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Forrest-Pruzan Creative welcomed WIT in Seattle last week at the chapter’s best-attended event, for an evening of headshots, games, and fun times mixing & mingling with friends old and new. Guests weaved throughout the various rooms at Forrest-Pruzan, enjoying great conversation, yummy bites (and popcorn bar!) and bevvies, while taking in the creative vibe of an office space that inspired fun and innovation. After headshot sessions and a sneak peek at Forrest-Pruzan’s newest games launching in August, including Bob Ross: Art of Chill and Donner Dinner Party, the evening wrapped up with a raffle of game bundles, compliments of Forrest-Pruzan. Our thanks to FPC for sponsoring a terrific event, and to Mandy Watson Photography for her excellent service.

WIT’s first Southern CA Evening of Speed Mentoring was a big hit! Thanks to our co-host, Spin Master, our wonderful volunteer mentors, and our highly engaged mentees for making this experience so rewarding for all. Held at Spin Master’s LA offices, the event gave attendees a great learning opportunity as they met one-on-one with top industry professionals. A networking mixer followed, giving everyone a chance to mingle and share business cards while enjoying drinks & yummy appetizers. We received great feedback from mentees and mentors alike, and plans are already underway for our next Speed Mentoring event. Stay tuned! MENTORS INCLUDED: Catherine Demas – VP and Global Business Unit Head, Preschool/Girls at Spin Master

This article is part of the WIT Empowerment Day Mentorship Series, which provides insight and advice from top toy industry experts. By Deb de Sherbinin, CEO, Perk Consulting Entrepreneurs often identify a great product idea to address a problem or a need in the marketplace. Many entrepreneurs invent toys, games and juvenile products that are innovative, but they all face challenges that threaten their success. What is the magic behind inventing and launching a successful product that will appeal to kids? Here are 5 key steps to help an entrepreneur develop and market a successful new product. These steps provide a guideline for new product success. For each step along the way, a Go/No Go decision should be made to make sure your product concept is ready to move to the next phase. Competitive Analysis – Do your homework on the competitive set to validate your product concept. A thorough competitive analysis should identify all competitors in the product category and include analysis of features, price points, packaging style and POP (point of purchase materials). Determine why your product is unique and special so that it will separate from the pack? What type of play value or appeal will engage users with your product? Do your message and visuals clearly communicate what is unique about your product?  Before investing time and money into your idea, make sure your product is clearly differentiated from other products and is appealing to your target audience. This is the best time to make tweaks to your product idea based on what you have learned. Go back to the drawing board to refine your product idea to make sure it is appealing to your target audience. Market Research – Conduct research along the way as you develop your product among the intended age group. Show a final prototype to learn key likes and dislikes for your product from the intended users. Who are the primary purchaser and primary user? How old are they? What level of education and household income do they have? What type of products do they use and play with? What features do they seek in a product and what type of messages will resonate with them? Show concept boards or a working model of your product idea to friends, neighbors, your children’s friends, or a local youth group to learn how to make your concept better. Gain feedback on your concept at all stages of development to ensure that it is designed for your intended users. Conduct market research to learn how your key target age group will interact with your product. Determine if the product design or rules need to be changed to make the product age-appropriate to your primary user group. Product Design and Manufacturing – Create a prototype and obtain estimates on how much your product will cost to design and manufacture to understand a product’s hard costs, as well as to project the retailer’s wholesale price and consumer’s retail price. If the product costs are too high for the product’s competitive set, make changes to your design to meet the right cost parameters. Evaluate other manufacturing alternatives or consider options to increase your sales forecast to lower hard costs. Once a works-like/looks-like prototype has been made and meets safety regulations as well as a child and parent criteria for product functions, cost and design then you are ready to move to the next step. Distribution – Where will you sell your product? Online? Amazon? Mass Market or Specialty Retailers? To learn about how your product might be received at retail, prepare a sales sheet and pitch your product to local retailers. Show a mock-up of the packaging along with the product and the suggested wholesale pricing. This allows you to obtain valuable feedback before you spend money manufacturing the product and packaging. Retailers can provide insight on the packaging, pricing, point of purchase materials as well as product features. Financing – Create a P&L to identify all costs for developing, manufacturing and selling your product. Project forecasts to estimate sales and determine a break-even for your product. This can be a final Go/No Go level. Do you have the financing you need to manufacture, warehouse, sell and promote your item? If not, this is the time to determine how you will obtain the funds you will need to develop and launch your product. Will you need to seek money from investors, or explore alternatives such as licensing the item to another company or using a crowd-sourcing platform to fund the development of your product? Spending time evaluating the marketplace, researching your concept with potential users, purchasers, and retailers, gathering cost information for product development and manufacturing and taking a critical look at your P & L is time well invested to bring an innovative, successful product to market. Deb de Sherbinin is founder and principal of newly-launched Perk Consulting. With deep roots and vast experience in product innovation, brand development, and marketing, Perk Consulting offers innovative thinking, marketplace savvy and strategic direction to entrepreneurs and growing companies to accelerate their journey from new idea to successful product #entrepreneur #inventor #marketing #WITEmpowermentDay

