Punchbowl Blog

This post was written by Stephanie Fader, Sr. Marketing Manager

Halloween is right around the corner and while you may be busy pulling together last minute costumes, decorating the yard, and saving your candy stash for excited trick-or-treaters, there is one more item to add to your to-do list: safety. Don’t let anything prevent you and your kids from having a frightful and delightful holiday with family, neighbors, and friends. Here are some tips for having a fun and safe Halloween this year.

Costumes: Make smart costume selections that will prevent injury and accidents. Here are some Halloween costume tips:

• Avoid large or loose garments that can pose a tripping hazard. If the costume does have loose components, avoid standing near open flames or candles, such as jack-o-lanterns.
• Wear sturdy, well-fitting footwear. Over-sized clown shoes or mom’s high heels are not conducive for safe walking.
• If the costume includes a mask, make sure it does not restrict peripheral vision or hearing. Try to choose one that fits well, offers good ventilation, and has large eye holes. An alternative is to use non-toxic face paint instead of a mask.
• Select light-colored or reflective costumes that can be seen by drivers. You can also add reflective tape to props or candy bags for greater visibility.

Decorations: Set the stage for your guests and trick-or-treaters to have a hauntingly good time, but take precautions to avoid any real nightmares.

• Always keep a well-lit path and clear walkways of any debris or large decorations that could cause visitors to get entangled, trip, and fall.
• If you’re planning to use electronic decorations, take care not to overload circuits and use a surge protector. Be sure to use lights that are approved for outdoor use. If you find any frayed cords or broken plugs, discard these decorations.

Trick-or-Treating: To keep this favorite activity sweet, review important safety instructions before leaving home.

• Always travel in groups and carry a flashlight with fresh batteries if going out in the dark.
• Pick a safe and familiar neighborhood. Stay on the sidewalk where available and walk, don’t run, from house to house.
• Only approach houses that have their lights on and wait to check out your candy bounty at home before starting to snack.
• Never enter a house or car to receive a treat.

Plan ahead with your safety precautions so that important details don’t get lost amidst the last minute shuffle before you head out the door. Now you are free to enjoy the spirit of the holiday and make some spectacular Halloween memories!

Another way to celebrate Halloween? Browse our free eCards for Halloween and send ghostly greetings to your friends and family!

This post was written by Stephanie Fader, Sr. Marketing Manager

Remembering the specific birthdays of all of your dear friends and family members can be tough, especially during the busy fall and holiday seasons. For those of us who are more forgetful, however, there are still ways to stay on top of important dates and celebrate them with a heartfelt gesture.

For Punchbowl customer Betsy D., this has been a familiar predicament and she recently shared her experience with us. Betsy has been a long-time customer of Punchbowl and says that our Reminders service has saved her on many an occasion when she forgot until the last minute to send a card. Most recently this happened on her best friend’s birthday. When Betsy received the email reminder from us she did what she always does — she visited the site to send a free eCard to her friend. However, what Betsy found surprised her.

When Betsy arrived at the site to send a card, she was prompted to “create a digital card.” She had not yet seen our new Digital Greeting Cards service, a way to send thoughtful well-wishes online that have the look and feel of traditional greeting cards. Betsy, who has followed our site improvements over the years, was intrigued and started to explore the options from the card designs and categories to the envelope liners and custom postage. She was so thrilled with Digital Greeting Cards that she was compelled to write to tell us!

Betsy says, “To be able to customize the card so much, make it really like an actual card you’d send in the mail with the envelope and everything…it’s terrific! I absolutely love it!”

Thanks for your feedback, Betsy. We’re so happy we could help you celebrate!

Do you need a way to keep track of all the birthdays, holidays and anniversaries in your life? Try our free Reminders service to build your list and we’ll make sure you never miss another special occasion. Also, if you haven’t tried out our new Digital Greeting Cards service, browse free eCards now!

This post was written by Matt Douglas, Founder & CEO

As Punchbowl has evolved over the years, we’ve had a number of great partnerships with companies like Oriental Trading, 1-800-FLOWERS, and LivingSocial. As a start-up, these partnerships have been important to our company and critical to our growth.

Now that we’re in the last quarter of our fiscal year, I’m spending most of my time planning for next year. We have a plethora of possible partnerships in front of us — and I’ve decided to hire a senior person to join our team to help us with sales and business development. In the past we’ve had great success spreading the word about key new hires on our blog and on social media, so we’ll try it again. If you know anyone that might be a great fit for this position, please share this post. Thanks in advance!

VP, Sales & Business Development

Punchbowl.com is looking for an experienced consumer-internet sales and business development person to drive revenue for the company. We’re looking for a senior person with a proven track record of closing deals with large media companies and consumer national brands. The VP of Sales & Business Development will report to the CEO at the company’s Framingham, MA headquarters.

