Even if you have never heard the term “promotional product”, you have undoubtedly used them.  Promotional products usually have a company’s logo on it.  Traditional promotional products include pens, T-shirts, USB drives, coffee mugs, refrigerator magnets, and more.  Notice that all these items are cheap to purchase and distribute, but are they are all items that are useful in daily life.

Promotional products are effective because they last a long time.  Unlike traditional advertising, which lasts for a few moments, promotional products last much longer.  Because the items are usually small and useful, people are unlikely to discard them.  Why throw out a perfectly good pen or mouse pad just because it has a logo on it?  The person ends up looking at the item more often than they realize.  They subconsciously associate your company with the utility they receive from the item.

Also, even if they do not keep the item, chances are good that another person will use the item.  Pens get borrowed or taken, and other items get recycled either on purpose or by accident.

According to research done by L.J. Market Research, 71% of participants had received a promotional product in the last year.  33% of those people actually had that product with them at the time of the study.

Even during hard economic times, promotional products can be cheaper to order and distribute than traditional advertising.  They hold value because they last longer than regular advertising.

However, choose your promotional product wisely.  Some people stick with the basics: pens, mugs, etc.  You can be more creative (and you should be), but make sure the item is still useful.  Choose an item that reflects a theme for your company in general, or for a particular advertising campaign.  Consider your distribution method, and make sure your target audience (and maybe even beyond) actually receives your promotional product.  To state the obvious, a box full of promotional T-shirts collecting dust in a storage room does not promote your company.

Janet Hill Jackson

Gratitude Marketing Specialist

P.S. Be sure to watch this video

 

About the author
Leave Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

clear formSubmit

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.