Gift Cards as Gifts
Gift cards are a popular way to give a gift when you're not sure exactly what someone will want. They're also a great way for stores to boost business - it's kind of like the ultimate referral. In order to make them more gifty, gift cards are often packaged in a special box, bag or envelope.
But what if someone took gift cards one step further, and made them actually also gifts? As it turns out, a couple major retailers have done just that this year. Target has a gift card that is also a 1.2 megapixel camera, and Best Buy has a gift card that is also a functioning speaker you can plug into your iPod. Rumor has it that Circuit City may be producing gift cards made out of the empty retail space from all the stores they are about to close.
Seriously, though, if you have a business who uses gift cards or certificates, why not make them more compelling by using an actual product? A customized wine opener, would make a perfect gift card for a wine shop or a pocket-sized aromatherapy stick as a gift card for a spa. Any pocket-sized item that relates to your business would make a better gift card than, well, a gift card. Plus, since there are so many items that are relatively inexpensive compared to the value of the gift card, even a small boost in sales will more than cover the cost. Chances are, having something way more interesting than a gift card at your point of purchase will boost gift card sales considerably. (via The Adverlab)
Posted by mark at 10:22 AM. Permalink: Gift Cards as Gifts
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Tech That: Solaris Tumbler
| Even enterprise-class operating systems need promos, and anyone working with Solaris probably needs some coffee. I'd say this is a darn good match. Movie-wise it's like good 1972 Russian Solaris, not really bad 2002 Hollywood remake of Solaris. |  |
Posted by mark at 6:38 PM. Permalink: Tech That: Solaris Tumbler
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Alli Pill Holder
Alli is an over the counter weight loss drug that apparently inhibits the body from absorbing some of the fat in the food one eats. And the thing about Alli that's most interesting to me is the travel pill case it comes with.
Knowing that weight loss products typically have a negative association (i.e., you think about the fact that you need to lose weight), Alli was carefully designed to focus on positive emotions, starting with its name, which is pronounced 'ally.' The travel pill holder that comes with it can hold three pills, one for each meal of the day, but more importantly it is actually designed to be held and to emulate the feeling of holding someone's hand. According to GlaxoSmithKline, it's something "the dieter can hold on to while letting go of past eating habits. The brand connects in your hand."
Posted by mark at 4:50 PM. Permalink: Alli Pill Holder
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Another Path for Airlines
With rising jet fuel costs, airlines in the US are desperately trying to cut costs and bring in additional revenue. Right now fuel costs are 40% of the average ticket price, up from 15% in 2000, and airlines are doing everything from washing planes more frequently to reduce drag to charging fees for checked baggage. People want cheap tickets and a pleasant experience, and increasingly it looks like we're in for neither. One small suggestion: people do love free stuff, and inexpensive giveaway items may be a way to salvage some positive feelings about airline brands without breaking the bank. Alternately, switch immediately to Hello Kitty airplanes, or both.
Posted by mark at 3:13 PM. Permalink: Another Path for Airlines
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Reseller Promos - Hitting Brand Standards
Here's an interesting dilemma: as a manufacturer with authorized resellers, how do you allow your resellers sufficient freedom to market effectively in their local markets, while also upholding your brand guidelines as a manufacturer? At the end of the day, I'm not sure there is one answer. Sometimes we find it is useful to co-brand merchandise, giving the manufacturer the opportunity to exercise more control, while still allowing customization for the retail partner.
Below are some promos for iCity, a Middle Eastern Apple computer reseller, which clearly have a strong connection to Apple's corporate branding. I'd love to know how much guidance, if any, came down from Cupertino.
Posted by mark at 8:59 PM. Permalink: Reseller Promos - Hitting Brand Standards
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Rocking the Refrigerator Magnet
A recent Marketing Sherpa blog post talks about why you might want to promote with magnets, particularly if you're a niche ecommerce site. According to the PPAI, marketers spent $419 million on magnets last year, so they must have some benefits. Here are the basics:
- It's inexpensive, only a few cents each
- You can drop one in every package you send
- For niche sites customers often don't sign up for email or newsletters because they are only interested in the product every once in a while
- Even if your customers only buy occasionally, the magnet may prompt them to promote your product to others
Pizza parlors have known the value of promotional magnets for years, perhaps it's time for ecommerce companies to get on board as well.
