Achieve your 2018 marketing goalswith these tips and trendingpromotional products

Blue PaperDecember 4, 2017

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When it comes to launching a new year of marketing, figuring out what the hottrending promotional products of 2018 will be is essential. Hot products will give yourcustomers a reason to reach for your brand. When developing a strategic marketingand promotion plan, it’s important to examine current trends, so you can select themost effective promotional products for your marketing dollars. So, what do analystspredict for 2018? And, perhaps more importantly, how can you leverage this intel intoa boost for your bottom line? Here’s a closer look to help guide your planning process.

Leveraging trending promotional products tohit your marketing goals

The first step forward is actually to take a look back. Consider the past year, with afocus on your marketing and promotions efforts, particularly those that includedpromotional products. What worked? What didn’t? This will give you a sense ofdirection and purpose in 2018.

Here are some thought-provoking questions to consider:

• How well did your promotional products resonate with audiences in the pastyear?

• Overall, is your brand awareness improving?• If you had a call to action on your promotional product, was it effective?

If you didn’t imprint a call to action on your most recent promotional products, it maybe worth considering in your 2018 strategy.

Tracking the effectiveness of promotional products

Determining the return on your marketing and advertising investment is a key piece ofthe planning puzzle. While industry insiders work on new technologies to track theeffectiveness of promotional products, there are still some time-tested ways to trackthe reach and influence of your marketing efforts. One way is to feature a call toaction on your promotional products.

Here are a few ideas on how to go about it, according to PPAI Media:

• Embed a hashtag in your design, so customers can use it when referring toyour product or service in social media posts.

• Print a custom web address on your promotional products. You can then trackuser traffic to that site.

• Create a vanity toll-free number for prospects to call, so you can find thecustomer or prospect interactions directly related to that marketing effort.

• Print a QR code on your giveaways to track web traffic. Follow up throughoutthe campaign to offer a clear picture of results.

While these tracking methods prove promising, studies show the use of these tacticshas fallen slightly with most organizations preferring to use only their name and logo.The take-away? There are opportunities to track ROI, but the methods are stillevolving.

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Looking ahead to marketing opportunities in 2018

You have an idea of what worked in 2017, now it’s time to think strategically aboutthe new year. Ask yourself how you can extend your reach in 2018. Take note of thepercentage of your target audience that has received a promotional product from you.Are there market segments you didn’t reach? How can you reach those who may needyour products or services, but haven’t been introduced to the benefits of your brand?

You’ll also want to consider the anticipated length of use for your promotionalproduct. Trending or not, the longer a customer or prospect uses a promotionalproduct, the longer that brand message stays with them. So, it’s important to considernot only what the hot new items are in the marketplace, but also how useful they willbe to your clients and prospects.

Best promotional items, 2018 style

Let’s take a look at the emerging trends in promotional products. What are likely to bethe best promotional items in 2018? Here are some inspiring ideas to fire up yourmarketing in the coming year.

Tech is king, and wireless is best

Connection is the name of the game, and you can help your customers power up in apinch. In the coming year, custom tech accessories will likely be a must-have.Technology has been steadily climbing in the promotional products realm since 2014.In 2017, tech accessories focused on keeping them charged up, so power banks wereincredibly popular. This trend is expected to grow even more in 2018.

But here’s what’s new: wireless charging options are ready to energize the marketingscene. People want to be connected 24/7, so battery power has become a hotcommodity. And with the new wireless technology emerging in custom promotionalproducts, it’s easier than ever to get your customers reaching for somethingpowerful—your brand!

A wave of wireless charging options is looming in 2018, along with new designs andinnovations. The tech accessory field is innovative and ever-changing, so getting inahead of the field puts you in the driver’s seat, whether at trade shows, for employeeappreciation or at events. When considering your promotional products budget, youmay want to take a closer look at power banks, car chargers and bags with chargingcables innovatively incorporated into the design.

There are many directions you can go with tech accessories. In the United Statesalone, the cell phone accessory industry is worth $63 billion. We’re talking aboutaccessories—not the phones themselves. In addition, depending on your brand andpromotion, going beyond function to try something fun, like cell phone charms andbedazzled carrying options, can set your brand apart. With no shortage of options,you’re sure to find promotional products that fit your campaign, brand, special eventor fundraiser. And don’t forget the earbuds; this perennial favorite is useful for justabout everyone.

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Street style: trusted retail brands heats up the real-world runway

Custom logo apparel is always a favorite for good reason. It turns your customers andemployees into walking billboards. Trusted brands are increasingly taking the lead inquality logo’d apparel, a trend expected to continue in 2018.

Demand for retail brands will be as hot as ever, with customers valuing well-known

brands like Under Armour®, The North Face®, Nike® and Hanes®. These popular andhigh-quality apparel items help organizations reinforce their own brands. A well-recognized name makes recipients more appreciative of their promotionalapparel—and your brand.

