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When Patagonia announced that it would no longer feature its corporate logo on its apparel, it raised concerns about the sustainability of corporate promotional products (often referred to as “swag”) and how much meaning and use these products actually have. A big debate arose as to whether to provide it. Today, forward-thinking entrepreneurs are transforming traditional promotional items that are dismissed as trivial, quickly forgotten, and quickly discarded.
The focus is shifting from generic merchandise to unique, story-driven objects that go beyond just advertising. The right tchotchkes tell a story, encapsulate your company's values, and spark meaningful conversations. But for that, you need to do them correctly.
If you've ever wondered, “Are promotional products worth it?”, this article is for you. We explore the reasons behind this shift and how entrepreneurs are strategically using creative leftovers to leave a lasting impression.
Related: 9 essential tips for navigating the upcoming 2024 marketing landscape
The Stolen Goods Landscape: A $21.2 Billion Market
According to IBISWorld, the promotional products market in the United States reached a staggering $21.2 billion in 2023. From trinkets to misplaced items, these items serve as important tools in your marketing department's arsenal. Examples of swag uses include gifts to encourage new employees to foster positive relationships and make them feel part of the team, and thank-you gifts to show appreciation to clients and vendors. .
The main goal is to generate interest, foster new relationships, and establish connections beyond email. Please note that this article refers to a “tchotchke” as a trinket to send to a “cold” prospect, and a misplaced item as an item to leave a “warm” prospect after an introduction or initial meeting.
When cold sending a tchotchke, the challenge is to instill surprise in a single object and make the recipient prioritize a callback. Since the market is flooded with such promotional products, it is very important for entrepreneurs to find a way to make their business stand out and make a meaningful impression.
The success of promotional product campaigns is measured by engagement. For cold outreach, whether via email, phone, direct mailer, or chowk, the key performance indicator is a higher-than-average prospect engagement rate. Traditional cold calling has a 2% success rate, while direct mailers and email have an average success rate of about 3% and 2%, respectively. In contrast, text messages have a success rate of about 15%.
Related: 5 steps to create a successful marketing campaign
Which promotional items are most effective?
Entrepreneurs are redefining promotional products by infusing them with stories that resonate with their target audience. When it comes to understanding which promotional items are most effective, it comes down to which items truly tell your company's story in a way that resonates with your target users.
Follow this three-step process to learn how to make your business stand out by sharing creative tchotchkes that accurately represent your company's core values and mission.
1. Create an informed merchandise budget
Understanding the frequency and occasion for distributing swag is an important first step to developing the right strategy. Companies often allocate a portion of their marketing budget to promotional products, with approximately 20% of the budget devoted to events, trade shows, or external branding. Additionally, organizations may have specific budgets for employee acquisition, retention, and engagement.
Determine the return on investment of previous promotional campaigns to allocate your budget more effectively. Next, take a deep dive into past campaigns to understand which items generated the highest engagement relative to cost. It's important to set specific, measurable goals for each campaign, such as a 5% increase in lead engagement or a 10% increase in social media mentions, to help inform budgeting decisions. Emphasizing creativity and relevance over cost and looking for cost-effective, high-impact items can help you achieve these goals. You can also take advantage of bulk purchasing to save costs. However, be sure to keep it customized to maintain the unique charm of each item.
A great example of this was our approach to working with our portfolio company Arbol to work with airline and airport executives using the Admiral FitzRoy barometer. This item encapsulates the story of the origins of weather insurance and subsequent innovations in risk prediction. Arbol strategically connected its story and brand to the technological advances in parametric weather insurance by devising a thoughtful and customized design. This creative yet cost-effective strategy greatly appealed to one of the company's key audiences and demonstrated how impactful results can be achieved with minimal financial investment.
2. Identify your ideal outcome
Next, imagine the ideal outcome: placing it somewhere visible to the recipient and sparking a conversation. Through research, we answer important questions: What kind of story is being told? Who is the target audience? What actions trigger the story? What is the object that causes that action?
Researching your customer personas can help you tailor promotional items that resonate with recipients on a personal level. For example, if you're targeting tech-savvy users, consider items that integrate with their digital lifestyle. Implement tracking mechanisms such as QR codes and unique URLs to measure interactions with promotional items. This allows for direct correlation between items and desired actions, such as website visits or social media engagement.
Spotify’s “Wrapped” campaign is a great example. Every year, Spotify creates a personalized year-end review playlist and statistics for its users, showcasing the most played songs, artists, and genres. These summaries are presented in a visually appealing and shareable format that encourages users to share their music preferences on social media. This approach transforms a user's listening habits into a unique and personal item: a digital tchotchke. It takes advantage of trends in personalization and social sharing. When users share wrapped summaries, they not only increase interest in Spotify, but also promote your brand to others. The campaign shows how digital items, like traditional physical tchotchkes, can effectively increase brand engagement and foster broad cultural resonance.
For digital campaigns like Wrapped, including incentives like contests and participant-only content can encourage sharing and expand your reach. Ultimately, you want to make sure that the story your item tells aligns with the core values of both your brand and your target audience, thereby increasing the likelihood that your item will be retained and discussed.
Related: 5 important marketing strategies for product promotion
3. Iterate creatively
Brainstorm, delete, test, and refine your chosen tchotchkes to make sure they start conversations and encourage callbacks. Participate in A/B testing with small segments of your target audience to measure the impact of different promotional items. This might include sending her two variations of the product to see which one generates more engagement or feedback. Then, use surveys or follow-up calls to solicit direct feedback from recipients about what they liked and didn't like about your product. Maintain a database of response and engagement metrics to refine future campaigns with creativity and focus on the emotional or practical value provided by the tchotchkes.
We teamed up with another portfolio company, StoryFit, a story intelligence technology company, to send model DeLorean kits to narrative decision makers, highlighting the ability of the right story to bring scripts to life . When the recipient places the completed model on their desk in the office, a conversation begins with colleagues about the audience's predictive insights. It also left an unforgettable impression for future collaborations. Managers said they received direct feedback from prospects and appreciated the approach their team took.
The era of pointless promotional items is giving way to a new era of purposeful, story-driven chocks. Entrepreneurs who invest time and creativity in selecting and creating these tokens are not only leaving a lasting impression, but also building meaningful connections that go beyond transactions. Success is measured by engagement. When it comes to promotional products, it's important to start with a well-thought-out experience and an authentic story to match.
