Trending: Promotional Items for Parties

Use Promotional Items to Create

Unique Birthday Celebrations for Grown Ups

When people think of promotional items, they usually think about business, but this time we’re here to talk about parties.

Everyone loves a party.  At least that is how the saying goes.

Children love parties because they get to play games, eat lots of treats and leave with a goodie bag in hand.

Grown-ups can have fun parties. They can also make away with goodies.

Using customized promotional items for your party will ensure that you create a bash  that is not only unique but also memorable. There are a number of ways to do it:

Invitations:

Why not put a unique spin on your party invitations by creating a customized coaster, jar opener or mouse pad with all the details printed on it? You can be certain that by providing something that is useful and creative, you won’t have anyone saying that they forgot or didn’t know when the party was! Fridge magnets are another item that you could choose to use as a unique invitation. Even better; folks will know that if you got that creative with the invitation, the party itself is sure to be a blast.

Goodie Bags:

Customized tote bags are available in so many styles and materials that the only limit is your budget and imagination. A laminated paper bag or imprinted grocery tote that is customized in the theme or colors you have chosen for the party will be reusable after the event, making it a sensible choice.

And, they are not just for filling with goodies! Why not create a scavenger hunt and your guests can use the bags to fill with their gathered loot!

However, if you do decide to just go the goodie route, your choice of contents will depend on the purpose of the party and whether the attendees are men, women or both.

Perfect gifts for women that can all be customized are lip balm, compact mirrors, lipstick holders, travel mugs, manicure sets, keychain flashlights, pillboxes and pretty pens.

For the men you could include customized golf items, beer or shot glasses, ice scrapers, bottle openers, USB sticks, flashlights or even a tool set.

If you want to create customized unisex goodie bags, then sticky notes, USB thumb drives, key rings, travel or ceramic mugs and stress balls will all prove to be popular.

Coasters, Place Mats and Mouse Pads

You can use customized coasters, place mats and even mouse pads to protect surfaces. They will provide an additional conversation piece, as well as an extra takeaway gift at the party’s end.

If you are having a dinner party, why not put a customized tin or box of candies in each place? Use party themed business cards as place cards by writing the names of each person on them, and putting them in the correct place. You could add a message such as, “Thank you for attending”, “Welcome” or even, “Enjoy!”

Glasses

Customized glasses will make a real statement at your party and they are available in a number of different styles. If your budget doesn’t allow you to purchase glassware, then you can still use customized plastic cups. At the end of the party, guests can either take them away, or, depending on the level of customization,  you may even be able to re-use them!

Hopefully, these ideas have sparked your creativity.

Check out what is available and think how you can use customized promotional items to create a party to remember!

The Benefits of Promotional Items

Should Your Business Be Using Promotional Items?

Benefits of Using Promotional Items

Promotional items such as mugs, pens, USB drives, to name only a few, are the perfect way to benefit your business and build your brand and increase its exposure and reach.

Regardless of the promotional item you choose to use, it will increase the reach of your company and your brand. Each time the lucky recipient uses that promotional pen, for instance, your company will be instantly at the forefront of their mind. It will also be visible to anyone else in their vicinity and may well spark a discussion about how, why and where the person received the pen or other promotional gift. The conversation may well continue with a discussion of the products or services that your company offers.

If you have given your company’s promotional items away at an event, such as a trade show, your company’s name will continue to be seen and mentioned long after that event has finished. Unlike flyers and brochures, which are often only looked at once and then thrown away, a pen, USB stick, cap or mug will be used and be visible for a much longer period. This means that any expenditure on the promotional gifts will have a good return on investment.

Any gifts that you give to prospective, or existing, clients and customers should be high quality and functional. By purchasing high quality gifts you will be known for providing quality and this perception will extend to the goods and services you offer. High quality gifts will be valued more highly by the recipient so they will be more inclined to use them or to show them off to their colleagues and friends. This can substantially increase the chances of gaining new business.

Ensure Results From Your Use of Promotional Gifts

Your choice of product to use as a promotional item may depend on the industry you are in, as well as your budget.

