Branded Promotional Products; Are They Still Effective?

By Thomas R. Reich PhD

Over the last several decades, Branded Promotional Products seemed to be in a decline, as cheaper forms of internet marketing became readily available. So called free media on the Internet such as Social Media, Blog Sites and Social Sharing Sites were said to have made the world of marketing one big utopia of free marketing opportunities, and how did that work out?  Not so fast, turns out almost every one of those “free’” sites has a “pay” option, FaceBook, Twitter, Pinterest, even the search engines have advertising fees for prime placement.  And that is as it should be, marketing and advertising is a business, just as you are in business.

To have an effective marketing and promotional program, you need to spend money.  The very definition of a successful business is to spend money, make money and the profit is how successful you are.  The old adage “you have to spend money to make money” is so true in business, and marketing is part of business.  What you may not know is that one of the most effective parts of a good marketing plan involves branded promotional products.  Those pens, tablets and squeeze balls you see, in fact be honest, you have one in your desk right now don’t you?  How many times do you cut an ad out of a magazine and put it in your desk drawer, I bet never, getting my point?

Branded Promotional Products are another form of advertising and marketing and is also a business, the question is, can investing in these little give always be as profitable or more profitable than other forms of advertising in an overall marketing program.  We have compiled some facts and their sources which we feel you will find informative in your Due Diligence.  We encourage you to research for yourself, but give a fair look at making Branded Promotional Products as regular part of your Marketing Program.

Examples of common Branded Promotional Products include: pens, calendars, T-shirts, caps, cups, mugs, napkins, calculators, key chains, desk and computer accessories, bags, totes, bumper stickers, yard signs, labels, decals, etc. But we at The Corporate Brand like to help you find something that may make a real difference in your market!  Ever see an office with a branded office clock?  How many views do you think that one gets a day, you think anyone throws a clock away?

Industry Stats from PPAI (Professional Products Association International)

Professional Products Association International said in a recent report that times seem to be changing, print advertising is decreasing in the US, while Branded Promotional Products are on the rise.   Advertisers spent more than $14.9 billion a year in traditional print advertising while spending more than $17 billion on products purchased through professional promotional products distributors in the same time frame. According to the Promotional Products Association, the top product categories and the percentage of the total market in each area are:

• Business Gifts – 17.6%

• Dealer/Distributor Programs – 14.9%

• Employee Relations & Events – 10%

• New Product/Service Introduction – 8.7%

• Brand Awareness – 8.3%

• Public Relations – 7.1%

• Employee Service Awards – 6.4%

• Trade Shows – 5.7%

• New Customer/Account Generation – 4.8%

• Safety Education/Incentives – 4.4%

• Internal Promotions – 4.6%

• Non-Profit Programs – 3.2%

• Customer Referral – 2.8%

• Marketing research – 1

Why do Branded Promotional Products Work so Well?

Branded Promotional Products offer the advantage marketing programs that fits easily into any advertising budget. Remember that the price of a nice quantity of a high quality item (we do not encourage hot pink or day glow green pens) is less than a 1/8 of a page 1 day ad in a local news paper.  Branded Promotional Products complement and actually increase the effectiveness of other advertising media. They can be directed to just the key target within an audience you are targeting with mass advertising, this will dramatically increases their effectiveness by calling attention to an advertising campaign by the key prospects you are trying to persuade.

The biggest advantage of Branded Promotional Products is their habit of staying in the possession of the recipient for long periods of time to repeat the advertising message each time the product is used, without extra cost per exposure. People like to receive something free, the nicer the item, the more it starts to be considered a gift.

If the item happens to actually be useful and appealing, your logo and message becomes effective as incentives and motivators for not only the recipient but those around the office as well. Because there are so many products available, there is a lot of flexibility in planning a successful promotion. .

A Few more Supporting Facts about Branded Promotional Products

Southern Methodist University conducted a study to measure attendee awareness of product demonstrations in three university communities. The study found that selective distribution of promotional products drew more booth traffic than school newspaper advertising by two-to-one.

“One test group was giving out promotional products at their booth and had done no advertising what so ever outside of the promotional product give away. The other test group advertised heavily in the SMU school paper before and during the event.  The booth giving away promotional product had 53% more sign in traffic to see its demonstrations than the booths advertised in the SMU school paper.”

“Promotional products, used in direct mail solicitations, can boost response rates by up to 75 percent”, Stated in a study by Baylor University.

In a study by Southern Methodist University researchers found, “In a controlled environment of an isolated community, customers receiving promotional products and in the absence of a media campaign came into a car dealership up to 18 percent sooner than those who were barraged with a saturation of all media ad campaign. It was also found that those who received a special sale coupon for a 10% discount during the all media saturation campaign showed up just13 percent sooner than those who received the saturation media campaign alone.  It must be noted that the group that received no saturation media campaign and received only a promotional product showed up 5% more that those with both the saturation media campaign and the 10% discount coupon combined.”

A Baylor University study of month-long sales contests in test case retail establishments indicated “contests reinforced by periodic distribution of promotional products were cost-effective and outperformed similar contests not stimulated by promotional products by up to 50 percent.”

Our friends at The Corporate Brand offers literally hundreds of thousands of different types and styles of promotional products. If you would like to see a list of product categories, CLICK HERE and see their vast collection on their LogoMall site.  They even have the option to see an item with your logo already on it before you even think about buying it! !

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