Practical daily-use promotional products remain hot in 2018

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When choosing a promotional product, chances are you’re looking for an item with along shelf life your customers and prospects will use regularly. Look for traditionalproducts with a new twist to kick-start the new year.

For example, drinkware is always popular, and vacuum tumblers are expected toremain a hot item in 2018. Vacuum tumblers were among the top 10 hottest itemsordered in 2017. With the ability to maintain either hot or cold temperatures forhours, it’s no wonder people are clamoring for vacuum tumblers.

In addition, in the writing and stationery areas, Moleskine® brand products areexpected to continue to be hot, thanks to their impressive features. A new class ofnotebooks from Moleskine helps digitize, organize and simplify notetaking. As yourcustomers look for new ways to manage the demands of everyday life, these productsare sure to be appreciated and valued in 2018.

Emerging trends in promotional products andmarket influences

When considering your options for ordering swag, it’s wise to not only look at the hot,emerging trends, but to also keep an eye on the marketing industry and the factorsthat are influencing best practices. Let’s take a closer look at the factors we seehaving an impact in the next 12 months.

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The rising role of millennials

In 2018, millennials will continue to grow as key decision makers for organizations,and that will likely have a direct impact on B2B sales efforts. Recognizing thisgeneration’s influence and understanding their key motivations and behaviors will beimportant in developing relationships in the coming year.

According to one study of more than 500 B2B companies, 13 percent reported havingat least one millennial decision-maker on its buying committees, and 27 percentreported they have a millennial influencer.

The bottom line is millennials will influence purchasing decisions with increasingfrequency. Paying attention to this segment of the population can favorably positionyour organization for greater success.

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As we know, millennials are a tech-loving generation. Marketers who wish to reachthem should pay close attention to the emerging wireless charging options in 2018, orlean on the popular power banks and tech accessories of 2017 for inspiration.

Higher-value products may reap higher-value results

Higher-value products are often more effective at converting leads and delightingclients. So, if you’re marketing a high-value product or service, consider pairing it withvalue-added promotional product either at trade shows or events. Custom printedpens may draw prospects to the table, and a premium giveaway, like a custom laptopbag, a high-end apparel item or a branded tech item, will help them remember youand your product favorably.

According to a survey of 4imprint customers, the top reasons to purchase promotionalproducts in 2017 were for giveaway items and to use at trade shows and expos. And

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perhaps most notably, customers report that 98 percent of purchases helped theirteams achieve their goals. Now that’s powerful promotion!

How promotional products compete in a new era of advertising

When considering your promotional marketing dollars, you may wonder about theeffectiveness of promotional products. According to PPAI Media, spending onpromotional products was up 4 percent to $10.8 billion in 2015, claiming 7 percent ofthe market share. The same study shows that more than ever, consumers are tryingto avoid ads, believing them to be more intrusive than a few years ago. In fact, 42percent of consumers surveyed said they were intending to pay for services to removead interruptions within the coming year. Analysts found a corresponding increase inthe purchase of mobile ad-blocking software to 380 million users. What’s more,studies show 74 percent of people will leave websites that require them to disabletheir ad-blocking software.

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As the perception of traditional ads shifts, promotional products continue to win favoras a relationship-building strategy. And marketing professionals see the differencethey make. In fact, 87 percent of buyers say promotional products contributed tothem reaching their marketing objectives. Meanwhile, 54 percent of marketerssurveyed said they found promotional products help them regularly engage withcustomers, and over half say that happens in a way that’s distinctive to the medium.

Additionally, the survey showed a whopping 96 percent of buyers believe promotionalproducts are an effective form of advertising (and notably one that is immune to thework of ad-blocking software). Buyers also found promotional products were easy tofit into their budgets (36 percent), while 84 percent said they were moderately toextremely effective as a promotional tool.

According to the study, there are a number of reasons marketers used promotionalproducts:

1. To increase brand awareness (63 percent)2. To increase recognition (61 percent)3. As an effective strategy to spark word-of-mouth advertising (90 percent)4. As a strategy to prompt product or service reviews (91 percent)5. As a strategy to gain new customers (89 percent)

And while most of these strategies point toward external audiences, 95 percent ofmarketers said they also use promotional products within their company, which mayinclude employee recognition and retention efforts, service anniversary gifts,incentives or other in-house rewards.

Make promotional products work for you

With this valuable marketing knowledge and a sneak peek at trending promotionalproducts, you can comfortably bid farewell to last year’s efforts and look forward tothe new class of custom promotional products, along with all the marketingpossibilities for your brand.

Cheers to successful promotions, and best of luck with your 2018 marketing plan!

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