HOW TO NAB GREAT FREE STUFF FOR YOUR REUNION

GUERRILLA MARKETER AND SWAGMEISTER

STEP I: Get a list. Reunion co-chair Keith Hammonds '81 e-mailed the entire class, about 1,000 people, following up with notices in class newsletters and reunion mailings. I asked everyone if their companies would be interested in "reaching this captive and influential market" by donating to the bag. It's easy. You're not raising an endowment here.

STEP 2: Follow up at the coolest companies. My first phone call, and my first yes, was classmate David Crane of Crane Paper, who gave us notepads made from recycled U.S. currency. Then I found classmate Mike Simon, who worked at Godiva. I made about 60 calls over 75 days. When we reached about 15 donors, I stopped calling.

STEP 3: Deliver the goods. Each company was responsible for shipping to Hanover at their expense. It all ended up in the basement of Blunt. We used very large Lands' End ice bags for the swag, which were stuffed by underclassmen who work at Blunt.

STEP 4: Let there be promotion. We asked each of the donors for a onepage write-up about their product, their company, and why they donated it. We put this in the swag bag, and it made a great conversation piece.

STEP 5: Wait till next time! I have this idea of raffling bigger swag. A company can send us two items worth $60 to $100, and I'll stick a "you're the winner" slip of paper in two of the swag bags. Somebody could give out stock in their company or professional services or a piece of artwork. There's always a way to do something like that.

Reiley wowed the 225-plus throng athis 20th class reunion with bags containing the works, including an herbalanti-diarrhea medication (ask him,not us). He serves as vice presidentof Monetrics, a venture capital firm inSalem, Massachusetts. Reiley majored in engineering science.