Your commissioner gets a super cool fantasy football trophy for your league, but because of COVID, your draft is online this year.  This means you won't see the 2019 winner in person, so you will need to send the trophy to your league champ.  Unfortunately, most fantasy football trophies are large, fragile, and can easily get damaged when tossed around by drivers, staff, and trucks at shipping companies.

I recently contacted Ray, a past fantasy football customer, about his trophy, and he said: "Sadly, our trophy got destroyed during shipping to our second season winner :(".  Unfortunately this tragic story happens all too often.

Let's solve this problem by describing exactly how we pack trophies to ensure safe arrival.  I hope you can use this tutorial to get your trophy to your league winner safely, in perfect condition!

Shipping a large fantasy football trophy, such as this League Champion Trophy, can be a real challenge.

I interviewed my business partner Tom, who's in charge of our production, to find out step-by-step how he carefully packs our most fragile Fantasy Football Awards.  The trophy we are using today is our League Champion Trophy, but the same steps would apply to any large resin award.

How to Pack a Fantasy Football Trophy

1. Choose a large enough box so that the trophy fits inside with room all around.
2. Add a layer of styrofoam peanuts to the bottom of the box, then a "pillow" of packing paper.
3. Wrap the Trophy with large bubble wrap.  First the long way, with a bit extra to tuck under the "neck" of the trophy.  Then another layer around the trophy.  Secure with tape.
4. Place the wrapped trophy on it's side in the box.  A wad of paper is wedged between the box and top of the trophy, then another wad is wedged between the box and bottom of the trophy.  The goal is to secure the trophy so it does not move in the box.
5. Add more paper to each side of the trophy to make it secure.  Add another "pillow" of paper to the top of the trophy and then close and tape the lid.

After packed, when lifting and shaking the box, nothing should move inside.  If it does, you need more paper.  Add fragile stickers to the outside of the box and you're done!This packing method should insure safe arrival of your award.

**ONE TIP:  Be sure to save the box and packing materials if your trophy if your trophy is a "keeper".  If you have to add names to the sides and it moves around from player to player, your can reuse your box and packing materials for ongoing years.

A special Thank You to world's best partner Tom for the packing tutorial and for letting me picture you! 

Please reach out if you have any questions, we are here to help.  Good luck with shipping your trophy, have a great NFL season!

Cheers,

Jessica

New team parent?  Not sure what are the best trophies to order for your team?  We can help!  Find suggestions below for the BEST trophies for kids by their age and ability.

Guide to Kid's Trophies by Age

Lots of trophy options to award every player!

Preschool - The Littles- Ages 4-6: For your youngest players, go small. A sports figure attached to a base makes a great first trophy.

Our Happy Cup Soccer Trophy is the perfect option for your youngest players!

Grade School - The Middles Ages 7-9: For kiddos in elementary school, a trophy with a small column is a great choice. Medals are also popular, as they are easy to store and can be clipped onto a backpack.

Middle School - Tweens - Ages 10-12: Resin trophies or larger column trophies are good awards for team accomplishments, such as playoff wins.

High School:  Teens - Ages 13+: Trophies and plaques are given to tournament winners, champions, or special honors, such as Team Captain, Most Inspirational, or MVP. Participation trophies are not usually given to older athletes.

There's been much backlash in the news about participation trophies. As a mom, I get it, but I do see value in giving a small token of appreciation to younger players at the end of the season. Read my blog post on Participation Trophies for a fresh perspective.

Here's to a great season!
Cheers!

Jessica

Short Tumblers in 10 colors make the perfect personalized gift!

I'm thrilled to present our newest product - Short Engraved Tumblers!  Similar to Yeti tumblers, our 10-oz personalized tumblers make the perfect gift!  We use them here at work for all kinds of beverages - coffee, ice water, soda, and cocktails!  What is great about these tumblers is they are insulated, so they keep your liquid at temperature ALL DAY!  I put ice water in mine at night, and keep it next to my bed.  In the morning, the ice still hasn't melted!  And it doesn't leave a condensation ring on my nightstand - the cup stays dry.

Personalization....we take your logo, text or initials and then laser engrave the graphic file around the top of the tumbler.  The cup is positioned in our laser engraver (the blue machine pictured next to Laurie in the photo), programmed by one of our engravers Lori or Laurie, and then "run".  This results in the colored coating burning away by the laser beam to expose your gleaming silver custom engraving!

Customers who have purchased tumblers include the president of a giant pilot's union (800 tumblers!!!), golf tournament directors, school officials, and owners of companies.  Great for school booster clubs, sporting groups, and corporate events, tumblers make functional and useful gifts. You kids have too many sports trophies?  Our tumblers also make great trophy alternatives for sports teams.