What should guide you in choice, though, is not just value for money but quality. It is pointless spending less on a poor quality item that will break as soon as it is used because it will be thrown away; even worse, your company will be perceived as one that does not care about quality.  Once the product has broken it loses any impact, creates a poor impression in the recipient and loses the chance of promoting your company in the future.

Another important consideration when choosing a promotional item is the purpose of your promotional efforts. If you are choosing an item to give away at an event then you will probably want to choose an item with a long shelf life so that any products not given away can be stored for later use. Items without specific dates or event names on them can be used at multiple events as well as be given away in between events whenever the opportunity arises.

Remember to include your company name as well as logo, web address and telephone number if space permits. The use of your company name and logo will ensure that they are easily visible to the recipient and anyone who sees your gift. By providing your website URL and/or your phone number you are making it easier for them to find you and get in touch.

Another important consideration will be cost. It is often more cost effective to order in larger quantities providing the promotional item you are choosing has no “expiration date” or time limitations for its use.

With the wide range of promotional items available you should have no trouble finding at least one that will suit your needs and budget. Any investment in these items will be well worth it, as they will provide you with a source of passive advertising. Choose a high quality and useful item that the recipient will be likely to use multiple times per day, and especially in front of others, and you will be advertising to a wider audience than you imagined with virtually no effort and minimal cost.

Great Ideas Trending

Great Promotional Products Story

Matriarch Gets Creative With

Family Reunion Gifts

Sarah Clarke Walburten, eldest sibling and family matriarch of the Clarke Family, decided to gift her family with memories and she used promotional products to do it.

Sarah has always been great at keeping family photo albums up to date. With 7 brothers and sisters, all of their kids and grandkids, as well as her 6 grown children and their offspring, there are a lot of pictures.

When the family decided to get together for an extended family reunion this spring. they reserved an estate in Nantucket; finding a vacation property that sleeps 60 adults and dozens of children wasn’t easy but they did it!

The special 3-day weekend event, which is scheduled for upcoming Memorial Day, is bound to be a terrific time, but Sarah wanted to do something really special for everyone. She got out the family photo albums along with a scanner and got to work. After all of her scanning, she jumped on Facebook too and started downloading pictures from there. Before long, Sarah had a few hundred awesome images of the entire family and, with the help of her youngest son, she put together a beautiful power point presentation and set it to some fun music.

Sarah has been a real estate agent for over 30 years and has always used promotional items to show her gratitude for the home sellers and buyers she works with. She asked her company graphic artist to do her a favor and put together a simple, yet beautiful design of a family tree with the first names of each family member drawn on the leaves. Then, she contacted PENSRUS, her go-to promotional products company, and ordered 100 custom drives, which she had pre-loaded with her power-point presentation.

The plan is to present the slide show at the Saturday night dinner party, but Sarah also wanted to send it home with every family member in the family, along with all the pictures that are sure to be taken over the weekend.

Upon arrival, each family member including any children over 3, will receive a disposable digital camera with instructions to take as many pictures as they like. When the weekend is over, Sara will collect all of the disposable digital cameras and download the images into a file marked Family Reunion 2013, load those files onto each drive and, voilà!, each family member will go home with a thumb drive full of memories.

We love hearing great ideas about the creative ways our clients use our products. Not just intended for promoting business, promotional items are a really great way to create something special for an event. What have you done with customized promotional products in your personal life?

Eco Friendly Promo Products

Top Ten Eco Friendly Promo Products

& Why You Should Use Them

Many consumers are concerned with the delicate environmental state the world is in today. Smart business marketers are striving to appeal to conscientious “green” consumers by offering or using renewable, sustainable and eco-friendly processes, products and energy.

Regardless of the nature of your business, product or service, you can appeal to those same consumers by showing your earth friendly values when you gift green promotional products.

