When people think about promotional products, there are a few key products that come to mind. Think about it yourself, and on a side piece of scratch paper, write down the first 5 things that come to mind when YOU think of the promotional market. Ok, have your list? I bet you that your list includes some of the following: pens, note pads, water bottles, key chains, stress balls.
Why is this? I personally think the main reason is that people do not put as much thought into promotional product spending as they do other marketing spending. They simply go for the tried and true, top of mind type promotional items, many of which I just named. Pens are probably the number one most ordered promotional item in the world, and for just that reason, I feel, are the number one most overrated promotional item as well. Check the pens around your desk. I bet at least a few of them have a logo on it, and before today, you did not even know it.
Promotional products are a very wide open market. There are options people never think about. I believe being creative in your promotional item spending can be very effective for you, especially if you can product an item that is not only innovative and different, but also useful and "cool" to the recipient. Another important part of this thinking is matching the item to your company.
One good example of this is a gym. Water bottles are the item of choice for gyms, and water bottles are a good promo. However they are not unique. Something we have done for gyms recently are things like pedometers and frisbees. Pedometers are a great gym tie-in and frisbees are something involving an active lifestyle, which also ties in nicely.
Sometimes the tie-in is not as important as the unique factor. We have done things like hand sanitizer which are extremely unique, and thus are memorable.
So what is the moral of this story? Instead of starting your thinking by coming up with promos you have seen done in the past, start your thinking in reverse. Think of items and products that match your goals and business and then come to a promo company (Rollout Marketing Solutions is a perfect one!) and ask them if they can logo it!!! I guarantee you they can, or they can come up with counter ideas that match what you are looking for!
Until next time...
how do customers SEE your brand?
