Throw one hell of a party!

With the economy taking a nosedive companies and individuals have to get the most out of their marketing materials. Many have started using promotional products to function in more than one way, thus stretching their dollar. Follow their lead and not only save some money in your budget, but also, join the ranks of the likes of Sean "P.Diddy" Combs as a noted innovator when it comes to throwing one heck of a party!

While advertising and event promotions can get the word out about you and your event, promotional products offer an avenue for more freedom and creativity. In order to do this, choose a promotional product that can serve more than one purpose at your event. If you are, for example, planning a wine tasting event, use a promotional product that can serve as your invitation as well as a nice gift for your attendees. On the wine glass, engrave your name, event and time and place. This gives both the company and event as sense of class and sophistication. It shows that your company can use innovative and creative ways to reach the audiences. This gets your guests excited and curious about the event so they absolutely can’t miss it.

Also, by using a promotional product as an invitation, your company and product get more use and have a longer self life. It remains visible for weeks before and after the party. And, what’s more if you choose a reusable product like a wine glass, every time the guest reuse the product they remember you and that specific event. Promotional products that serve as invitations have a timeless appeal that will generate constant branding and recognition of your company. A promotional product can build product and brand loyalty especially when connected to a memorable event. Your clients and guest will want more of you when they realize the extent to which you would go to please them.

Furthermore, when you use a promotional product for more than one purpose at an event, you can save some bucks. Many components play an important role in creating a successful event. You must include the invitation, printed materials like posters, napkins and coasters and awards and plaques, and the ever important gift bag. In order to save money without cutting corners consider combing the function of the promotional products. Instead of just serving as the invitation to your event, choose a product that works as both the gift and the invite. This saves you some stress and thanks the guests for coming before the event even starts.

At P. Diddy’s 29th birthday party, he used a promotional product as an invitation and gift for his guests. They received a leather-bound photo album filled with pictures for his previous parties. So, for your next event consider pulling a "Diddy" and combine the purpose of your promotional product. Get creative and practical at the same time to stand out and make an impressive impression for your brand on your entire audience.

Taking Risk Part 2

This promotional strategy doesn’t require the risk to your company or your job, which you might initially assume.You give away cash or large prizes. Everyone likes to win and most people like to see others win. As long as you protect yourself and company with promotional risk coverage, you will also be the winner. Your prize offerings are based on the odds of a winner claiming the prize. As long as your promotional strategy does not include a guaranteed prize offering as the only prize, your company can include promotional risk coverage with the promotion. Promotional risk coverage can be found in promotions like you see on television, hear on the radio, read in newspapers, magazines, see online or in Internet marketing promotions. They offer the consumer a chance to win, and when there is a winner, your company is protected against having to pay the winner. Much like you insure your car from an accident or your home from a natural disaster, you can cover your promotion against a risk associated with the liabilities of giving away large valued prize amounts. The cost of promotional risk is minimal, literally a fraction of the prize value, and is based on the promotional odds, the prize value, and the number of chances given to win the promotion.

The strategy behind marketing promotions, which include promotional risk coverage, is simple and enables companies to differentiate brands in a very competitive market. Promotional risk covered promotions open up possibilities to offer larger prizes than most companies can afford, or would want to take promotional risk on. These large prizes are proven to increase registrations of online users, traffic in stores, and sales at any given time, leads generated both offline and online promotions, and build large brands through consumer loyalty.The strategy is to include a prize offering, which can be based on a game of skill, game of chance, or the redemption of an offer.

With Games of Skill, you could include promotional risk coverage in offering someone a chance to win up to $1,000,000 in a sports promotion.You have probably seen such games of skill in basketball promotions of a random fan shooting a basketball from half court.A football promotion might include a punt or throwing contest, or a hole in one coverage for golf promotions and tournaments.

Games of Chance are found in online marketing promotions and Internet marketing, with sweepstakes, online contests and games.You might see them in offline promotions for trade shows and events where B2B marketers or consumer marketers are holding drawings to increase traffic to events, increase customer response and generate leads.

Promotional risk coverage can be included in marketing promotions to protect companies against over redemption of coupon offerings and fix promotional marketing budgets for both consumer and B2B marketing strategies.Conditional offerings, such as conditional weather rebates, can add to marketing promotions to engage consumer involvement in the promotion and increase promotional coverage and public relations of the marketing effort.

Over redemption coverage allows promotional risk coverage to prevent the variable costs associated to budgeting of a marketing promotion when there is uncertainty about your program’s response rate or outcome. Promotional risk companies cover the cost of excess redemption's or responses, whatever the value of the prize, rebate, coupon, or premium. This allows you to plan promotional expenses to the penny, eliminate budget overruns for higher than expected response, and stretch promotional dollars for a maximum market impact.