Posted by mark at 9:46 AM. Permalink: Rocking the Refrigerator Magnet
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Promos Help Crumpler Build Fan Base
Australian-based bag maker Crumpler has, in what seems to be a pretty short amount of time, developed a really strong following worldwide. People seem to love their bags, but I think it really goes beyond that. They sponsor cool events, they definitely know how to get positive exposure, and they do some cool promotional products. Even inexpensive items like custom stickers and promotional matches are cute and distinctive. It obviously takes more than promos to build a great brand (a story, a personality and a unique value proposition help), but more and more I see promos being an integral part of great branding and community building.
Posted by mark at 2:26 PM. Permalink: Promos Help Crumpler Build Fan Base
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I Love the Smell of Promotion in the Morning: Cat Poo Pillow
You know what? We can't all sell flowers and gumdrops and fine art prints. There are plenty of companies out there selling things that are less glamorous, less aesthetically pleasing and less not poo-related, but enrich our lives nonetheless. For example, there are companies that make special crystals that make cat poo not smell so bad. These companies need promotion, too. In promotion, I think it's best to embrace what you do, and Catsan did just that. With a good sense of humor to boot. According to Commerical Archive, Catsan Crystals weren't one of the featured products at an Australian pet care trade conference, so they used these custom pillowcases to get some attention for their odor-stopping product. And that's just classic promotion: finding a clever way to get your target audience to think about the key benefits of your product.
Posted by mark at 8:22 AM. Permalink: I Love the Smell of Promotion in the Morning: Cat Poo Pillow
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Tumblers for Peetniks
Here's a great way to increase the effectiveness of your email marketing, while building greater loyalty amongst your core buyers. First, make up a name for the people who really love your products: Peetniks works. Second, give them a chance to identify themselves as Peetniks while they enjoy your product: offering them an insulated travel tumbler is perhaps the perfect choice. Pete's clearly knows how to build a brand, and a community by reaching out to their customers in ways that matter to them. Check out a previous cause marketing email featuring a custom cycling jersey. Full disclosure: I love Pete's coffee!
Posted by mark at 9:37 AM. Permalink: Tumblers for Peetniks
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Onion Swagology: Matroshka Army
The Onion bestows kudos:
Item: A shirt box containing a smaller box wrapped in a map, containing a smaller box full of little green Army men, containing a third box, within which was a book wrapped in an American flag. In other words, a series of teasing puzzle boxes, Russian-nesting-doll style.
Promoting: George Pendle's satirical "biography" The Remarkable Millard Fillmore: The Unbelievable Life Of A Forgotten President.
Relevance to product promoted: Spelled out in symbolism and the included explanatory sticky-notes. The box wrapped in a map of America represents Fillmore's status as an American. The box full of little plastic green Army men represents his life as a soldier. And the box wrapped in the flag symbolizes his life as a patriot.
Item quality: 2 for physical quality預ll the elements are cheap and disposable傭ut 4 for homegrown ingenuity. It's no free George Foreman grill, but it certainly got our attention as we burrowed through the boxes, which makes it one of the better homegrown self-promotion attempts The A.V. Club has fielded over the years. Up-and-coming authors, take note.
Posted by mark at 3:46 PM. Permalink: Onion Swagology: Matroshka Army
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A Shot at Continuity
Here's a nice example of a company that uses continuity from year-to-year to increase the value of a promotion. Software maker Dantz hosts a party every year at the Macworld Expo and every year they give out a custom shot glass at the event, complete with a clever tagline that ties their brand to Apple's. By doing their event and promotion, they've become not just another exhibitor, but an important part of the biggest Apple-related event of the year.
Posted by mark at 9:06 AM. Permalink: A Shot at Continuity
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Onion Swagology: Class of 3000 Lunchbox
From my favorite humorous news source:
Item: Lunchbox
Promoting: Class Of 3000
Relevance to product promoted: High. Nothing says "Andre Benjamin-engineered Cartoon Network show about a free-spirited elementary school" quite like a lunchbox bearing a goateed visage of Andre 3000 looking rakish and debonair.
Item quality: 5. This bright, colorful lunchbox comes with a canteen, a fake sandwich containing a DVD of the first episode of the second season, and even a note from mom reading "Your dad and I are both very proud of your 2nd season! Try to stay awake in class and don't trade your sandwich! Love, Mom." Awww!!!! It's almost oppressively adorable.
