Promotional products unite people around your brand. Many brands leave the power of promotional materials sitting on the table because they don’t want to make the cost investment. Brands that do embrace this very direct and personal approach to marketing and developing brand awareness know that the investment is more than worth it. Still on the fence? Let’s get into five reasons why promotional products deliver a strong return on investment for brand visibility.
Increased Brand Recognition
It’s loud out there. As you already know, brands are continuously vying for marketing space in television, radio, and digital media. Many brands even fork over big ad spending for experiential marketing. Promotional products create real-world, tangible marketing for brands looking to connect to customers on a deep, direct level. What could be more personal than a shirt, tote, or mug that a lead or customer looks at every day?
We know that brand image has the greatest influence on perceived value. Meanwhile, perceived value has the greatest influence on brand trust. The cycle ends with brand trust being the biggest factor when it comes to purchasing intention among consumers. You can boost brand image with simple products that get eyes on your company’s name or logo.
Cost-Effective Marketing
When brands make bulk orders of custom promotional products, the price per unit is miniscule. The reach for a single item that a customer or lead uses in everyday life is essentially immeasurable. In addition to reinforcing brand loyalty in the recipient’s mind, promo products are like walking billboards that let others know that your brand is trustworthy via a phenomenon called social proof. Social proof is a psychological phenomenon that causes people to copy what they see other people doing because they assume that their peers know something they don’t. When they see another person wearing a shirt or bag with a brand logo, they assume on a deeply subconscious level that the brand must be “good” because the other person has done their research. Social proof is reinforced every time a person sees someone with an item that has your brand’s logo.
Customer Engagement & Loyalty
Your promotional materials are creating experiences for customers. You are giving them an opportunity to bond with your brand when you hand them promotional materials. Additionally, the principle of reciprocity that is one of the drivers of human behavior actually makes a customer more inclined to engage with your brand after they’ve received a gift.
Wide Reach & Repeated Impressions
If you select well-made promotional materials that people will actually want to use in daily life, there’s no telling how far your customers will take them! Items like shirts, totes, and water bottles can be seen in public everywhere your customers go. Think of each time they take an item out of the house with them as creating hundreds or thousands of impressions that you’d need to pay top dollar for when talking about something like a live billboard or digital ad.
Versatility Across Industries
The great thing about “merch” is that everyone gets a thrill out of getting free stuff. Whether your target audience consists of banking professionals on Wall Street or housewives in Kansas City, the benefits of promotional products work the same. Of course, the key is creating high-quality promotional goodies that your audience will actually be excited about. After all, the impression you’re making for your brand is only as good as gifts you’re handing out.