In a perfect world each promotional product would be as effective as the next. It wouldn’t matter what you picked. Any item would get you all the appreciation you would want, the boss would love you, you’d get a raise, marry the person of your dreams and live happily ever after.

Sound about right?

Now snap back to reality. Unfortunately, it’s not that easy. Nothing in life ever is, is it? While we can continue wishing that one day those dreams will come true, for now it takes a little more effort and creativity to pick just the right promotional product.

So whether it was your idea or someone else pawned the task off to you, this post can serve as a guide for selecting the right promotional product.

Follow these tips to choose the right promotional products for your business, so you can make every rupee count.

1) Have a Clear Objective in Mind

Know what you want to accomplish before dipping into your Company budget. Otherwise, you could end up wasting money on items no one really wants.

What is your ideal outcome? Are you trying to inculcate a sense of belongingness amongst the recipients? Or increase brand recognition in a specific area? Looking to acquire a few high-value customers within a specific timeframe?

Your goals should determine how much money and effort you devote to the project. Designing personalized promotional items is a smart way to target a niche market.

On the other hand, simple, low-cost promotional items make sense for spreading brand awareness among a general audience. In the US alone, roughly 90% of people remember who gave them a promotional T-shirt. These products are attractive and visual, making them a great choice for reaching as many people as possible.

2) Start With Popular Product Categories

In many ways, you have unlimited options for creating custom promotional products. There are over 1 lac+ products that qualify as promotional products

Get inspiration from popular products that have a high rate of success across diverse segments. The 2016 Global Advertising Specialties Impressions Study revealed useful insights about promotional products people love.

  • 58 percent of people in the US own promotional T-shirts
  • 53 percent own promotional drinkware
  • 50 percent own promotional bags, writing instruments, or outerwear
  • 45 percent own promotional USB drives
  • 41 percent own caps and headwear
  • 41 percent own promotional desk supplies
  • 29 percent own promotional calendars

Choose a product that offers the most functional value to your recipients. For added impact, try to go with an option that relates back to your industry. If your recipients are mainly business professionals, they might find desk supplies and USB drives more useful than a shirt. 

3) Learn Everything You Can About Your Audience

The more you understand about your recipients, the easier it is to make a lasting impression that keeps your business on the top of everyone’s mind. Factors such as age, gender, family status, and occupation play a big role in how recipients view the value of promotional products.

Think about the type of people you’re targeting and the lifestyles they lead.  Men or women? Young adults or older adults? Parents or pet owners? How about athletes? Business professionals? Skilled tradespeople? Consider these key findings from the Advertising Specialty Institute.

  • Promotional pens offer the best balance of cost and marketing impressions
  • Women between 18 and 24 are more likely to own bags with a logo
  • Rural and older adults are more likely to own promotional calendars
  • Younger adults between 18 and 34 own more promotional desk supplies
  • Suburban and rural consumers are more likely to own logoed drinkware
  • Men are more likely to own promotional USB drives and outerwear

While these insights are a great starting point, your personal experience with your recipients is the best source of information. Pay attention to what works, and get feedback from your recipients to find out which products they like to keep around.

4) Make Longevity Your Top Priority

The biggest benefit of using promotional products is their ability to become a routine part of your recipient’ lives. When recipients use your product several times a week, your branding lands in front of new people. Repeat contact helps to spark interest in people who aren’t familiar with your business, encouraging them to seek you out when they have a relevant need.

In order to trigger this ongoing sales funnel, you have to create products with staying power. How do you do that?

  • Make It Wearable: In general, wearables have the highest success rate because they display your branding in a bold, visual manner. However, shirts, hats, and outerwear have the most pressure to be attractive and non-salesy. Instead of overpowering wearables with giant logos, use eye-catching graphics or taglines that relate to your business without pushing products.
  • Match the Environment: Environmental targeting is choosing a product designed to be used in your recipient’s home or work environment. For example, the average person keeps promotional desk supplies for 14 months and calendars for 12 months. If you make a product intended for daily use, recipients will have more incentive to keep it.
  • Solve a Problem: Put utility first, and hand out products that solve a common problem for your customers. Do your customers frequently sign documents? Constantly charge electronics? Engage in a lot of physical activities? Most people keep pens, power bricks, USB drives, and drinkware because they fulfill an ongoing need.

The Bottom Line

It isn’t rocket science when it comes to choosing promotional products. Ultimately, listen to the age old advice and follow your heart… and your budget! You can’t go wrong as long as you’re picking branded merch that you’d be excited to receive yourself.

TapWell is a team of  experts on all things printed and promotional. Let our team of awesome, incredibly good looking, and fun promo nerds help you select awesome promotional swag today!