One of the most popular accessories for cake pops has got to be customized tags.

Tags are little love notes that can be added to the sticks or tied on with ribbon. They’re usually around 2-inches or so and can turn a simple cake pop into the perfect favor. Here are a few we’ve done…

I’d love to share with you how I make tags and offer a few freebies as well. If you’d like us to create a printable just for you, we offer them on our web-site for $5- per file. Click here.

OK, so the most important elements are color/theme, message, names, and the event date.

Step 1: I find a font that fits the theme. If I don’t have a font in my library already I’ll search www.fontsquirrel.com or similar free font site. Some of my fav’s lately are Alex Brush and Museo. When in doubt, stick with Adobe Caslon Pro!

Step 2: If I need a graphic, I head on over to a (paid) site called shutterstock.com. This site has wonderful graphics for everything from wedding images to baby shower pictures. There are also quite  a few sites out there that offer free clip art, try openclipart.org

Step 3: I create the tags and set up the sheets using Adobe Illustrator (or Photoshop).
You can use Word too. Here’s a Word template for 2-inch tags: 2-inch-Template-Cake-Pop-Tags

Tip! When working with fonts try to keep it to one or two max. Keep it simple. Don’t go nuts with strokes and drop shadows (aka “word art”). The text is small and those design elements will make the message difficult to read.

Step 4: I print the sheets out on glossy cardstock on an HP Photosmart Premium Inkjet Printer.

Step 5: I use a professional Rotatrim cutter for smooth, crisp cuts.

Step 6: I then carefully (test one first!) hole punch the tags with a heavy duty hole punch. We cut a lot of tags so while a hand-held punch will certainly get the job done, this saves our hands from aching!

And…that’s it!

If my method seems a bit complicated, here are some simple shortcuts:

PAPER: opt for readily available cardstock sheets from Walmart or any office supply store (Staples, Office Max, etc.)
HOLE PUNCH: use any hand-held hole punch
CUTTER: I do not recommend scissors. Try (carefully!!) cutting single sheets on a self-healing cutting mat using an x-acto knife and 18-inch metal ruler as a guide.

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Now for some FREEBIES!
Here are two fun tag sheets you can print and use… Here’s the PDF to print –> Tags

If you’d like to order customized printable sheets for your event or business, they are now available on our web-site.
CLICK HERE

Enjoy!

~Anne

]]> http://cakepopsraleigh.com/2013/06/18/cake-pop-tags-free-printables/feed/ 0 akflanagan Cake Pop Tags Tags BaseballTag Owl-Tags http://cakepopsraleigh.com/2013/06/05/is-twitter-the-new-live-chat/ http://cakepopsraleigh.com/2013/06/05/is-twitter-the-new-live-chat/#comments Wed, 05 Jun 2013 21:59:44 +0000 RaleighCakePops http://cakepopsraleigh.com/?p=1525 ]]> I think so.

If you’re in business, take advantage of this as a valuable customer service tool and a great way to increase traffic to your web-site.

Plus, sites like Klout and Kred, among others, measure your social media influence–more tweets, more Klout, the higher your Kred.

Is that important to you? Maybe not. So let’s look at the perks of using social media, Twitter specifically, for customer service…

–Twitter is FREE (hello, free!)
–NO Software to Install
–You Don’t Have to Sit in Front of a Computer Waiting for the “Bell to Ring”
(common with live chat software)
–Respond on Your Time
(live chats usually time out and the potential client has to send a message if you don’t respond)
–Drive Traffic Back to Your Site
–Build Followers & Your Great Reputation

That little live chat feature on web-sites has always been my friend. I’m like, yes please, “Live Chat”! Yay, I can get an answer immediately. Sweet!

Today we’re all connected. Sites like Twitter and Facebook allow consumers to instantly connect with their favorite brands. This also immediately places all consumers into the VIP status (which is where they should be right?).

How?

Take a look at how many mentions I received on Twitter in a few short minutes trying to find a gift for my eight year old niece (don’t worry, not just a test, I’m actually sending my niece a cookie bouquet because I really do love ProFlowers.com! ..and my niece).

Look at how the wonderful customer service rep Corrine consistently pushed me to the Proflowers.com site. She even tried to get me to buy cake pops (I love it–great selling Corinne!). And…look how many times I was mentioned on twitter. A surefire way to increase my Klout score!

You see, all the tweets in the world aren’t going to get potential clients to look at your profile and click your tiny link (that’s sounds dirty).

You must interact! Simply signing up isn’t enough. Why not use it as the voice of your customer service?

Take care,

~Anne

I may make cake pops for a living but marketing and design are my passion.

I receive many requests for marketing help–logo design help, tag design, web-site and e-store advice, how do I use Pinterest, Facebook posts, etc.

