement or maybe we have a feeling change needs to occur but need the data to support our concerns. Connect with those you know…
Connections: Does anybody really like SPAM? Where does it really come from? Since so many of us are bombarded with unsolicited emails daily we thought it may be helpful to be familiar with the laws in effect for email campaigns… For more information on this,
Click here to read the complete article
Downloads: Recently Added…If you have not been lucky enough to win our printed version of these fun notecards you can now send them to friends from our site for free….
“We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give.” – Norman MacEwan

TIPS:
Can you detect a FRAUD?…Take the quiz we developed and test your online and email savvy. No time? Maybe you can help Prince Nomaney who has an inheritance he would like to send you….
CONNECTIONS:
Truth or Paranoia? Ever wonder if an email you have received from a well intentioned friend or relative is accurate? Check the validity of the urban legends you receive before you forward hoaxes to your entire address book…
www.hoax-slayer.com
www.truthorfiction.com
www.about-the-web.com/shtml/scams.shtml#current
DOWNLOADS:
If you receive our snail mail calendars you should have butterflies flying on your desk by now! Download a desktop background of it here…don’t forget to check out our new e-card designs!

“When flowing water meets with obstacles on its path, a blockage in its journey, it pauses. It increases in volume and strength, filling up in front of the obstacle and eventually spilling past it . . .”       – I Ching

COVER YOUR BASES From simple customer contact information to multi layered applications, company databases come in all shapes and sizes. What size fits you? We’ve outlined some questions to get you on the right track…
CONNECTIONS: School’s Out…forever?….As difficult as it is to listen to adults, if graduates take even one piece of advice from this list and use it, they’ll have a much better chance of leading a full and happy life. Congratulations… Click Here to Read the List
DOWNLOAD: It is bittersweet as another school year ends… Looking back with pride on years of studies and ahead with confidence to future successes we celebrate graduates achievements. Send Congrats to your friends and family and find other newly added card designs….
“We must be the change we wish to see in the world.” – Ghandi

HAPPY EARTH MONTH! The tip this month addresses the Greening of Print. In celebration of Earth Day April 22, it is with pride we share an article recognizing the environmental efforts of one of our clients, McNaughton & Gunn, Inc. (M&G), Practice your R’s! REDUCE REUSE RECYCLE…
CONNECTIONS: We are also very excited to share another client Web site design. Woldumar Nature Center in Lansing, MI. is dedicated to Environmental Education & Preservation. CG supports them through the design of logos, publications and marketing materials. Please support this wonderful center.
DOWNLOAD: More new ecards this month for Earth Day and in other categories too. Also download and print some of the coloring pages for your kids from the Woldumar Kids section! April desktop calendar is posted for download too!
“The frog does not drink up the pond in which he lives.” – Native American Proverb

WELCOME SPRING! March tip is on digital and analog resolution..or…why grabbing a photo off your Web site for use on your printed brochure doesn’t work. This is requested often and the tip explains it clearly. It’s a bit technical but worth learning…
CONNECTIONS: Watch your mailbox for your quarterly
desktop calendar within the week. If you are not on
the list, the full year 2008 poster versions are still
available. Let us know if you would like a poster and
want to be added to the calendar list for 2009.
DOWNLOADS: WIth St. Patrick’s Day, First Day of Spring
and Easter, March e-cards are well covered! We have
new cards in other categories also. The March
desktop pattern is posted for download too!
“Contentment is not the fulfillment of what you
want, but the realization of how much you
already have.” – Anonymous