Neel Patel August 25, 2023
7 Promotional Product Mistakes Your Company Should Avoid
Learn about the promotional blunders that your business should avoid. We discuss the top five reasons why promotional goods may not be as successful as you would like. With over a decade of experience in the promotional marketing industry, we want to ensure that your organization gets the most bang for your buck when ordering promotional swag. Whether you’re giving these promotional goods to employees, clients, or trade fair participants, your company should keep a few things in mind. This can include what competitors are offering and the best method to provide a promotional item that your target audience would love.
Then, through this and the usage of promotional giveaways, they will discover more about your company, providing your company with more brand exposure and loyalty. Because we consider ourselves experts in the industry, we’ve compiled a list of the seven most common mistakes committed and how you may avoid them in the future.
1. No Clear Objective
Are you attempting to thank employees for their commitment to the company or to express your appreciation for their efforts? Do you want to increase traffic to your website, collect email addresses, or generate leads? Perhaps you’re simply seeking to provide new clients with convenient contact information rather than handing them business cards. Whatever you do, you must establish the purpose of your promotional product. For example, if you want to promote brand awareness by giving out a practical product that your recipients will use every day, it might make sense to give out a traditional promotional water bottle. On the other hand, if you want to drive visitors to your site in an unusual way to help you stand out from your competition, something more particular, such as a duck-shaped rubber duckie or another form of distinctive promotional product, may help you achieve that aim. To get the most out of your promotional giveaway, consider how much you want custom printed and how much print area each item will provide.
2. Choosing Poor Quality Products
If you are on a tight budget, it may make sense to order inexpensive promotional items; however, this does not imply that you should purchase poorly constructed or low-quality promotional materials. If your target audience perceives your promotional handouts to be cheap or flimsy, it might reflect poorly on your brand. Because the purpose of promotional products is to promote and represent your company, it is critical to choose high-quality things that reflect favorably on your brand’s image. Without taking this into account, it may have a detrimental impact on your entire brand image in the long run. While we do have a large assortment of low-cost promotional items under $1, this does not imply that they are of bad quality. Check the material of a product before purchasing it. We also propose that you order a sample of the product to ensure good quality products.
3. Ignoring the Target Audience
It is a crucial error to fail to consider your target audience’s tastes and wants. The goal of offline marketing like this is to connect with your audience, which cannot be accomplished with things that they may be dissatisfied with. Promotional products should be meaningful to the beneficiaries and relevant to their hobbies and lifestyles. Failure to do so may result in the products being abandoned as soon as they are received, undermining the objective of employing them as marketing tools. This is why we’ve compiled a list of some of the most prominent businesses that use branded items to spread their message.
4. Insufficient Distribution Planning
Even the most amazing promotional materials will not have the desired impact unless they reach the proper individuals. Similar to the previous error, if you do not examine the ideal way to distribute the goods, your overall objective and promotional product purpose may fail to create a lasting influence on the receiver. A well-thought-out distribution strategy is critical since it influences how people perceive your organization or brand. Consider how you will distribute the products to your target demographic, whether through events, direct mail, in-store freebies, or other means. The product’s presentation is equally vital to consider. If you’re giving out corporate presents, it might be a good idea to remove the promotional item from its original packaging and place it in a more typical gift bag. At a business conference, though, it may make more sense to distribute a promotional gift bag including a selection of products. The manner in which your materials are distributed is just as significant as the product itself.
5. Overcomplicating Design and Messaging
Keep the design and messaging of your promotional products simple and straightforward. Too much information or a busy design can confuse recipients and dilute your message. If the audience cannot read your company logo on the promotional pen, then using those pens as promotional products is pointless. The goal is to develop a memorable and impactful product that successfully expresses your brand’s identity.
6. Bulk Order Versus Low Minimum Promotional Items
Since printing a product has some upfront costs that include the printing methods, it makes sense to reduce those by ordering in bulk one time instead of smaller quantities more often. If possible, ordering larger quantities to use throughout the year can provide many benefits including:
- Allowing us to source directly from the manufacturer allows us to further customize the product to represent your company’s or brand’s distinctive style.
- Our all-inclusive pricing reduces your cost per unit.
- Making sure you’re always ready for those last-minute promotional swag giveaways that always seem to appear
7. Waiting Until the Last Minute
Since several items must be ordered and printed in most circumstances, it is critical to order as soon as possible and not wait until the last minute. Because you will need to order huge quantities in many circumstances, it is always preferable to allow for some wiggle room in the process. If you need something quickly, we provide rapid production with our expedited items. That implies your products can be manufactured within 48 hours after your artwork approval. Then, in addition to quick production, you have the option of choosing express shipping, which will bring your products to you even faster than standard shipping. In many circumstances, this can become costly, so keep this in mind if you are on a limited budget. Of course, these situations do arise, and Optamark is always available to assist with expedited production and or shipping demands for any customer, but it is always ideal to order ahead of time to ensure a budget-friendly price and adequate time to receive your promotional swag.
If you can avoid these frequent blunders when shopping for promotional items, you’ll be on the right track. Browse our online store today to start personalizing your promotional items and saving the most money when you order in bulk.