This article is part of the WIT Empowerment Day Mentorship Series, which provides insight and advice from top toy industry experts. By Pablo Garrahan, Founder and Executive Producer, Fiction Films For years, brand teams have presented next year’s exciting product lineup via a deep deck of PowerPoint excellence. At times, they’ve chosen to show their sales teams and buyers the potential marketability of a specific product by showing an energizing Sizzle to bring the point home. The Sizzle dates back to at least the mid-nineties when the cost could run up to $150,000 and be shot on film. Fast forward to 2017. With the advances in digital technology and less lavish shows, costs have dropped dramatically. Today, the Sizzle is an affordable yet viable resource that generates excitement about a product or a trend in the marketplace. In today’s multimedia, multi-platform, and image-on-demand business world, the opportunity to outperform and outsell using video is booming. The ability to effectively engage and target your audience is directly correlated with how well you can promote and sell your products online. According to Sparks & Honey report, this new generation of consumers can multitask across at least five screens daily and spend 41% of their time outside of school with computers or mobile devices, compared to 22% 10 years ago. Sizzle videos can be used as an excellent vehicle to announce and promote new product lines across your company’s social media channels, on your website, and be an interactive part of your company’s press releases. Quantifying those well-positioned dollars on a Sizzle has yet to be run through an excel spreadsheet to show a spike, but if giants like Mattel, Spin Master, and Jakks are still adding them to their non-media arsenal, it indicates that Sizzles are doing exactly what they are designed to do; increase sales and profits for all. So what does it take to produce an effective Sizzle? Here are five points to consider as you utilize this powerful media tool. Be Prepared Know your demographic and make your creative brief as detailed as possible. Prepare digital assets that can be passed on to the production team. Assets include: b-sheets (preliminary design sketches), logos and packaging art work. These will be used to give the creative team an idea of how the product works and may be integrated into the edit. Help create the tone and manner of the spot by knowing what type of music you’d like to use. Using music libraries are easier to license than a Lady Gaga track and are far less expensive. Keep in mind that by using music without permission could lead to a lawsuit down the road (even in the case of a Sizzle). Know your timetable. This has two parts. The delivery date it needs to be finished by in order to present. When your product or prototype will be back from the factory for shooting. A high-quality sizzle takes a good two weeks to complete from start to finish. Be Realistic The average Sizzle will cost between $10,000 to $20,000 depending on the creative and production needs. This includes; cameras, sets, on-camera talent, visual effects (in the event your prototype doesn’t work), voice over, music and usage. A Sizzle is not a commercial and therefore has its creative and budget limitations. Make sure your expectations are aligned with your budget. A typical Sizzle runs between 35 seconds and a minute. Any Sizzle over a minute runs the risk of losing its audience and sending costs upward. If the $10,000 price point is cost prohibitive, there may be solutions to create videos at lower budgets. Keep in mind that they will likely not include talent or sets but rather hand models and a simplified background. The low-end price point ranges from $3,000 to $7,500. Be Part of the Process In the new economy, many companies are turning to an in-house creative team that outsources its production work. That’s good news for many smaller toy companies trying to compete. The traditional agency model is in place mostly for large corporations. That means that brand teams and production companies are now working closely together. Be readily available to the production team during the process. Quick and definitive feedback ensures that you get what you want. Re-direction and late feedback often result in costly overages. Be smart and take the extra few minutes to plan out your vision. Repurpose Consider using the Sizzle as an essential part of your brand’s campaign to obtain more “bang for your buck”. Cut it once and reusing it many times across multiple platforms is an excellent way to stretch your marketing dollars and stay on plan and within budget. Repurposing your Sizzle can prove beneficial in many ways. As a traditional sales tool – it can run at Toy Fair presentations and Sales Reviews. It can also be compressed and sent via email to sales affiliates and retailers who missed the event. Additionally, you can show it as an in-store loop at a retailer or in your showroom. Make it part of your digital marketing strategy by repurposing it to post on your company’s social media channels, on your website, and at PR launch events. Think Evergreen Sizzles often become part of a brand’s success by creating sequels. Buyers and retailers alike look forward to the next evolution in the brand’s life. Consider how you can start building brand equity in your first Sizzle and follow it up with others that continue to drive your positioning statement home. Here are a few things to keep in mind: Confusion Kills The most effective stories are simple and reiterate a core message over and over. Other Forms of Media Slideshow, Instructional, End Cap, Shelf-talker, Commercial Instructional Videos Today’s Instructional Videos have proven to be very successful for brands that need to clearly demonstrate the intricacies of their products. They also cut down on the customer service call volume. Digital Services Use your production company to maintain your media or create a central location within your company to keep both digital and hard copy files from the production company. Maintain Ownership Ask for all your files back. Make sure to get generic forms, (edits without graphics so you can repurpose them in other languages), as well as master files. Creating content for your product should be innovative and effective. Sizzles are an affordable platform that can leverage your product in the marketplace while helping you to define and shape your brands positioning at an early stage. Best of luck. Pablo Garrahan is founder and executive producer of Fiction Films, a content creation company and production studio located in Los Angeles. He has worked with many licensors, including Disney, Pixar, LucasFilms LTD, Marvel, and DreamWorks, as well as toy companies Mattel, Spin Master, and Jakks Pacific to name a few. He can be reached by email at pablo@fictionla.com or  424.238.3410. #sizzlereel #Video

