Promotional products are still a great and simple way to gain attention, respect, a smile, or even an appreciative laugh from a potential client. You already know your promotional products need to be eye-catching, practical, and in potential clients’ hands for keeps. As you look ahead into 2018, here are some of the newest items to consider for your promotional product arsenal.
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Simple tech
It’s easy to provide quality tech accessories that people will use every day. You also often get a chance with technology to provide a potential client more interaction points with your business. Selfie sticks are a great example. The stick itself can carry your logo, but it can also come with a little card encouraging people to use the stick and post photos to your company’s Instagram. The winner of the posting contest could even receive a discounted product or service. Flash drives are a great gift, and can come preloaded with a video or interactive presentation about your company. The drives themselves have also gotten an update. Try a flash drive in an offbeat shape, in sleek wooden case, or even embedded in cork. Simple tech items tell the world you’re paying attention to customer need, and that you have a creative marketing edge.
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Customized watches
Retro is back. Well, it’s really always coming back. And if you want to fascinate a Millennial especially, look no further than providing little snippets of days gone by. Alongside a renewed interest in high quality pens, paper, and stationery, under-40’s get a kick out of analog alternatives to the digital world they’re surrounded by every day. Even plastic promotional watches are charming and useful, and because of the number of components, a lot of fun to customize.
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Classy bags
When in doubt, bag it up. One of the hottest moves in promotional products is the reusable shopping bag. They are guaranteed to get used, and to get used out in public. They also have an eco-friendly vibe, and if that’s an initiative of your business (and whose shouldn’t be?) don’t hide it. Another option is a small utility bag, like a desk supply or makeup bag, in an impressive and durable fabric like leather. Everyone appreciates a promo product that anticipates a specific need and comes in a high-touch style that doesn’t get relegated to the half-embarrassed “Well, it’s got that big logo, but at least it’s useful!” category. If you’d be excited to use it, and happy with how the brand interacts with the product, chances are, potential clients will be, too.
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Pens, remixed
You know you can put your logo on a pen and it will get used in offices and homes all over town. This is one “old school” method that is still tried and true. And, a beautiful metal ballpoint pen will always make the right impression. But when it comes to plastic pens, have you ever considered playing with the shape? You can customize a pen to look like vehicles, animals, buildings, everyday objects, and more. What if your non-profit for animal conservation handed out colorful pens in the shape of different endangered species? What if your travel agency offered pens in the shape of planes or cruise ships? Obviously, this is a uniquely whimsical, attention-grabbing choice. But when that’s just the right tone for you, consider remixing the humble pen.
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Water bottles, remixed
Forget the cheap plastic water bottle that makes your water smelly and stale. These are cupboard fillers that quickly become recycle bin fillers, and there are enough of them rolling around under minivan seats. It’s always lovely to have something on hand to grab a drink on the go, but aluminum is the scientifically preferred method of keeping that water free from leaking chemicals in a hot car or on a sunny day. Glass water bottles are a great choice, too. They’re not only safe from chemicals as well, they are at the very top of current accessory style. And if you want to go the plastic route–businesses that may want to keep water bottles on hand to offer to clients at the front desk, or example–make absolutely sure the plastic is BPA-free. A great option for plastic is also the tumbler with lid and straw. Chances are you have already seen varieties of this tumbler in your own office. A water bottle will get used, but will be most appreciated when it is also safe and attractive.
Bonus: A note on t-shirts
And here is a final note for you t-shirt lovers. T-shirts are one of the most classic promo product solutions, but if not carefully considered, they can run the risk of becoming an obnoxious addition to a wardrobe already overstuffed with tees. But t-shirts can still surprise, show off your organization, and make people feel great wearing them. If you want to go this route, try shirts printed with a new technique called sublimated printing. The design is printed into the fabric itself, so it’s more comfortable because it nixes those scratchy, sweat-inducing patches of decal. The design won’t crackle or wash out over time. It also eliminates the “you’ve-ruined-a-perfectly-good-shirt-with-a-logo” factor: you can print the design in crystal clarity and endless levels of cool, covering the whole shirt from seam to seam, as if you designed not just a decal but the fabric itself.
Are you ready to explore these new products and customize them for your business? From sublimated print tees to selfie sticks and leather bags, Safeguard by Innovative can provide a perfect, integrated, promotional solution for you. Call today and get the conversation started.