In the nearly 20 years that Weekend Warrior Promotional Products has been serving our clients, we have run across a number of "myths" regarding the use of promotional products in a company's marketing efforts. Some are based on past history but some are just pre-conceived notions that have little to no basis in fact. Our industry, unfortunately, is probably somewhat responsible for some of these misconceptions for a number of reasons, sowe feel it is our obligation to attempt to correct them when we can. We have listed our "Top 5" below.
- “Giveaways don’t work!” This blanket statement is usually made early in a discussion, and many times, the conversation doesn’t go much beyond this point but when we are allowed to dig in a little, we usually learn that there have been some critical strategic mistakes made with their promotional products marketing plan, and the statement has really become a self-fulfilling prophesy (“it won’t work, therefore, I will make only a half-hearted effort”). The most common mistakes include buying products of poor quality (in an attempt to stretch the budget); lacking a coherent plan; or improper targeting. In other words, their plans probably never had a chance! (For more information on study data that proves promo works, click here: Promo Impressions Study )
- “We can’t compete with the "big boys" so why bother?!” We hear this one occasionally, and while a large competitor may make it more difficult to stand out, it is not impossible to do, if you “hit your spots”. If you review the reasons promo items are retained (by their recipients) in the study referenced above, it becomes obvious that it isn’t always how expensive an item is – a lot has to do with how well it is targeted to the end-user. Giving out potato-chip bag clips to 500 high-end financial clients is probably a bad idea if you are a bank, but sending 50 of them something they might use in their daily business lives, such as a quality writing instrument, or a technology item, might just gain the interest you are seeking.
- “Our business is different – promo items won’t work.” While we hold open the possibility that some businesses might actually have a tougher time using promo items than others, we have a wide variety of customer types and all have found a way to use promotional products successfully. At times, however, we run into companies that may need to tweak their sales and marketing approach relative to promotional products usage – we can help because we have so many clients using them in so many different ways.
- “Promotional Products are just too expensive for the return we get”. Multiple studies have shown that promotional products are one of the most cost effective of all mediums, largely due to the repeat usage nature of promo items (if properly selected). Many prospective customers that have made this comment have not tried to track promo program ROI (return on investment) because they either did not know how to do so, or did not have the tools, or they did not have the time. We work with plenty of companies that have cut their budgets, but have not cut their promo efforts – it can be done with a little creativity and planning.
- “I really don’t have time to worry about promotional items.” This is music to our ears and is one of the big reasons we retain such a high percentage of our clients every year. We act as an extension of our clients’ companies and supplement or “gap-fill” where needed. We will never be “all things to all people” but we can certainly help most companies maintain a consistent and successful promotional products marketing program without the need for additional headcount. And if things don’t work out? Well, they don’t have to give us a pink slip!
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