Stuff with print on it (balloons, pens etc)

10 years ago

The microfiber clothes I like since it relates to the business.

Maybe write and print a small book on how to clean your computer to go with it. Include a coupon for ROI tracking. Maybe even have the book lead to an email list as well. You could hand out during parades and such.

Either way it seems like anything that will stand out will need to be tested. So if you have the budget to risk and believe this will work why not do a smallish test to see if it works.

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NewParadigm

10 years ago

The only trinket n trash printed item that I've ever responded to was a magnet on my furnace for the local HVAC guy.

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larsjorgenbr

10 years ago

You have a HVAC magnet on your furnace? o_O How did it get there?

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NewParadigm 10 years ago

Originally Posted by larsjorgenbr

You have a HVAC magnet on your furnace? o_O How did it get there?

contractor must have left it on previous homeowner visit.

funny thing, i called him to fix the AC and told him i probably need a new one as the orignal was 27 yrs old. He said he'd come out to look on a saturday. No show, never called to follow up.

I am replacing AC and furnace ($5-$6 grand sale) this week and did not contact him for a quote and brought in 3 others to bid on it.

Are people fat n happy or what??? LOL.
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- larsjorgenbr 10 years ago
  
  @ NewParadigm - well, seems like a lot of people are just happy with their dayjob and don't care too much about the company they work for, your AC-guy is a good example of that. I, on the other hand, wouldn't let a chance to sell you stuff for $5-6K slip through my fingers, that's for sure..
  
  @ kenmichaels: Oh, the chocolate thing was a good one, how did I not think of that myself. I'll be sure to look into that right naoo! Did you only give these chocolates to your customers? And they didn't mind that they had your print on them?
  
  Hmm wonder if I could do that in local stores in my town - stores, council house, my gym, the list goes on. They're not my customers, but people tend to say yes to free stuff..
  
  Edit: Candy with paper with print on it costs about $35/kg ----- and minimum order is 30 kg.. Oh joy. I can give out as much as I can and still be stuck with enough candy too feed a small village in Africa for months. And the print is tiny.
  
  They also have candy boxes. Costs a little more, but people will look at the text several times before throwing away the empty box. Costs about a dollar a piece and I have to buy at least.... wait for it...... 4000 pcs.
  
  Thanks
  
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kenmichaels

10 years ago

I have literally ordered 100 of thousands of pens, magnets and flashlights
with our name, logo, phone number and in some cases
a quick blurb.There was a short stint many years ago I did mouse pads too.

I do not know if i have ever made a dime off of any of them.
( not for the lack of asking .. where did you hear about us from )

I do know the pens are appreciated the most, Because everyone always
used to ask for them.

I know longer do it, the company I used to get the best deals
and quality from went out of business.

If they were still in Business I would still do it, as a branding thing.

I used to offer a basket of custom printed chocolate with my info on the back
to our local customers to put on the reception desk.

THAT made me money.

I try to stay away from local now. So I faded that out as well.

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Claude Whitacre

10 years ago

Originally Posted by larsjorgenbr

Does anyone here have experience with this? Probably impossible to measure, but people usually have an immediat reaction to what you give them.

A pen will probably be best, I imagien - people tend to keep pens no matter what the text on them says, and they use them.

But that's no fun. :rolleyes:

I just found a supplier that make print on all kinds of stuff, hundreds of different things to choose from. Pure awesomeness, I tell ya.

What I wonder, though, is this - have anyone of you done anything like this, but a little outside the box?

They have these huge ballons, about 90 cm in diameter, so why not buy a pickup truck and hand out huge helium balloons to kids from the back of it? The kids won't be interested in my computer business, but people will see the print.

They also have microfiber cloths which costs next to nothing, and people use them to clean computer screens, glasses etc. I could just put the cloths in people's mailboxes, but they might just be thrown away or not be used.

Winter is closing in, so good thing they also have ice scrapers with print on them. I could just put'em under the windshield wipers at the local mall. Flyers suck, people get annoyed and they just throw them away anyway - but ice scrapers they just might put in their car and keep.

