The Promotional Gifts Guide - Promotional Gifts With A Purpose

In a value-for-purpose driven world it can sometimes grate when we are asked to spend hard fought marketing funds on items that do not generate immediate sales. This can lead to a view of promotional gifts that is restrictive and one that fails to capture the full impact of what they can deliver.

The question therefore when using gifts as part of a wider promotional campaign is what is there actual purpose and how do we communicate this to the people giving them out. Here we need to apply the principles of services marketing and the delivery of an intangible at what is called the ‘moment of truth’ – when a client experiences what our brand is all about.

There is little doubt that much marketing effort goes into the front-end of a promotional campaign but briefing the field sales team, exhibition staff and PR ladies is just as important. Their role can either add or detract from the benefits that should accrue from a well-planned campaign. It is a question of whether the gifts are seen as a reinforcing element to a campaign or as a token giveaway.

We can use the example of flashdrives to explain this further. Flashdrives in a corporate business environment are a must have product and the bigger in capacity the better. A promotional gifts supplier could respond to a flashdrives enquiry by simply offering a low-cost 250MB device. This approach provides virtually no value-added. A more useful, consultative approach would try to explore a little more about the promotion and find ways to dovetail the promotional item(s) for it. The effect is to tailor the gift(s) to the promotion, providing a purpose that can be monitored for success.

So how can this be achieved? With a flashdrive there are several customisation options. Firstly a promotional gifts company can generally supply various flashdrive sizes from 250MB up to 8GB. As we said size is important here and our own research shows that if you opt for a low-capacity device it can quickly become shelved if a competitor provides a high-capacity one.

Secondly the format of these flashdrives has changed extensively over the years, offering plastic, leather, novelty-shaped and even ECO-friendly versions including ones made from managed woodlands or recycled plastics. Flashdrives can now therefore be more closely matched the theme of the promotion, improving the overall potential for success.

Thirdly, for a marginal increase in cost flashdrives can be supplied pre-loaded with information on the company such as datasheets or presentations. Imagine how useful these then become at conferences and tradeshows, supporting product launches or reseller incentives. Information can be preloaded into a secure area or one that the client can overwrite at a later date. Flashdrives can also be programmed as webkeys that will take the user to a specific webpage when first used with an internet-connected computer.

Applying a purpose to your promotional gifts and their role within a marketing campaign makes them more accountable and avoids the inevitable pitfalls that can result when gifts are simply handed out in an attempt to get rid of them as quickly as possible.

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