The Holiday Season has appeared again!
We are all busy making cookies, putting up decorations, shopping for our loved ones and taking part in all the other normal holiday traditions. It feels like the holidays are the busiest time of the year, but they can also be one of the happiest!
One thing that you can’t forget to cross off your list is donating blood. There is always a need for your lifesaving gift, but with everyone’s busy schedule during the holidays, your gift is needed now more than ever. So you may be getting a phone call soon from a blood donor recruiter. Do everyone a favor: answer the call and schedule an appointment! Or just stop by your local Blood Donor Center and make a donation today!
This is truly the greatest gift you can give someone, as it is a lifesaving gift. Your donation can make someone’s holiday even brighter!
It seems like every day I work I see a new face, so I wanted to take the time to explain how it pays to be a lifesaver.
You learn in training about blood types and how many lives you can save by scheduling just a single blood donation. We feel that what you do each and every day to saves lives deserves to be rewarded.
We have a program called the Lifesaver Program, in which you earn points for every donation you schedule. Your points determine which level you are and what reward you will receive. You get rewarded at levels, 3, 5, 7, 9 , 12, 15 and 20.
Prizes include pens, coffee mugs, t-shirts, dress shirts, binders, carry-on bags and even a mini vacation! Once you reach a new level, you also get a sticker indicating which level you are, so everyone can see just how dedicated you are to saving lives.
Be proud of what you do, and always challenge yourself to get to that next level.
Image Credit: Byron Katie
Donating blood is a pretty common part of human life, considering how often blood is transfused for trauma patients and surgeries.
At Incept, donor recruitment is a major part of our everyday lives. But what about blood donor recruitment for animals? The Animal Blood Register has stepped in to take care of that. Animals can be involved in accidents, and they can need emergency surgery too. I’m sure all of you with pets would want your pet to have access to compatible blood if anything were ever to go wrong.
The Animal Blood Register allows people to sign their pets up to be donors, and that information is passed along to veterinary hospitals and clinics so that (if necessary) they can collect a donation from that animal. Furthermore, it allows clinics in need to sign up so that owners with potential donors know where to go.
The Animal Blood Register deals mostly with cat and dog blood donations, since these are the most common pets that have surgery. To some, it might seem like a strange concept to take your pet in to donate blood. However, think about the fact that you (and your pet) could be helping someone avoid losing a loved one, just like with human blood donations.
Our pets are always there for us, so let’s be there to keep them safe and healthy by taking the necessary steps to be prepared for traumatic situations. Maybe someday there will even be Conversational Marketing Experts (CMEs), like ourselves, out there calling pet owners to ask if they’d allow their pets to help save a life by donating.
What is a lifetime?
I don’t mean to get all philosophical on you right off the bat. But really think about it. What is a lifetime? It is hard to say. I was inspired recently by a quote from the Dalai Lama, after he was asked what surprises him the most in life…
He said, “Man. Because he sacrifices his health in order to make money. Then he sacrifices his money to recuperate his health. And then he is so anxious about the future that he does not enjoy the present. The result being that he does not live in the present or the future; he lives as if he is never going to die, and then he dies having never really lived.”
I remember reading this quote and simply feeling awestruck about how true those words are. Everyday life in a proverbial “daily grind” – going to work, studying for school, paying the bills and so on. I think some people forget to take a second and just look up at the sun, and give grace for being alive. This world isn’t perfect, but when you take a closer look at the simple details in everyday life it sure is beautiful, isn’t it?
What is stopping you?
When it comes to showing appreciation for life, what better way than to donate blood? If you have donated blood before reading this, then take a second to think about where your blood might have gone and who it might have helped. It is almost crazy to think that, in a way, part of you is flowing through someone else. That little pint of blood that you gave could be flowing through the veins of a child going through cancer treatment (and on the road to recovery), all because you decided to take the time out of your busy life to simply give back. It goes beyond the time where the child receives that transfusion for treatment, though. That one blood donation can ultimately be what keeps a person alive. The neat thing is as they grow, and life moves on, there is a little part of you with them.
At Incept, when I’ve talked to first-time blood donors, I really want to convey the following message to them: even if they donate just this one time, they are still producing a lasting, positive impact on someone (or maybe even multiple people) by putting life on pause for a little less than an hour. It makes you think. A regular blood donor is a very rare type of person who is willing to put the rat race on hold or find some extra time to willingly give part of themselves. To me, that is what living is. Living in this life is not just being able to recognize the beauty that surrounds us, but also to recognize when a fellow human being needs help, and answer a noble cause, such as donating blood. Sometimes all that is needed to be asked is, “What is stopping you?”
If you haven’t yet donated blood, what’s stopping you?
