August 28th, 2010
T-Shirts are one of the most long-term advertisements you can use. This is seen over and over again, in the incredible number of ads on free t-shirts, athletic jerseys, and event shirts. Loads of us wear t-shirts every day, whether or not they have ads on them. One of the most classic examples of t-shirts as advertising can be seen in simple “Adidas” or “Reebok” tees. These shirts are cool, and have been in style for years and years. They’re simply ads for their respective companies, but fashionable ads. This type of advertising applies to any brand or logo fashionable enough to be purchased. If people don’t want to buy your shirt though, they’ll still wear it- provided you give it away.
Recent trends simply reinforce T-Shirts usefulness for advertising. There is a large group of people who like to wear “Affliction” and “TapOut” shirts. This trend came out of UFC fighters wearing the shirts after fights, and has exploded across the country in the last few years. While your company or event is very unlikely to see an explosion of popularity like this trend, you will almost certainly see some exposure. If you think back to even just the last week, you’ve probably stood in lines behind people with promotional shirts, seen them anywhere you shop, and maybe even worn one yourself.
T-Shirts are also tremendously popular as swag at conferences. The nicer the logo and conference, the better for you. Depending on the conference, people will wear them during the event, and will almost always find occasion to wear them after.
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August 28th, 2010
Business cards have long been the default method of physically handing your information to someone else. Typically they are boring, and unless a designer put time into the card, it’s not likely to stand out. More creative business cards have been popping up more frequently, but what about removing the “card” entirely. Consider handing out a business product instead.
Instead of a little piece of cardstock, what about handing someone a Pivot Pad with your information printed on the front? Or a USB flash drive with your information, portfolio, and other information loaded on the drive. In both instances you have given someone something they won’t throw away, and that has actual value.
Products can’t simply be shuffled into a stack like business cards can. They will hang around- whether it be on a desk, in a car, or on a keychain. This means day after day people will see your name, and when they need what you are selling, you’ll be the first name they think of. After all, are you more likely to notice a business card thrown in a drawer or hidden somewhere else; or something- anything- that is sitting on your desk.
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August 2nd, 2010
Eco-friendly promotional items are either made from renewable resources or designed to lessen your impact on the environment. Going green in your promotional items is perfect for companies involved with the outdoors, travel, health, kids, sports, or alternative energy sectors (to name a few). Items such as eco-friendly sports bottles, organic or jute tote bags, cardboard style journals and pens, or items made from recycled material make a statement beyond the message printed on them….they tell your clients and customers that your company cares about the environment
If your company takes part in this movement, eco-friendly promotional items could be exactly what you want to send a positive message out. There are a wide variety of this kind of item, so there is likely something for every kind of company. If your company isn’t yet working on any green initiatives, why not start by utilizing green promotional items?
Bamboo Stripe Pen Holder
This Bamboo pen holder is pretty stylish and looks good on a wide variety of desks. It qualifies as an eco-friendly item because bamboo is a renewable resource that quickly regrows. This type of product doesn’t have to send a message, but can add a bit of smoothness on your desk.
Brown Bag-it Sack
This quality bag is intended to replace the typical brown paper bag for employee lunches. It’s more sturdy, washable, and of course- you can get your logo printed on it!
Single Chute Bamboo Pot
The second bamboo desk enhancement product in this list is actually living! If you’ve never had a plant on your desk, it’s hard to describe how nice it can be to have one. If you have, you know that desktop plants add a soft bit of green to your desk, and are all around nice to have.
Eco-Soft Mousepad
This soft and comfortable mousepad is made from 100% recycled rubber, and is both non-skid and antimicrobial. Mousepads are the kind of thing people don’t want to think about. Giving them a product like this ensures that when they do think about it, they’ll be thinking positively.
Blue Spruce Tree
Without a doubt, this is the most unique green item on the list. Giving people an actual, living tree is a bold move. You can’t simply put this in a closet or drawer and forget it, it’s a tree after all.
Now that you’ve gotten some inspiration, why not check out the rest of our Eco-friendly items!
Tags: Branded green merchandise, Eco-friendly, Eco-friendly promotion, Green products, Green promotion, Sustainable promotion
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July 13th, 2010
Proformance prides ourselves at giving a true price every step of the way, and not tacking on major price increases due to shipping upon checkout. We have always provided free shipping, and believe it or not, that small change can save you tons of money. We encourage our potential clients to look for similar products on competitor’s websites. You’ll find that shipping not only costs extra (and can be charged per item!), many charge for “decorating”, and other basic things that we do! At Proformance, we don’t want to tack on any hidden charges, or lure you in with “as low as” pricing. We clearly lay out our prices, and we believe doing so greatly adds to the experience of buying from us.
Let’s take a look at a few specific items that we sell, as well as our competitors. We charge $27.99 for Titleist DT-Roll golf balls, and have a minimum order of 12. This price includes logo printing, and shipping is free. The total price for 12 boxes of printed DT-Roll balls is $335.88. Meanwhile, Motivators (one of our competitors) charges $39.48 per box for the same product, and has the same minimum order. Each separate product has a $35 “printing setup charge” applied, bringing the total for these golf balls to $508.76! The worst part is, this figure is pre-shipping.
