Business Promotional Items - How to Stimulate
Word of Mouth Advertising
If the promotional items you give out end up in the attic or
shoved in the back of a desk drawer, they are probably not doing
what they are supposed to be doing. However, if items you
passed out to clients and customers are being seen again and
again, chances are, word-of-mouth advertising is stimulating your
business.
With media (radio, televisions and newspaper), messages can come
and go. But, the exposure promotional items can give equals
longevity. While there is no real scientific way to measure how
many impressions an item can receive in its lifetime, we know
that it works and ultimately gets well over its money's worth.
I used to work at a radio station that passed out license plates.
We had a very fun logo- and still after ten years of being on
the air, they are a sought out item. We began to limit the
number that were handed out at live action broadcasts, and that
drew people to event after event. Everywhere you drive in our
area, you are sure to see a dozen or so cars with Froggy 101
license plates on the commute. This may draw people to flip on
the station to see what's playing. With the amount of
impressions they get, these 'mini-billboards' sure generate more
word of mouth advertising than a real billboard would, for a
fraction of the cost. When concerts came to town, we'd have the
country singers autograph them, and then either give them away
or auction them off for charity. Those, which were often bought
by business owners, are on prominent display in bars and pubs
around the area. This is just one small example of how word-of-
mouth advertising can explode through a small item.
Bumper stickers and static stickers are something that
constantly generate word-of-mouth as well. What college doesn't
sell them? Parents and alumni can also have them too! Coffee
and travel mugs, and even koozies (can coolers) can all create
buzz about their namesake in offices, at people's homes or at
the beach. While many people use their 'free t-shirts' to sleep
in, many others will wear them to the gym or out jogging. This
could create locker room talk about when and how they got the
shirt. At a bar, you may help someone open a beer with a
keychain from an insurance company- and guess what- they need
insurance.
Word-of-mouth can also even help for short-term goals, such as
at a seminar. You may be passing out a really cool item, which
makes you the talk of the floor. Or, maybe everyone at the
county fair wants to stop by the Heavenly Touch Massage Therapy
stand for a stress ball.
Plain and simple, if you use the right kind of promotional items,
people will use them- and others will see them being used.
"Where'd you get that?" could become a common question to the
user, making them a walking, talking billboard for your own
company. If a t-shirt cost you $3.79, but the person wears it
to the gym once a week- think how far that little sum of money
actually went!
Cindy Carrera is a freelance creative author who's written
numerous articles about PR including: http://www.corporate-
promotional-gifts.com/ , http://www.corporate-promotional-gifts.
com/wholesale-promotional-items.html and http://www.corporate-
promotional-gifts.com/custom-promotional-products.htm
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