Laurie and I model our short engraved tumblers! Hers has cats and mine has our Trophies2Go logo!

In 10 colors, our short engraved tumblers are made of aluminum and powder coated on the outside.  These double walled stainless steel tumblers feature vacuum insulation to keep your drink at temperature twice as long as compared to a regular travel mug.  The plastic lid is clear so you can see inside and is easy to keep clean.  We also have no-leak slide lids available for purchase.

Interested in an awesome gift that will get used every day?  Contact me about our engraved short tumblers, I love mine...I think I have close to a dozen!  You and your recipient will love them too!

Cheers!

Jessica

Parties at the end of a sports season are a fun way to celebrate a team’s accomplishments. The common denominator for most team parties is food and awards, with a presentation by the coach. This can be as simple as handing out a cupcake and trophy after the last game or a more involved party at a home, restaurant, school or other facility.

Ensure a Fun Time for the Team

A baseball team with their hard-earned trophies and medals!

When planning your team party, a few things need to be decided first.

Date and time:  Most parties are held at the end of the season to celebrate your team’s accomplishments. Many teams will celebrate immediately after their final game; ask your coach his or her preference. Then once the date and time are set, communicate that to the other parents as soon as possible.

Venue:  A park, teammate or coach's house, pizza parlor, frozen yogurt shop or other local restaurant are all great locations for a party.  If you choose a popular location, plan ahead to reserve a spot, as many can get booked by other teams.

Food:  The food can be as simple or as fancy as you like. Many teams will hold a potluck at the park or coach's house after their last game.  Pizza is another popular option.  Or maybe its a more low-key affair, and a parent brings cupcakes to the last game.

Awards:  A great way to memorialize the season is to recognize each team member with a personalized trophy, medal, or award.  If your team doesn't want to give participation trophies, consider giving each player a small gift instead, such as a team picture, water bottle, autograph book, or some other memento to remember the season.

If you decide to order awards, choose age appropriate trophies depending on the skill level of your players. For suggestions of awards by age, read Choosing the Right Sports Trophy.

Coaches Gift:   Don’t forget a special acknowledgement for the coaches and team parents as well!  Many of them are volunteers, and it's great for the team to thank them for their time and energy.  Read Coach Recognition for ideas on how to make your coach feel special.

Budget:  If you are planning awards for the team or a gift for the coach,  you may need to collect money from the parents to share the costs.  I suggest pricing out how much everything will cost, then letting the parents know their share.

Presentation:Every player contributes something to the team.  To make your party meaningful, ask your coach to say a few words about each player, whether you give awards or not.  Find one positive contribution from each player and recognize them for it. For ideas how to present a trophy in a meaningful way, read Making Sports Trophies Meaningful.

Avoiding Common Party Problems

Reserve your venue early. Many popular party spots, such as the neighborhood pizza parlor, get booked quickly with team parties. Check the calendar and call ahead to reserve your team’s space.

Provide plenty of time to order and receive the awards. A little planning will help you stay within your budget and minimize stress. You’ll also save on shipping and rush order fees. Allow at least a week for your order to be completed, more if it needs to be shipped to you.

Confirm the spelling of each player’s name. You don’t want to order an award for “John Smith” when his name is “Jon Smith.” Double check the roster, and if you have questions, check with the player or their parents.

A team party is a great way to celebrate the team and its accomplishments. Here's to another great season!

Cheers!
Jessica

After much debate at our Trophies2Go Christmas Party, our staff decided to award our 2018 Product of the Year to our Ugly Sweater Trophies!

GMC Ugly Sweater Winner! Christmas Story Sweater!

These creative Christmas trophies were created in fall 2017, a brainchild of our designer and laser engraver, Lori N.  Lori used some figures that we never sold, spray painted them gold, laser cut wood into the shape of a sweater, and with blood, sweat and tears and lots of glitter paint, created the masterpiece we sell today!  Every ugly sweater trophy is hand-crafted and painted lovingly by Lori.

Two fabulous options are available for our Ugly Sweater Trophies - Green Gingerbread or Red Ornaments.  Both feature a hand-painted wooden sweater ornament that can be removed from the trophy and hung on a Christmas Tree!  Here are some customer comments about our Ugly Sweater Trophies:

"I spent a long time looking at the different (ugly sweater) trophies, and this one by far was the best."

"It was an absolute hit! We love it!"

Customers also sent me some pictures of their Ugly Sweater winners with their First Place Ugly Sweater Trophies.  I'm posting a few here for you to enjoy!

Jenny's ugly sweater

Magical reindeer team

Microsoft Party

Our best-selling Christmas Trophies of all time, our Ugly Sweater Trophies will be the hit of your next Holiday Party...10 months from now!

Cheers!

Jessica