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Archive for the ‘Promotional Products’ Category

Promotional Products Still Pack a Punch

Wednesday, May 19th, 2010

Everyone likes surprises and loves receiving gifts. Over a period of time one learns with experience and necessary feedback which promotional products pack a punch. Sagging sales can be bolstered with fun giveaways. It is a sure way to win back clients and make new ones.  Quite a few companies are happily giving away Ipods, USB flash drives, camera chips and other trendy items that can help them to touch base with people who matter to them the most. Just because one company is giving away premium products and promoting themselves it does not mean that spending money is important. In today’s situation one cannot have an unlimited budget for promotions. As businesses are tumbling and the domino effect is spreading globally, the promotional activities are restricted.

Even though the recession is pinching most companies globally, showing gratitude through marketing campaigns will prove helpful. In trying times when a promotional gift reaches you it means your contribution towards the company still counts.  Even a token gesture saying the company cares speaks volumes of its commitment towards the employees. Business is slack but a small reward means so much. The recipient is bound to understand that. It is not the time to indulge in who gives the most expensive item. Even a small pen set, keyring, promotional umbrella, branded mugs or glasses are welcome. It is a good motivator to uplift the mood of clients and consumers. Spending in a small way also ensures the company will not buckle under pressure.

It is time to let everyone know business is open and quiet promotions in small ceremonies are suitable. This makes the struggle more bearable. Some promotional products that do not pinch the company and come within budget include t-shirts, medium sized bags, bottles, flasks, elegant pen holders, photo frames, vases, ceramic sculptures, multi-purpose conference folders and mouse pads. A company can also give a combination of two different gifts. The design can be such that it accommodates the logo and some message perfectly. During times when it is tough to keep business going, association with simple charities is also useful. Since most charities have non-profit products that can be used for promotional purposes, it is an ideal way not to hurt the reserve funds. It makes the company visible not only business wise but also gives a touch of philanthropy.

Promotional Merchandise – Recognise the Strategic Value

Friday, October 30th, 2009

The most valuable intangible asset of a company is its brand which also maintains and bears its reputation.  If for some reason, your competitors do not spend their budget on any promotional merchandise, they are only compromising their own brand identity and this is when you must demonstrate through this form of media your gratitude to your customers for their support.  It is very important in a stagnating economy to at least maintain your market share, since new business would be difficult to procure.  When you maintain your brand equity and market share in troubled times, as and when the good times come along, your target audience would immediately favour you with business as your brand name would still remain fresh in their minds thanks to some of the promotional campaigns run during the tough times.  The worst thing to happen in business is, everything is hunky dory, but your brand name has been forgotten.

In fact during economy slowdown times, you must do all the more in terms of brand building and indulge in promotional activities.  You will have more time to focus on such activities and do it more professionally.  It may seem a paradox that you are indulging in business promotion when business itself is floundering, but that is the precise reason for its success and effectiveness.  You need to do something different from others and will be noticed for it, lending your brand the uniqueness and exclusivity.  At times of recession, you need to keep in touch with the top honchos of your customers and honour them with carefully chosen promotional merchandise.  It may happen that some of them might get retrenched and would start off on their own and you need to be at the forefront to be considered favourably by them when they are looking for vendors in their new avatar.  So, by concentrating on fine tuning promotional campaigns and taking the time to meet influential decision makers during the rough times, you are actually investing your time and effort to reap the fruits, when the good times return and by doing this, you will be putting yourself in a sound position to cash in when things start looking good again.  The fact that you recognized the true value of distributing promotional merchandise and the suitable timing of this will ensure that your competitors will have a lot to catch up and it won’t be easy to grab your customers.

So make the best of even the recessionary times by choosing suitable and useful promotional merchandise and getting your message out to the right people.  You will not regret it.

Promotional Products – Brand Recall at It’s Best

Friday, September 4th, 2009

With the cut-throat competition in the market and the customers becoming extremely choosy about buying products, various marketing strategies are being adopted to draw the customers towards retail outlets, offices, shopping hubs and websites. Distribution of promotional products and items is one such strategy which has captured the attention of the marketing gurus.

With technological advancement, there remains a huge scope for using such trendy giveaways. Technological devices such as MP3-MP4 Players, USB Pens and thumb drives are few of the most preferred items which are widely used today. These hi-tech devices usually carry the company’s logo and name when they are gifted to clients. This enables the customers to immediately recollect the name of the company.

Such gifts help in developing healthy business relations between the company and the clients. It boosts customer interests towards the company. People love gifts. When the customers see that these are offered by a company whose products are well-examined and tested, the customers feel even happier. The overall image of the company changes, customers bestow more faith in these companies. In turn, the companies gain in terms of business revenue and popularity.

