Promotional products have been and will continue to be one of the most popular and cost-effective branding tools available to businesses. In this article, we highlight some key industry statistics and outline why promotional products are important to almost all businesses.
Companies need promotional products as a cost-effective way to reach more potential customers. This is a low-cost marketing method to attract customers. Even mature global players will adopt this marketing strategy. For small businesses such as start-ups, promotional products can help reduce marketing budgets, but still attract people’s attention.
For many years, promotional products have been used as a cost-effective marketing strategy. From new businesses to large enterprises, these gifts are the favorites of marketers. The importance of promotional products to business promotion can be measured from the following statistics:
According to a study by PPAI, 89% of people remember where they received promotional product gifts. Research shows that 83% of consumers like to receive promotional products with advertising information. Of those who received the product, 85% had business dealings with advertisers. In addition, 41% of consumers surveyed stated that they would keep gifts for one to four years.
Another important data revealed by the study is that 89% of consumers said they can recall the name of the advertiser or company within 24 months after receiving the product. In addition, promotional products have attracted a recommendation rate of 500% from customers who are satisfied with gifts. These important statistics emphasize the importance of promotional products for marketing and brand recognition.
Both small and large companies recognize the importance of promotional products to attract more and more people in a competitive market. Gifts can attract recipients and make them pay attention to the company’s business. These products are printed with the company’s logo and brand information. The purpose behind giving away promotional items is to increase customer interest in the business.
In order to get better results, marketers will use the brand to promote products that the recipient can use for several months. Such high-quality products help keep consumers in touch with the brand. This means that a one-time distribution of gifts is enough to allow customers to interact with your brand within a few months.
The rule of thumb that most marketers follow in promotional product activities is to give away items for daily use. These gifts may be pens, calendars, mouse pads, umbrellas, water bottles, lip balm, etc. However, experienced marketers will develop creative strategies. They choose items that are not only useful but also unique and high-quality to have a wider impact.
Here are 5 reasons why promotional products are important to any business
- Instant brand recognition
Brand recognition means that consumers can immediately recognize your company and its products or services when they find your logo. For example, people can immediately recognize McDonald’s fast food business when they see the yellow arched logo of McDonald’s.
You give your customers promotional items to help them remember and recognize your business. This is one of the key reasons for distributing promotional items. An article published on technomarketinginc.com stated that 89% of consumers can recall the advertisers of promotional products they received in the past two years.
Gifts will stay in their homes, offices or cars for a long time, reminding them of your company and business. In fact, the average time consumers hold promotional products is 6.6 months. Next time, when they see your logo, they will immediately remember the gift and your business. If you give them branded goods, customers will remember your business more. They will reward your business by identifying your products when shopping.
- Low cost effective marketing
Many small businesses can only dream of a large-scale, overwhelming advertising campaign, spread across various media. But they can still achieve their marketing goals through low-cost promotional product activities. Start-up companies have many low-cost promotional items.
Most manufacturers of promotional products keep prices very low for mass distribution. The price of the gift is lower, but it has a great impact on the recipient.
- Mirror as your business card
A business card introduces consumers to your company and its products. Your promotional products also work in more or less the same way, but with better results. When distributing gifts related to your business and industry, you are actually introducing your business to potential consumers. According to data from Marketingsherpa.com, 71.6% of the attendees who received the promotional product remembered the name of the company that provided the product.
Remember, promotional gifts also contain your contact information like business cards. The gift has your logo, image and slogan describing your business information. Therefore, tangible brand products can serve as useful business cards that consumers use every day.
Promotional products can also be used as part of social media activities. You can use promotional products as part of a social media campaign. For example, you should print your QR code on promotional bottles. You can also put the label on T-shirts and other promotional items.
- Expose your business to a greater degree
Advertisements on TV or billboards will immediately pass through your eyes within a few seconds. However, gifts are used most of the time and are in front of them. For example, consumers will wear your stylish T-shirt design gifts for many days. Or, they will sip from your teacup or coffee cup more frequently. Such freebies are a great way to increase business exposure every day.
Data from Ppai.org shows that 76.1% of participants can recall the name of the advertiser on the promotional products they received in the past 12 months. In contrast, only 53.5% of participants could recall the name of the advertiser they saw in a magazine or newspaper last week.
- Customer Loyalty
Your customers should often buy your company’s products when they need it. Marketers spend more additional resources to build a solid and loyal customer base. They use promotional products to increase customer loyalty in a short period of time.
However, please make sure that your promotional items meet high-quality standards and preferably have a brand identity. People associate the quality of gifts with the quality of your business. This will help to retain first-time buyers of your product forever. An article published on Risinghillmarketing.com showed that customers who received promotional products scored 52% higher than customers who received only one letter.
Therefore, find your own way to use promotional products to attract customers.
It’s great if you include promotional products in your marketing mix. Branded promotional items can even cause a sensation around your company and brand.
Ensure that the gifts are innovative and well planned. Ingeniously designed promotions using gifts will complement other forms of marketing, such as your TV and newspaper advertisements. In this way, your marketing activities will have a greater impact on the target audience and help enhance your brand image.