Promotional Products can be Inexpensive Marketing Gems

March 11, 2009

SOURCE: InsuranceNewsNet, Inc.

Every business is looking closer at expenses, but some say you should think twice if you’re considering dropping your line of promotional products.  Those pens, pencils, coffee mugs, T-shirts, key chains and assorted inexpensive giveaways might seem like a logical cut in your budget.

But a difficult economy is precisely the time to resort to cost-effective creative marketing efforts that include promotional products imprinted with your company’s logo and slogan, according to the Promotional Products Association International (PPAI). These marketing gems are considered by many experts as the most effective and efficient way of putting your business on the consumer map.

Here is what PPAI says its study showed:

• 71 percent of the survey respondents consisting primarily of business people said they received a promotional product during the past 12 months.
• 76 percent of respondents who received a promotional item could recall the advertiser’s name
• 52 percent of respondents who received a promotional item reported doing business with the advertiser after receiving the promotional product
• 55 percent of respondents who received a promotional item kept them for more than a year

In contrast, although 80 percent of the survey participants said they had read a newspaper or magazine in the past week only 53.5 percent of them could recall the name of a single advertiser. And unlike traditional advertising, promotional products can leave a lasting impression because they maintain a presence in offices and homes for many years, depending on the item. Some of them may even be passed on to others for even greater exposure.

About 400,000 products can be imprinted with your logo, slogan or message. Choosing an item based solely on its uniqueness, price or perceived value doesn’t guarantee success. Experts also caution against choosing trendy items because they tend to have shorter appeal spans.

Promotional products are most effective when used in a cohesive, well-planned campaign, says PPAI. In choosing promotional items, companies should consider the audience, the budget and the set goals.

The first step is defining your objective. What is the purpose of your promotional program? Is it to increase traffic to your booth at a trade show exhibit or encourage your existing clients to buy more?

The following are samples of promotional products for different goals:

Improve image Items that express the corporate philosophy and make company’s core statement tangible such as branded and high value products.

In addition to picking the right promotional item, the distribution of a promotional product is just as important in increasing its effect. For example, a study showed that a pre-show mailing to a select audience produces more trade show traffic and qualified leads than simply distributing items to passers-by at the show. This is because mailed invitations are perceived to have more value than casually handed invitations even though they may have the same actual value.

Another effective distribution strategy involves offering a prospect an item that he or she needs but don't have on hand. Say, for instance your prospect needs a pen or paper during your meeting, can you think of a better opportunity to give him or her your promotional ballpoint pen or company stationery?

Of course you can give your prospects your pens and stationery at anytime. However, experts say they will appreciate and remember your promotional items more if they actually had a need for it at the time you gave it to them. 

It is also necessary to create a central theme and develop a message to support the theme.
The central theme should connect a recognizable logo and color to all aspects of the campaign – from the promotional products to the product packaging. This will create an image that is instantly recognizable.

The supporting message should help put the company's name, service or products in top of its target audience's mind. For instance, a bank sent fish-related products to its prospects to support its theme. What does banking have to do with fish?  The theme was "Are you tired of being treated like a small fish?" and the bank was promoting its services to small businesses.

Just how well do promotional items really work? Here are some examples how promotional items were used successfully: 

Company: Association for Manufacturing Technology

• Objective: Developing Tradeshow Traffic
• Promotional Strategy: Polybags containing car sunshades printed with International Manufacturing Technology Show 2004 logo were placed on the side view mirrors of every car in the parking lots of manufacturing facilities in the Chicago and Detroit areas. When in use the sunshade extended the show’s promotion to people who did not receive the polybags. The program also promised free IMTS 2004 for registration in groups of four or more available on-site from the show store.
• Cost of Promotion Items: Less than $10
• Results: Pre-registration was more than twice the anticipated numbers.

Company: ING Funds

• Objective: Promoting Branch Openings
• Strategy: A series of three direct mail pieces were created and shipped during the final quarter of 2003 to 6,000 top-producing brokers and 5,000 potential broker agents. The pieces featured paper binoculars that invited recipients to “take a closer look.” A paper watch reminded them it was “time to invest” and a personalized Post-It note mailer suggested that potential brokers “take note” of this great new investment opportunity.
• Cost of Promotion Items: Less than $10
• Results: Immediately after the mailings the number of producers that sold the featured Foreign Global Investment Fund jumped to 497 from 81 brokers. The Fund had a 700 percent growth in assets under management during the period most directly affected by the campaign or an increase of more than $30 million.

Company: Weyforth-Haas Marketing, Inc.

• Objective: Opening New Accounts
• Strategy: Attention-getting mailer that featured a shrink-wrapped compass, established Caterpillar’s new engine as a means of “finding your way out of the forest of new emissions regulations.” The program also promised a name-brand global positioning satellite (GPS) unit, imprinted with CAT logo, hand-delivered to prospects who scheduled a personal sales presentation from Caterpillar.
• Promotion Amount: $10 or More
• Results: The promotion generated 48 percent response rate with a 16 percent conversion to sale (minimum sale is $1.3 million).

Promotional items can take many shapes and sizes but when used properly they can keep reminding your customers and prospects of the value of your products and services without hurting your budget.

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