

When choosing promotional products, it’s important to select useful items that people will actually use. A large percentage of promotional products end up thrown in the back of a closet or stuffed to the rear of a desk drawer. So, how can you prevent this from happening to you? After all, how is your business being promoted if nobody will ever have the chance of even seeing the items you purchased?
To prevent this from happening to your next promotional items; consider choosing useful everyday items. The following is a short list of popular products available from most promotional product providers.
· Water bottles- You can never go wrong with a water bottle! The majority of businessmen go to the gym at least twice a week. Nobody can sit behind a desk all day without exercise, right? Every time they reach over to take a sip of water from your promotional bottle they will be reminded of you and your company. This is what we literally call an “in your face” promotional item
· Mouse pads- This is the ultimate gift for a businessman. Every time they reach to grab their mouse, they are forced to see not only your company logo, but your telephone number as well. Mouse pads are the business cards of the Y2K generation. No need to tap into the contact book to get a phone number and name. What more can you ask for in a promotional product?
· Umbrellas- Depending where your customers live, this can be the gift that keeps on giving. One thing that everyone can use is an umbrella. This is a one size fits all gift that women, men, and children alike can all benefit from. The beauty of this gift is that not only are your customers reminded of your generosity, but they serve as a walking billboard every time they go out holding your umbrella. How many times have you walked down the street in the rain and seen the rainbow of colored umbrellas lining the street? Thousands of times, right? Now imagine your company logo and phone number printed boldly on the top. This is an excellent source of free advertisement.
· Mugs- Over the years this is one promotional item that has evolved. The initial use of the mug was during those nice coffee breaks where you sat down in the break room and enjoyed a nice cup of “Joe” with the guys. Do to time restraints and the evolution of business itself, the old “coffee break” of the past is gone. You do, however, see promotional mugs sitting on almost every desk with a fistful of pens inside! Not quite what the manufacturer had in mind when this one was created, but it is still a common occurrence in the business world.
Although there are thousands of useful promotional products out there, none are as common as the ones above. In the past 5 years, all of these items sit atop of the list of most popular promotional items. So the next time you are planning to place an order, make sure that you add these items to your list.
Creative Ideas on Using Promotional Products
There are a variety of creative ways by which big businesses and small to medium enterprises can make use of promotional products. Aside from trade shows, product launching events, and similar gatherings, promotional items can be distributed in events where there are sizeable crowds such as in community affairs, garage sales, carnivals, books fairs, fund raising events, auctions, and many more.
Large companies, as part of their stake at corporate responsibility, are known to reach out to charitable institutions. They also endeavor to participate in community affairs. In these occasions promotional products are endorsed to the organizers of the events and are regarded as endowments. The idea is to raise brand awareness for your product while at the same time helping advance a good cause or a civic-related program.
...
Considering the Pros and Cons of Promotional Products
We all love freebies. This may be a generalization but when it comes to promotional products, this is definitely all too-true. After all, who in his right mind can refuse free things that serve a useful, memorable and valuable service in our everyday lives? Still, it is worth looking into the pros and cons of promotional merchandise just so you have your eyes wide open to its power and pitfalls. Bear in mind that these freebies may be provided free for the recipients but you have to pay for them....
Promotional Products: Create Advertising Tools that Sells
Unlike general advertising, the creative aspect of direct marketing usually is not intended to inform, entertain, or build awareness. The objective is to sell, to get an order or have the consumer take some other specific action. However, there’s a lot to the selling process than just combining nice-sounding words and pretty pictures. You have to develop a creative strategy and one area to explore is the use of effective promotional products as advertising tools....