There is enough evidence and experience to safely say that promotional products can increase brand awareness and improve its identity effectively. One of the major advantages of choosing corporate promotional products is that they are inexpensive comparing to other marketing tools.
Also, there is a wide array of options to choose from. Brands can choose a promotional item based on their target customer, marketing goals and budget.
Whether your business is new or established, including branded promotional products within a marketing strategy can prove to be a wise decision.
Let’s have a look at how promotional products play a crucial role in the marketing mix:
▪ Promotional products are targeted
Advertising via other mediums, such as radio or newspaper, covers a large audience and has a premium price tag attached. It targets a broad customer base and hence targets people who are not your potential customers.
This equates to spending a huge sum of money to reach a partially uninterested audience.
You can select the target audience and pick people who are genuinely interested in your products with promotional merchandise.
When you select the recipients carefully, you will get the most value for the efforts put in and receive a better return on your investment (ROI).
▪ Memorable
It is difficult for other forms of advertising to leave an impact for a long duration. Mostly, when the advertisement goes off the billboard, people tend to forget about it.
On the other hand, people tend to remember a brand much more when they receive a personalised promotional item. It creates brand recall value, and customers find it easier to associate with the company.
▪ Long-lasting form of advertisement
The advertisements in any form of media won’t last forever. But when you give away a product for branding and advertising, people are likely to keep it and use it for a long time.
However, you must choose the product accordingly. As long as the product is useful and of good quality, it continues to serve as a marketing tool for your brand.
▪ Positive impression
People always like receiving free gifts, especially when they are helpful in routine life. As the product contains your company name, logo, or tagline, it leaves a deep and positive impression on customers.
It gives your brand a greater exposure on a daily basis. This is one of the top reasons to include promotional products within a marketing strategy and one way to help drive forward an increase in leads and sales.
▪ Improve customer relations
Giving away promotional gifts helps any business, especially new ones, to create and improve customer relations.
You can give promotional items to existing customers to show them gratitude towards their loyalty, and you can give them to new customers to create goodwill and a positive impression.
▪ Versatility
Branded merchandise is versatile and can be used by a business operating in any industry, irrespective of its size. Items can be distributed not only to existing and potential customers, but also to employees to motivate them.
Reasons to Use Promotional Products
▪ Inform customers about a new product or service
When a business launches a new product or service, one of the first objectives is to inform the target audience and spread awareness about it.
Promotional free gifting is one way to help spread the message. A company can give away a sample of the newly launched product or pick an item that is relevant to the new product or service launch.
The idea is to inform and update customers and be on their mind, so that they consider your brand when making a purchasing decision.
▪ Persuade customers to buy the product or service
Another motive behind distributing promotional items is to convince potential consumers to buy your product.
Free gifting not only informs customers about the brand or product, but also helps to make them loyal towards the brand. They feel valued and appreciated and tend to choose your business over others while purchasing.
Giving away product samples as free gifts helps them try and test the product, giving them a chance to experience your brand. If satisfied, they will usually pick your product or service at their next purchase.
▪ Remind customers about a product or service
Promotional items are a way of reminding customers about your product or service. They can help in enhancing the brand recall value for your company.
Hence, it is essential to select branded promotional products carefully. If the promotional item is useful in day-to-day life, customers get frequent, positive reminders of your business.
On the other hand, if the product simply lies in a corner or drawer, the brand recall value is minimal to zero.
It is crucial for any business to choose appropriate corporate promotional products and focus on quality. When these aspects are considered, the purpose of investing in promotional products is met.