Top 10 Mistakes of Marketing with Promotional Products

1. Lack of purpose/objective
Before choosing products and designs, first decide on the purpose of your promotional product campaign. Do you want to increase traffic to your website, motivate your employees, or increase brand awareness among your key demographic? When you know exactly what it is you hope to achieve, that information will influence your choices as you create and distribute your products

2. No distribution plan 
Once you’ve determined your campaign’s purpose — and before you actually start purchasing products — you should decide precisely how you’re going to disseminate your items to your recipients. Make sure you plan everything well in advance to ensure a smooth promotional procedure. Place your order early enough in advance to avoid the extra shipping charges. 

3. Improper logo placement Sometimes promotional gifts benefit from discreetly placed logos rather than plastering it all over an item. Keep it simple – stick to a small logo and your website url. 

4. Getting late to market with a trend
Trends are fickle and while some have incredible staying power, others quickly pass.  If you don’t act quickly, your product won’t be new or exciting since the market will be over-saturated.  

5. Refusing to be innovative 
You must be willing to pay attention and get on board with the new hot thing as it’s heating up.  Then use your imagination! You want to stand out from your competitors and make a bigger impact. Have fun with your products and create something memorable!

6. Failing to differentiate your brand identity
Your product should be recognizable as part of your company brand–whether that comes from the design, color scheme or message. 

7. Sacrificing quality 
When you put your logo on a promotional product you are allowing that product to speak to your customers.  What do you want the message to be? 

8. Not targeting your key audience 
The most effective promotions take into account the needs and desires of the recipients. Do your research before deciding on products.  

9. Useless product
Items people don’t use regularly defeats the purpose of getting your name recognized. Try to think of things you use and see every day, in your home and office. 

10. No tracking and analysis 
This is probably the biggest mistake companies make when purchasing promotional items. Having a technique to track ROIs (Return on Investment) is extremely important.

Make Every Day Count in Your Marketing

A dozen reasons to include calendars in your marketing plans:

Invites new business   Strengthens goodwill   Builds your brand   Rewards loyal customers   Displayed in high profile areas   Controlled, targeted distribution   Remarkable cost-effectiveness   Introduces new products   Year-long high-frequency visibility   High perceived value for gift giving   Useful for personal record keeping   Business people use an average of 2.5 calendars

Calender Survey Fast Facts

92% of those surveyed would keep an advertising calendar 74% remember the name of the company that gave them a calendar 41% of recipients referred somebody else to the company that gave them a calendar 70% plan to do business with the company that gave them the calendar 98% of respondents looked at a calendar at least once a day 61% looked at a calendar between 2 and 10 times a day Printed vs. Electronic Calendars 37% of respondents reported never using a calendar on a computer 60% have never printed a calendar from a computer 50% of respondents have never used the calendar on their cell phones 41% prefer to use a physical calendar in conjunction with a portable one.

5 Reasons Your Company Needs Calendars

1. Great return on your investment with year long viewing exposure.

2. Customers view your calendar as a thoughtful gift.  It's more than "just another ad."

3. 45% of home offices - where people make their business decisions - have a calendar. How valuable would it be to display your ad here?

4. 75% of homes depend on a kitchen calendar. Make it yours!

5. 98% of people look at a calendar at least once a day. 61% look at a calendar between 2 and 10 times a day.

Why NOW is the BEST Time to Invest in Your Employees with Promotional Products

According to a recent survey by Harris Interactive, a whopping 83% of American workers are stressed by at least one thing at work – up 10% from this time last year! What are you doing to retain valuable talent? Now is the perfect time to create an employee retention program! 

Why Especially Now? 

A recession presents many challenges for businesses in terms of employee concerns about job security, layoffs, increased workload and salary freezes. This stress can take a toll on employee morale and job satisfaction. 

The situation does not immediately improve when the recession ends. In fact, when the recovery begins, unhappy employees can be a flight risk more than ever. To prevent employees from looking for other opportunities, companies should take measures to improve employee morale as soon as possible. 

So, NOW is the time for companies to consider implementing promotional product programs.  

Why Promotional Product Programs?  

Employees Feel Valued 
Even small promotional items such as t-shirts, water bottles, tote bags or gift certificates, can make employees feel more appreciated.  

Recognition 
Everyone appreciates recognition for a job well done. Studies have shown that well executed awards and recognition programs improve attitudes about the workplace and employee retention. A program could include plaques and awards when honoring specific achievements; and premiums gifts for big wins. 

Reward for Loyalty 
Rewarding employees who have spent a considerable amount of time with the company is essential. Long-term employees are tremendously valuable assets to any successful company. Long-term employees have a strong knowledge base; pass down their skills to new employees; and add stability to the workforce. Be sure to reward for loyalty!  

Motivation and Increased Productivity 
Recognizing and rewarding achievements can motivate employees and boost their morale. This, in turn, can greatly increase your company's productivity level.  

Sense of Community 
Giving branded gifts to employees helps create a sense of community within an organization. Plus, it provides an opportunity for employees to take your brand into their lives outside the office in a positive way. 

