In today’s digital landscape there are many effective social media marketing strategies out there, but giving out physical promotional products is still one of the best marketing methods available. However, without understanding the ROI of different promotional items, choosing the right product can be a challenge.
In this article, we’ll discuss the ROI of promotional pens and other promotional items and how to choose which promotional product to use.
What are Promotional Pens?
Promotional pens are pens a business can customize with its brand logo and colors, and give away to customers, partners and other parties. The purpose of promotional pens is to establish trust and reciprocity with customers as well as increase brand exposure.
What Other Promotional Items Compete with Pens?
While pens are one of the most common promotional items, businesses also use other promotional items for marketing, such as:
- T-shirts
- Mousepads
- Coffee mugs
- Water bottles
- Tote bags
These are some of the most common promotional items, but the possibilities are endless. Some innovative promotional product ideas include:
- Wireless earbuds
- Mini speakers
- Luggage tags
- Umbrellas
Product companies like Save Your Ink offer a wide range of promotional items that compete with pens.
Who Uses Promotional Items?
The great thing about promotional items is that everyone uses them. There is a wide variety of promotional items to choose from, from automotive goods like air fresheners to healthcare items like first-aid kits. This means that no matter your target audience, you can find a promotional item your customers will find useful.
How Do Promotional Pens and Other Items Drive ROI?
Return on investment (ROI) measures how much profit a promotional item generates compared to its initial investment. Promotional items are effective at driving ROI because they require little investment and are an advertising medium that drives sales for years to come.
Compared to traditional advertising methods, promotional items have a high ROI. Promotional products have a low cost per impression (CPI), as low as one tenth of a cent in some cases.
Traditional advertisements, like newspaper ads, have a relatively short exposure time. On the other hand, customers may use promotional items for years, constantly generating brand awareness.
The ROI of promotional pens is high, even when compared to effective social media marketing strategies like Facebook advertisements. Giving promotional items to your customers also increases brand loyalty and customer satisfaction, which in turn increases sales and ROI.
Where Do Other Promotional Items Outperform Pens?
Pens are a very effective promotional product, but they’re not suitable for every scenario. Pens make great promotional items for other businesses and customers in the education sector, where they get lots of use.
However, in some situations, other promotional items may outperform pens. For example, promotional items such as gym bags, water bottles or apparel may connect better with customers who live an active lifestyle. When promotional items are a good fit for their audience, they get more use, which increases brand exposure.
Other promotional items can outperform pens due to their large surface area, allowing people to see your brand logo from farther away. For example, people can easily spot a brand logo on a tote bag or even a coffee mug, while identifying a brand logo on a pen is much more difficult.
How to Choose Between Promotional Pens and Other Items?
Consider the demographics, age and lifestyle of your target audience to determine which type of promotional item is the best choice.
Also, consider your industry and choose promotional items that are the best fit. Promotional pens may be a good fit for the financial industry, but you may want to offer more exciting and relevant items, like headbands, in the sports industry.
Promotional pens are great, but customers likely won’t perceive them as high-value gifts. If you really want to build a strong relationship with customers, offer personalized gifts or high-value products like tech gadgets.
In conclusion
Offering promotional products, such as pens, is one of the best marketing strategies due to the low cost per impression and high return on investment. In comparison to traditional advertisements, which have limited exposure, a useful promotional product can advertise your brand to others for years to come.
Branded pens are one of the best promotional items in marketing, but that doesn’t mean they’re suitable for all situations. Always consider your target audience and choose an item recipients will use every day and therefore show to others. Items like tote bags can fit a larger brand logo, boosting brand exposure.