I answer every one.

But tell me, do you need help in these areas? Is this something we should write about? Or, are you more interested in cake pop tutorials or recipes?

Please share your specific needs/wants with me. Either here on the page publicly or privately over email?

I want everyone to be a success! There’s plenty of room for all of us !

Anne

Mini Cobbler

We’ve been baking things like 7-Up pound cakes and chocolate pecan pies to French macarons and tons of mini baked sweets for dessert tables. And you know what? We love it!

Since many of these specialty desserts cannot be shipped I wanted to share the recipes with YOU. Now please keep in mind, I’m NOT a food blogger …yet …so I may be a bit of a novice when it comes to recipes and tutorials. Just give me a nudge!

Of course if you are local in Virginia or the Carolinas and are interested in dessert catering, please contact us or give us a call at 919-438-1327

I can tell you that I don’t bake with measuring cups/spoons (any more)–only by weight. So in all of the recipes I post (from now on) I will be sure to add the grams (if they seem off let me know…I do my best).

First up, my HUSBAND’S recipe for…

Mini Fruit Cobblers (makes approx. 18 mini cobblers)

Ingredients:

1 Cup Sugar (201g)

1 Cup All Purpose Flour (128g)

2 Tsp Baking Powder (10g)

Dash of Salt (omit when using salted butter)

3/4 Cup Milk (185g)

1/2 cup (100g) of Melted Butter (you will need approximately 100g)

(252/14g)Diced/Canned/Sliced Fruit (your choice–pie filling or fresh diced fruit works best)

Brown Sugar & Cinnamon for Dusting (depending on your fruit choice, you may opt for simply sprinkling with clear sugar crystals…we did this in our photo)

Let’s Go!

Preheat the oven to 180ºC/350ºF. Line a standard cupcake pan with parchment liners or paper cupcake liners.
We make our own liners by cutting 5-inch squares of parchment paper and then wrap/mold around a juice glass (as seen in photo).

• Whisk dry/first four ingredients in a bowl
• Slowly add milk and mix by hand until combined
• Melt butter (microwave or stovetop)
• Add 1 teaspoon (4.8g) of melted butter in each cupcake liner
• Next, add 2 tablespoons of batter, on top of the butter
• Now add 1 tablespoon of fruit on top of the batter
• Sprinkle with sugar or cinnamon/sugar

Place in pre-heated oven and bake for 14-16 minutes or until golden brown.

Cool completely before removing from pan.

Serve with fresh fruit and vanilla ice cream.

Enjoy!

~Anne

Shipped Nationwide

Reblogged from KC Bakes:

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Long before I started making cake pops, I was making cakes. With practice, I became pretty good at various aspects of cake design, but one skill I could never really master was lettering. My hands weren't that steady using food decorator pens, and cutting letters out of fondant was such a tedious task.

Enter a popular, fast-growing trend in baking, cake bunting!

Read more… 636 more words

The Art of Cake Pops – Review & Giveaway!.

Happy Easter!

Anne

Here are the stats:

• Made in the USA
• Constructed of white, high density plastic (virtually indestructible)
• Four tiers – 6”, 10”, 14” and 18”
  -6-inch has 16 holes
  -10-inch has 36 holes
  -14-inch has 64 holes
  -18-inch has 96 holes
• Holds a total of 212 cake pops using small 4-inch lollipop sticks (or click here to pre-order through us for stands that use the 6 x 7/32″ cookie sticks. 4-6 week lead time. Same price!)
• Tiers are held together with sturdy aluminum rods
• Total stand height 21″ (24″ using the 6-inch cookie sticks)
• Available with round or square tiers

There are four feet that raise the base up off of the table about an inch. The feet can be used on either of the two largest levels. Without the feet, all levels lay flat so they can even be used alone.

OK, now for some cool stuff…

You don’t have to use every level–it’s literally like owning 4 (or more) cake pop stands!

How many times have you had a client ask for a stand for 100 but you only have one that holds 200 or vice versa?

You see, each level is a separate board and you construct it with the aluminum rods. So fully constructed, you’ve got a stand for 212 cake pops. Need a smaller one? Remove the bottom level and now you have a stand for 116. Even smaller? Remove the top level for a stand that holds an even 100! I could go on and on.

AND….the levels (not the largest level) can be flipped to hide the holes so it’s perfect for cake pops AND cupcakes!

This stand is just so versatile!

OK, I’m done.

Want one?

The price of the stand is $199.99 plus shipping (ships flat, roughly $20 in the US).

The stands that hold the small 4-inch sticks are a stock item and usually ship within 24 hours. You can buy them directly from Boss Cupcake Stands:

Here’s their site: Boss Cupcake Stands

Don’t forget to follow Boss on…
FACEBOOK  &  TWITTER …we do!