A fun way to use promotional items in business organizations is for building team spirit. Sports events and company outings are great venues for distributing items.  

Want ideas to increase employee morale, motivation and productivity? Give Petrocelli Marketing Group a call at 1-800-264-4294 today!

Promo Product Lessons from March Madness™

The NCAA college basketball tournament is a microcosm of marketing. How rigorously you prepare, strategize and execute determines your performance and bottom-line results.  Both basketball and marketing require planning, competing, attacking, defending and adjusting. 


So, as we head into the Final Four, we thought we’d take some time to share a few promo product lessons we can all learn from March Madness, that time of year when 68 college basketball match-up for a chance to compete for the NCAA Men’s Division I National Championship title. Here are our lessons that marketers can learn about promotional products from the “Big Dance”:


A good product markets itself.  You don’t have to market March Madness - millions will tune in and arenas will sell out. Why?  March Madness is a great product – it markets itself!  So do promotional products!  Promotional products are tangible items that continuously promote your brand.

Have a game plan. Determine your marketing objectives before tip off .  Just like coaches prepare scouting reports of their opponents, marketing pros need to do their homework to develop an overall strategy for success.  Having a promotional product marketing plan in place can help you outline next steps throughout the year. Preparation is key. Ask yourself:   Who are you playing/Who is your target audience?  How will you relate to your fans/How will you reach your target audience?  


It’s emotional.  Both basketball and promotional products hit an emotional note. Anytime you have grown people yelling at their television sets, you know an emotional connection has been made. Promo products also create an emotional connection by engaging the five senses.


Execute the fundamentals.  In basketball and marketing, not only do you need to have a strategy, you also must execute the fundamentals. Is your branding consistent? Are your promotional products useful, creative and unique?  Make adjustments, if needed. Your marketing plan can (and should) be revisited and adapted throughout the year. As Duke coach, Mike Krzyewski once said, “I try to see each new season as a new challenge because I have a new team to work with, new opponents to encounter, and often new ideas and theories to try.”

Adjustments can also be made throughout the game. If a certain play or lineup isn’t working, the coach has the ability to change things on the fly. The same is true for promotional product campaign tactics and strategy. While having a roadmap is essential to keeping your eye on the prize, it’s important to recognize that the strategy can be adjusted should new circumstances arise. Be ready to pull out the surprise play.  Match up smartly with your opponent.  Be clever, bold and create buzz!
 

The underdog can win.  Everyone loves a Cinderella story!   Small guys are facing the giants and seeing just how good they really are.   Broadening your horizons will allow your team/business to be exposed to a larger world. In both college basketball and the business world, teams/companies aren’t operating on equal footing. Some have bigger budgets, more talent, and better-known brands. But, the tournament never plays out according to who “should” win. How about Florida Gulf Coast University this year?! Even small businesses can stand out among the traditional giants!

Engage your fans.  Just as cheering basketball fans inspire on a team, building and cultivating fans with promotional products help fuel growth for your business. 

Cash in on momentum. Basketball, like business, can come down to momentum. When things are going well, don’t over-think it — make the most of the momentum and trust in your team.  If needed, call a time-out and regroup to talk over a new game/marketing plan.

Stay hungry. Whether you’re a basketball player or a marketer, you have to continually stay motivated and passionate about what you do, communicate openly with your teams, and take risks to advance and succeed.

Remember your statistician. Most great teams know the value of keeping stats beyond just the scoreboard.  Make sure you identify and track important numbers related to your promotional products marketing efforts to see where you’re scoring and where you might be fouling out.

Just like March Madness, with preparation, adjustments and motivation, your marketing team can create its own Cinderella story.  Game on!

Recall of Promotional Products

The most often recalled promotional product categories include:

• Wearables (40%): shirts (22%), caps/headwear (11%), outerwear (6%), other wearables (2%)
• Writing Instruments (35%)
• Drinkware (19%)

Promotional products have a high reach and potential for top-of-mind recall and are an excellent medium to increase and sustain brand awareness.

Unaided brand recall is a brand strength indicator as it depends on strength and organization of memories and their accessibility. It is affected by:

• interference of other product information
• time since last exposure
• the number and type of external retrieval cues

Promotional products can be used to minimize time gaps in exposure occasions and provide external cues to help brand recall. They should be provided on a regular basis, have a clear connection to the brand, and should be relevant to the consumer.

Source:  Promotional Products Association International

HOT new products!

HOT new products!

Beat Bottle Turn your iphone into a mini boombox! iphone Case and Wallet All-in-one plastic case cover and smart wallet for iPhones! Triple Play Stylus Stylus, pen and highlighter! Gadget Grip Dot Powerful brand recognition with thousands of touches per day! DoGo Be creative with this revolutionary new stress relief dough, and mold it into your 3-D logo lid! Gadget Gripper Handle-like grips for tablet computers! aRoma Ball Scented aroma stress ball that diffuses scent when squeezed. SoundByte iphone speaker amplifier boosts sound up to 200%! Pre-Sewn Distressed Letters & Numbers No sewing or embroidery equipment required!

We've got tons of new, innovative products!    Give us a call for more ideas! 800-264-4294