This fundamental benefit of imprinted promotional items is probably the most overlooked and misunderstood factor in buying imprinted items to give-away at trade shows.
Here's a typical call I get from Las Vegas Trade Show Exhibitors
"I need some giveaways for a trade show. Do you have blah blah blah? They are really cute and I saw an exhibitor giving them away last year.”
Just imagine… billions of dollars are wasted every year. Most trade show exhibitors only get a fraction of the return on investment. Why? Because they spend their money on giveaways and not repetitive message senders.
Promotional Products Work
Studies show that 7 out of 10 people who receive promotional items at trade shows can recall the name of the company that gave them the product. That sounds good, but that's not all - not even close. That's just the tip of the iceberg.
While most trade show exhibitors would be overjoyed at these results, they are missing one simple point:
If your prospect has a "RE-USABLE" product, your company gets seen over, and over and over again, your cost per impression goes down and your return on investment goes up. Retention is the key to maximizing your effectiveness.
Want to Maximize Your Budget?
Think about this for a minute. Say you spend $1 on 1000 items. If 9 out of 10 get thrown away, only 1 in 10 is reused. Your cost per retention is $10 each and your $1000 got your message re-used by 100 people.
But if that $1 item is kept and reused by 5 out of 10 people, your cost per retention is $2 each and you have exposed 500 people on a repetitive basis for $1000. So for $1000 if I had the choice of being seen by either 100 people or by 500 people over and over, what should I do?
So Why Doesn't Everybody Get Maximum Results?
The reality is the promotional products industry (unfortunately) is more concerned about selling products than about maximizing their customers return on their investment.
Have you ever met a promotional product sales rep that has taken the time to educate you on what will and will not WORK FOR YOU, instead of trying to up sell you on the most popular items? The second biggest problem is this. Customers go to catalogs, websites, and salespeople who simply sell products and not solutions.
Still not convinced? Go to any promotional product website (not ours, www.kennedyadv.com) and you will find thousands of products. Most of these – about 9 out of 10 – if you think about it, people will never use.
What's New?
99% of the time "What's new?" is an abbreviated way of saying for "What can I buy that no one will ever use?" Remember the "Carabineer" craze? For 3 years everyone under the sun was buying these things. (Like the metal clips that rock climbers use.) Not only was everyone selling them, but then they made 500 different flavors of the product.
They had Carabineers with Compasses, Carabineers with Flashlights, with Key Chains, and Locks built in. They came in plastic, aluminum and steel. They became available in 90 different colors! Think about this! How many people do you know carry a carabineers key holder around with them on a daily basis? The promotional products industry sold 5 billion dollars worth of them. 2 billion at trade shows. Why? Because it was new. The colors were cute. They matched the trade show booth. "Oh it has a compass; this will come in handy if I get lost on my way home from the office!"
Let's face it. How many of us have used a compass in our life after boy scouts and girl scouts? The landfills are full of them. My point is this: There are items that have a high retention rate that have been around a long time and there is a reason they are the top items. Quite simply, THEY WORK.
Let me try to narrow it down for you. Here are the top selling categories of Promotional Products and percentage of overall sales.
1) Wearables 30%
2) Writing Instruments 11%
3) Calendars 8%
4) Drink Ware 6%
5) Desk/Business accessories 6%
6) Bags 5%
I have sold thousands of T shirts in my career. They are the highest retained item in the promotional products industry and there is no greater value. Look around at the desktops when you visit a company: Mouse Pads, paper cubes, many pens, highlighters, letter openers, carabineers (just a joke), coffee mugs, calendars, and rulers. Look in your house: Bag Clips, Jar Openers, Refrigerator Magnets, Coffee Mugs, Tee shirts and Caps.
Get in your prospect's house, on their desk, in their briefcase, on their backs, and in their drawers. Every day items have the greatest return. Remind them of your products and services and you'll micro brand them. Never buy a throwaway again and you'll no longer see the promotional product budget as an expense. You'll know what the Wise Buyer knows, you bought an asset.
Never hesitate to call with questions. If you wish to speak with me directly, you can contact me toll free Toll-Free Mobile: 888-725-4487 or e-mail me. I would be happy to help you in anyway that I can.
No comments:
Post a Comment