WIT was in full swing at this year’s ASTRA Marketplace in Philly! We received a warm ASTRA welcome from their Director of Education & Training, Ahren Hoffman, as we presented our first-ever WIT/ASTRA panel on June 27th. The day capped off with a happy hour event, co-hosted with ChiTAG at the Field House. “How to Leverage Being a Woman in Business” was moderated by WIT board member, Deb de Sherbinin. Panelists included two manufacturers and one retailer who shared stories about the challenges they faced in starting and growing their businesses: Marcia Haut started SmartNoggin after working with children as a special education teacher and therapist for 30 years. Laurie Peterson launched Build & Imagine in 2014 with the assistance of a Kickstarter campaign and angel funding, and is a TAGIE Award Inventor of the Year winner. Hilary Key, owner of The Toy Chest stores, was pursuing a doctorate in neuroscience in 2013, but after spending time playing with a little girl in West Africa, decided to embark on a new career as toy store owner. Discussion centered on the critical need to obtain funding to get a business off the ground, grow, and thrive, as well as the importance of seeking guidance from an advisor or mentor to help navigate the waters that business owners face. Deb shared daunting statistics women-owned companies face to successfully develop, fund and launch a business. The panel shared experiences about what has worked for them in overcoming these challenges. Later that evening, a great time was had by all at the WIT/ChiTAG Happy Hour at Philly’s Field House, as we welcomed lots of industry friends including ASTRA exhibitors, buyers, and trade guests. We look forward to #ASTRA18! For more photos from the WIT/ChiTAG Happy Hour, click here.

