Miscellaneous Mentionables

valmg | Dec 12, 2009 | 1 comment

I frequently receive email from companies asking me to share news or discounts with my readers. Each week I’ll gather the best requests and share them with you here.

GLOBAL GIVING CIRCLE

The Global Giving Circle (a network of individuals who come together to support creative and innovative solutions to alleviate poverty) has just launched the Global Gifts that Matter e-store, an online gift store that provides individuals with the opportunity to shop for meaningful and unique holiday gifts while also supporting organizations that offer innovative approaches to addressing poverty.

Check out the e-store at http://www.globalgiftsthatmatter.org. You can shop for a mix of gifts–such as jewelry, handicrafts, organic chocolates, and 100% recycled handmade sandals—from organizations that are helping alleviate poverty in various parts of the world.

‘Tis the Season to Give Back: Wishpot Spreads Holiday Cheer with Wish It, Win It, Give It!

New York, NY 9 December 2009 – Want your wishes to come true this Holiday season? Not only can you get what you really want with social shopping pioneer Wishpot’s wish list service, now you also have the chance to Wish It, Win It and Give It this December! Wishpot’s Wish It, Win It, Give It promotion will feature approximately 37 brands giving away one item to a lucky winner, then donating a second to a charity of the winner’s choice. Participating brands and their donated items will go live on Wishpot’s home page December 7th, while giveaways will begin week of December 21st. With Wish It, Win It, Give It, winners will not only have their own wishes come true, but will be able to spread Holiday cheer and grant someone else’s wish in the process!

Wish It, Win It, Give It allows Wishpot users the chance to win gifts from their favorite brands simply by using their own Wishpot wish lists. In order to enter, members must add the participating brands to their wish lists through either Wishpot’s landing page or the brand’s own website. The more items added from any particular brand, the more chances users have to win! For example, add ten items of x brand, receive 10 entries into that brand’s giveaway. Users can enter into as many giveaways as they like! Winners will be selected through a draw all week long beginning December 21st. Total prize value comes to approximately $2800, from indie fashion and accessories lines to nationally established brands. Fabulous prizes will be given from VistaPrint, Tahiti Street, Sea Babe Jewelry, Wicks ‘N Candles, Babeland, Simply Soles, Ladybead, Affinitas Intimates, Soak Wash, N-Fini Shape, Lady Bead, Zazzle, Royal Drama, ShopGoGirl and many more! Each brand will generously donate two products; one to the selected winner and the second to a charity of the winner’s choice. Donated items include Affinitas Intimates’ popular Samantha Chemise, a special gift set from Soak Wash, and N-fini Shapes’s Hi-Rise Capri Pant. In addition to being featured on Wishpot.com, both brands and the chosen charities will receive additional exposure through Wishpot’s social media channels to maximize visibility.

So how exactly does Wishpot work? It’s as easy as 1, 2, 3. 1 – sign up. 2 – download the Wishpot button to your toolbar. 3 – go shopping! The Wishpot button allows users to add items found from not just one site, but from anywhere on the net. While browsing your favorite sites, simply drag and drop items you like into the Wishpot button on your toolbar. The items will be automatically added to your list, resulting in a centralized, one-stop-shop location for all of your favorite things. Set price alerts, then send to your family and friends! Are they overseas? Shop international! Drag and drop items found on any international e-commerce site and with the click of a button, your family in London, Paris, Dubai, Tokyo or anywhere else in the world will be able to easily purchase your gift. Prefer contributions over gifts? Wishpot has a special contributions feature that makes it easy for your family and friends to send monetary amounts or chip in on a particular item. What are you waiting for? Start shopping, storing, sharing and saving (and wishing, winning and giving!) with Wishpot!

ARTIST ALEX BEARD COMBINES ART, CREATIVITY AND GAMING WITH IMPOSSIBLE PUZZLES CONTEST

New Orleans, LA (December 2009)—When renowned New Orleans/New York artist Alex Beard introduced his successful line of Impossible PuzzlesTM a year ago, he offered people the chance to take an unconventional, challenging, creative approach to art and games simultaneously. The puzzles were wildly successful, as was the introduction of Untamed Games, a series of strategy games featuring original artwork to inspire creative thinking. By using unconventional avenues, such as puzzles, strategy games and books, to inspire creative thinking, Beard is breaking down the barriers between the artist and the public. With that in mind, Alex Beard introduces the Impossible Puzzles online contest.