Waddayathink? I'd like to hear your thoughts on this.

Are you asking about using these promotional items to advertise your business?

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larsjorgenbr

10 years ago

Uhm yeah, as part of a campaign, at least. Make people know that my company exists.

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kenmichaels 10 years ago

Originally Posted by larsjorgenbr

Uhm yeah, as part of a campaign, at least. Make people know that my company exists.

call your radio stations. Ask for bulk DJ promotional deals.

the pro's the DJS make up some thing and talk about it for a few seconds
every time they break.

the cons, you have no control over what they say, you provide them with bullets

that's what they work off of. Sometimes they will call you to get info
but not usually.

the biggest pro, you can get a month of advertising to your demographic
for around 2-4k. Depending on how big the station is.

also, you can get the same thing FREE.

IF you can give them something interesting to give away as part
of a promo. then they do the same thing for you .. but for free
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Claude Whitacre

10 years ago

Originally Posted by larsjorgenbr

Uhm yeah, as part of a campaign, at least. Make people know that my company exists.

Originally Posted by kenmichaels

I have literally ordered 100 of thousands of pens, magnets and flashlights
with our name, logo, phone number and in some cases
a quick blurb.There was a short stint many years ago I did mouse pads too.

I do not know if i have ever made a dime off of any of them.
( not for the lack of asking .. where did you hear about us from )

I do know the pens are appreciated the most, Because everyone always
used to ask for them.

I know longer do it, the company I used to get the best deals
and quality from went out of business.

If they were still in Business I would still do it, as a branding thing.

I used to offer a basket of custom printed chocolate with my info on the back
to our local customers to put on the reception desk.

My experience is identical to Ken's. I've paid tens of thousands of dollars over a few decades, for these imprinted items, and never traced a sale to any of it.

I buy imprinted pens, because I like the pens. I give out imprinted ice scrapers in the winter, because my customers can use an ice scraper.

But this is not advertising. Putting your company name on anything is not a form of advertising.

People may appreciate the free pen, but they won't call and say "You know, I was going to buy from Joe Fink...but then I remembered that you gave me this pen...so I'm buying from you!"

In the history of this planet, that conversation never happened.

So why do I still do it? Because I like handing out freebies to customers. (not prospects).

And the chocolates and cookies work. Why? Not because our name is on it, but because they actually like the gift.

Send a box of chocolates, and I'll remember you for a long time. A pen? Not so much. A frozen smoked turkey? A box of Omaha Steaks? A Honey Baked Ham? That will get you in the door!

That's a "Thank You" gift I'll remember.

Take the money you were going to spend on 5,000 pens..and buy 20 Honey Baked Hams. Hand one out to your top 20 prospects. Deliver it in person. That will multiply the likelihood of a sale happening. And it will nearly guarantee a 10 minute interview.

It certainly would work with me, and I'm a hard guy to see if you are a salesman.

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larsjorgenbr

10 years ago

Oh, lots of good stuff here, and a few eye openers.

Originally Posted by Claude Whitacre

My experience is identical to Ken's. I've paid tens of thousands of dollars over a few decades, for these imprinted items, and never traced a sale to any of it. (.....) Take the money you were going to spend on 5,000 pens..and buy 20 Honey Baked Hams. Hand one out to your top 20 prospects. Deliver it in person. That will multiply the likelihood of a sale happening. And it will nearly guarantee a 10 minute interview.

It certainly would work with me, and I'm a hard guy to see if you are a salesman.

Originally Posted by Patrick Christoph

I distributed probably in excess of 20k pens for a fitness company that I started. (....) it's best to look at promotional items as a gift and a reason to start a conversation.

I'm starting to see a pattern here. Seems like a lot of these things simply are a waste of money. Now, I want to give stuff to people, semi-nice things that is worth holding on too, or hams or something like that, like Claude mentioned. That was really a good one, outside the box. Darn box. Not sure if a ham would be good for me though, but I' planning on sending my customers Christmas cards/gifts. The chance of actually getting customers from handing out ice scrapes seems tiny anyway, so maybe I should just take care of my existing customers even more so that they will talk about me more to their friends(?).