The distribution cost of these giveaways to probable clients is considerably cheap. Sometimes, the companies are also found to organise events or programs for attracting the customers. Often, customer feedback is taken by the company where the potential clients are asked to give their suggestions on the products. They are asked to comment on how these companies can further improve. This, in turn acts as a value addition for the company.

These marketing strategies bear fruit for the company. It comes to know the areas on which it needs to improve. It also comes to know the new products and services which the customers want to see in the stores.  It becomes aware of the innovative business tactics which can help draw the customers towards it.

The customers who have already received these types of products and items tell their friends and colleagues about the company. This helps the company gain prominence over the others. This way, the client base increases, leading to more sales and better revenues.

Investments in promotional products such as MP3 players, promotional apparel and flash drives prove to be effective. This is because the company professionals educate the customers about the advantages of the products. The customers, in turn, tell their friends and associates about the proposed benefits. This makes the others curious to know more about the company.

Studies reveal that with these types of marketing exercises, the company manages to invite more mail from the customers. It builds customer goodwill. It helps in improving trade show traffic, advertising campaigns are organised and customer referrals are improved.

Promotional Products: How to Make Customers Remember Your Brand

Wednesday, July 29th, 2009

The role of promotional products as a marketing tool is a gateway towards a company’s success. The products you can use range from memo holders, pens, note pads, lanyards, coasters, bookmarks, clipboards, sticky notes, and virtually anything that companies deem effective and useful to their clients. Careful planning and decision-making regarding the appropriate promotional products are necessary, if you want your advertising campaign to be a success.

However, when it comes to the thriving business industry, it is always a challenge to stay at the forefront of your competitors. During events like trade shows or conferences, you strive to give nothing but the best promotional products. Sure, this is a right thing to do, but how do you ensure that you will give your clients a good impression of your company along with your chosen giveaway?

A key towards this type of campaign success is to maximize its potential as an advertising tool. The best way to do this is to ensure that your items match the interests and needs of clients. For instance, clipboards and binders would be very much appreciated by potential business clients in attendance at a conference. On the other hand, people attending a trade show will not really be using clipboards and binders because such events don’t involve much reading, classes, or seminars. This is why it’s essential to hand out the products that cater to a specific event and match the customer’s interests and needs.

During conferences or trade shows, you may also consider giving promotional bags, which already have a variety of goodies in them. This way, you’re appealing to a wider audience and you can never go wrong.

Since your clients have different lifestyles, your chosen giveaways should be ones that clients can still find useful even after the event. For business executives, consider giving golf balls, sports bottles, or nice authentic metal pens. Thus, every time they are playing golf during Sundays, going for a run or using their pens when signing papers, your company name and logo are still recognized.

On the other hand, if there are kids at your trade shows, it would be smart to give games or puzzles. As a result, your advertising goes beyond the event and reaches as far as their homes every time the youngsters use your promotional products.

Matching your promotional products to the needs of your customers is quite practical. All that you have to do is to be one with your audience and before you know it, they will be one with your company too.

Promotional Products – Building Relationships

Monday, July 6th, 2009

As a viable alternative to conventional advertising, the distribution of promotional products has stood the test of time and many companies have adopted this practice to their benefit.  They have always been well received and have enabled companies to boost their image and reinforce their company logo into the minds of their customers and the general public.  Besides top of mind brand recall, they serve to fortify the goodwill with existing customers and build a rapport with the new customers.  Customer loyalty and their retention is of absolute importance and through the distribution of such products, you are able to ensure that these essentials are met to a great extent.

Promotional productss are no longer restricted to just exhibitions, tradeshows and your customers.  They are also being handed over to employees within the company as well as other business associates and even vendors.  Successful business practices do not only mean maintaining high standards of ethics and quality.  The personal touch and human element is equally important to ensure that the business transactions do not remain mere statistics and also extend to cover the human angle.  All of us like praise and recognition and your customers, business associates, employees and vendors are no different.  Even third party outsourced contractors need to be included in this list.  Distributing useful and handy promotional products to all of them will stand you in good stead and you must look at the expense incurred as an investment to build human relations.  The items themselves need not be too expensive.  They just need to be of utility value and should be of decent quality to last for a long time.  The recipient will get bowled over by the gratitude and concern shown by you in distributing these and will not hold the value of the goods against you.  In this case truly, it is the spirit that matters and in sharing these gifts with them, you are laying the foundation for a long and mutually beneficial relationship.