Posted by mark at 7:06 AM. Permalink: Onion Swagology: Class of 3000 Lunchbox
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Bagvertising Unlimited: A Real Nail Biter
| Here's a terrific bag promoting Stop n' Grow, a product that discourages nail biting by making your nails bitter. Perhaps there is a perfect promotion for every product in the world, but Stop n' Grow definitely found theirs. |  |
Posted by mark at 11:44 AM. Permalink: Bagvertising Unlimited: A Real Nail Biter
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Lexus Uses Gifts as a Part of Excellent Customer Service
I just received a marketing letter with a couple great examples of how Lexus created brand loyalty by offering superior customer service, and actually delivering on their stated goal of "treating each customer as we would a guest in our home." In one example, a promotional gift added to the overall experience:
"Shortly after launching the inaugural LS 400 sedan nearly 20 years ago, Lexus discovered that about 3,000 cars had minor technical problems. The company responded by sending small teams of executives to visit each customer at home. They apologized in person and offered a gift while a Lexus technician resolved the mechanical glitches right there in the customer's driveway."
Posted by mark at 10:16 AM. Permalink: Lexus Uses Gifts as a Part of Excellent Customer Service
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Google Promotional Outreach
Below are some promos that were sent to Barry Schwartz, a search engine marketer/search marketing expert. I think the tagline on the shirt, "I help make Google products even better" says a lot about the attitude Google is taking towards the search community, at least when it comes to promos. Even though the goal of search marketing is to benefit from (and some would say manipulate) search engine rankings, there is definitely also a partnership in which web developers, webmasters and search marketers are a key community that does provide valuable feedback to the search engines. (via Cartoon Barry Blog)
Posted by mark at 10:46 AM. Permalink: Google Promotional Outreach
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Fishvertising!
It looks like fishvertising's time has come. It isn't quite what we had imagined, but below are a couple promotions featuring live fish. On top, a promotion for a new waterproof cell phone with a display that encourages shoppers to "call the fish." On the bottom, a fish food point of purchase display that conveys its message the old-fashioned way...with fish.
And, once again, here's our updated -vertising list:
- casketvertising
- wipervertising
- handvertising
- wristvertising
- sumovertising
- spiderwebvertising
- headvertising
- sheepvertising
- eggvertising
- bugvertising
- thumbvertising
- nutvertising
- childvertising
- conveyorvertising
- jumbojetvertising
Posted by mark at 1:42 PM. Permalink: Fishvertising!
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How the Pros Promo (Part Three)
We've seen what products the pros use and how they use them when promoting at trade shows and events. But in an accountability-driven marketing environment, how do they measure success?
The top three ways in which tradeshow professionals measure the success of the use of promotional products are: *56 percent of tradeshow professionals used increased traffic at their booths to measure the success of using promotional products at their tradeshows and events.
*40 percent of respondents measured the success of using promotional products by tracking sales growth.
*25 percent of respondents measured the success of using promotional products by tracking customer retention.
Posted by mark at 4:40 PM. Permalink: How the Pros Promo (Part Three)
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How the Pros Promo (Part Two)
In Part One we learned how they use promos, but what products do professional trade show planners and exhibitors prefer? Here's some date from the PPAI's recent survey:
The three most commonly used promotional products at tradeshows and events are:
*Writing instruments: pens were most often mentioned
*Wearables: t-shirts, golf shirts and logoed shirts were most commonly mentioned
*Bags: tote bags were most frequently mentioned
Posted by mark at 4:36 PM. Permalink: How the Pros Promo (Part Two)
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Perfect Placement for Your Brand
| Product placement is an important way to develop brand awareness, and so is promotional product placement. In this example, photo-sharing web site flickr chose the perfect promo product for their audience - a lens cleaner in a case - and was rewarded with the perfect product placement for their promo. Flickr has done plenty of nifty promos in the past. |  |
Posted by mark at 8:03 AM. Permalink: Perfect Placement for Your Brand
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Quality Indicator: Fan Appreciation
How do you know you've got a hot promo on your hands? If you're lucky, your fans will tell you. A great examples is this promotional case that was sent to people who pre-ordered the Legend of Zelda Phantom Hourglass video game. Send a quality promo and people tend to notice. And sometimes, they gush: "It's aluminium, feels indestructible, the logo on the top WILL NOT scratch off and it actually works as a carry-case...Isn't it just gorgeous?" Now that's the kind of response you want from your promotion! It's also worth mentioning, that if you want examples of great promotions, video game promos are worth checking out.