The bottom line is magnified during the current economic climate, within every department of every business, small or large.To drive business in a recession, or any economic downturn, marketers must find new ways to gain and maintain market share.Those who realize that the success and longevity of their brand is in the hands of the American consumer will stand far ahead of the competitor.In order to engage the consumer and gain brand loyalty, the savvy marketer provides that consumer with benefits which will entice reaction.Consumers react to what they perceive is in their best interest.Find that formula in promotional risk coverage and you will benefit.

Should you take a risk!?

Promotional Risk… Is it worth it? Over the past decade, there has been tremendous growth in consumer and business product releases, bringing challenges to consumer and business to business marketers to differentiate brands. The ever changing media market increases the complexities, for both offline and online marketing professionals. The combined formula, with the recent recession and ongoing downturn of this economy, leaves marketers with an environment that is unique to any year in history, with a challenge that only the riskiest of marketers will survive. Are you willing to bet your marketing, advertising, public relations or promotions career on your willingness to take a risk? If you do not include this risk in your promotional strategy, while your competitor does, what will happen? Will your marketing competitor win market share that you have lost or will the safe road you have taken pay off? It is my experience that you must take the promotional risk.You are about to learn why you should include promotional risk coverage in marketing strategy to engage the consumer and secure a larger market share, during this recession.Follow these simple steps in marketing promotions strategy and build big brands that will stand the test of time.

There is no argument that consumers are responding to large cash and prize giveaways. Your marketing research can stop with the review of network programming you find in recent shows like Deal or No Deal, Price Is Right, Who Wants to Be A Millionaire, and the many other network promotions which include large prize and cash offerings to both gain consumer loyalty and increase ratings. Radio and television stations, newsprint and magazine publications, online and offline companies alike are all tapping into the simplest of strategy to increase viewers, visitors and readership, while gaining promotional affiliations and sponsorships.The strategy is simple. They are taking promotional risk.

Choosing different promotions and giveaways!

Small businesses, which usually have limited advertising budgets, often resort to unconventional methods to promote themselves. Two of the most common types of "small business" methods are cross promotions and freebies, or giveaways. Let’s take a look at each, along with some pros and cons.

A cross promotion is leveraging the success or popularity of another business for your own good. In a cross promotion, you work with another business to (hopefully) increase sales for both companies. For example, you might offer free commercial color printing services from a commercial printer to any customer who buys a monthly subscription to your service. Or you could offer free movie tickets to any customer who buys your new product. Either way, you are working with another company to promote sales. The benefits of cross promotions are obvious. If you are able to work out a deal with an established and reputable business in the area, then you are on the right track. Associating with a business that is already popular can significantly enhance the reputation of your company. It can be difficult for a new small business to establish itself in the minds of the customers, but partnering with a business that is already well entrenched can really moves that process along.

There is a possible negative involved, however. If the company you have partnered with has a serious problem at some point, and loses some of its luster, it could impact negatively on your own efforts. This is not likely, and even if it did happen, the effects would probably not last long. Still, the possibility is there and is worth noting. If it were to happen, one way to help combat the negative effects is to actively promote your separation from the offending company. You can do this by designing an attractive commercial color printing that extols your own company’s virtues and qualities, and distributing that to as many customers as possible.

Freebies

Giveaways are another popular tactic used by start up small businesses. In a giveaway, you literally give away one of your products, or some of your services, to customers in an attempt to increase profits or to establish an identity for yourself. This is done in a variety of different ways. You could offer a free one-hour massage in the hopes that customers who take advantage of it will be so pleased that they will come back for more. You could give your customers a free ball cap for every two that they buy at regular price. Giveaways, if done properly, can enhance a company’s success, especially in its early stages. If you have a quality product or service and are just trying to introduce it to people, a giveaway can help you achieve that goal rather quickly. And if you are looking for cost effective advertising options, freebies are definitely an option you should consider.

However, you must use giveaways sparingly, and with care. Sometimes, freebies devalue your product. In other words, giving something away for free can lead customers to consider that product to be cheap, even if it is not. It becomes less valuable in the customer’s mind, which is certainly not a good thing. To avoid that problem, only give away a product for free if you pair it with another product that is already well established as a valuable item. If you are giving away a free service, do not overdo it by offering so much that it devalues your work. Basically, if you try to think like your customers, you will be fine.

Promotional Bags what a great idea!

