The Balloon Planetarium Blog

TV Time – The Unpoppables

jim — Fri, 28 Jan 2011 21:43:29 +0000

Many of you know Addi Somehk, balloon hat creator extraordinaire. And if you don’t, you’ll enjoy visiting his web site, www.balloonhat.com. Without a doubt, Addi and his traveling companion/photographer, Charlie Eckert, have taken balloons to more exotic places than anyone else on the planet. Even if you’re not a twister, this site will leave you amazed and smiling.

Now Addi has teamed up with Brian Asman and Katie Lalbstain to bring us The Unpoppables, premiering February 7th on The Learning Channel. Each episode has the team transforming a plain venue into a balloon wonderland. Trailers can be viewed now on the TLC web site. Congratulations Addi, and thank you for introducing even more people to balloons. This looks like a hit!

Here comes the Hound!

jim — Fri, 14 Jan 2011 02:05:11 +0000

You’re all doing a great job confirming the receipt of your incoming orders, and this has increased our operating efficiency enormously. But we still have a ways to go with delivery confirmations. Only half of our partners have adopted this procedure. Half! So, after a year of politely coaching, we’re going to take coaching up a notch. Tonight we launch the hounding campaign heard round the world. And it will continue until every partner is regularly confirming the delivery of their orders. Prepare to confirm or prepare to be hounded. Whoof! Whoof!

When you send us a DELIVERED confirmation three things happen. And they are three good things.

1. The customer gets a copy of the confirmation. That relaxes them and makes us look like we’re on top of things. And it means they won’t be calling us to see if their order has been delivered. In addition, your message includes an invitation for them to rave about your service.

2. Balloon Planet gets a copy of the confirmation. That relaxes us and makes us think you’re on top of things. And it means we won’t be calling you to see if that order was delivered. It saves all of us time.

3. A portion of your account screen goes from gray to green. And the same thing happens to our screen. It’s a nice color these days. And I’ll take green over gray any day.

Have a good night. And beware of the dog.

Cheeeeeeers!

Jim

Filling the Gaps

jim — Wed, 12 Jan 2011 02:55:14 +0000

Not long ago the web site page size was widened at BalloonPlanet.com. The wider size allows us to position more images per page, providing a more efficient shopping experience. However, a side effect was the creation of gaps flanking the branded web site banners. An example is shown below. Filling these gaps is a project we are steadily working on, and at the current rate we should be finished by May. Thank you for your patience.

Zippity Do Da!

jim — Sat, 08 Jan 2011 02:00:15 +0000

A new tool has been added to the web site which registers and records zip code searches on BalloonPlanet.com. As a Balloon Planet partner, the next time you visit your online account zip code directory you will see zip codes being searched for service in your region that we show as not being served. You have the option of adding these to your service area or ignoring them. Below is a snapshot of our Houston partner’s zip code page showing a list of six zip codes recently searched that are not served. Some of these zip codes may be too distant to serve, but others may have just been overlooked. This feature also collects data for partners outside the USA, in countries using postal codes and pin codes.

Balloon Umbrellas

jim — Fri, 08 Oct 2010 00:16:19 +0000

Balloon Umbrellas, also known as Table Canopies, are a new addition to the decor section of the web site. They are also included in our illustration showing various balloon arrangement configurations, located within the site’s yellow navigation tab titled PLAIN BALLOONS (look for the term Configurations).

How’s that logo?

jim — Tue, 05 Oct 2010 00:22:56 +0000

The foundation of a company’s brand is it’s logo. A great logo is bold, uncluttered, and a source of pride for the officers and staff of a company. Below are three excellent examples from our partners in Toronto, Los Angeles, and Phoenix. If you’re in need of a logo makeover, enlist the services of a professional — and consider it a great investment.

Groovy balloons are here!

jim — Fri, 24 Sep 2010 23:27:28 +0000

In answer to strong customer demand, Qualatex has produced two balloons celebrating the psychedelic 60′s. And the designs are fantastic! They have been posted on the web site and are available with 5 business days notice. They will become required inventory for USA Zones 3 and 4 partners on November 1, 2010, when they will become available for same-day ordering. Please refer to your online inventory guide for product numbers and distributor pricing. You are a Zone 3 or 4 partner if you see these balloons in the guide section titled (1.08) Mylar Misc Occasion 18in.

Halloween Balloon Decorating

jim — Thu, 23 Sep 2010 21:57:19 +0000

Balloon ghosts, spiders, and garlands will quickly transform just about any space. The images below show how these elements were used to decorate buildings on a corporate campus near Seattle.

New Balloon Drop Kits

jim — Sun, 19 Sep 2010 19:52:25 +0000

Silver Rainbow, a California developer of innovative balloon equipment, has introduced a new line of pre-strung balloon drop kits that are ideal for do-it-yourself customers and professional use. The innovative feature that sets these kits apart from the competition is a pair of rigid loops which give the net a cylindrical shape, almost right out of the box. As you can see from the first photo, this pretty much eliminates the questions “How do we set this up and is it going to work?”

The system, known as the BOSS EZ SYSTEM, is available in three sizes:

BOSS 500 holds 500 9in or 250 11in balloons ($50)
BOSS 1000 holds 1,000 9in or 500 11in balloons ($60)
BOSS 2000 holds 2,000 9in or 1,000 11in balloons ($108)

Loops are plastic-covered spring steel.
Nets are 4 1/2 feet in diameter.
Rip-cord is 75 feet long and pre-strung through the net.
Rigging lines are pre-attached.
Each kit is reusable and collapses to fold and fit into a storage bag (included).

If you think you may be in the market for this product, you can motivate our distributors to bring in the line by sending a message to Susan at Loftus or Jason at Rainbow Balloons (not related to Silver Rainbow) and let them know the quantity and sizes you would be interested in.

SusanB@Loftus.com
JasonR@RainbowBalloons.com

If you have product questions, or would like to learn more about other Silver Rainbow products, the company can be reached at 510-582-2335.

Once the net is full, zip the flap closed.

A net designed for outdoor balloon drops.

The net is easy to suspend in grand open spaces.

Lots and lots of Big Dots!

jim — Wed, 16 Jun 2010 00:06:30 +0000

On Monday, June 21, 2010 Balloon Planet introduces Big Polka Dot balloons in most USA locations and Toronto, Canada. These new balloons are offered in the 16-inch jumbo size in bright rainbow Jewel Tones and tropical pastels.