Posted by mark at 10:36 AM. Permalink: Quality Indicator: Fan Appreciation
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How to Treat Your Brand Ambassadors...Yahoo-style
Check out, if you will, this rather excellent promotional kit. Created by Yahoo! for their Yahoo! Ambassadors program, it includes a name brand messenger bag (Manhattan Portage) and a bunch of great promos from techie (promotional mousepad) to not (promo towel and water bottle with freezer stick). The Ambassadors program is designed to help search engine marketers more effectively utilize and sell Yahoo services to their clients, making them a key demographic well worth the extra love.
Posted by mark at 8:38 AM. Permalink: How to Treat Your Brand Ambassadors...Yahoo-style
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Saving the Earth and Attracting Shoppers
We've already featured the branded reusable bags that IKEA uses in their stores and how they are a great example of changing business practices to become more environmentally friendly. Sturdy, reusable non-woven tote bags are an ideal low-cost substitute for disposable plastic bags, and a great branding opportunity. If you don't believe it, take a look at this video I shot at New York's Port Authority bus station. One of the free buses that IKEA provides to their store in New Jersey had just arrived and the branding was inescapable:
Posted by mark at 7:38 AM. Permalink: Saving the Earth and Attracting Shoppers
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Laundry Detergent Direct Mail Message Is Clear
If getting your audience to at least notice your advertising is the first step in creating a great promotional product, then getting your audience to interact with it is the second. This direct mail piece includes a dark cloth and a sample of detergent. When washed, the dark cloth turns white and reveals a special offer. Which brings us to the third step in a successful promotion: getting your audience to take the desired action. Overall, this piece is a textbook case of how to create a terrific promotion.
Posted by mark at 5:14 PM. Permalink: Laundry Detergent Direct Mail Message Is Clear
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Attention-getting Door Drop
Any great promotion has to draw attention to itself and make an immediate impact on the audience. This credit card shaped door drop does just that, pretty much guaranteeing that you'll at least take a look at it. A cross between the ol' lost wallet promo and Papa John's clever pizza guy at your door promo.
Posted by mark at 4:50 PM. Permalink: Attention-getting Door Drop
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IKEA Leads the Way with Reusable Bags
| While food co-ops and other environmentally-conscious business have been encouraging the use of reusable bags for years, Swedish retailer IKEA is really one of the first big chains to commit to the cause. Currently they sell reusable bags like the one pictured, as well as charging for disposable plastic bags. Reusable non-woven tote bags are a cost-effective alternative to the regular old paper and plastic. |  |
Posted by mark at 1:47 PM. Permalink: IKEA Leads the Way with Reusable Bags
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A Catchy Tagline Never Goes Out of Style
| We found this promotional tape measure at a flea market in Vermont. It's cute because it's old and reminds us of a simpler time. It doesn't hurt that Bill's Standard sounds like a down-to-earth kind of place where you really could get "An extra measure of savings." Even on a small item like this they were able to pack quite a bit of information, including a message about their values. |  |
Posted by mark at 6:19 AM. Permalink: A Catchy Tagline Never Goes Out of Style
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More Clever Economist Promos
The last time we featured a promotional product from The Economist, it was a funny promotional mousepad extolling the mind expanding virtues of the magazine through use of a clever tagline. Lightning, or at least continuity, strikes again with this promotional balloon that uses a different product to convey the same message. (via Direct Daily)
Posted by mark at 2:22 PM. Permalink: More Clever Economist Promos
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Global Promotion
| Giant inflatable thumbtacks marking local businesses make for a clever promotion for Microsoft's Live map search. The giant push pins designate favorite bars, restaurants and stores around Seattle. |  |
Of course, if the world were really just a giant inflatable ball, as shown by this Toys R Us installation, using giant thumbtacks would make for a very dangerous promotion. The end result might be something like this.
Posted by mark at 11:36 AM. Permalink: Global Promotion
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Go for the Obvious
| To some degree it's human nature to praise unusual, creative promos that involve product one would have never thought of. On the other hand, if you're flickr, giving out promotional lens cleaning cloths is a pretty darned good idea, no matter how obvious. Promo buttons, stickers and name tags all make sense for flickr fans and meet-ups, but I think one would be hard pressed to come up with something more appropriate than the lense cleaner. |  |
Posted by mark at 4:34 PM. Permalink: Go for the Obvious
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Flickr Beach Ball Photo Contest
In a follow up on the flickr's use of pink and blue promotional beach balls as part of their ever expanding range of promos. They did something really cool by encouraging people to actually use the products and post photos on flickr as part of Yahoo's "Be a Better..." campaign. Because if there's something better than just giving someone free stuff, it's getting them to have fun with it!