Wisconsin Chapter Kicks off with a Night of Fun & Games at PlayMonster Plato must have had PlayMonster in mind when he said, “You can discover more about a person in an hour of play than in a year of conversation.” Our monstrously generous hosts proved Plato right at our inaugural Wisconsin WIT event, where we traded fireside chats for fun & games. On June 6th, Bob Wann, Lisa Wuennemann, Scott Flynn and their team pulled out all the stops, treating us to a tour of their awesome offices, treats and totties to whet our whistles, and then capped things off with side-splitting laughter over PlayMonster’s hilarious party games. Speed-gaming fun at its best, including Qubosity, Yeti in My Spaghetti, 5 Second Rule, Grabolo and Stack Attack. We also got a sneak peek at their new Size Matters game (available in July), and the table was on fire all night! Just sayin. We welcomed over 35 guests, including the fabulous and fun ladies from American Girl. The team at GennComm joined in the fun too – along with Janis Van Tine, who boogied down in the Badger State with her infamous WITty Woman song & dance. Big thanks to Lisa Wuennemann and Chicago Chapter Chair Ruth Synowic for organizing the event. And a big, warm WIT welcome to our new Wisconsin Chapter Chair – Beth Muehlenkamp, Brand Manager at PlayMonster, and to Bob Wann, our newest WIT Advisory Board member! To learn more about upcoming regional, national and international WIT events, please visit the events page. To learn more about becoming a WIT member and benefits of membership, click here. Click here for more photos.

WIT welcomed its newest international chapter in France on July 13 at an event that drew in a record number of guests! 80 attendees participated in the event – the biggest group ever at a WIT chapter launch. Industry colleagues in toys, licensing and entertainment included Mattel, Bandai, Vtech, Disney, TF1 Game, TF1 Licences, Playmobil, Mako, Lagardere, Hasbro, Nelvana, Picwic, La Grande Récré, Vulli, Tomy, Lansay, Vivid and more. The France Chapter is evolving nicely, thanks to the tireless efforts of its 10 founding members, including chapter chair Mathilde Dezalys, Bandai Country Manager; chapter secretary Christine Pagani, 123-Conseil Director; and chapter finance director, Marion Pacherie, Playmobil Financial Director. We thank these unstoppable changemakers as well as Michel Moggio, President of the French Toy Manufacturers Association for enthusiastically supporting and sharing WIT’s mission and objectives. Held at TF1 Channel offices, the event began as Mathilde presented WIT’s mission and objectives, with a video from Michel Moggio. Next up, the chapter’s founding members/steering committee introduced themselves and warmly welcomed everyone, sharing their own personal experiences that engaged and resonated with the audience. Guest speaker and French toy industry role model Armelle Le Bigot also made a special presentation. Cocktails and networking were organised around workshops that encouraged the sharing of ideas, insights and feedback from participants to build upon future chapter events. The event garnered fantastic press and social media coverage, a testament to the excitement and enthusiasm for bringing the power of WIT to our industry colleagues in France. The energy in the room was contagious, leaving everyone inspired and excited for the opportunities ahead and the chapter’s continued growth. Click here for additional photos.

The WIT Licensing Expo breakfast is a favorite of many, and for good reason. What better way to start the day than with an early morning breakfast with industry friends old and new, over fresh hot coffee, a delicious al fresco buffet, and some (nicely shaded) sunshine in the heart of Las Vegas? The event was organized by event co-chairs Jessica Gavin and Mellany Masterson, and was our biggest and best ever, with over 200 guests! Many thanks to all who attended, to our tireless volunteers, and special thanks to UBM, our co-host and generous sponsor, for their passionate support of WIT and our mission. View event photos below and here.

Girl power and great networking were in full force at this year’s Licensing Expo. Nickelodeon and The Female Quotient kicked things off in Vegas with The Girls’ Lounge. Drawing in crowds of show-goers, the event offered attendees headshots, personal styling, coaching, and an intimate respite to relax and unwind over food, drink and great conversation with friends old and new. And that was only the beginning. The Girls’ Lounge included two days of networking and thought-provoking panels, including See Her, Be Her: Empowering Kids through Strong Female Characters. Moderated by WIT board member Jen Caveza, the panel included several WIT members who shared their insights and experiences, including WIT president Ashley Mady, and board member Nancy Zwiers. Shelley Zalis and her team do an amazing job bringing women (and men) together at Girls’ Lounge events around the world for honest, authentic, and collaborative conversation, while making everyone feel comfortable, pampered, and right at home. See Her, Be Her Panelists included: Ashley Mady – President, Women in Toys, Licensing & Entertainment Janet Hsu – CEO, Saban Brands Jen Lane Landolt  – Sr. Director, McDonald’s Corporation Nancy Zwiers – CMO, Spin Master Samantha Lomow – SVP, Hasbro Brands Moderated by – Jennifer Caveza, SVP Preschool & Girls Toys, Nickelodeon