You are not given the shipping price until your order is prepared for shipping.
Perhaps the single biggest thing difference you’ll see with us is our “one low price”. Almost all of our competitors show you the lowest price, but have tiered pricing for different amounts of the product. This gives you the initial impression that a product you want is priced very low, only to find that in order to get that price you need to buy much more than you need. For example; we sell a 1gb mp3 player, and our 1 low price is $36.99. Motivators advertises the same Mp3 player “as low as $36.50″. The problem with this is that to pay $36.50, you need to purchase 200! Our minimum order is only 12, and if you want to buy only 12 players from our competition, the price shoots up to $52.56!
Individual Pricing Shown
As you can see, we’re big on not throwing in additional fees or displaying prices lower than what you’ll likely pay. We simply don’t like to lead people in with pricing that is substantially lower than what they’ll pay, and we’d rather incorporate shipping into our price than hit customers with a huge charge after they have customized their order.
Tags: 1 Low Price, Branded Products, Free Shipping, One Low Price, Price Comparison
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June 30th, 2010
Trade shows are one of the places where product giveaways are as abundant as air, so what products make popular giveaways? I narrowed my list down to 5, and they are what make up the bulk of product giveaways. They all have quite a few things in common, and are serve a purpose at the shows where other products could not.
1. Pens: Kicking off this list is pens. Of all the items given away, pens have one of the longest shelf lives. Logo pens will almost invariably make their way back to people’s cars, desks, homes, etc. With the internet being as powerful as it is, all it takes is someone getting bored, noticing a logo pen, and Googling the brand.
2. Tote Bags: These are tremendously useful for trade shows, because people use them right away (and all through the show!). Tote bags carry your swag, and thus the logo is displayed as long as the person carrying it is at the show.
3. Candy/Mints: The only edible entry on this list, candy seems like a no brainer. Everyone likes to munch on things, and if you provide candy with your logo on it, people just might associate your company with sweetness!
4. Hand Sanitizer: You’re pretty likely to shake someones hand at a trade show. In fact, you’re likely to shake a bunch of people’s hands. You could hope that all of those people had perfectly clean hands, or you could just use some hand sanitizer. The venerable transparent liquid has become the best quick-fix germ killer we have, and in a situation where germs could be abundant, hand sanitizer shines.
5. Sticky Notes/Notepads: Perfect for jotting notes down with the pens you will inevitably receive. Sure, today our phones can do the same thing, but for most people writing down a name and number is still faster than adding a contact.
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June 22nd, 2010
One of the chief goals of custom logo branded products is to gain a foothold in the mind of clients and potential customers. Whether the product is pens, drinking glasses, or luggage, the goal remains. One of the absolute best products for accomplishing this goal is logo golf balls. Why golf balls? They are used at times when other branded products are often not. Golf balls, especially high quality golf balls, are going to be used on the golf course. This means that logo branded golf balls have the ability to reach customers when they aren’t at work, and are (presumably) having a good time. In a situation like this, customers could end up thinking highly favorably of your company simply because of the logo golf balls you provided. If you provide high-quality golf balls, your customers will be thankful, and happy they chose you. Happy customers are likely to do business with you again.
Beyond happy existing customers, you can reach new audiences with logo golf balls. By providing balls for a local tournament or other golf event, you can place your logo directly in front of a specific audience. Anyone who has been handed free anything, courtesy of a company, likely is happier with that company. Giving potential customers a useful and fun gift like golf balls can greatly increase their likelihood of doing business with you. Golf balls aren’t cheap, and people know that. Purchasing golf balls for clients and potential customers shows you are dedicated to your relationship with them.
The bottom line is that golf balls are fun, and reach customers while they aren’t working.
Tags: logo golf balls, promotional golf balls
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December 12th, 2009
It’s no secret that everyone likes to get a little special something- and in the current economic downturn, this tactic remains critical for your most valuable assets- your employees.
Incenting your employees throughout the year is a great way to encourage top performance. Consider hosting an operational efficiency campaign- which will motivate associates and improve your business. At the end of each month or quarter, evaluate your various business units. If goals were met (or even exceeded) you can incent each employee with a gift that includes a special logo to highlight their achievements.
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Tags: employee recognition, employees gifts, incentives, logo golf balls
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November 13th, 2009
As marketers and brand specialists, we’ve all been there. We can easily become overwhelmed by the flood of catalogs and email blasts filled with so many types of items to choose from that we get lost— instead of enjoying what can be a truly fun process. To add a little structure to the game, I’ve outlined five points you should consider when reviewing thousands of promotional items and trade show giveaways, to help send you to your next golf event or trade show with just the right imprinted products.
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Tags: Free Shipping, Promotional Items, Trade Show Giveaways
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