Promotional items (freebies)

[confused]

Hi all,

I was just wondering if anyone uses promotional items such as keyrings, clocks, pens etc and if so, do they actually generate more business or not ? and do you give them only to existing customers or others?
I am in the IT trade and have considered several times getting some mousemats done with my logo etc, however I can only seem to get them by the hundeds or thousands, likewise with pens and such, and for that I cuold get many thousand flyers done instead, I do not have unlimited funds so I cant really do any experiments. I notices recently someone on here with 100 keyrings for not so much and am awaiting a response from them. Branded mousemats IMO would fit in with my line of work perfectly but again, its all down to cost and whether I'd actually get anything back.

Any comments or suggestions most welcome,


Thanks

CALV

[mattk]

IMO that kind of stuff goes straight in the bin. I've got a mousemat thanks and it's unlikely that anything you give me for free will be anywhere near as good. Same with keyrings and pens.

However, if you can come up with something gimmicky then you might be on to a winner. I remember being given a job lot of those wing mirrors that sit on your monitor, everyone wanted one of those bad boys! Same with the Microsoft Spaceman model jobbos!

[Jayne]

I love freebies, I get loads at the bakery.

Creative Keyrings on here is good and you can do little orders, he did me a keyring and it's great. I think he does mouse mats too.

Jayne :D

[clairemackaness]

I think the only things that dont go in the bin are pens, especially quirky ones.

I recently got a highlighter in the shape of a flower. Each petal was a different colour and i love it.

[Jayne]

I got a pen with all dolphins up the side once, it was lovely, my niece loved it...Yes she did nick it :lol:

Jayne

[Hedgehog Toys]

When i ran my architectural consultants we had 1000 pens made with our design, details etc on them. I can't remember evere getting any work through them though. They are a nice touch but as you say they depend on the freebie you are giving away. Most pens tend to be chucked away or lost etc.

[gapgb]

The (cost / going in the bin ratio) is the key. We used to give away Maglites and Swiss Army knives (key ring sized) and customers would fight for them. They cost a bit more but make a bigger impact than another pen. Plus you can order smaller quantities.

Customers will keep them and have a positive impression of your company.

We gave up the Swiss knives after aiport security checks changed because everyone forgot they were carrying a weapon.

[Pebble Communications]

Imagine you were given something with another company's branding on it. would you use it? This simple question culls out the things that are a complete waste of time. Would I carry a keyring advertising another company? No. Would I wear a baseball hat advertising another company? No. would I use an umbrella with a big-ole company logo on it? No. Would I stick a pen in the office pen-pot? Probably...but would it make me use that company, no.

The only things that work are the unusual and the useful and they do not directly drive customers to you. they are useful for building general awareness so that when that customer is looking at several businesses in the same line, your name rings a bell.

I was at a music festival this year and Gola did a fantastic job with giveaways and everyone was talking about 'Gola-bags' (cheap but strong plastic satchel/pouch things with Gola branding given out at the entrance to campsites and immediately used by everyone to carry loads of stuff as a useful alternative to the carrier bags/armfuls we all had) and playing with Gola folding frisbees. They became the must-have of the festival. I've still got a few in the cupboard but I haven't rushed out and bought anything 'Gola'. Still, it has made me think fondly of the company!

[Rob Holmes]

So the golden question....

what would people like to receive and what would make them use the company?

(no stupid answers please)

Rob

[Rob Holmes]

I guess I'd like usb storage keys, pens, laser pointers but what would make me use the company?

Hmm maybe if they said buy in the next 3 months and we'll add you to next years freebie send out :)

Rob

[Jayne]

I like calendars, note pads, mugs are good, you don't chuck mugs!

Not sure if they would make me use another company, but it helps choose which one to stop with :D

Jayne

[confused]

Many thanks for all the replies,
I suppose a lot of it comes down to the price of the item/service in question, I certainly wouldnt give away a maglite for a £50 job, and of course on a large job, giving someone a single pen to share would probably to more harm than good ("the tight so & so's")
I remember AMD coming to where I worked before and gave out cool pens that lit up, and someone else gave out leathermans (mine got nicked like about 2 days later), leather files etc. I cant even think about items in this price range at the moment, just trying to get peoples opinions on freebies in general.

Thanks

CALV

[confused]

Mugs sounds a good one, expensive (ish) though, that said, I've seen mug presses on ebay for £120 or so, and cheap white mugs from a market would probably work out much cheaper in the long run, but is that money well spent or would it be better off spent advertising elsewhere, that is the burning question lol.

[Jayne]

You can get mugs in Wilcos for about 29p upwards, have some stickers made for them?

Jayne :D

[confused]

Hi,
I have no clue what Wilcos is, one of those bargain shops I presume, I dont fancy the idea of stickers though unless I can get ones that dont come off !
I'll have to have a think and see whats what, as mentioned, something "decent" looks like the way to do it but at the moment I'm on a limited budget so fancy (expensive) gizzits are out for the moment. I need a marketing department lol.

[creative-keyrings]

Hi There confused,

We sell a range of promo merchandise with min qtys of only 100 for keyrings.

100 keyrings cost £49 delivered including free design.

We also sell mousemats and the qtys start from 5:

5: £23.00
10: £37.00
25: £78.00
50: £133.00
100: £229.00
200: £399.00

for my prices and info i will email you a pricelist.