Here is our top ten:

1. Water bottles allow us to refill from a larger water source again and again so we don’t ad to the plastic problem that is filling up our landmasses and oceans with non-biodegradable “disposable” plastic.
2. Grocery tote bags are greatly appreciated as many cities are now passing laws that ban plastic grocery bags.  Just about every consumer market has jumped on the green bandwagon by offering grocery tote bags for purchase in stores. Why not show your concern and gift your clients with beautifully branded bags?
3. Eco friendly USB drives eliminate wasted paper from printing and eco friendly USB drives will be appreciated by your recipients and you will be remembered when you gift them with a practical, eco friendly promotional item.
4. Recycled pens & pencils are made of recycled plastic, bamboo or wood; eco friendly promotional pens and pencils will start conversation and be used again and again.
5. Seeded paper products help the environment by planting new trees when the paper is used up and discarded.  When you gift your prospects with seeded paper promotional products, they won’t just ad to the land fills when they’ve used up the product, they will plant a tree and remember you each time they see it.
6. Recycled polyester apparel helps curb discards, prolong landfills and reduce toxic emissions. Do your part by branding and gifting recycled polyester promotional apparel.
7. Bamboo products are wonderful because bamboo is the fastest growing plant on the planet and is a good, degradable replacement for wood; it produces more oxygen, prevents erosion and can grow without pesticides and chemicals. Gifting promotional products made of bamboo gives a message that your company is environmentally conscious.
8. Hand cranked flashlights help save the planet from eroding batteries while making a good impression by promoting your business with branded hand cranked flashlights
9. Organic cotton apparel reduces the use of pesticides and chemicals that are destroying the planet; organic cotton is the best answer and when you gift promotional apparel made of organic cotton, you are helping Mother Earth and promoting conservation along with your business.
10. Recycled paper products help save trees, mark your brand as eco-friendly and promote education and conversation.

The Promotional Products Story

Promotional Products in History

It may not be surprising that promotional products got their start on the political front. Not only were they used to demonstrate affiliation and support of the winning candidate, but also they may have had a subtler, political motive.

In 1789, New York, New Jersey and Connecticut colonial button makers made George Washington Inaugural Buttons; the commemorative buttons were sold to Citizens who were eager to commemorate the ceremony of George Washington as the President of the United States. It is believed that those attending the ceremony on April 20th 1789 wore many of the buttons, and some theories have been put forth that the buttons were also a demonstration that American manufacturing could easily replace manufactures in Birmingham England.

The idea caught on and in the 19^th century, there was some early promotional item marketing with advertising on calendars, wooden specialties and rulers, but it wasn’t until the later part of the 19^th century and early 20^th century that an industry really started to form around it and distribution of promotional products became a little more common place.

Jasper Meeks, a printer in Ohio, is widely considered by many to be the real pioneer of the promo products industry, when he convinced the owner of a local shoe store to give book bags with his store name imprinted on the side to local schools for their students. Grabbing on to the idea, Meek’s competitor Henry Beach began customizing items and soon the two were branding everything from buggy whips to aprons, horse visors, fans and calendars for local businesses.

It would not be until the 1970s, however, that the promotional product industry really took off when large companies started to recognize the benefits of promoting their brand identity; however, the gifts were usually limited to seasonal corporate gift giving.

As companies became more inventive in their marketing and branding efforts, promotional item gift giving became commonplace and took place year around as corporations and small businesses began using the tactic to marketing their brand, services and products at events, through the mail and in their offices and stores.

Today, there is such a wide variety of useful, interesting and even industry specific promotional items that can be utilized, that the sky is the limit; and, as studies have shown time and again, the use of promotional products is one of the most valuable and highly effective marketing strategies available.

Teachers Get Creative With Promotional Products

School Teachers use Promotional Products

to Increase Study Efforts & it Works

When most people think of promotional products, they think of businesses trying to get their name out there by branding promo items and giving them away, but two high school teachers at a private school had a better idea for them.

Always searching for ways to increase the motivation of their students, two high school teachers in Southern California decided to use promotional products to help motivate students to study harder, do their homework, do extra credit assignments and be good citizens by offering a point system to earn customized items. Branded with the school mascot, each product was color coded according to the level of achievement; that way the award would stand out brightly, announcing to all that could see the award the student had earned. Given out on a monthly basis at the monthly assembly and pep rally, students worked hard to earn those brightly colored, coveted and useful awards.

