NEW AND NOTEWORTHY TOOLS

Beyond the Cash Register

Tired of emptying pockets of worthless receipts at the end of the day? Start-up ReceiptsToRiches.com offers the chance to convert worthless receipts into cash. The brainchild of Anthony Petrecca, a contractor by day and inventor by night, the site accepts the five-digit zip code, date, and time from computer-generated receipts as entries into daily, weekly, monthly, and yearly random drawings. Prizes start at $1,000 and are expected to grow to $50,000 as revenues from advertising increase. A $1 million payout is planned for year's end. More info: receiptstoriches.com.

Dial an Artist

1-800-Art-Promo.com, Winston-Salem, NC, offers to cut turnaround time on commercial artwork from days and weeks to 24 hours or less by using the Internet as a personal, on-demand art studio. Clients can view advertising storyboards, concept boards, logos and letterhead, products, cartoons, maps, signs, and other illustrations through any Internet browser. Upon client approval, the order is printed, mounted for presentation, and received by 9 a.m. the following day. Electronic files are sent immediately. More Info: 1-800-ARTPRONTO or artpronto.com.

Putting on Airs

Arcade Marketing, New York City, has teamed with postcard ad maker Max Racks, New York City, to offer a trial program of cosmetic and fragrance product samples housed in “tokens,” credit card-sized sampling systems located in restaurants, bars, health clubs, music stores, coffee bars, and theaters in major markets. The devices target consumers who may not read the magazines or shop the stores through which such samples are usually distributed. More info: 212-451-1004 or arcadeinc.com.

Tune Street

BMG Special Products, New York City, introduced Premium Download, a program that offers digitally downloadable music tracks for use in promotional and incentive campaigns. The concept calls for consumers to receive codes via P-O-P like peel-off labels or scratch-off cards giving them access to corporate-branded Web sites, where they download a track from a selected group of songs along with a branded media player. Available downloads come from various genres including rock, rap, and country. More info: 212-930-4000.

Hanging On

The Transilwrap Co., Franklin Park, IL, is now offering ClingZ, a printable, self-adhering, repositionable material for producing creative event calendars, sports schedules, and other announcements. ClingZ sticks to any surface for up to one year without leaving any marks. Transilwrap is promoting the product to meeting planners and event promoters. More info: 847-233-4072 or transilwrap.com.

Shakin' It

TubeWorks, Agoura Hills, CA, unveiled Mr. Little, a new addition to its lineup of SkyDancer animated inflatables. The products are mounted on small fans that shoot air up from the bottom of the figure to create attention-getting movements for storefronts, windows, trade show booths, or P-O-P displays. Mr. Little retails for $371. More info: 818-879-2386 or tubeworks.com.

Grab a Cold One

Decorating Technologies, Framingham, MA, a division of Avery Dennison, received a patent on a new acid etch process that gives bottles a frosted-but-still-translucent look. The process can be used with Avery Dennison's Clear Advantage labels. More info: 1-800-DEC-TECH.