Job Description:

• Sell custom brand sponsorships to drive incremental monthly revenue on our consumer site
• Sell email advertising sponsorships to companies and agencies that are interested in presenting relevant, timely offers to our registered user base
• Identify and sign co-brand and white-label licensing deals with digital media companies and online retailers to extend the distribution and reach of our products
• Develop and report on key traffic metrics to quantitatively gauge the impact of all business development activities
• Work with the CEO to define new markets and customers to sell our suite of products

Position Requirements:
• 7-10 years experience and successful track record with sales & business development in a consumer setting
• A large rolodex and strong reputation in digital agencies, digital media, and consumer package goods
• Significant experience with relationship management, traffic acquisition, and analysis in an online business
• Proven project management skills with the ability to multi-task
• Excellent communication and presentation skills
• Enthusiasm and passion with readiness to join a startup

To apply for this position:
1) Create a user account at http://www.punchbowl.com and check it out
2) Send a *ONE PAGE* resume, quick impressions of the site, and brief introductory email to punchbowljobs [at] gmail [dot] com.

We *DO NOT* pay recruiter fees. Please: no recruiters or headhunters.

This post was written by Stephanie Fader, Sr. Marketing Manager

Chocolate bars and gummy worms and candy corn – oh my! It’s probably no surprise that Halloween is officially the sweetest holiday of the year. It beats out Easter, Valentine’s Day, and Christmas. In fact, Halloween candy sales average about 2 billion dollars annually in the U.S. alone. With bags of candy on store shelves for weeks in advance of the holiday, it has us wondering how Halloween became synonymous with candy in the first place?

We did a little digging and came up with this timeline:

• 1940s: Trick or treating became more widespread in the U.S. However, rather than candy, trick-or-treaters received nuts, cookies, cakes, coins, and toys.

• 1950s: The rise of trick-or-treating gave candy producers an opening to market their products aimed at kids. Candy was also easy to buy and economical, which made it the optimal choice for those entertaining trick-or-treaters.

• 1960s: The growth of Halloween candy was still on the rise, though it was often in the form of a small bag of loose candy like candy corn, Hershey Kisses, or Tootsie Rolls.

• 1970s: Parents were less comfortable with homemade or unwrapped treats, which gave way to the idea that commercially wrapped candy was seen as the safest option.

• 1980s: Candy manufacturers produced smaller versions of their full size candies on a large scale. Trick-or-treating as we know it became about dressing up and collecting as much candy as possible.

Here are a few more tidbits to satisfy your sweet tooth:

• Halloween is responsible for 75% of all candy corn sold during the year — you can celebrate this fact on October 30th, National Candy Corn Day!
• 90% of parents admit to sneaking goodies out of their kids’ Halloween candy stash
• 73.5% of households plan to hand out Halloween candy this year

Want another way to incorporate candy into your Halloween celebration without the calories? Make your own Halloween candy costume! Check out these 5 Halloween candy costume ideas that you can make at home for yourself or the kids.

All this talk of candy make you want to host a Halloween party? Start planning yours today!

This post was written by Stephanie Fader, Sr. Marketing Manager

Are you ready for a frightfully good time? Halloween, one of the most popular holidays in America, is creeping up on us and there are so many spooktacularly fun ways to celebrate. But first, let’s take a look at some fun facts about Halloween as you start to think about your plans…if you dare…

• Last year, an estimated 41 million trick-or-treaters across the U.S. ventured out into the night to collect their candy from a total of 117 million households.
• At least 50% of people plan to dress up in costume this Halloween. For adults, the most popular costume choices are witches, pirates, and vampires. For kids, look out for little princesses, superheroes, ghosts, and ninjas.
• Pets get in on the costume action too: 14.7% of pet owners plan to purchase a pint size costume for their furry friends.
• Last year, 1.1 billion pounds of pumpkins were turned into grinning jack-o’-lanterns or delicious pies.
• Illinois, New York, and Ohio are the top pumpkin producing states.
• Halloween ranks 2nd behind Christmas for total dollars spent on decorations. Popular Halloween decorations include life-size skeletons, extra large inflatable pumpkins, and fake cob webs.
• There are a number of cities and towns across the country with ghostly names. They include:
  • Frankenstein, Missouri
  • Tombstone, Arizona
  • Cape Fear, North Carolina
  • Skull Creek, Nebraska
  • Spiderweb, South Carolina
  • Goblintown, Virginia
  • Screamer, Alabama
  • Black Cat, Arkansas
  • Bloody Corners, Ohio
  • Hell Hollow, New Hampshire

How will you celebrate Halloween this year? You can find party themes, decorating tips, recipes, costume ideas, and more in the Halloween party ideas section of the site. If you’re ready to start planning your party, send a bootiful Halloween invitation today!