Can there be anything more convenient at a sales event than a promotional bag? Promotional bags are particularly handy for sales and marketing exhibits and events where attendees invariably collect business cards, sales brochures and other items as they move from one sales area to the next. The best part of these bags is that the smart company who provides them knows they will be used over and over. With each use, the company name, clearly emblazoned, provides a wide range of exposure.

Choose a bag in regular logo colors or in a more eye-catching hue. The fabric from which these bags are made range from sturdy plastic to durable canvas. Bags with promotional power are often passed on from an original owner so that the company logo remains a potent promotion.


For special events of the non-sales kind, they are appreciated for the remembrance of an anniversary, birthday, club or organization picnic or virtually any special event where the convenience of these bags plays a large role. That’s why these bags really are "All-Purpose". With that kind of usefulness, it’s a great opportunity to display an appropriate logo. This makes company, group or event logo quickly recognizable and at once, a great opportunity for promotion. Logo recognition often takes time. This type of bag handily increases company name recognition by virtue of continued use.


The trend to use bags with logos as "giveaways" has been popular for decades because they are an inexpensive way of advertising. Advertising is costly. Promotional bags are reasonably priced for purchase in bulk quantities. Schools, libraries and museums love them as a measure of "appreciation". Banking institutions and athletic organizations consider these a regular promotional item for their advertising.

Finding new marketing ideas

Sometimes, the old methods are still the best way to go when it comes to building a business. In an ever competitive business world, this can often mean using promotional items to entice potential customers to become definite customers. The problem, of course, is you need to find some good "schwag" to entice them.

Promotional materials have been used by businesses for as long as one can remember. On the cheesy end of the marketing stick, you see them used in infomercials. You know, "…but that’s not all. You’ll get these handy, dandy knives plus…for only $19.99." You may laugh at these infomercials, but you would be wrong to do so. Why? They work.

Moving farther up the marketing scale, we find that promotional items are used all the time with "nicer" products. We often just don’t realize it. Consider a magazine like Sports Illustrated. How do they drive sales? They offer tote bags, clock radios, magazines customized to specific teams and so on if you will only subscribe for a year or two. Again, they wouldn’t be doing it if it didn’t work.

If you have a business, you need to think about using promotional items to entice your potential clientele. The problem most businesses run into is figuring out what promotional items to use. Many in the industry refer to these items as "schwag". So, what schwag should you use?

Schwag comes in unique and run of the mill forms. We’ve all seen the coffee cups, pens, note pads, hats, shirts and so on with company names on them. This is run of the mill schwag. Since it is not unique, the chances of it having a positive effect on prospects is nominal.

Unique schwag is a much better choice. Unique makes you stick out. Sticking out makes people remember you. So, how do you find unique schwag? Avoid the "promotional companies." Instead, look for companies that produce a real product that also happen to private label it.

Also, focus on companies making products that are associated with your business niche. Nomad Journals makes a great travel journal that is available for private labeling. If you have a travel agency or other travel related company, it would make a tremendous promotional gift.

What if you have a "dry" profession? What could a lawyer, for instance, give away that their clients would enjoy. How about a free "lawyer jokes" book? It would definitely set you apart from other lawyers and probably make your client feel a bit better. A happy client results in referrals.

Whatever your business area, promotional items can make all the difference between success and failure. Take the time to consider the possibilities. You’ll be surprised how big a difference they can make to your bottom line.

Show of your business with a promotional folder!

Customized, printed products are a popular choice for business promotion, especially when they will be used to hold materials at a conference or trade show. Savvy organizations and businesses turn to promotional products, including folders, in their overall business management and marketing strategy. While attending a conference, seminar, trade show or exhibition, promotional folders are one of the first products that an attendee will receive upon arrival. These folders are typically embossed or printed with corporate logos or details. They are used to hold all of the relevant materials for the event, and are commonly updated throughout the conference by the recipient. A quality folder will be used regularly during the conference while increasing the perception and visibility of the promoted company or brand name in a professional yet stylish manner.

Folders are also a great trade show or promotional giveaway item, especially when they are packed with information about you and your company such as a diskette / CD, marketing materials, sales kits, or customized presentation information. A well-designed marketing folder can have a significant positive impact on your company’s visibility, image, and bottom line. These folders are perfect for times or situations when limited distribution is required, small meetings, or informational seminars.

There are numerous types and styles of folders on the market today, including popular options such as leather, PU, silver trim, or koskin. Environmentally-concerned clients are also well pleased with the latest recycled board folders featuring professional lines, business card slits, and Velcro closures. Many folders come with additional amenities such as added utility space, zipped outer pockets, calculators, writing pads, and ringbinders. The discerning business client will find a wide variety of promotional folders, from the low budget variety to the executive leather folder.