June 9, 2008

Apple WWDC 2008 Promos

Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) 2008 opens today. Developers from around the world who create software for Apple's platform will be gathered in San Francisco for the next few days. Not only is it a pretty big event in the tech world, but it's also the time when one of the world's biggest brands reaches out to the 5,000 people who, more than anyone else outside the company, are integral to Apple's success. Here's a shot of a promotional t-shirt and embroidered computer bag given out at the conference.

At an event like this for any major company, conference gifts are an opportunity to have a positive impact on key supporters. For Apple, a company lucky enough to have thousands of obsessed followers who scrutinize everything they do, it's also an opportunity to send subtle signals about the things they feel are most significant about the event. In this case, the t-shirt uses iPhone style icons to underscore the probable release of the newest version of their phone software (which will include 3rd party applications by the developers attending), and probably a new version of their phone.

Posted by mark at 9:37 AM. Permalink: Apple WWDC 2008 Promos | Comments (1)

May 8, 2008

Indiana Jones and the Crystal Schwag

The title of this blog post made me chuckle: Throw Me the Schwag! No Time to Argue!, and yes, there is a whole mess of Indiana Jones promotion in our near future. Incidentally, the original whip used in the movie is apparently valued at around $30,000. But you can buy one not used in the movies for under a grand. According to the producer's site:

The 450 series bullwhips, our own production, were used in the Indiana Jones movies. This whip, as the No. 453 8 ft. length or the No. 455 10 ft. length, became an icon when it was so skillfully woven into the story by Glenn Randall, the stunt director for the first movie. It became a recognized part of the Indiana Jones character, and an ongoing factor in maintaining the suspense of the story. Equally as important the association of this whip with these outstanding movies led to a resurgence in interest in whips in movies, stage performances, and in sport whipcracking. There are now large numbers of Indiana Jones fans, many cracking whips.

Indeed.

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March 23, 2008

Startup Schwag 6

It looks like Startup Schwag may well outlast Valleyschwag, which I think may have only lasted to about 6 mailings. Startup Schwag 6 was sent recently, and true to form contains a promotional t-shirt and array of stickers from tech startups.

Posted by mark at 9:11 AM. Permalink: Startup Schwag 6 | Comments (0)

March 12, 2008

SXSW 2008: A Lot of Schwag

South by Southwest is probably the biggest independent music conference in the world, with hundreds of bands, thousands of attendees and lots of free stuff. Ever have to put together conference kits? Well, if you feel sorry for yourself, just check out how many goodie bags the folks at SXSW have to put together every year. In addition to the bags that are given out at the conference, there's loads of other stuff given out by bands, record labels and sponsors. For a lot of attendees, the free stuff is a highlight of the event. Or at least something to arrange carefully, photograph and post online, generating additional exposure for the organizations giving it out.

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December 7, 2007

More ad:tech Schwag

Somehow lost in the shuffle was this photo of assorted promos from ad:tech 2007 in New York. Even at a conference dedicated to technology in advertising, virtually everyone exhibiting knew better than to skip their trade show promos! (photo from Tamar)

Posted by mark at 4:51 PM. Permalink: More ad:tech Schwag | Comments (0)

E3 Schwag Giveaway Video

Here's a pretty hilarious infomercial-style schwag giveaway video from GameStop. They collected the stuff at the E3 video game conference. At almost 8 minutes long, does the video stop being funny, or does it stop being funny and then keep going until it's funny again?

Posted by mark at 7:30 AM. Permalink: E3 Schwag Giveaway Video | Comments (0)

December 1, 2007

Startup Schwag: 2nd Package Photos

So the second package of goodies was sent out by schwag startup Startup Schwag. The idea of letting subscribers pay money to get a monthly package of free promotional stuff seemed popular, although apparently not popular enough to support Valleyschwag. Let's see if these guys can make it work!

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November 27, 2007

Zipcar Hoodies Raise Awareness

Zipcar is a handy service that allows carless folks like myself to rent cars by the hour whenever we need to go to Ikea. Much like Netflix, Zipcar is the kind of company that relies heavily on referrals from early adopters to build buzz. Luckily, because they can track usage patterns, they can easily find their brand evangelists and send them promotional sweatshirts!

