Traditionally, advertising has done the heavy lifting when it comes to brand building, but in today’s economy, business owners want to know that they’re getting a good return on their advertising investments. What kind of advertising produces the best results? The answer may surprise you! Promotional products can be far more effective at reaching your target market than broadcast advertising media. In addition, promotional products can be much more cost-effective, meaning that you get a bigger bang for your advertising buck.
Promotional products are brand building naturals
When you think about “advertising”, television, radio and newspapers are the “go-to” media. But many business owners are finding that television, radio and newspaper ads may not be as good at hitting their target consumers as some other forms of brand promotion are.
Television and newspapers excel at “broadcasting.” That is, they can reach a very large audience with an undifferentiated, untargeted message. The larger the audience, the more likely the advertiser is to hit the target, right? Perhaps, but if 98% of the broadcast audience isn’t interested in your product or service, can broadcast advertising really be considered a highly effective brand building tool among consumers in your target market?
Promotional products, on the other hand, are highly effective, not only at reaching your target market, but also at creating favorable impressions among your target audience, ensuring that your business name and logo remain fresh and memorable in their minds, and increasing sales among buyers with a genuine interest in your products and services. Even “small” promotional products – like pens, calendars and mugs provide a “persistent” impression among your target consumers.
Why are promotional products so effective? In part, promotional products tend to be distributed among audiences that are highly receptive to the advertiser’s message. Promotional products may be handed out at trade shows that attract buyers in a business’ target market. Promotional items may also be distributed as part of an existing business relationship, or as part of a targeted marketing campaign aimed at prospective new customers. In short, promotional products are effective because they are placed directly into the hands of people who are most likely to be interested in an advertiser’s product.
But do they work? The effectiveness of promotional products as part of a brand building strategy is astounding. According to a 2008 study of the effectiveness of promotional products, nearly 85% of consumers remembered advertisers that provided them with a promotional product. Among recipients of wearable promotional products, the name recognition of the advertiser jumped to 94%. In other words, nearly everyone who received a wearable promotional product remembered the name and logo of the advertiser that provided it.
Promotional products also tend to persist over time. The t-shirt, bag or pen you handed out last year is still delivering on your brand building strategy. When your promotional product is carried, displayed, used or worn by the person you handed it to, it creates new impressions of your brand among receptive audience members. The longer the item remains with the person you handed it to, the more impressions it will generate.
In my next post, I’ll talk about which promotional products are most effective at brand building and why the cost of each promotional item makes this brand building strategy a winner.
If you would like more information about promotional products and how you can put them to use in your brand building plan, please contact Dave Ramsell, Creative Director at Grantstreet Creative and the owner of its sister company, TheTradeShowStores.com. Together, Grantstreet Creative and TheTradeShowStore.com can help you implement effective brand building strategies. Dave can also be reached by phone at (330) 243-0651 for a promotional products consultation.