Photo Credit: http://www.irishhealth.com
Lately I’ve been drawing more and more again, which feels nice. I’ve had recent inspiration that has finally broken my self-induced, three-year-long creative block.
I was always big into Surrealism in artwork. Nothing had to make sense to be beautiful or wondrous; you simply got a feel for a particular piece based on your first impression when looking at it. Hearing a human voice can be just like that, only for the ears, not the eyes.
Have you ever looked in the mirror and given yourself a really long stare? Not in a vain or narcissistic manner, but a stare that examines what or who you really are as a person? While our looks age with time, and the years will pass, our voices will also change. To me, my voice isn’t just something I talk with but something I’ve grown up with. It is not only the sound that comes out of my mouth, but also the voice of reason in my head that speaks when I’m thinking or reading silently. Notice how your voice, while being something you cannot see (in comparison to your body), is probably one of the most distinguishing characteristics that makes you a human being.
I say this all because while listening to CMEs (Conversational Marketing Experts) make calls to blood donors across America, I can hear just how genuine, comforting, and knowledgeable they are in their voices. You can always tell when the person on the other end really cares about what is going on in your life, as opposed to when you are quickly being surveyed and treated like just another call. I think that is what makes Incept so unique in the approach we take when recruiting blood donors as successfully as we have. We simply treat them like people and try to have the best conversations we can with them. We do not strive to build meaningless relationships, but rather legitimate and positive rapport with the blood donor.
We are able to build this comradeship between blood donors and their centers by simply understanding that while our voice might be our biggest tool on the phones, it is also, in essence, who we are.
Think of a positive and negative customer service experience you have had on the phone. What did the customer service reps’ voices sound like? Were they caring and helpful or unconcerned and apathetic?
Photo Credit: http://blog.mozilla.com
Do you know your blood type?
You might be surprised to find out that not a lot of people know the answer to this question. Knowing your blood type can be extremely important in emergency situations, but recently there have been two new reasons to know your type.
Have you ever wondered why one diet works wonders for a friend but doesn’t seem to make any difference for you? Well, there’s a new diet sweeping the nation! No, it’s not the Atkins Diet or Weight Watchers but a diet based on what type of blood you have. Some scientists believe that different diets have different effects on people, because we all have slightly different body chemistry. Depending on what blood type you are, your body may have different dietary needs than someone of another blood type. By tailoring your eating habits to your body, you might have better success losing weight than if you followed a diet simply because it worked well for a friend.
While many people might ask a potential date or friend for their zodiac sign, we don’t generally ask their blood type – unless, of course, you live in Japan. In Japanese culture, it’s commonly believed that your blood type influences your personality, similarly to how Americans believe that your horoscope can tell a lot about you. According to the Japanese:
- Type A’s usually seem calm and collected but tend to have such high standards that they’re really a
stressed out bundle of nerves on the inside. A’s are very artistic but also tend to be shy.
- Type B’s are goal-oriented and strong-minded, starting a task and working at it until it’s complete. B’s are independent and like to do things their own way.
- Type AB’s are complicated, as you might imagine. They can be both outgoing and reserved depending on their mood. Even though they’re a responsible sort of person, too much responsibility can make them crack under the pressure.
- Type O’s are believed to be outgoing and very social. They like to initiate things, although they don’t always follow through with what they start.
While these might not be exact sciences, they’re definitely fun to think about. I wouldn’t be surprised if blood types had even more of an impact on us than we realize. So, with that in mind…
What’s your type, and how well does your personality match?
Photo Credits:
As much as I hate how high gas prices are this summer, I love when I can pull into a gas station, swipe 
my customer loyalty card and save $0.40 per gallon. All this simply for shopping at their grocery store from time to time. When I fill up my 13-gallon tank, that’s over $5 that I can save for lunch or one of those extra-fancy coffees. About a month ago, I even won free lunch for a week from a different gas station, all because I swiped my customer loyalty card when I filled up. That’s a pretty good deal I must say!
Blood donor loyalty programs work the same way.
Donors get special perks just for being members. The more they donate, the more perks they are able to receive. By using this information in your phone calls, you can educate donors on the many benefits they can receive just for donating blood!
Here are a few specific ways to do this successfully:
- Know the program. Product knowledge is crucial. If you know the program’s ins and outs, you can better explain it to the donor. How do they sign up? How do the donor loyalty points work, and what can they be used for? Aside from points, are there additional perks, such as wellness checks?
- Stay up-to-date with promotions and bonus points. Who doesn’t love bonus points? If there is a new promotion for the donor to take advantage of, tell them about it! If they can earn bonus points for scheduling and keeping their appointment, tell them! If they get a free t-shirt for donating this weekend, tell them!
