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CDs as Giveaways

ARTICLE:
Give-Aways that Work
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Handouts, trinkets, premiums, tchotchkes, freebies… whatever you call them, give-aways are a highly effective form of free publicity and a positive boost to your corporate branding strategy. However, poorly chosen give-aways can quickly become a marketing nightmare. To avoid the common pitfalls, careful attention should be paid to their selection, quality, novelty, design and value.

OUT THERE PRODUCTIONS provides the following suggestions when planning your next give-away. If you need help, please contact us. We're well-experienced in the nuances of selection, design and use.

Overall Suggestions

  • Whatever give-away you decide to use, plan ahead. Place your order early enough so that it can be shipped from your site to the exhibit location, and so that potential problems such as misprints or poor quality can be resolved with enough time left for additional orders.
  • Your give-away should get you business. If it doesn't potentially result in customers, it won't be successful. Consider the audience, design a product that is distinct, and incorporate your branding strategies and sales objectives into the product.
  • Give-aways that are offered to just anyone who shows up at your booth will result in unqualified leads. To accommodate all booth visits, order another less expensive giveaway that will satisfy your general audience, and offer a premium product to more serious prospects.
  • Always keep in mind that you are trading your giveaway for something of far greater value: contact information. Ask for a businesscard, request that the individual complete a brief survey, or have them listen to a short presentation.
  • Educate yourself on your options. Consider what your competitors have provided in past shows and the level of their success. Carefully review your booth guidelines and note those give-aways that are neither encouraged or allowed (see our notes about balloons and noisemakers).
  • Determine whether you actually will benefit from any type of give-away before you invest in one. The presence of any booth or exhibit doesn't necessarily mandate a give-away. On the other hand, it pays to have something on hand in certain shows - and cultures - where the standard expectation is they'll get something just for stopping by.

Select Wisely

  • Remember that sometimes a highly useable item that may not have anything to do with your service is far more successful than a useless or all-too-frequently-encountered item that DOES pertain to your product or service.
  • Trade show booths are overflowing with the most common give-aways, such as pens, coffee mugs and note pads. These items are popular because they're most commonly found on your desk. If you select one of these items as a give-away, discover novel approaches that will set it apart from others. For example, take photos of the individual (perhaps with a celebrity or well-known industry bigwig) and insert the picture into the outer section of an acrylic cup showing your logo and contact information. Other examples are a notepad holder (as opposed to notepads themselves), or an ergonomically designed pen. Whatever you choose, make your common give-away so uncommon that people will enjoy using it, keep it on their desk, and show it off.
  • Make sure that your give-away is manufactured with a high level of quality. Placing your logo on a cheap hat or other product that falls apart or fails to work conveys a poor impression about your company. Ask for samples prior to purchasing mass quantities (pens and keychains, for example), to ensure that it functions perfectly.
  • The best give-aways help someone get their job done faster or better. Make yours something genuinely useful that will be kept in a place where the prospect will refer to it when they need your product.
  • Beware balloons! Large trade-show organizations and exhibit halls often have regulations on the storage and use of helium (for balloons), and sometimes fine you for having them.
  • Also be careful of noise-generating products. Halls are sensitive to the needs of all exhibitors, and any complaints by your booth neighbors may result in fines.
  • Make sure your corporate logo and at least one form of contact (often the web site address or phone number) is easily seen on your give-away. We've seen some of the best promotional items become marketing nightmares simply due to the absence of this information.
  • Consider creating a custom-designed CD that presents your product literature and corporate information, along with links to your web site. Add freebie applications that apply to your business or industry, such as a mortgage calculator for realtors, or a screensaver or game. Allow individuals to 'share' or distribute these free items, and ensure that your corporate logo and contact information is contained on all of them. For more information about these CDs, click HERE.
  • If you'd like assistance with selecting, designing and ordering your give-aways, please contact us.

A Note about Bags

There's a distinct line between those who love bags as give-aways and those who find no value in them. The reason is that bags are often tossed once their use is complete - meaning immediately after the show…. even the more expensive bags. However, consider your objective and the value of bags before you dismiss their use.

W hen your company name and other information is printed on them, bags are a form of free advertisement for the show's duration. Bags are always in high demand during show hours. When you encourage attendees to use your bag right away to hold their items, they become walking billboards for your company or product. So it might be wise to accept that these bags will be eventually discarded, and make optimum use of this give-away for the duration it is in the prospect's hands:

  • The best bags are not those made of canvas or other fabric, but those which are comfortable to carry. Select a handle that's easy to hold for long periods of time and a good-quality plastic that will not tear under a heavy load.
  • Consider selectively offering 'coupons' that will allow hot prospects to return to your booth for free shipping of the fully-loaded bag back to their office... in the process, you gain valuable contact information!
  • Always print your logo (and other information) as large as possible, using the full size of the bag, and be sure to include your booth number. Incorporate any theme you select for your booth, unless you're ordering enough bags for this and other shows where the theme - or booth number - may not be applicable.
  • When displaying bags, place them well within your booth space, and assign a representative to remain there at all times to catch the more prospective leads.
  • Make sure your own product literature is deposited in each bag before they're placed on a rack.