Here is What Promotional Products Are NOT

Here's What Promotional Product Are NOT

Promotional products can be incredibly engaging. In fact, they are the only advertising medium which can reach all 5 of the senses – sight, touch, smell, hearing, and taste. They can be exciting. They can be nostalgic. They can bring joy.

Promotional products can be awesome if you use a little common sense and spend some time thinking about who you want receiving them. They can help forge a bond between your brand and your customers. They will keep your company top of mind. They continue to advertise for your company long after they are purchased.

Below are 5 labels often used for traditional advertising for which don’t hold true for promotional products. If you disagree, it’s highly likely you are doing it wrong.

  • Boring – Promotional products are far from boring. If you are giving away boring promos, then you are choosing boring options. There are always options for exciting variations and unique twists for the standard, traditional items you might already be giving away. Two examples include koozies and water bottles. You might think about giving away the cheap foam can insulators, however, you could opt for a more hip version – a denim can cooler with a neoprene pocket. Instead of giving away that cheap, thin-walled plastic sports bottle, opt for a higher quality Tritan water bottle, which will get reused over and over again. It’s better to give away higher quality promotional items to fewer people than it is to give away low-quality items to more people.
  • Useless – Traditional advertising can serve no practical purpose for its audience, other than information which has been skewed to deliver a message that advertiser wants you to think about their product or company. However, with promotional products, they serve a purpose in addition to promoting your company. You write with them. You drink from them. You use them when you play golf. You wear them. And the list goes on and on. Try “using” a television commercial or a newspaper ad.
  • Ineffective – According to a recent PPAI Study, nearly 90% of promotional products recipients could recall the brand who gave the items to them. A more powerful statistic is 83% of those who received promotional products are more likely to do business with that brand over competitors they have not received promos. This is why advertising using promotional products is ranked #1 in effectiveness with consumers. Promotional products are the opposite of amnesia.
  • An Expense – Many people think of promotional products as a “marketing expense,” but if utilized effectively, promotional products are an investment.  It only takes a little bit of advanced planning such as incorporating the right products to reinforce the message you want to convey while considering your primary audience. This includes ensuring the promos are useful so the advertising will live on for many years and continue to promote your company. While traditional advertising stops working the second you quit paying for it, promotional items are different. You pay for them once, and they continue to work for you. High-quality items last longer. Longevity of the items increases the more useful they are. This allows for continued exposure to your brand, leading to more loyal customers and increased sales. Don’t make promotional products an afterthought; center your messages around these items for maximum effectiveness of your advertising campaigns.
  • Annoying – Aside from the annoyance of fidget spinners and selfie sticks, you’ll rarely find recipients annoyed by receiving promotional products. Because this isn’t a disruptive type of advertising (such as radio and TV commercials) or mandatory ads you have to watch before seeing a YouTube video), consumers LOVE promotional products. Consumers are happy to receive this form of advertising, which is a statement that doesn’t ring true for any other form of advertising.

Isn’t it time to invest more of your marketing dollars into an advertising medium that is exciting, useful, and effective? Don’t you want your advertising budget to be used as an investment and not an expense? Promotional products are the right vessel to keep your message in front of your customers.

Related Articles
Do You Have Goals For Your Promotional Products?
Here’s Why Promotional Products Are An Investment
6 Advertising Firms Your Should NEVER Use
Hot & Trending Promotional Products From PPAI Expo 2018
The Incredible Staying Power of Promotional Products (with Real-Life Examples)

Related content