From now through December 31, 2009, Beard invites puzzle lovers to interact with him through his Impossible Puzzles online contest. Participants are invited to upload images of their unique works of puzzle art to be judged by Beard at the end of the year. The winner will receive a one-of-a-kind piece of original art created by Beard. For more details or to enter, visit www.alexbeardimpossiblepuzzles.com.

Due to overwhelming demand based on the first series of Impossible Puzzles, Alex Beard unveils four new designs: Peacock, Nautilus, Butterflies and The Watering Hole. Each is based on an original work of art by Beard, featuring his signature complex style of Abstract Naturalist creations. The Watering Hole is the first Impossible Puzzle created in wood especially for Barnes & Noble. Each puzzler can replicate the original or rearrange the pieces into a new work of art.

Alex Beard Impossible PuzzlesTM can be found at major retailers, including Borders, Borders.com, Amazon.com, and Books A Million priced between $15 and $25. “Butterflies” is available exclusively at Borders and Target.com.

FEED IT FORWARD

Restaurant.com Celebrates the Gift of Giving, ‘Feed It Forward’ Lets Nation Give $30 Million in 30 Days for Free

Holiday Giving Initiative Lifts Spirits Through the Giving Season and through the Recession

Arlington Heights, Ill., Nov. 26, 2009—Household cutbacks, job losses and foreclosures still loom large, affecting people’s lives and abilities to give during the holidays. A down economy also has the potential to deprive people of the gift of giving, a harsh reality during the time of year when giving matters most. Restaurant.com announced today the return of “Feed It Forward,” a 30-day initiative to support the important act of giving, despite these persistent economic hardships. Now until Christmas, individuals are entitled to give up to $9,000 in Restaurant.com gift certificates, from a total pool of $30 million, to family, friends and co-workers located anywhere in the country—at no cost.

“People are challenged right now to get what they need for themselves let alone for others. We are enabling a nationwide giving movement and ‘feeding frenzy’ that allows everyone, no matter what their financial situation, to experience the gift of giving,” said Cary Chessick, president and CEO at Restaurant.com.

The Feed It Forward initiative is built upon a single giving Web site, www.Restaurant.com/FeedItForward, stocked with a total of three million, $10 Restaurant.com gift certificates totaling $30 million. The site will be live through midnight PST on Dec. 25 and allows individuals to go online to give gift certificates on a first come, first serve basis. Gift givers choose whom to give to and gift recipients then decide where to dine among more than 6,500 participating Restaurant.com restaurants nationwide.

To send free $10 gift certificates, gift givers simply enter their name and email address, as well as information for the people they wish to give to—as many as 30 people each day for the length of the initiative. They can go to www.Restaurant.com/FeedItForward every day and share gift certificates with people anywhere in the country, giving out a total value that far exceeds even the most impressive holiday gift giving budget during the healthiest of economic times.

Once a participant selects their chosen recipients, they can share a brief note about why they are giving. Restaurant.com will feature some of these messages of appreciation on the Feed It Forward home page and, if chosen by the individual, will send the giver’s personal message along with the gift certificate. As people join in the celebration of giving and give away gift certificates, a U.S. map displayed on the site will depict the areas of the country where the giving is happening along with keeping track of the amount given in real time.

Feed It Forward 2009 features include:

· Generous “daily give” allowance - Givers can give to up to 30 people per day, with the potential of giving up to $9,000 worth of Restaurant.com gift certificates through the duration of the program.

· Feed It Forward Facebook application – The application allows givers to easily access their friend network and select those they wish to give to. Recipients are sent messages alerting them of their free gift and givers’ status updates will reflect the amount of gift certificates they have given and who has received them.

· Personal message delivery – Beyond sharing their giving story publicly on the giving site, participants can choose to write a separate, private note that will be sent along with the electronic gift certificate, making the surprise of a gift certificate that much more meaningful.

Supporting the initiative are leading companies, which like Restaurant.com, believe the gift of giving will inspire hope and bring people together during challenging times. Companies backing the effort include Orbitz, the leading online travel company that enables travelers to search for and purchase a broad array of travel products; Bradley Systems, makers of Clean’nSafe, a non-toxic NSF-certified cleaner/degreaser used by leading food service and food processing companies; eMagazines, a global, cross-platform marketplace for digital magazines and newspapers, and Upromise, a major private source of college funding contributions in America.

“We know what it feels like to give and the timing is right now for us to do our part,” said Chessick. “There is absolutely no cost for giving through the site. So, please give to families. Give to friends. Give to neighbors. Give to grandparents. Give to co-workers, but most of all, give.”