What’s on the cutting edge of decoration and Internet technology, and how it can help you sell

By Michael Cornnell

Product Trends

Looking for technology trends in the product realm? Check out these three developing areas in 2013:

Digital Printing

Digital printing continues to grow in its breadth of uses and impact on the decoration industry. Bill Tignanelli, general manager for Macomb, Michigan-based Admore, an Ennis Company, explained in May’s “The Digital Discussion Article,” that more and more traditional print items are now able to be printed digitally. He cited specialty products, such as plastic cards, static clings and custom bags, as items that can now be printed digitally and therefore purchased at lower minimums.

Tech-themed Promotional Products

Smartphone accessories are becoming more mainstream and sophisticated within the promotional industry. Companies like Prime Line and KTI Promo are offering tech accessories such as portable charging cases and many other convenience devices revolving around smartphones and tablets. Prime Line, as well as companies like Leed’s and Gemline, is also prominently featuring decorated tablet sleeves and totes as part of its product line.

Apparel Gets Futuristic

While not yet a reality, there are a few upcoming futuristic apparel trends worth noting. In October, Wired reported on T-shirts decorated with a special pattern of distorted celebrity faces designed to thwart Facebooks’s autotagging system. That same month, Bloomberg Businessweek reported on two entrepreneurs who, by cutting holes in shirts and stitching phone- and tablet-sized pockets behind them, figured out a way to add animation to T-shirts by displaying the phone or tablet’s screen through the hole.

Technology. As Homer Simpson would say, "The cause of, and solution to, all of life's problems."

It can be strange to think about how much our work lives hinge on technology. A crashed computer, a lost smartphone, a hacked website—all can derail your business for days, if not longer. These are problems that no one ever had to worry about 50, or even 20, years ago, but it's equally true that businesses 20 years ago didn't have the technological opportunities we have today.

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