Originally Posted by Jack Gordon

I have done this a lot over the years, mostly as holiday gifts or tradeshow giveaways.

One I really like for B2B clients is something like this: Printed candy jars, custom glass jars, branded candy jars

I fill them with individually wrapped gummy candies or sunkist fruit gems. Trust me, people love it, and they usually sit either at the reception desk, break room or CEO's desk where important people see my logo/message every day.

I'll just let the ice scrapers go, I think.. :rolleyes: I don't wanna piss people off, but I'm just thinking that an ice scraper on my windshield would be nice to get. But then again, I'm kinda positive most of the time, so..

The desks you put these jars on, are they all ex-customers, or do you just ask companies if you can put the jar on their desk?

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Claude Whitacre

10 years ago

Originally Posted by larsjorgenbr

Oh, lots of good stuff here, and a few eye openers.

I'm starting to see a pattern here. Seems like a lot of these things simply are a waste of money. Now, I want to give stuff to people, semi-nice things that is worth holding on too, or hams or something like that, like Claude mentioned. That was really a good one, outside the box. Darn box. Not sure if a ham would be good for me though, but I' planning on sending my customers Christmas cards/gifts. The chance of actually getting customers from handing out ice scrapes seems tiny anyway, so maybe I should just take care of my existing customers even more so that they will talk about me more to their friends(?).

I'll just let the ice scrapers go, I think.. :rolleyes: I don't wanna piss people off, but I'm just thinking that an ice scraper on my windshield would be nice to get. But then again, I'm kinda positive most of the time, so..

The desks you put these jars on, are they all ex-customers, or do you just ask companies if you can put the jar on their desk?

The ice scrapers aren't a bad idea. Just don't use them to try to get referrals or leads. What business are you in? It may help in the suggestion department.

By the way, please take this the right way...If you introduce yourself to me, and say "By the way, here's a free pen", you are instantly marked as someone to ignore. The only time I give away a pen is if someone asks for one, or they say they like it (after using it to sign something).

But a box of cookies, anything that people don't normally east, but want to...is a good gift. Nobody resents food.

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Jack Gordon 10 years ago

Originally Posted by larsjorgenbr

The desks you put these jars on, are they all ex-customers, or do you just ask companies if you can put the jar on their desk?

I have a B2B service and I use the jars for relationship building with existing clients and as a foot in the door for my favorite prospects. I actually mail hundreds of them out every year (my clients are all over the country), full of candy, at a cost of around $15/unit (jar, printing, candy, postage). I always get lots of thank yous, but where it really helps in sales is triggering conversations at trade shows. When people see my distinctive logo at the booth, it triggers warm memories of my gift.

Something like that may not make as much sense in your situation. It depends who your target market is. I'll tell you this, though. Anyone walking into an office with one of those filled with Sunkist candies is NOT going to be treated rudely. If you are good at warming up receptionists, this is as close to a sure thing as you can get to be remembered.
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Patrick Christoph

10 years ago

I distributed probably in excess of 20k pens for a fitness company that I started. Mostly just had everyone that worked with us drop them at restaurants for the servers to use and we'd go back by and replenish periodically. The pens we're attractive so they disappeared quickly, presumably into potential customers hands. At the same time we gave referral info to the staff so they could tell people about our program. We also offered the staff a group discount. You can probably see where I'm going here. The pens...who knows, they might have caused some direct response business but more importantly, it gave us a great excuse to recruit people to inadvertently sell our program. I think whatever you're wanting to accomplish, it's best to look at promotional items as a gift and a reason to start a conversation.

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Jack Gordon

10 years ago

I have done this a lot over the years, mostly as holiday gifts or tradeshow giveaways.