Posted by mark at 11:35 AM. Permalink: Zipcar Hoodies Raise Awareness | Comments (0)

November 25, 2007

More Air Freshener Schwag

If you can identify what type of car a bunch of engine-looking type pieces are from, you can win some cool promos from Little Tree, a producer of those little tree shaped car air ffresheners. Perhaps the coolest are the greeting cards in the shape of those little tree shaped air fresheners. Their strategy of sending promos to blogs seems to be generating some welcome online attention!

Posted by mark at 1:45 PM. Permalink: More Air Freshener Schwag | Comments (0)

November 23, 2007

New Google Promo Lip Balm

google wants to make all the world's information searchable, while not being evil. They also seem to care deeply about making sure we are well hydrated, our lips remain unchapped, and keeping key communities happy. They also don't mind having a little fun. (via Search Engine Land)

Posted by mark at 10:53 AM. Permalink: New Google Promo Lip Balm | Comments (0)

November 22, 2007

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 | Comments (0)

November 13, 2007

ad:tech New York 2007: Getting Creative with Candy

Here's another example of a creative candy trade show promotion as seen at ad:tech New York. In this case, email.com has dispensers so attendees can make their own custom candy mix. Much like Kontera's wheel of promos, this encourages interactivity, which at a trade show is a good thing. It's also a perfect tie-in if you have the capability of personalizing your product offering for your customers. For more candy-related stuff, check out Mindset Media's M&Ms and custom candy in your company colors.

Posted by mark at 9:06 AM. Permalink: ad:tech New York 2007: Getting Creative with Candy | Comments (0)

November 12, 2007

ad:tech New York 2007: Mindset Media M&Ms

M&Ms make a perfect promo for Mindset Media, particularly when they're all orange to match Mindset's corporate colors. The perfect example of a promotion that melts in your mouth and matches their brand. Even if your company doesn't have a candy namesake, you can match your brand with candy from our Corporate Colors Candy Collection. Choose from a variety of colors, candies and containers to create the perfect edible promotion that matches the colors of your logo.

Posted by mark at 11:40 AM. Permalink: ad:tech New York 2007: Mindset Media M&Ms | Comments (0)

November 10, 2007

ad:tech New York 2007: Findology Finds the Perfect Item

Here's another example of finding the perfect promotional match. In this case, Findology is giving out a promotional massager that happens to look exactly like their logo. Partly they're lucky that there is something that looks exactly like their logo, but they're definitely smart to use it, and for taking the extra step to customize the color to really match their logo.

Posted by mark at 9:23 AM. Permalink: ad:tech New York 2007: Findology Finds the Perfect Item | Comments (0)

November 9, 2007

ad:tech New York 2007: Stress Ball Yo-Yo Grabs Attention

I saw folks playing with these all over the show: in the aisles, on the escalator and in the lobby. After navigating all the way up to the third floor of the exhibit hall, I found the source, the No More Landing Pages booth. Even though they were off the beaten track, a popular, highly-visible promo helped ensure their booth was busy and the trade show was a success. Here's a little footage of the stress ball yo-yo in action.

Posted by mark at 6:57 AM. Permalink: ad:tech New York 2007: Stress Ball Yo-Yo Grabs Attention | Comments (0)

November 8, 2007

ad:tech New York 2007: Ad Pepper Spices Things Up

If your company is ad pepper media what could be a better trade show giveaway than custom promotional hot sauce? Not much, really. After all, it gets people's attention, reinforces your brand identity, and it's great on eggs.

Posted by mark at 2:18 PM. Permalink: ad:tech New York 2007: Ad Pepper Spices Things Up | Comments (0)

ad:tech New York 2007: Wheel...of...Promos!

Here's another great example of using promotional products not just to drive booth traffic, but to really get some interaction with trade show attendees. The folks at Kontera have a selection of products, from a promotional tote bag to a folding flyer and more. Attendees spin the wheel to find out what promo they get, and in the meantime they get to learn a little more about Kontera.

Posted by mark at 6:56 AM. Permalink: ad:tech New York 2007: Wheel...of...Promos! | Comments (0)

November 7, 2007

ad:tech New York 2007: The Simplest Promo

The round stress ball: it may be the simplest promotional product in the world. It's just a squishy sphere. To be fair, there are a few different versions of the round stress ball, but it's still pretty darn simple. It's also totally appropriate for some brands, like f5 and Datran Media, who both have logos that match up quite nicely with their round stress ball promos. Never argue with something simple that works.

