SWAG is Stuff We All Get. It is the “logoed stuff” that is handed out at trade shows and given away to top clients, but if it is truly Stuff We All Get. . . then where is its value?
The reason to utilize promotional marketing is to enable reach and recall by those you wish to influence when you are not in the room. Does what you give away to your clients and prospects have these qualities?
- Is it valuable to those receiving it?
- Does it communicate the value of your brand effectively?
- Will it enable a call to action by those receiving it, either now or in the future?
If it does not accomplish these three things, you have wasted time, effort, and money.
Let me give you an example of a failure in promotional marketing that happened over a decade ago. A client insisted on this promotion, I advised against it, but they went ahead with it anyway. It was for a national construction company that was attending a major show in Vegas. They wanted to differentiate themselves and had me create yardsticks with their logo, website, and the phrase, “Do your current suppliers measure up?”
It was memorable, on brand, on message but lacked one key thing, beyond the show floor, no one ever saw these ever again. The supplier handed out thousands of these yardsticks, and at the exit to the trade show floor, and at the security gate of the airport, thousands of these were in the garbage cans.
WHY?
They were too big. No one could put them in their suitcases, or carry them home with them on the plane, and therefore they were abandoned.
There are over 750,000 promotional marketing items available, and ninety-eight percent or more of them are wrong for your current campaign, brand, or client.
They are not seen as valuable and therefore are either thrown away or given to children and grandchildren, and neither of these options provides you with any return on your investment.
Another problem people face is the thought that they need to give away product in quantity, instead of quality.
If you give away something cheap, that breaks easily and is perceived as poor quality by your customer… THAT IS HOW YOU WILL BE PERCEIVED.
Too many people give away cheap pens or other items because they feel that they need to give away quantity, and that is probably the worst thing you can do.
If you have a budget or $2000.00, then you are much better off giving away four hundred $5.00 items or two hundred $10.00 items than 2000 $1.00 items. What you give away will have a higher perceived value to those receiving them and will more likely stay with them longer adding to both increased reach and recall.
The third piece of advice I can give is that placing your logo on everything you give away can cheapen things.
Here is an example. For years, I had a client who gave away Mont Blanc pens. These pens retailed for $850.00 US. When he signed a contract with a client, which was always for a significant amount, he gave the pen to the person to sign the contract and then told them to keep it. His logo was nowhere on the pen, but every single client knew who they had received it from and cherished it.
Your clients do not want to be walking billboards for you. Consequently, subtlety of branding is key. Making something elegant enables it to be received as a valued gift and utilized more often. The more it is used, the more opportunities there are for the client to remember you.
I urge everyone reading this to ask themselves these questions when designing and implementing a promotional marketing campaign:
- Does this represent my brand well?
- Am I proud to give this away?
- Will my clients find this valuable to them?
- How does this piece help my customers remember me and contact me when needed?
- Do I KNOW this is safe to give away to my customers, and can I get documentation to prove this?
Photo Courtesy of Xperience Promotions
About Ben Baker
Ben Baker has been a Fractional Chief Communications Officer, Chief Marketing Officer and Chief Podcast Officer for his clients for over a decade. "The single biggest problem with communication is the illusion that it has taken place.” - George Bernard Shaw We help you fix that problem and make sure you are listened to, understood, valued, and engaged with by internal and external clients, prospects and stakeholders in meaningful and profitable ways.
Ben Baker has been a Fractional Chief Communications Officer, Chief Marketing Officer and Chief Podcast Officer for his clients for over a decade.
"The single biggest problem with communication is the illusion that it has taken place.”
- George Bernard Shaw
We help you fix that problem and make sure you are listened to, understood, valued, and engaged with by internal and external clients, prospects and stakeholders in meaningful and profitable ways.