One I really like for B2B clients is something like this: Printed candy jars, custom glass jars, branded candy jars

I fill them with individually wrapped gummy candies or sunkist fruit gems. Trust me, people love it, and they usually sit either at the reception desk, break room or CEO's desk where important people see my logo/message every day.

For something a bit lower rent, I've done things like wood rulers or shotglasses with clever marketing messages.

The key is getting something people will actually want to keep and/or use (I don't know how many people used the shotglasses, but I seriously doubt very many were thrown away) and that whatever you get will speak to your target market.

I would stay away from something like an ice scraper, as anything you can afford will likely be lower quality and just piss people off while they are staring at your logo.

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larsjorgenbr

10 years ago

@ Ken: Good idea about the radio stations! We have a few small stations around here, I'll be sure to look into it first thing in the morning.

In general, it seems like advertising in Norway is *waaaay* more expensive than in the US (I assume that's where you live). I mean, I just paid, what was it, 4-500 dollars for a small ad that was 3 weeks in a newspaper that has only 4-5K readers. 1 person called because of it. I could just as well have made a campfire with the doe and made me some sausages - at least they would've tasted good, as opposed to the bill I will be getting in a day or two..

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larsjorgenbr

10 years ago

No it's probably not a BAD idea, but I'm thinking budget vs ROI. Maybe I'll do it anyway, when the time comes.

I run a computer company. I fix computers, build websites etc. Right now I'm focusing on the repair part in the city where I live.

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Jack Gordon 10 years ago

Originally Posted by larsjorgenbr

I fix computers, build websites etc. Right now I'm focusing on the repair part in the city where I live.

If this is the case, I would imagine small office clients would be a bit of a sweet spot for you. I think the candy jars, or something like them, would be effective.
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- midasman09 Banned 10 years ago
  
  Re: FREE PENS as promotion;
  
  When my wife started up her Retail Antique Shoppe....it was MY job, as her "Marketing & Promotion" Unpaid Advisor to come up with promo ideas to bring in customers.
  
  Well....one of the many promo things I did was to order a BUNCh of nice pens to give out to "get our Name out"!....however, rather than just putting our business Name etc, on the pens....I added some "WORDS" to Motivate people we gave the pens to to....COME INTO OUR SHOPPE!
  
  The WORDS I chose were....."If you like this pen, bring it into our Antique Shoppe and we'll give you 2 more just like it!"
  
  Now....these were GOOD pens....not your average junkola pens. I spent probably twice as much to get GOOD pens.....pens people would LIKE to use.
  
  AND....after we began handing these out at Chamber Meetings and Church and everywhere we had a chance....we started to....GET PEOPLE INTO OUR SHOPPE....asking for 2 more FREE Pens!
  
  Well....many of the people coming in to get 2 more FREE (Good) pens....also saw our "stuff" and....some BOUGHT and told their friends about our Shoppe!
  
  So....once again, THE POWER OF WORDS worked for me! Rather than just buying pens (as the above comments) like every other biz person who bought pens and found them to be "practically worthless"....because there was NO REASON to do anything with their pens other than to "use them to write with" (and because most of the pens they bought were junkola, they weren't even good for that)
  
  Whereas....the Pens I bought, I received a VERY GOOD ROI (Return On Investment) MY Pens brought PEOPLE IN THE DOOR!
  
  Now....get ready, here come's WORDS I used on other batches of Pens (that, seemingly were useless to every other business owner I talked to B4 ordering MY pens! )
  
  Here's the Words I put on MY pens ....besides the Name & contact info of our Shoppe; HOLD ONTO YOUR HATS AS I REVEAL THE WORDS THAT BROUGHT HUGE TRAFFIC INTO OUR SHOPPE;
  
  The Words I put on MY Pens were;
  
  "This Pen is good for $1 OFF anything in our Shoppe!"
  
  MY pens were like "Burning a Hole in the pockets of those who received them!" They HAD TO SEE WHAT THEY COULD SPEND THEIR FREE DOLLAR ON!"
  
  Sure....some people came in and grabbed 4 antigue marbles (25cents each) came up to the counter and said, "Can I get these marbles with my pen?"
  