Are you looking for a chance to share your expertise, help others and gain exposure? We invite our talented and accomplished members to share what you know with the WIT community and the toy, licensing and entertainment industries. We’re interested in articles on a variety of topics, ie. helpful business tips, professional development advice for both industry newbies and seasoned veterans, industry trends, etc. Is there a topic you’d like to write about? Let us know! Approved posts will be shared on the WIT blog, newsletter and social posts. GUIDELINES FOR GUEST WRITERS How it Works: Provide us with a 500-800 word post. Content must be unique and not previously published. Content should inform, inspire, and be of interest to our audience of industry professionals. No self-promotional posts, please. Submissions will be reviewed, and you will be contacted if selected Your headshot, one-line byline and website URL (if desired) will accompany your post All posts will be shared across WIT social channels, website and newsletter We invite you to contribute as a guest writer, if you: Are an expert in your industry or field. Have achieved success in your area of business. Are committed to WIT and its mission. Are a current WIT member. To apply, send the following in an email to info@womenintoys.com: Your 500-800 word article in Word Doc format Title of your article Your feature image sized to 750 x 500 pixels (jpg), including captions and photo credits Up to 3 additional images (jpg) Your name, title, company name, website URL, and a one-line byline about yourself. Once we review your submission, we’ll be in touch. Audience: Our audience ranges from toy, licensing and entertainment professionals to the general public. Style: Well written, carefully edited, easy to understand and professionally written. We will not accept content that is blatantly self-promotional. If you reference a statistic in your article, please provide appropriate reference links. Keep titles short and simple – preferably no more than eight words. All articles must be written in English. Original posts only. Editing: All submissions will be reviewed and edited by the WIT editorial staff before publication. Questions: Email info@womenintoys.com with questions regarding your submission. Subjects we’re interested in: Startups/Crowdfunding Professional Development Kickstarter Tips & Tricks Marketing & PR Social Media Best Practices Advertising Product Development Branding Email Marketing E-commerce Podcasting Leadership Life/Work Balance Licensing – Inbound & Outbound Publication Policy: We reserve the right to accept, edit or publish articles at our discretion. Content must be authentic and unique. If your article is selected for publication, you will receive an email with additional information. You understand and agree that your contributions will become the property of Women in Toys, Inc. and will not be removed if/when you are no longer contributing. You may republish extracts of your article after it posts on WomenInToys.com, however at least 50% of the content must be changed, and you must include a link to the original blog post on WomeninToys.com at the end of the post on your site. By doing this, Google knows we are friends and we avoid being marked as copied content.

The Toronto Chapter capped off a busy work week on Friday, April 21st, with a great breakfast event that featured special guest speaker Shauna Holton, Director of Insights at Corus Entertainment. Sponsored by Corus and Nelvana, the breakfast drew in guests from over a dozen companies, who gathered for a morning of networking and insights at the beautiful Corus building in downtown Toronto. Shauna shared and enlightened attendees on a variety of topics including consumer purchase patterns, the role of women in society, evolving family dynamics and the world of Canadian children. A big thanks to Toronto Chapter Co-Chairs, Jessica Gavin and Kristin Lecour, and to Corus Kids TV and Nelvana for generously sponsoring the event. To learn more about upcoming regional, national and international WIT events, please visit the events page. To learn more about becoming a WIT member and benefits of membership, click here or email Peg Brom at Peg@womenintoys.com.

The Dallas Chapter is blossoming! They hosted their first monthly event on Tuesday, April 18 at Painting with a Twist in Grapevine, Texas. A great time was had by all, as attendees created beautiful masterpieces and enjoyed wine & cheese, music, and door prizes. A big thank you to Dallas Chapter Co-Chairs, Lisa Pelletier and Brandi Pinsker, for organizing this fun event and providing the delicious nibbles. Dallas members are already looking forward to their next event in June. For more information on networking events in your area, check the WIT events page or contact info@womenintoys.com.