While customers and your business associates would feel happy that you have acknowledged the support extended by them to you in your business, vendors and third party people will perceive you as a good company to do business with and will extend all cooperation to you when most needed.  As for the employees, they would feel that they are part of a company which believes in human values and will motivate them to always give their best and stay with the company.

It is thus a win- win situation for everybody.

Promotional Products - They Are There For a Reason

Wednesday, May 27th, 2009

There are numerous ways to promote the company’s services or products. A company, once established, wants to be immediately recognized by the consumers in the market. This process of making people familiar with the company name cannot only be achieved through the common notion of advertising, but also through the promotional products a company gives away.
There is a reason why promotional products are usually commonly used items. People who receive them are constantly reminded of the company’s name and immediately associate its logo with its services and products. Having promotional products give a sense that the company is indeed already established, an effect that convinces people that the services and products of the firm is real—that the firm is truly there for them. Not only does this affect prospective clients out there. Employees also benefit from useful products given away by the company. These give an environment of stability and makes employees more at ease with the firm they are working for.
Creating promotional products are not just there to promote their services and products, but it basically sells the company’s name to people. Of course, companies may think giveaways make up a small percentage of other ways to promote a company’s name, but there has to be a reason why these products are also permanent in every company.
Nearly all companies have been giving out these types of products, and this proves its effect on the client (or employee) mentality. The question is, with all the companies that produce them, how can one company be different from numerous others? Quality is a given factor. If promotional products reflect the company, wouldn’t the company reflect quality to consumers and to its employees? Also, being innovative with these products, which the recipients will probably use everyday, is worth the investment. If a company can’t afford to give things aside from the same old notepads, pens, caps or mugs, they could find a way to transform the commonplace into something “trendily different”.
That is why firms should give importance to the colour scheme, logo style, layout, and so on, when it comes to promotional products. The people’s outlook will depend on how these products are produced. However, a company still needs to keep budget in mind. It does pay to be creative, but this does not necessarily translate into high cost. A company can be creative with its promotional products even when restricted by a certain budget. After all, the more a company can save, the better and the more fulfilling this whole task will be.

Making an Informed Selection of Promotional Products

Friday, March 27th, 2009

Branding is important in today’s business. Every company knows that their sales and profits come down to how they are visible to their target market.   The success of a business or product comes down to how it is being branded.  Many experts believe that branding is more vital than the logo or name of a company.  Branding is decided by how a company interacts with its target consumers and the general public. Recently companies have learned how to tap and harness brand image through giving of promotional products.

By giving promotional products, two main aspects of branding- brand recognition and brand image, are enhanced. Giving of effective and creative promotional products can help advertise the business.  Potentially, handing out promotional giveaways can also be for the purpose of giving incentives to employees.  While promotional giveaways serve this purpose, the main reason why companies give out these items is to complement its image.  Thus they spend a lot of effort in making the best promotional item that will enhance the company’s image, and boost the sales as a result.

Therefore it is important to choose the most apt promotional item.  In doing so, the company should decide the kind of image it wants to portray.  Designing the corporate marketing plan will be dependent on the kind of image that the company would like to have.

It is imperative that the design, the style, and the quality of the giveaways should have a positive reflection on the image of the company. For example, good quality pens can be ideal giveaways of a very successful law firm.  A bank on the other hand will go for sophisticated ball pen, with their logo and name imprinted on it.  A shop catering to teens’ wear may give out pens with fun designs and colours to make them more visible and recognizable among teens.

This similar method should be applied to the other promotional items that a business would like to give.  Other good choices of promotional items are umbrellas, folders, carrier bags, and mugs.  The quality of these items should be meticulously considered because it can greatly affect the image the business would want to portray.

There are a lot of online suppliers that can custom make various designs and items for your promotional products.  These online suppliers are run by professional marketing specialists that can greatly help a business in its marketing and promotional thrusts.