Posted by mark at 6:45 AM. Permalink: Flickr Beach Ball Photo Contest
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Tiny Twist Makes Red Sand Hourglass Great
Something as simple as changing the color of the sand in this hourglass makes all the difference for this Red Cross promo. The sand plays double duty representing both time and blood supply and serves as a great visual metaphor. Could your business or not-for-profit organization do something similar? Probably, but as obvious as this hourglass seems after the fact, it probably took some real creative thought to come up with it. Start by considering what your message is, think out of the box when it comes to product and customization, and I bet there's a striking creative solution to your promotional challenges no matter who you are.
Posted by mark at 4:24 PM. Permalink: Tiny Twist Makes Red Sand Hourglass Great
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Logo Apparel: Just in Case You're on the News
A friend of mine runs his family's soap-making business, and when I was visiting this spring, he was involved in a bizarre court case involving his soaps (a cult-favorite and the only soap I use personally, Dr. Bronner's Magic Soap). To make a long story short, a punk rock drummer was arrested for drug possession when his bottle of soap tested positive for the drug GHB. The field test for this drug was actually to blame, and all natural soaps test positive for GHB using this test. At any rate, we spent one day of my visit at court, with the media, and testing the faulty field test (below), and this footage ended up being used for a short video on the Dr. Bronner's website. That day, my friend had the foresight to wear his Dr. Bronner's embroidered polo shirt, which was a great way to instantly make a couple key points: a) he represented the company and b) the company was a legitimate enterprise with it's own corporate apparel. Now I need to get Dave to send me one of those polo shirts.
Posted by mark at 3:42 PM. Permalink: Logo Apparel: Just in Case You're on the News
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NYC Condom Bus Stop Ads
| In previous posts, we've covered the NYC Condom promotional campaign, and some of the ways they maximized the impact of the promotion. In addition to generating awareness before the launch, by having a contest to design the condom wrappers, the city has also done a good job maintaining awareness post-launch, with reminders like this advertisement on the side of a bus stop. Just another great example of the effectiveness of combining PR, advertising and promotional products to make the biggest possible impact. |  |
Posted by mark at 7:20 AM. Permalink: NYC Condom Bus Stop Ads
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Happy Birthday Helvetica!
| The font of the century, Helvetica, just turned 50. It's one of the most common typefaces in corporate logos, from 3M to Fendi to Panasonic. Even Microsoft, who created the blatant Helvetica ripoff Arial, uses Helvetica in it's logo. Another fun fact, the MoMA in New York recently added Helvetica to their permanent collection after acquiring a set of original lead plates for the font. As one of the cleanest and most easily readable fonts, it's perfect for promotional products, too. When you plan your next promo, what font will you be using? |  |
Posted by mark at 10:48 AM. Permalink: Happy Birthday Helvetica!
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How Do Promos Influence Word-of-mouth?
Today's eMarketer newsletter featured an article stressing the importance of word-of-mouth in business-to-business purchasing decisions. Although promotional products and other branded items weren't mentioned as a purchasing influencer, it is interesting to note that previous studies have show that promo items outperform TV and print advertising in areas that would promote better word-of-mouth recommendations, including positive attitudes towards products and brands, credibility of the message and interest in the product or brand. It's not hard to imagine that a lasting item that drives such a positive experience would also be a driver for increased word-of-mouth recommendations.
Posted by mark at 9:45 AM. Permalink: How Do Promos Influence Word-of-mouth?
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Peet's Creates Custom Jersey to Promote
Sometimes promotional products work in mysterious ways. Today I found this email in my inbox. The promotional cycling jersey caught my attention and I found out that Pete's Coffee is selling these to raise funds for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society's Team in Trainingｮ. I'll be honest, I didn't buy one of these, but I did buy some coffee because I'm running out. Would I have bought coffee if they sent a different email? Perhaps, but the visual impact of the jersey did get my attention, and the message of the email did make me feel good about buying from such a caring company.
Incidentally, if you're interested in trying this for your company or cause, we have some excellent values on promotional microfiber performance apparel. I've actually field tested several of our new polos and t-shirts and the quality is excellent, but more on that later.
Posted by mark at 2:21 PM. Permalink: Peet's Creates Custom Jersey to Promote
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