There are many effective ways to market a company, from buying ads on social media to working with the local TV station to schedule an interview with the founder. Each of those marketing strategies has its advantages, but there is something special about marketing with promotional items.
With your company name on a T-shirt or fountain pen, the recipients of these giveaways will be advertising your business everywhere they go. There is something to be said for turning members of the public into willing walking billboards, but before you get started there are some key things you need to think about.
Here are some tips you can use to choose the right promotional items for your business.
Assess the Quality of the Items
First and foremost you should always remember that the promotional items you choose are a direct reflection on your company. The entire purpose of promotional items and related giveaways is to represent your business, and that means high quality is absolutely essential.
Poor quality promotional items will reflect poorly on your company, sending exactly the wrong message to your customers and the public. It is important to assess the quality of any promotional items you plan to use, so always ask for a sample before inking any kind of deal.
Choose Promotional Items That Are Highly Visible
Promotional items can be valuable marketing tools, but not every promo is equally valuable. Some promotional items will be useful at the office, but having them there may not do your company that much good.
If you want your promotional materials to be effective, you need to get them seen. Choosing promotional items that are highly visible and likely to be seen in public is important – think T-shirts, umbrellas, drinkware, and of course the ubiquitous pen.
Be Selective with Your Giveaways
If you stand on the street corner and hand out free T-shirts, you will probably get a lot of takers. After all, everyone loves a giveaway.
Handing out free stuff willy nilly is a good way to get your promotional items out there, but it is an even better way to blow through your marketing budget. If you want your promo strategy to be effective, you will want to be selective with those giveaways.
By targeting the recipients who are most likely to need your products and services you can stretch your marketing budget further, so think about who your audience is and how to reach them. In the end this is a much better strategy than simply blanketing the world with free pens and other promos.
Marketing your business can be a time consuming and intensive process, and an expensive one at that. If you want to make the most of every marketing dollar, choosing the right promotional items is a good place to start. The tips listed above can help you select the best items, so you can get the word out in the most cost effective manner possible.