Kind Regards,

Callum Slade

[Pixels Ink]

I've actually just finished a post in the marketing forums recommending creative-keyrings.co.uk

I ordered keyrings and mousemats from him and the quality is great. I've always been a bit iffy about promotional items, but as soon as I started my own business I suddenly thought "I need something to tell people i'm here"

The best thing is, he lets you order very low quantities without penalising you by putting up the prices. Obviously the more you buy the cheaper it is, but it just gets really cheap :)

I've had 3 responses now from the keyrings and I only handed some out yesterday at a networking event (one of them was from someone wanting keyrings).

The mouse mats are brilliant, none of that foam rubbish with cloth tops. These are a textured plastic with non-slip back and look really professional. I was expecting my design to suffer somewhat in the process of manufacture but that didn't happen.

I intend to send mats to regular clients and to people who place larger design contracts, I will however also give some away at networking events.

The thing is I've never used mouse mats, always just have the mouse on the desktop. Since I got the mats though I've been using one as it's improved my mouses performance :shock:

You can PM creative-keyrings as he is a member of these forums.

**edit** well, as you can see he posted just before me **edit**

Col

[Pebble Communications]

I think mug coasters are a good one if they are really good looking and not just a boring ad. Everyone runs out of these and they get used in most offices. I saw some once with that weird multicolour gel swirly stuff inside (like the mouse mats) and would definitely have kept that.
Something I have kept is a photo clip (little cube with metal clip sticking out on small wire). Pens, I have loads but I couldn't tell you who they were from off the top of my head. Keyrings, no way, chuck 'em to the kids to play with if they want. Teddies with T-shirts are often popular.

[mattk]

This (http://www.twistedmods.com/article.php?artid=278) is the kind of mousemat that will get attention AND show people that you mean business!

I've got 2, they are the dog's.

[Pixels Ink]

This (http://www.twistedmods.com/article.php?artid=278) is the kind of mousemat that will get attention AND show people that you mean business!

I've got 2, they are the dog's.

How much are they?

[mattk]

About £25 each, but they are sooo worth it.

[confused]

£25 for a mousemat? my mouse only cost a bit more than that! Does it get up in the morning and make you a brew? I think I'd want it to for that much :)

CALV

[creacom]

Fiona has a good idea there with coasters. We gave some out in the Autumn at a marketing exhibition and they were really popular !!

We have had 3 clients from 200 coasters so not bad going.

Jacqui ':D'

[mattk]

£25 for a mousemat? my mouse only cost a bit more than that! Does it get up in the morning and make you a brew? I think I'd want it to for that much :)

CALV
mate, it truely is the king of mousemats. Given that I use a PC for 8+ hours a day, it's a worthwhile investment.

[LindseyMHC]

Hi Confused,

Now for my two-penneth ...

I've ordered thousands of pounds worth of gizzits in my time. They are mostly a way to raise awareness of your brand/company rather than be a direct impetus for sales. To this end you are best to have something with staying power - be it because the item is useful or different.

Mousemats, mugs, pens, sweets, business card wallets, clocks, bags etc are all old hat now and most business people are flooded with freebies like this. Stress balls (you know those shaped squeezy things) were big a few years back, but although new in comparison to pens, they're becoming two a penny now.

I guess that the intended reipients of your gizzits will be at a desk most of the time so provide something that will be useful and is small enough to be kept on a desk ... with subtle branding.

'Useful' PC gadgets are starting to come onto the market. They are more expensive than mugs or pens but they are more useful, and therefore have more staying power, than mugs, keyrings, pens etc that are likely to be thrown away or shoved in a draw never to see the light of day again.

If you are in IT and you receive an expensive looking WIFI Detector or a Wireless Optical Mouse or a wireless PC lock would you be more likely to keep it or a mug, key-ring, pen etc? From one supplier I have just looked at for you you can place orders for 25 or 50 of these suggestions.

It all depends on your budget, but from experience it often works out to be better value for money in the long run to order fewer good quality items with your company branding (+ e-mail or web address) and tightly target their distribution rather than saturate the market with cheaper more common items.

A good quality useful gift is likely to mean you are remembered - and often will get talked about. Ultimately, this is what you want to happen.

If you want names of companies who supply good quality items by small (ish) quantities, then come back to me and I'll see what I can do for you.

All the best,

Lindsey.

[Hotelexpert]

Anyone have any thoughts on fridge magnets as freebies? I've been thinking about them because they're cheaper than mousemats. OK people are not in front of their fridge when they're looking for a hotel but it's something people may keep. Comments please.

Lawrence

[seabro]

call me wierd but i would never throw a mug away. I think a mug is great. And also, I think many people have crusty old / no mousemat so mousemats could be good too.

just my opinion

[clairemackaness]

I keep all my mugs, in fact in my proper job I have mugs as pen pots instead of pen pots.

I also keep those re-fillable memo blocks and post it notes (until there used up).

Anyone looking for mugs and mouse mats, hold your breath as some time next week my product range will be released on my website and you could have your own company painting created into products! How unique is that?

[Sarah-Ink Promotions]

I really believe in the power of promotional merchandise (luckily!) and think people are far more likely to keep a pen / post-it note pad etc.. than a flyer or business card. Ioften find that companies who start off ordering small quantites from me often come back for larger and larger quantities as it really does work for them. We do also advise small companies on the best ways o use the products to ensure the best response as well - i.e. handing it our personally at shows or at meetings is usually better than mailing it as its more personal - like a gift. Or for small companies order small quantities of a few items and ask the person which gift they would like.

Hope that helps! :)