10 TIPS FOR YOUR BUYERS

Give your clients reasons to buy by sharing these tips on how to leverage ad specialties.

1. Work with a trusted distributor with access to hundreds of thousands of products you may not have ever thought about putting a logo on.
2. Consider co-op advertising and sponsorship at events. You and other small area businesses can share the spotlight (and costs), with each of your logos imprinted on mugs, T-shirts, totes and more.
3. Consider experiential marketing for your business, where you would give your customers an experience in addition to promotional items.
4. Always consider your target demographic when choosing giveaways. A 60-year-old might prefer a calendar around the holidays, while a Millennial would like a tech accessory.
5. A quality promotional products rep will show you good-better-best items to let you see the difference a few dollars can make. You don’t want to damage your brand and reputation by putting your branding on low-quality products.
6. Consider adding pet products to your promotional efforts, even if you’re not a pet-related business. People love their pets and will love you for thinking of them too. (Automobile, technology, insurance and car rental clients are among those non-pet industries that are requesting pet products.)
7. Have a customer loyalty program and reward those customers with promo products in various price ranges, depending on number of visits and other metrics.
8. Surprise customers with unexpected promotional gifts at unusual times of the year – Christmas in July, for example. Everyone who visits your establishment could get a logoed ice-cream scooper or sand pail.
9. Don’t wait until just before an event to order your products. You can get better pricing and a wider choice of products if you prepare well in advance.
10. Consider your ad specialty rep a marketing partner. Call him or her in for regular planning meetings on promotions coming down the pike. These pros have firsthand knowledge of what other businesses in your location and niche are doing to promote themselves and will counsel you accordingly on how you can stand out.