  HOWEVER....we also had people who, jokingly commented, as they were buying one of our REAL Antiques (table for$2,500, cupboard for $850 etc)... "Can I apply my pen to this purchase?"
  
  You betcha lady!
  
  And....a Side-Benefit for us was.....when they presented the "Buck-Off" pen to buy....they DID NOT ASK FOR ANY FURTHER DISCOUNTS!"
  
  In the "Antiques" business it is ASSUMED....you ask for a Discount on any item! (This is priced at X$, would you take $X?) When they used our "Buck-Off" pens....they just DiD NOT ASK FOR ANOTHER DISCOUNT!
  
  I think it comes from MOST people just do NOT want to appear....GREEDY!
  
  Thanks for reminding me of when I used Pens in our retail Shoppe. By doing a little thinking and....using the POWER OF WORDS!
  
  Don Alm...."wordsmith" from waay back
  
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  ThePromotionalGuy 10 years ago
  
  Years ago I sold promotional products for Kaeser and Blair.
  
  I designed a unique image on Bic Clic Stic pens that got customers into my client's doors.
  
  My image was that of a ticket that stated $10 OFF any purchase and had my clients store location also imprinted on it.
  
  It was such a success for him I recommended this idea to other retail businesses, (florists, clothing stores, locksmiths, optometrists, tire store, plumber, feed store, muffle shop and a couple of locally owned grocery stores.)
  
  Each client that used my ticket on a pen idea did see an increase in customer purchases or returning to buy again.
  
  Had one hardware store that took my idea to the next level. If customer brought pen in they got their discount, but then the customer would be given another pen as a way to get them to come back for another purchase.
  
  Looking back the businesses that profited the most from promotional items used them as part of a discount program to bring the customer back into the store for another purchase, reorder or to get them to return again.
  
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Claude Whitacre

10 years ago

Originally Posted by larsjorgenbr

No it's probably not a BAD idea, but I'm thinking budget vs ROI. Maybe I'll do it anyway, when the time comes.

I run a computer company. I fix computers, build websites etc. Right now I'm focusing on the repair part in the city where I live.

I think you're looking in the wrong places for advertising. Giving away little gifts isn't the way. You want people who need what you sell. Advertising in the local paper, by bartering your services will help (meaning you don't pay for the ads with cash, not that you barter with the end customer)

Of course, online..in every way possible, locally. It's all free. Videos, blog, articles, a website...you know the drill.

Who's customer is your customer? There has to be several local companies that can recommend your services, and that aren't direct competitors. If you have any of those businesses, I have an idea.

I have a few clients that are home inspectors. I know a few home inspectors that do one thing, and one thing only to market. They go to real estate offices, set up a candy basket...keep it stocked with little candy bars, and put their business cards in with the candy. Every couple of weeks, they restock the candy baskets. The real estate agents recommend these guys to their clients. Win-win-free candy.

I have one client that does this with 14 real estate offices, and can't keep up with the business...in a recession...in a bad real estate market...without advertising in print....

The only other marketing he does is with me, dominating the search engines with his content.

This guy must spend a thousand dollars a month at Sam's Club, buying bulk candy.

Do you know who could use this idea? Almost all of us.

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DABK 10 years ago

Lars, people use imprinted promotional products 2 ways in business:
1. for branding
2. to market

If they're branding, they want to give away as many items as possible; that means low price per unit.

If they market, they think things through more thoroughly (or, at least, differently). They think about what stage in the buying process the likely recipient is at... the closer to buying, the more expensive the item can be. They think about 2 or more-step strategies.

You can use promotional items to increase the likelihood that existing clients are going to buy again from you. You can use them to re-activate lost clients. You can use them to acquire new clients.

Each one would require a different approach.

The ROI depends on how much they're going to spend and how much the promotional items cost you...

To attract new or make existing customers come in, you could send them a free coaster or saucer with your sales letter that, among other things, lets them know that, when they come in, there's a gift for them. Which would be the cup or mug that goes with the saucer/coaster.

