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Boost Your Business With Promotional Products
(This is a contributed post)
Promotional products are branded items that are often given away for free by companies as a form of advertising. These products typically contain a printed brand name, logo, branded colors, slogan, contact details or website. They can include various items from pens to wristbands.
By using promotional products, you can help to build brand awareness. They can also be used to encourage brand loyalty in some cases. Below are a few tips on how to use promotional products effectively.
What are some common types of promotional products?
There are all kinds of promotional products that you can look into. A few popular examples include
- Pens: These are great for keeping in your office to give to customers when signing documents or they could be given out at seminars and workshops.
- Bags: Many retail outlets offer branded bags for taking home products in.
- T-shirts: Branded t-shirts are often given out to employees but could also be given out to customers.
- Sunglasses/caps: These could be great for giving away at a sunny outdoor event.
- Umbrellas: If you’re hosting an outdoor event and it’s likely to rain, branded umbrellas could be a great option.
- Wristbands/lanyards: Wristbands and lanyards are commonly given out at events to attendees. They could be a way of identifying authorised attendees if it’s an event that requires tickets or personal invites. Alternatively, they could just be a fun giveaway.
- Cups/bottles/mugs: These are commonly given away at events allowing people to drink on the go while promoting your brand. Mugs are typically kept in offices and given out to guests who may want a hot drink.
- Magnets: Give customers a reminder of your brand to stick on their fridge.
- Facemasks/hand sanitizer: These have been particularly common throughout the pandemic.
How can you make your promotional products stand out?
Promotional products can be a waste of money if not planned out and designed properly. There are a few ways in which you can make promotional products have an impact.
Make them useful
The best promotional products are ones that are useful. Things like magnets and wristbands may be viewed as unnecessary clutter by some people. Something like an umbrella or a pen has actual practical usage and may be used again and again, serving as a constant reminder of your brand.
You should consider who your customers are when giving out promotional products and you should try to factor in their needs. For instance, if you’re marketing to office-based businesses, consider office accessories like USB sticks and mouse mats. If you’re marketing to kids, consider toys like yo-yos and teddy bears.
Embrace the latest trends
You can also increase the success of your promotional products by embracing modern trends. Think about which toys and accessories are currently popular and use these to display your brand.
For example, a few years ago fidget spinners were all the rage, which encouraged companies to start giving away branded fidget spinners. Pop fidget toys have since taken over and are now a popular promotional product. Just be wary that trends can quickly change, so don’t manufacture too many of these items.
Consider current events
You may be able to theme your promotional products around current events. This could include big annual events like Christmas and Valentine’s Day as well as other holidays.
Consider showing your company’s support for certain groups. These aboriginal gifts for example could be great for celebrating NAIDOC. You could also theme gifts around events like Pride month, mental health awareness week or black history month.
Go eco-friendly
Many companies are now starting to switch to eco-friendly promotional products. This involves doing away with plastic disposable products and opting for reusable items and objects made of sustainable materials. Examples could include jute bags, refillable metal cups, reusable straws and bamboo pens.
Going green shows environmental awareness and could help to boost your company’s reputation.
When should you give away promotional products?
A lot of companies invest in promotional products without truly having a strategy for putting them to use. There are quite a few different ways to give away promotional products that could be worth considering. Below are a few of the most effective examples.
Give them away at marketing events
The most common way to use promotional products is to give them away at events. Don’t just put them on a stall for people to freely take. Instead, try to talk to people about your company first. You can then follow up by giving people promotional products that will serve as a reminder of your brand.
Include them for free with online deliveries
Another way to give away promotional products is to package them with online deliveries as free ‘thank you’ gifts. Try to match these promotional gifts to the product if possible. For example, if you sell guitars, consider throwing in a branded plectrum. Such small gifts may help to inspire return purchases.
Give them out to customers in your store/office
Another way of using promotional products as ‘thank you’ gifts is to give them out to customers in your store or office after making a purchase/signing up to your service. It may not be profitable to give these away with small purchases, however they could be ideal for giving away with big ticket items. For example if you own a car dealership, you could give away a branded air freshener with each car. Such freebies may encourage customers to leave good reviews at a later date or may even encourage future purchases.
Sell them as charity products
You don’t have to give away your promotional products. You could try selling these products while donating all the proceeds to a charitable cause. When creating such products, it’s worth displaying your brand and the charity name to help spread charity awareness (ask the charity for their permission to do this). This can be a great way of encouraging donations while also building brand exposure.
‘Accidentally’ leave them in strategic places
Promotional products can also be left in strategic places as a form of guerilla marketing. This could include leaving a branded bookmark in a library book related to your industry or leaving a branded fidget toy in a dentist waiting room where people are likely to pick it up. This could be a creative way to get people curious about your brand.