Posted by mark at 1:17 PM. Permalink: ad:tech New York 2007: The Simplest Promo | Comments (0)

October 23, 2007

Rockstar Straightjacket

Promotional jackets? Sure, we see them all the time. Here's a promo you certainly don't see every day: a promotional straightjacket. This was done by Rockstar Games to promote the release of their game Manhunt 2. More sinister than a Pita, but just as creative! (via Kotaku)

Posted by mark at 9:12 AM. Permalink: Rockstar Straightjacket | Comments (0)

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.

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October 18, 2007

Wii Have Promos, Too!

Okay, so for my last video game related promotional post for today, I guess it's worth mentioning that Nintendo will have lots of cool giveaways at the video game convention E for All, which starts today at the LA Convention Center. The t-shirt below is one of them. There was actually a better photo of the shirt, but it didn't have the awesome guy in it, so you get this photo. Previously: Nintendo promotions of note. (via The Feed)

Posted by mark at 10:12 AM. Permalink: Wii Have Promos, Too! | Comments (0)

October 15, 2007

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 | Comments (0)

August 8, 2006

Schwag Trends

Google Trends allows users to view relative trends in search popularity for different terms. I was trying it out on the term "schwag" and it generated this graph:

My guess would be that the increase in searches for the term schwag coincided with the launch of Valley Schwag.

Posted by mark at 11:43 AM. Permalink: Schwag Trends | Comments (0)

July 3, 2006

Valley Schwag 3

Valley Schwag 3 was sent out recently, so flickr is chock-full of photos of this month's schwag. It seems like it's even more popular than when we first mentioned Valley Schwag here. Will we look back on it as an example of the execesses of the second Internet boom? As I write this, I just realized I'm wearing a promotional t-shirt from the first Internet boom. I'm not sure what that signifies. Perhaps that Internet booms come and go, but you're always going to need a clean t-shirt.

Posted by mark at 11:40 AM. Permalink: Valley Schwag 3 | Comments (0)

June 16, 2006

More Childvertising

As previously reported on Everybody Loves Free Stuff, the childvertising epidemic continues to run rampant, as evidenced by this photograph. While trade shows and organizations like Valleyschwag provide most of the raw promotional materials, the parents are ultimately responsible for this tragedy. As the caption to this photo posted on flickr clearly indicates, the innocent children involved are forced into childvertising against their will, or at least without their consent: "What better way to celebrate Valleyschwag and Ruby on Rails than to make my kids wear the stuff?! " Indeed. When the laws of our country essentially treat minors as chattel, what better way to celebrate than to use them as pawns in a game of advertising and promotion? Of course, as insidious as it may be, it is rather cute, which is why we sell promotional apparel for children.

Posted by mark at 9:47 AM. Permalink: More Childvertising | Comments (1)

May 17, 2006

Intra-company Promotion, a VC Perspective

Venture capitalist David Hornik recently wrote a great post about promotional products (schwag) on VentureBlog. I'm quoting a big chunk because it's so good, and because it's a perspective on promos that you don't really get all that often. Of course, you should visit VentureBlog and read the rest. Here's what he has to say about the value of branded apparel and products for employees, and how it both signifies and reinforces company culture:

But the schwag that I think really matters is the intra-company schwag. I am not a VC who minds his money being spent on t-shirts, hats, sweatshirts. In fact, I encourage it.

Teams that love what they池e working on, want to wear their company logos. They want to have the t-shirt or the hat or the polar fleece. And the act of wearing the shirt of the company you love is self-reinforcing. It makes you love the company all the more. I remember visiting Yahoo in the late nineties and being struck by the fact that about 3 out of every 4 people I passed in the cafeteria was wearing a Yahoo t-shirt of some kind or another. It wasn稚 a dress code. It was a testimony to the culture Jerry and Dave had created from the very outset of the company. The same is true of my portfolio companies. They celebrate successes with company t-shirts. They give company laptop bags for the holidays. Their employees wear company baseball hats to lunch. And I, their board member, proudly rotate through my portfolio company sweatshirts when walking in the morning.

Posted by mark at 12:17 PM. Permalink: Intra-company Promotion, a VC Perspective | Comments (0)

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