If you’ve ever tried to buy some promotional products for your business you will know that there are THOUSANDS of different items you can choose, ranging from your stock-standard pens,mugs and bottle openers through to the truly bizarre such as DNA testing kits, corsages and bags of fake blood.
So to narrow down your options from THOUSANDS to a few, here are some things you might not have thought of when choosing promotional items:
- The item must reflect the quality of your brand. If your brand is high quality, then your promo items must be high quality too. If you sell $300 cushions, your potential customers aren’t the type of people who appreciate 50 cent promo pens that break on first use. Make sure the item reflects your brand values as well – is cheap plastic any good if your brand sells BPA free/cruelty free/renewable/recyclable products? Probably not.
- Remember your end goal. Your end goal is definitely not to give away lots of stuff for free. It is more likely to be to increase sales, promote your brand or entice potential customers to take a look at your stand/website/Facebook page. So think about that when choosing your products. If you are at an expo and you want people to come over and talk to you, branded lollies might be the hook you need. If you are sending out a promo pack to a group of specially selected target clients then something higher value they can keep and use such as a beach towel or a USB charger might be a better option.
- Think logistics. If you are posting promo items out to potential clients, don’t order branded paperweights unless you have shares in Australia Post. If you are attending an expo, think about how you are going to get all the items there, how heavy they are, whether they will look nice (and fit) on your table. Don’t buy chocolates if you will be somewhere hot, consider liquor laws if your items contain alcohol and don’t give out tiny items to little kids…
- Find a trusted supplier. There are HUNDREDS of suppliers trying to sell you THOUSANDS of items. When choosing a supplier, consider things such as their proof process (do they give feedback on how your printing will look on the particular item you’ve chosen?), contact options (can you actually speak to a human on the phone?) and lead times (can they print and deliver in your time frame or do you have to wait for a ship to arrive?). Shop around, check out online reviews and ask others for recommendations.
- Get something you’d like to use. When was the last time you used a letter opener? How many mouse pads can one person own? If you look at it and think that would wouldn’t be caught dead eating it/wearing it/using it then chances are your customers will think that too.
- Leverage, leverage, leverage. How can you get the most bang for your buck on your promo item? Post something on social media of a happy customer using your item, get contact details for a follow-up when you hand them that lolly on your expo stand and make sure your brand is ALWAYS front and centre on any promo products you produce.
If you’re thinking you need some promo items as part of your marketing mix we’d be happy to help.
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