Promotional products (also known as ad specialties) are a powerful marketing tool. They’re both essential and crucial to promoting your business.
They’re a great way to grow brand exposure and awareness. And, the options are endless when it comes to picking out a promo item.
Not a fan of lanyards of stress balls? Not a problem, there are thousands of other products to choose from.
There’s something out there for everyone, and something to fit your business like a glove.
What are Promotional Products?
Promotional products can be nearly anything, as long as it features a company’s logo or branding.
Some popular examples are pens, tote bags, masks, koozies, tumblers, shirts, hats, and tumblers.
Now, when it comes to popular uses? Companies typically give out free promo products at shows and events. They’re also used as gifts to say “thank you” to both existing clients and potential prospects.
In addition, you can toss some in alongside the main prize in a giveaway.
Holding a giveaway for a $50 gift card to a local restaurant? Throw in a t-shirt with your company’s logo.
1. Customizable
One of the best things about promotional products is that they’re customizable. Arguably their biggest selling point; it’d all be pretty pointless if they weren’t customizable.
Every item has a set “imprint area”. This is the designated space on the item that can be customized, or imprinted.
The imprint area varies from item to item, and you need to choose wisely when you’re trying to get your message across.
Going for something small like stress balls or reusable straws? Your logo will suffice.
But maybe you want to get out a message, or information about your business (such as phone number, address, email, etc).
T-shirts and tote bags are great options for this. They both have a large imprint area, and you can get down to the nitty-gritty with what you want to advertise.
When it comes to t-shirts, companies opt to put their logo on the left chest. On the back, they tend to go much larger with the logo and put crucial details about their business such as contact and location.
When it comes to customization, the options are unlimited.
2. Brand Awareness
Generating brand awareness is the entire point of utilizing promotional products.
Their purpose is to do the work for you: expose your brand. Every time someone sees your promotional product, they’re also seeing your brand.
If you give away t-shirts or other apparel, people become a billboard on the move.
The key is that they’re doing all of the advertising for you. And all you had to do was give them a good-looking piece of apparel.
Not to mention; people love free stuff. If it’s free, you won’t see many people saying no or refusing the item.
Every promo item you give out, is another person learning of your company.
And, generating brand awareness ultimately leads to generating prospects.
3. Memorable
Being memorable goes hand-in-hand with building up your brand awareness. The more exposure your brands gets, the more memorable you are.
A great thing about promo items is that they’re tangible. Something solid and physical that you can actually hold in your hands.
Did you know that 58% of people will keep promotional items from 1-4 years? Compare that to fleeting digital advertisements and emails that are quickly disregarded and deleted. 1-4 years is a substantial amount of time.
People are hesitant to throw away pens, tumblers, or tote bags — these are everyday items that people get a lot of use out of. They’re incredibly useful and it’d be a waste to toss something perfectly functional.
Like direct mail, promotional items tend to just hang out in your physical space. And if you’re anything like me, you’re guaranteed to have something on the kitchen table, in your car, or on your desk at work.
You take a glance at these items everyday, and with each glance the branding makes a lasting impression.
Because of this, promotional products have the highest advertising recall. Yes, even greater than online, television, and direct mail ads.
4. Low Cost
Promotional products boast both affordability and effectiveness. For the most part, they are an incredibly low cost addition to your marketing campaign.
Of course, you can choose promo items on the more high-end and luxurious side of things if you wanted as well.
But some of the most popular and effective items are less than $2.00 an item.
For example, you can get 500 of these pens for $0.44 each. That’s a small price to pay for substantial brand exposure.
The quality of these pens are highly rated, the most requested, and they come in a multitude of colors.
It’s not just pens, either. There are thousands of low cost items on the market. And if you’re not sure where to start, we’re always happy to help you find something that suits your needs.
5. Diverse
Another great thing about promo items is that they’re all so unique and diverse.
What may work for one company, may not entirely fit yours. It’s important to maintain branding even with your selection of promo items.
For example, a great item for gyms to give away are custom yoga mats. But this might not be the best item to give away if you’re in the restaurant business.
You want to make sure it makes sense, and that they can immediately associate your business with the item.
Of course, you also have universal items that’ll work for pretty much any business. Additionally, tote bags, tumblers, and masks are some prime examples.
If it’s something you would use yourself or would appreciate receiving, it’s a safe bet.
Conclusion
As shown above, promotional products are a great marketing tool for any marketing campaign.
They’re incredibly cost-effective, and an amazing tool at generating exposure and prospects.
Consider implementing them into your marketing campaign if you haven’t already, they’re a safe bet.
PS. Did you know that we have a store for promotional products? You can check it out here!
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Interested in promotional products for your business? You can email us at info@graphicimage.net or contact us here.