Maintaining Customer Relationship with Promotional Products

Friday, March 13th, 2009

A good customer base would mean good sales figures. These are two important factors in the attainment of company growth and success.   A company should realize that for its success it should establish and maintain good customer relationships. How would a company do this? Good relationships with the customers can be obtained through promotional products.
Promotional products are now gaining more popularity than the traditional marketing strategies as this marketing tool enables the company to get in touch with the customers at a more personal level. Print, TV and radio ads would obviously have wider and far reaching effects but the company message is directed to a multitude of audience which would not result to building a more personal and closer relationship with the customers. On the other hand, by using promotional products customers would feel valued and special. Receiving these gifts would make them more appreciative of the company message and thus would feel somewhat “obligated” to continue with the patronage.
Studies conducted reported that a large number of customers who received such gifts returned more frequently to purchase company products. Surprisingly, these customers did not find much use for these promotional items. But the fact that the company has prepared something for them has made them appreciate the giver and in return would continue to be steadfast customers.
Moreover, these customers would encourage other people to “try” this company. They would tell friends and relatives about the promotional items. And as most people love to receive anything that is free, they would come to avail of the free promotional products. There is a good chance that customers of competitors will be won over.
These products need not be expensive to break the bank. Pens, mugs, caps, keyrings, coasters, and refrigerator magnets to name a few would be most suitable. Imprinted with the company logo, contact information such as telephone numbers and website URL, these simple yet useful products will do the trick of advertising the company and promoting goodwill.
Any of these products will do as long as it accomplishes the goal - that of building relationships with the customers. With these products the customers would feel that they are important. You, on the other hand, would feel good whenever you see a customer using your giveaway. This would prove that you have established and maintained a good relationship with your customers. An accomplishment that would be very beneficial to you as it would equate to success of your business.

Promotional Products - The Most Common Items Used

Thursday, January 29th, 2009

Promotional products could take many forms. Every year, new innovations are created in this industry to bring satisfaction to clients who seek unique and novel ideas. As a result, a wide range of items can be turned into promotional products nowadays. But though this is the case, there are tried and tested items commonly used in the market for years.

Clothing like baseball caps, visors and jackets are one of the common items used. In a survey conducted by the Promotional Products Association International (PPAI), the non-profit trade association of the promotional products industry, distributors reportedly stated that 27.2% of the promotional products they create for clients are some form of clothing. These items could be quite expensive, especially if embroidered, but they are the most widely used by people and provide great advertising exposure.

Writing instruments have a share of 11.8% in the frequency of production by promotional products distributors. A pen may not be as unique as other items but it is very practical for everyday use. Also, promotional pens nowadays are given new twists like pens with flash lights or pens with laser pointers that could also be used in doing presentations.

The cheapest but effective promotional products in the market are water bottles. They are especially popular to clients who are health conscious and to those who need to drink water often. People who do a lot of exercise and sports could take these water bottles with them every time they go to the gym or play sports with their friends. By doing so, more people get to see the logo on these bottles thus providing advertisement and exposure.

Mugs are also tried and tested items that have been around for years. Lately, mugs have been going through many design changes to make it more attractive and unique to customers. Prices for promotional mugs could range from low to high depending on the material. Plastic mugs are cheaper than ceramic ones. Nevertheless, both kinds are still effective in spreading a company’s name especially when groups of people are out drinking coffee or having soup.

Do not fret if many companies are already giving away these items as promotional products. Even if you do have the same promotional product with your competitor, the item could still stand out depending on the way you package it and do the design. To do this, you could enlist the help of professional s that could repackage common items such as the ones stated above into eye-catching promotional products. Argonromo is one of the best promotional products distributors that could help you with this.

Promotional Products - Show Them You Care

Friday, December 12th, 2008

Selling a good service is more than just making money; it is building a relationship with your customer. More often than not a customer buys your product or service because they have a need for it. The need may be material, emotional, social, psychological or just plain self gratification. Therefore the link between you and your market is a lot more intimate than it seems.

When your goods or services fulfill or even exceed your customer’s expectations then consider the sale a success. This means that they will definitely be back for more. This is how your relationship with your customer is established. Like any relationship, your connection with your customers has to be nurtured and taken care of. The best way to take care of this relationship is through promotional products.

These are handy items that bear the logo or name of a company. The company name and logo may be accompanied by a specific brand. Popular products include baseball caps, key chains, calendars, shirts and stickers. Notice that these are items that are either noticeably displayed by the owners, commonly or frequently used, and can be had for a very cheap price.

Promotional products are a special way of advertising compared to radio, television, internet and print media. The receiver of the giveaway can take with them something tangible. This tangible item can be taken anywhere or can be used everyday. When the customer wears or uses your gift, he or she is reminded of your company and your company’s products. When others see him or her with it, they are made aware or reminded of your company or products as well.

Promotional products mean more than just giving the customers a free pen or keychain; it shows them that you appreciate their loyalty. They can be considered as rewards for loyalty. Rewards reinforce behavior. If the customers’ behavior of buying your product is rewarded through give away gifts, you are reinforcing their actions of buying your product. When you reinforce their buying behavior, they will continue to acquire your product.

Catchy television, print, digital and radio ads generate buzz for your products and services. They catch attention and spawn interest. But promotional products are the ones that will always remind them that you are there for them when they need your services. Promotional products will keep them coming back for more.