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If you use Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, or Google+ often, you are more than likely aware that a company called Klout exists.

Anyway, Klout.com partners with other companies to give away discounts and free products.  Certain products are only available to people that rank for certain topics.  One such perk is the Blackwing Palomino pencils.  I was recently notified by Klout that I had earned this perk and needed to claim it.  I love free stuff.  I especially love writing utensils! Ask my wife; every time we walk through a store with an office aisle, I slow down and scan the shelves to keep an eye out for the newest pens and pencils.

I quickly grabbed this Klout Perk offered by Blackwing and then forgot all about it.  Until today when the package arrived.  On a side note, I love Apple products.  I love them because they’re high quality items.  The design, functionality, reality, and package design are all superb.  However, it doesn’t stop with Apple.  If you’re a geek like me, you cherish a good unboxing. (See wikipedia if you’re not sure what in the world I’m talking about)

When I received the box from Klout.com and Blackwing, it was light and unassuming, save for the Klout Perks sticker on the box.  This made me happy.

I was not particularly expecting an actual “unboxing” of this.  Instead, I figured it would just be a couple pencils taped together in the box.  I could not have been more wrong.

 First, I noticed a nice, textured black box with a pressed seal and a handwritten tag showing this was #457 out of a total 602 units.  Already I felt like my coolness factor had been bumped up a bit!  This was more appropriate for a box of Valentine’s Day chocolates or a new necklace for my wife, not a couple of pencils.

Next, I unwrapped the box thinking there would be the tapped-together pencils.  This was a pretty impressive presentation, and I was happy.

But there were not pencils yet!

Finally after sliding the black sleeve off I saw a black felt-like bag with a few items in it.  There were the pencils, but the bag had a few extra things inside.

Al contents totaled, I had received two pencils (the Blackwing Palomino and the Blackwing Palomino 602), extra erasers, a dual head aluminum pencil sharpener, and the icing on the cake:

A handwritten letter…

from the CEO of California Cedar Products Company.  If this wasn’t award-winning attention to detail, I don’t know what is.

This was probably in the top three of my favorite unboxings of all time.  Why?  Because of the unexpected surprises and personal touch.  A handwritten letter says a lot about the company.  They could have sent an email, printed out a high resolution image of a handwritten letter, or not included a letter at all.  But these guys really went the extra mile.

I wanted to take a minute and write a positive, encouraging blog post.  It’s all too easy to write negative reviews about products and services.  Don’t forget to do the same for great service and unexpected surprises!

**To abide by blogging and media disclosure agreements I am stating that this was a free sample presented to me from Klout and Blackwing.