What Makes a Good Promotion Giveaway?

What Makes a Good Promotion Giveaway?

Who doesn’t love swag?  Pens, mints, stress balls, mugs, Rubik’s cubes, t-shirts, bags, umbrellas, flashlights…the list goes on and on.  As a general rule, If it’s mass produced you can get your logo it.  As a non-profit association it is of supreme importance that your money is not wasted and one way to waste it is by giving away products no one wants. All promotional giveaways however aren’t equal and it has almost nothing to do with the gift itself.

A giveaway is considered a successful one if it accomplishes what it is intended to.  So your first task is to figure out exactly what you are looking to accomplish with your promotional items.  For example if you are looking to get your name in front of the most people you will want to choose an item that will reach the most hands.  Pens are great for this.  If you are in a neighborhood that has a TD Bank there is a good chance that when you sign your credit card receipts at your local restaurant you will be using one of those green pens.

If your goal is to stay in the minds of the individuals you give this promo to, then you will want to give away an item they will use on a daily basis.  Calendars are great in this regard because they stick around all year long.  Mugs and toys would also fit the bill here as would many of the higher priced items.  If you want it to stick around it should be either useful enough to have staying power or of a nice enough quality that it is preferred.

Spend some time thinking about the items you use on a daily basis and the things you would be embarrassed to carry around or use were they branded.  You will also want to consider whether the item you choose is aligned with your organization.  A good example is a stress ball shaped like a heart from the American Heart Association.  This is clever and also in keeping with the organization’s mission.

More importantly you will want to avoid the pitfall of using vendors that may not align with your organizations mission or efforts.  For example a war veterans organization may want to ensure their promotional items are produced domestically or an environmental group may want their promotional items to be biodegradable.

If you focus on the purpose of your giveaway and what its intended effects will be, you are sure to get the most out of your promotional gifts.