Every student could be a winner, as awards were color coded according to accomplishment. Different awards were given out each month so that 9 in total were given through the year. The students who earned the most top awards throughout the year got a grand prize at the end.

The point system, based on 100 points each month, was awarded with certain percentages being given out for homework, test scores, attendance and good citizenship. 100 points meant a red gift, 75 meant a green one, 50 meant they got the blue prize.

Giving out mascot-imprinted products, the promotional items included pencils, pens, rulers, pocket highlighters, eraser sticks, file folios, pencil bags, ball caps, lip balm, book bags, t-shirts, bleacher blankets and beach towels. Starting out small, with pens, pencils and erasers, the prizes gradually became more valuable and coveted as the year wore on. Of course, all of these beautiful mascot items were available for sale at the school book store in white with the school colors of purple & gold, but, when earned, the color coded point score items were much more valued.

It worked. The students absolutely loved it and test scores and grades increased overall by 38% at the school.

Teachers getting creative with promotional items; Just goes to show there are all kinds of ways to use them!

Big Business Booms on the Golf Course

Small Businesses Take Advantage of the Promotional Opportunity by Gifting Promotional Products

It is no secret that business deals have been struck for years on the back nine, but smart business owners are starting to take note and take advantage of a great marketing opportunity by branding and gifting promotional golf products. Not an inexpensive sport, golfers need things and golf things cost a pretty penny. Imagine how appreciative they might be of your company if you gift them with the little things they need.

Depending on your budget, there are many freebie options for gifting on the golf course, thereby getting your name out there and on the minds of business people at your local club.

Erin Menath, Golf pro at GolfTec in Seattle says, “stay away from pencils; golfers get those for free. Golf balls aren’t a good idea either as golfers tend to be pretty selective when it comes to those; also they get lost. Go for useful items that will really be appreciated”.

Among the useful items that Menath suggested:  Ball markers, divot tools or, even better, dual divot tools that double as bottle openers, bottle openers of course, golf towels, cozies, and Titleist hats with your company logo on the side.

Distribution is a snap; you can easily get these wonderfully useful little billboards into the hands of those business people and turn them into profitable customers for your business.  There are a number of ways, really, and again it all depends on your budget. The sky is the limit if your budget can reach it, but since that’s sometimes not the case, we’ll give you a couple of suggestions, ranging from the very inexpensive to the more costly to implement.

Small items like divot tools, bottle openers and ball markers can be left in a basket or on a kiosk near the registration desk where golfers check in for their tee time; mark the distribution area with a small sign that says, “Please take one, courtesy of XYZ Company; enjoy your game!”

Likewise, companies often choose to sponsor golf tournaments or fund raisers by gifting promotional items or even promotional gift bags that are full of their branded promotional products.

No matter what your business is, you probably can’t go wrong at your local golf course; business men and women often play golf and conduct business on the golf course, but they also get massages, get their taxes done, need accounting services, have vision problems, get their business attire dry cleaned, travel, repair their computers, their cars and their shoes, use office supplies and, well, use products and services like the rest of us!

Trending Monograms for Weddings

Monograms for Wedding Gifts & Favors

Personalization adds an elegant touch and monograms for customized pens, napkins, placeholders, wedding favors and wedding party gifts are trending hot for weddings in 2013. While some might find it a bit extreme, many brides are even planning their entire wedding and reception themes around their designs.

Stylish monograms are designed by overlapping or combining two or more letters or other graphemes to form a symbol or emblem. Over the centuries, monograms have been used by many to represent their name, house or seal; from artists, craftsmen and guilds, to great families, monarchs, and governments.

Traditionally, monograms are created by using the first, last and middle initials, with the last name initial appearing in the center. For example, Jack Arthur Sprat’s monogram would look like JSA. In modern times, however, couples who are creating a monogram often edge away from tradition and create their monogram in a variety of different ways, utilizing initials, first names and sometimes incorporating their wedding date to mark the occasion. Some prefer to use only the first initials of each spouse’s name and others use just the initial of the groom’s last name with either initials or full first names appearing out to the side or above and below. Further modernization still might entail the usage of both the bride and groom’s last initials when the bride chooses to keep her maiden name. Jack Sprat and Jill Rebel then become JSRJ.

