Making a grand gesture is sometimes a good thing for a business in need of high visibility in a hurry, but those promotions aren’t sustainable. Knowing the target audience, providing popular items and consistently following these promotional giveaways with solid sales offerings can create a much more positive image than a single over-the-top event.
Yet there are still organizations who want to employ the louder version of promotional giveaways. These companies had better have a more stable follow-up, though, or the few customers they gain with a big and quick giveaway won’t be around for long. It’s always better to use reliable, flexible and reusable items rather than making a huge, short-term splash.
Getting gassed up
Most of the time, banks will give away promotional pens and custom notepads, or in other instances they offer a custom cooler or logo tote for opening an account or forming a long-lasting relationship with an institution. These items relate back to the organization and serve as a constant reminder of a stable, trustworthy entity.
On the other hand, some banks choose to give bigger giveaways that not only cost a lot of money, they don’t really tie into the business’ culture or create better brand visibility. Customers of Jackson Community Bank received $20 dollar gas cards as part of a customer appreciation program, also giving away the cards to those who came into the branches, according to WLBT TV. This promotion created a lot of chatter for the bank, but it didn’t really boost visibility as solidly as a regular reminder through logo use or anything of the sort. In fact, most people were interested in getting free gas, and not so much about the bank sponsoring the drive.
The right kind of fuel
On the other hand, some companies take the longevity and sustainability message to heart, granting them a much better return on investment. These initiatives can be just as newsworthy without costing the brand nearly as much, and they create ongoing visibility through branded giveaways.
The Richmond PAL Center gave away custom logo backpacks to students and others who came into the center, according to the Sacramento Bee. The organization filled the bags with pens, notebooks and other school supplies, each of these representing another opportunity to insert promotional products. The group is a nonprofit focused on increasing collaboration between the general public and law enforcement in order to create safer communities, and much of its work centers on neighborhood outreach.
“It’s always good to see the community come out and interact with law enforcement in a positive way,” Sergeant Brian Dickerson told the Bee. Not only did this promotional giveaway create better visibility for the PAL Center and any company that donated logo items to the backpack contents, it reinforced these messages in the form of community care initiatives. This sort of targeted giveaway makes a much bigger, lasting impact than a single cash giveaway ever could.
Companies looking to make a big impact can use things like social media and other marketing strategies to draw attention to giveaway events. This can turn into money well spent by boosting public awareness of the business and planting continuous reminders of the organization’s identity right in their hands in the form of useful promotional products.