- Educate every donor you speak with. Every time I buy groceries, the cashier tells me my current fuel discount and how much I need to spend to save even more. Every time you talk to a donor, you should do the same. Tell them how many points they have and what they can get with those points. More importantly, tell them how many points they will get with their next donation and what those points will earn them.
- Customize the conversation. It’s impossible to share every program detail with every donor, but by understanding their interests and needs, you can talk about what is important and relevant to them. If you’re speaking to a high school donor, perhaps they’ll be interested in music gift cards. If you’re speaking to someone a bit older, maybe the advanced wellness checks are more important. If they say they aren’t interested in points or recognition, educate them on how they can donate their points to local charities.
Donor loyalty programs are constantly changing. There are always new promotions, new ways to earn points and new ways to redeem them. The key is to know as much as possible and educate as often as possible. If you can help a donor earn a t-shirt or gift card, or even win tickets to their favorite band’s concert, they will certainly appreciate it!
Photo Credits:
Blood transfusions have come a long way since the early days when a serious loss of blood was almost certain to cost you your life. We take for granted this seemingly simple medical procedure, but if you take a second to stop and look at its history, blood transfusions are really a medical marvel.
The first successful human blood transfusion didn’t take place until 1667 when a lamb’s blood was successfully transfused into a human being. Up until that point, doctors had tried just about everything to help patients
An early blood transfusion from a lamb to a human being.
who had lost severe amounts of blood. Attempts to transfuse milk, beer and other concoctions were made and were nearly always fatal. Even after the first successful human blood transfusion, many patients still died from unknown complications.
It wasn’t until 1901 when the four blood types were discovered by Austrian scientist Dr. Karl Landsteiner these mysterious deaths following transfusions became clear. Six years later, Ludvig Hektoen made the suggestion that patients might be less likely to die during blood transfusions if they attempted to cross-match blood types between donors and patients. Later that same year, Reuben Ottenberg took that suggestion and made the first blood transfusion using blood typing and cross-matching between donors and blood recipients.
Not long after, there was another huge advancement in blood donations: blood centers.
Cook County Hospital: Home of the first blood center!
On March 15th, 1937, Chicago’s Cook County Hospital set up the first official blood bank, and it wasn’t long before others were following Cook County Hospital’s example. The Irwin Memorial Blood Bank was the first community-based blood center and opened its doors in San Francisco in 1941. In 1947, the AABB (American Association of Blood Banks) was established as an international organization dedicated to the advancement of science and the practice of blood transfusion. By 1950, there were 1,500 hospital blood banks, 46 community blood centers and 31 American Red Cross regional blood centers in the U.S. alone!
Nowadays, donating and receiving blood is safer than ever before. Each unit of blood undergoes about 13 different tests for infectious diseases before transfusion, ensuring that its recipient will be getting healthy, safe blood. We’re also not limited to just whole blood collections either! Plasma, platelet and double red blood cell (or ALYX) donations are collected at most hospitals and donor centers all over the country. Each different type of donation has its benefits to those who need it most.
Considering that 1 in every 7 people going into a hospital needs blood, we’re fortunate to have the technology available to ensure that our blood supply is safe and there when we need it. But we couldn’t do it without donors. So the next time you’re out and about and see a blood drive, stop on in! The need is constant and can really help someone in need!
What do you think is the most interesting part about blood transfusions?
Photo Credits:
It is always easier to talk about doing good or becoming great than it is to actually follow through with action.
Half of your recommended daily calories in a foil wrap.
Recently, my mouth got me into trouble, both figuratively and literally. I’ll start with a bit of back story. Chipotle burrito-eating is a favorite pastime of mine. Ask anyone I know if I am addicted to Chipotle, and they will probably tell you they have already tried to orchestrate a personal, televised intervention for me and my run-amuck affinity for football-sized burritos. About a week ago, I was provoked to complete a test of taste and endurance, as well as mental (and maybe even emotional) strength. That’s right, I was challenged to the Chipotle Burrito Challenge by a longtime friend.
To break it down, quite simply, the Chipotle Burrito Challenge consists of eating four burritos within twenty-five minutes and then proceeding to run a mile in under seven-and-a-half minutes. I gladly and pridefully accepted my friend’s challenge. However, since I only had about twenty bucks on me at the time, I was only able to get three burritos. Still, I figured I’d give it a whirl anyways. What did I have to lose? And to be honest, I had always wanted to be able to say that I did it.