Pens would be, in my opinion, better used to give to people who attend a seminar you speak at... together with a notepad for taking notes. Or to existing clients, to keep reminding them of you inbetween purchases.

For some facts about promotional items, check out the survey done by the Advertising Specialty Institute:

http://www.asicentral.com/asp/open/R...Study_2010.pdf
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peter_act

10 years ago

You know, I saw the subject of this post and thought "I'll bet Claude and Don will jump on this", and I was right.

People, if you want to succeed in marketing, do a search for every post by these guys and copy them to a text document.

You'll learn far more than from any overpriced WSO.

By the way, Don, I think your idea of using the pen to invite people back is brilliant. Nest time I get one of these pens, I'll mention it as a marketing idea to the business, just as as some friendly advice, not a a promotion for my business. Mind you, I'll make sure I leave my business card!

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larsjorgenbr

10 years ago

Originally Posted by Jack Gordon

If this is the case, I would imagine small office clients would be a bit of a sweet spot for you. I think the candy jars, or something like them, would be effective.

Maybe I can combine that with cold calling to businesses? Just call them and tell them about my service, and then go over there and give them a candyjar, something like that?

Originally Posted by Claude Whitacre

I think you're looking in the wrong places for advertising. Giving away little gifts isn't the way. You want people who need what you sell. Advertising in the local paper, by bartering your services will help (meaning you don't pay for the ads with cash, not that you barter with the end customer)

Of course, online..in every way possible, locally. It's all free. Videos, blog, articles, a website...you know the drill.

Who's customer is your customer? There has to be several local companies that can recommend your services, and that aren't direct competitors. If you have any of those businesses, I have an idea.

I have a few clients that are home inspectors. I know a few home inspectors that do one thing, and one thing only to market. They go to real estate offices, set up a candy basket...keep it stocked with little candy bars, and put their business cards in with the candy. Every couple of weeks, they restock the candy baskets. The real estate agents recommend these guys to their clients. Win-win-free candy.

Yeah, you're probably right. I'm very used to web marketing but since what I offer is very local, my web marketing haven't had the results I was hoping. So then when I try offline marketing, I have a very limited imagination and would probably lose a lot of money doing what I first planned. I've done so in the past as well.. (I wonder how many businesses that never make it because of bad marketing..)

The candy bar home inspector thing - isn't that dependent on the candy basket being put in a place that I once had as a customer or at least a business that is related to the one I run?

Originally Posted by midasman09

The WORDS I chose were....."If you like this pen, bring it into our Antique Shoppe and we'll give you 2 more just like it!"

"This Pen is good for $1 OFF anything in our Shoppe!"

I don't have a shop where people can drop by, but the discount idea was a really good one - my average customer pays about $150; a 1 dollar discount might be too little, since they actually have to pick up the phone and call me. But $10 discount might get them to call. What do you think?

Originally Posted by DABK

If they market, they think things through more thoroughly (or, at least, differently). They think about what stage in the buying process the likely recipient is at... the closer to buying, the more expensive the item can be. They think about 2 or more-step strategies.

To attract new or make existing customers come in, you could send them a free coaster or saucer with your sales letter that, among other things, lets them know that, when they come in, there's a gift for them. Which would be the cup or mug that goes with the saucer/coaster.

I'm more interested in the marketing part than the branding. Not sure if I've mentioned it, but I would like to just leave the private market as much as possible and focus on businesses (but I do take all the customers that I get). A lot more money to be made working with businesses.

Gonna read the survey now, btw. Thanks!

Originally Posted by ThePromotionalGuy

My image was that of a ticket that stated $10 OFF any purchase and had my clients store location also imprinted on it.

It was such a success for him I recommended this idea to other retail businesses, (florists, clothing stores, locksmiths, optometrists, tire store, plumber, feed store, muffle shop and a couple of locally owned grocery stores.)

Each client that used my ticket on a pen idea did see an increase in customer purchases or returning to buy again.

