Effectiveness of Promotional Products

praveen samra

Promotional products have long been recognised as an essential and effective part of the marketing mix - a key ingredient in integrated marketing campaigns.

For example, advertising and direct mail campaigns tend to receive improved response rates when they are supported by promotional products; the giving of promotional products encourages customer goodwill towards a company and its sales force, and can help generate repeat business as well as customer referrals; internal awards and incentive programs motivate employees and improve performance; and giving away promotional products drives traffic to exhibitors' booths at trade or consumer shows.

A new study* conducted in November 2006 has further proven the value of promotional products in today's highly competitive marketplace. Commissioned and published by the Promotional Products Association International (PPAI) in the US, the research shows that promotional products are an effective advertising medium and create a more positive outlook towards an advert and the brand. By questioning the most critical demographic group - people aged 18-34 - the survey found that using a promotional product as the only advertising medium increased brand interest in 69% of cases and created a favourable impression of a brand in 84% of cases.

Those in this age group are among the hardest for marketers to reach, yet highly desirable from an advertiser's perspective. Demonstrating that promotional products have an impact on this sector of the population means that they are likely to have a similar effect on other age groups.


* Source: An experiment conducted exclusively for PPAI by university researchers at Louisiana State University and the University of Texas at San Antonio.