I had not eaten anything since dinner of the previous day and with the clock striking one – and hastening the day onwards – I was feeling hungry. You could say it was with a sense of predestined victory that I gloriously banished the first of my foil-wrapped treasures to the depths of my stomach in a matter of sheer minutes. Even more astonishing was the fact that I downed my second burrito in such a furious fashion, that I even forgot to wash it down with my Mr.Pib. During the final feeding – about halfway in, to be exact – my body started to tell me this might not have been such a good idea. But with pride on the line, I could only think of what that guy on Man vs. Food must feel like sometimes. Relentlessly, I charged on and finished all three burritos in under twenty-two minutes.
The hard part came when it was time to run on the local walking track in my town, affectionately called “the Green Mile.” The Green Mile is a winding paved trail that is about a half-mile long, meaning that I would have to run around twice in under seven-and-a-half minutes. Upon arrival, and without time wasted, I started on my trek down the trail. At this point, I could feel the trio of burritos and Mr.Pib sloshing around in my stomach with every stride, and I quickly cramped up. Pushing myself – though turning green, as well – I wanted to finish. Heck, I still had my pride on the line. However, to end the story on a predictable note, I made it almost one lap through the Green Mile before “re-tasting” my three-burrito meal. Call me crazy, but one of the few regrets I have about failing the challenge was that I ordered three of the same burritos and not three different ones.
What does this have to do with donating blood? And why would someone ever attempt something like that in the first place?
Well, why did Sir Edmund Hillary climb Mount Everest? Why did Willy Wonka create the everlasting Gobstopper? Why did Forrest Gump run across America? The answer is all the same: to say they did something great. Well, come to think of it, Forrest really did just like to run. Nonetheless, it’s usually with a glorious prevision of future accomplishment that people set out to do monumental and awesome things. When it comes to donating blood, it is actually a very easy to achieve the same feelings and stature of greatness.
What keeps you donating?
I think it is easy for people to say they want to do something great or say they want to help others, but when it comes time to take action you hear nothing except the squawking of lame ducks who end up eating their words. Working at Incept, not only as part of the Social Media Department but also with roots as a Blood Donor Recruiter, it would be quite silly for me not to practice what I preach and donate blood as often as I possibly can (and I do!). It’s encouraging when I’m speaking with a first-time donor who is willing to donate blood for their community. I’m grateful to speak with people who hear the call to action and are not afraid to do something great.
For me, it really isn’t even the fact that these people are donating blood, but the fact that many first-time donors are simply willing to give it a try because they feel it is the right thing to do for their community and that I find truly impressive. Consistent blood donors are that group of people who do something great for others, instead of simply talking about it. Oh how I wish there were more regular blood donors in America.
Here are some simple reasons why you should be donating blood consistently:
- A whole blood donation is one of the easiest blood donations a person can do
- Donating whole blood only takes about 10-15 minutes for the literal blood donation; the entire process is usually only a 35-40 minute visit to the center
- A whole blood donation has the ability to save the lives of up to three people
- Donating blood is an easy way to give back to the community
- Donating blood is beneficial to the body
The reasons to donate blood are numerous, and why shouldn’t they be? So the next time you are looking to achieve greatness – whether that be by athletic, academic, gastronomic or blood-donation-related achievement – remember to take action in your pursuit.
What are some awesome things you want to achieve? What keeps you motivated to donate blood?
Photo Credits:
Nowadays, when most female role models highlighted by the media are actresses and singers instead of teachers and nurses, it’s important to remember women like Clara Barton.
In the late 1800s and early 1900s, when women were undervalued in the workplace, Clara Barton worked as a teacher, established a federal government office, nursed wounded soldiers and founded the American Red Cross. She was known as the “Angel of the Battlefield” by the servicemen she nursed during the American Civil War.
Not only did she provide clothes, medical supplies and food to the front lines, but she also helped them write letters and prayed with them. After the war she helped thousands of families find out what happened to their
Clara Barton and friends, 1898.
loved ones by working for the Office of Correspondence. With President Lincoln’s blessing, she tracked down missing or deceased soldiers so that their families could know what had happened to them.
Clara went to Europe in 1869. It was there she learned about the Red Cross movement and its founder, Henry Dunant. After helping out the Red Cross in France, she petitioned the United States government to form their own chapter. Clara didn’t run the organization from behind a desk. She went with her disaster relief teams right to the sites of floods, hurricanes and fires to assist the victims.
Now, a hundred years later, the Red Cross leads the country in disaster relief, blood donations and wartime assistance – all thanks to the spirit, compassion and bravery of Clara Barton. Even if you don’t have the opportunity to found an organization or save soldiers in a war, you can still be a hero like Clara Barton by donating blood!
Who are the female role models throughout history that you look up to?
Photo Credit:
The Holiday Season has appeared again!