Had one hardware store that took my idea to the next level. If customer brought pen in they got their discount, but then the customer would be given another pen as a way to get them to come back for another purchase.

I wouldn't mind giving out a new pen if I did this - but not sure what it would look like in my business. Maybe I could just give them $10 off for holding on to the pen instead of giving them a new one?

Originally Posted by peter_act

You know, I saw the subject of this post and thought "I'll bet Claude and Don will jump on this", and I was right.

People, if you want to succeed in marketing, do a search for every post by these guys and copy them to a text document.

You'll learn far more than from any overpriced WSO.

I could probably be googling for weeks without finding info that is half as good as what a lot of people have posted in this thread.

I've got a lot of reading to do... :rolleyes:

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Jack Gordon

10 years ago

Originally Posted by larsjorgenbr

Maybe I can combine that with cold calling to businesses? Just call them and tell them about my service, and then go over there and give them a candyjar, something like that?

Yes, very perceptive. The gift is not going to make the sale for you. Its purpose is to help keep the door wedged open long enough for you to make your pitch.

Something like that helps make the prospect feel downright guilty for not reciprocating with some hospitality. Use that opportunity wisely, and it will be effective.

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Fifteen Lessons I have learned over 15 years and six businesses (or, My 1000th-Post Manifesto)

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Claude Whitacre

10 years ago

Originally Posted by larsjorgenbr

The candy bar home inspector thing - isn't that dependent on the candy basket being put in a place that I once had as a customer or at least a business that is related to the one I run?

It should be a business where they could refer customers to you.

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What if they're not stars? What if they are holes poked in the top of a container so we can breath?

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midasman09 Banned 10 years ago

One other "printed item" we used in our Antique Shoppe was;

"BEE BACK CARDS"!

"Bee Back Cards" are simply standard sized business cards with a Graphic of a Cartoonich bee with a black and yellow body and wings.....and the words;

"BEE BACK CARD" across the top and....present this Card when making your next purchase for a "Special Discount!"

And....yup, we started seeing Bee Back Cards.....in fact, we noticed some of our customers had given Bee Back Cards to their friends.

Anyway....thought you'd like to know this.

Don Alm
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KittyPoo

10 years ago

Thats a good idea to have a printed ads on various things. Most useful is desktop calendar. People are marketing using pen and mouse pad too. But according to me calendar is one of the best and little cheaper idea to have.

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DBeaver

8 years ago

I missed this thread when it was 'live' as I've been away for 10 years. Not sure how that happened other than staying busy with my home-based business.

Yes, promotional advertising as an industry is alive and well and recently claimed the number four spot in all advertising media. It's also the fasted growing media when compared to radio, TV, newspaper, magazine and billboards.

I enjoyed reading some of the creating marketing ideas combined with the products. If your promotional product is to be used as advertising, it must have a message beyond name, address, phone number and/or website.

But, promotional products are used for so much more than pure advertising - branding, commemorative gifts, employee and customer thank yous, safety reminders and rewards, premiums (free with minimum purchase required), recruiting tools, and much more.

And an update on Kaeser & Blair, Inc. mentioned above, they just celebrated their 120th anniversary.

I've been affiliated with them for the past 22 years of 31 years selling promotional advertising.

Dennis

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ConvertiVid

8 years ago

Personally, I haven't done such marketing gimmicks but I have seen a couple of interesting ones before. The most interesting marketing gimmick I have seen was when I was on an overseas trip. I went to the Philippines once and there's this taxi company that offered free rides to their customers. It is indeed different from printed balloons, shirts, pens or etc but a free taxi ride is definitely unique in some way.

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longrobnc

8 years ago

About 6 weeks ago, I bought a company in my niche that had been open since 1964. I have never seen so many promotional items in my life. Not large volumes because they were giving them out, but a massive variety. I don't know if any of these items create business because I've always found ways that I felt were a smarter way to create leads. In the end, it didn't work for them because they have been shrinking for many years. Maybe they just were not using them creatively.

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Stuff with print on it (balloons, pens etc)

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