There are some great do-it-yourself design suites available online, but often couples prefer to hire a graphic design artist or add the design service to their order when they order their customized wedding favors and memorabilia from PENRUS.

When planning wedding reception décor and favors, you can use beautifully crafted custom monograms to personalize your wedding favors by placing the couple’s monogram on elegant custom pens, napkins, keepsake jewelry boxes, paper fans, mint tins, lighters, tote bags, shot glasses and more. In fact, the items that can be personalized as a keepsake are really only limited to the to the couples imagination.

Depending on the wedding budget, the same design that was used to create the couple’s monogram can be modified to create personalized monogrammed gifts for the bridal party. Some gift ideas include handkerchiefs, cufflinks, flasks, personalized pens and journals, shot glasses, wine glasses, tote bags and more.

When planning wedding gifts and especially favors to give your guests, monograms are an easy way to add an elegant, personal touch and buying in bulk quantities can save bundles of cash.

PENSRUS Pens ‘Marketing on a Budget’ with Affordable Promotional Products

Marketing and advertising has never been so affordable and easy now that PENSRUS is offering amazing savings on personalized products suitable for tradeshow giveaways, gifts for coworkers, and every day use. PENSRUS, a mainstay in the promotional products industry and a leading distributor of marketing and advertising pens, is going public with their large selection of customizable inventory, which will save businesses large sums of money while increasing brand awareness and loyalty.

One popular promotional tool that customers constantly rave about are custom logo BIC Lighters. The double benefit offered by utilizing BIC lighters as a marketing strategy cannot be ignored, as they are useful to give away to customers and potential clients, but also increase the visibility of one’s brand when imprinted upon with one’s logo and contact information. Personalized BIC lighters are extremely affordable and are often borrowed, thus increasing the odds that one’s logo will be seen.

Priced as low as $1.10 a unit, marketers everywhere can rejoice knowing they don’t need to spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on a billboard ad that may go unnoticed or a print ad in a magazine that will be tossed away.

Another BIC product that advertisers can bring to tradeshows, gift to coworkers, or give to potential customers, is the BIC Circle Tote bag. With one of a kind oval, textured fabric, a front slip pocket, and customizable with unique artwork, this promotional giveaway ensures that one’s company stand out among the rest. Companies can implement personalized tote bags as their own personal, walking billboard. This is one promotional product that does not disappoint; both in terms of advertising and in budget.

PENSRUS is constantly offering savings on custom promotional products that customers love using and marketers love making. PENSRUS is proud to offer competitively low prices on all custom logo products, and is offering free ground shipping among a slew of other deals no setup fee and no imprint fee.

To view an entire listing of PENSRUS products, please visit www.PENSRUS.com

The Logic behind the Irrational Decision Making Process

It’s commonly said that, for the most part, humans are a rational species and base decisions on logical thinking. When it comes to buying products and services, though, logic many times takes a back seat to emotions. Initial decision-making thought processing involves the reptilian part of our brain – the part of the brain most concerned with basic necessities such as food, water, safety, pleasure and avoidance of pain.

That doesn’t mean that all rational thinking goes out the door. As a marketer, though, you’ll want to understand that convincing someone to buy has much more to do with appealing to their emotions than to their fact-based reasoning side.

One of the best ways to leverage emotional appeal in your marketing is to distinguish between features and benefits. Features are things, benefits are feelings. Although we, as consumers, are looking to buy “things”, we want to make sure we’re satisfying a more underlying need – the need for approval or prestige, acceptance, safety, value and well-being.

A great example of emotion-based selling is Disney’s approach to their theme parks.  They do not market their theme parks as places with state-of-the-art rides – but instead promote these parks as a way as a magical place to build memories.

So, when you’re crafting your marketing, be sure that your primary selling points include emotion-power words such as: imagine, feel, safe, special, amazing and exclusive. And don’t forget to include an emotion packed tagline with your logo on all of your promotional products.