Tag Archives: personalised magnets

promotional mugs

Are Promotional Products Worth the Cost for Your Small Business?

Promotional products are everywhere these days – no doubt, you even own a few of your own, picked up from business fairs, markets, and promotional giveaways.
Whether it’s a tote bag, mug, fridge magnet or umbrella flaunting your company’s logo, promotional products are perfect for both attracting new customers, and keeping your business fresh in the minds of existing and past clients.

Not only are promotional products effective for larger companies, they’re also perfect for improving brand awareness and recognition for small and medium-sized businesses. But of course, you have to allocate funds within your advertising budget to order these products before you’ll start to see a return on your investment. And it’s also important that you know how to use such products effectively, so that they’ll make the biggest impact on your customer base and sales.

This guide will talk you through what exactly promotional products are, and give you some examples of how to use them. We’ll discuss how much promotional products cost, the benefits they may bring, and discuss whether the rewards are worth the investment.

What Are Promotional Products?

A promotional product is, in essence, any physical item that bears your company’s name, logo, or slogan. This could be a pen, a keyring, a flyer, a t-shirt – anything, really. It might be a one-use-only item, like a paper cup, or something that’s designed to last for years, such as a ceramic mug. The merchandise itself doesn’t have to bear any relation to the service or product that your company actually sells.

You might have seen businesses handing out promotional products at trade shows or conventions, giving them away as freebies to customers with their order, or using them as giveaway prizes.

Many people think that promotional products are something of a gimmick, or simply used as a token gesture of kindness – but that’s not the case. Multiple studies have shown that promotional products are an invaluable form of advertising that can help to draw in new customers, and retain the existing ones. They can even help to boost morale among employees of a company, and improve employee loyalty.

Examples of Promotional Products and How to Use Them

As you might have guessed, there are many different kinds of promotional products, available at a number of price points. For example:

Flyers, leaflets and postcards are some of the cheapest promotional products. They’re so affordable that you can hand them out to passers-by, or hire a company to deliver them directly to homes as part of a local advertising campaign.

Magnets and keyrings are a step up in terms of price, but also durability. They won’t be discarded as quickly, and are perfect handed out as freebies with an order, or at trade shows and business fairs.

Drinkware such as glasses and mugs are designed to be used for many years, and make great gifts of thanks to longstanding clients and employees. While they may be on the costlier side, they’ll be used by your customers and employees regularly, increasing your exposure and brand awareness. One marketing study found drinkware to be one of the most influential kinds of promotional product – a famous example being the iconic Sports Direct mugs.

Clothing, bags and umbrellas are some of the longest-lasting and most effective promotional wares. They make great corporate gifts – the big benefit being that they’ll be taken outside, and be seen by the public!

The more hardwearing and high-quality the product, the longer it will last, and therefore the more expensive it will be to buy. But though these products may be pricier, they have the most usability and the longest lifespan – so they also have the most potential to help grow your business.

What Are the Benefits of Using Promotional Products?

The use of promotional products, gifts and merchandise will result in many tangible benefits for your business. Multiple marketing studies have shown that promotional products can:

Increase brand awareness and identification. Your name and logo will be more easily recognised and remembered.

Help improve brand image – change the way that people feel about your company. A study by the Advertising Specialties Institute found that people view companies who give them promotional items in an overwhelmingly positive light.

Increase your company’s sales. A customer is more likely to do business with a company if they own their merchandise, rather than a competitor who sells a similar product or service.

Increase employee morale, if your promotional products are given away to employees as a thank-you for their hard work.

Keep your business fresh in the minds of past customers. A potential customer will look at a branded mug and see your logo every single time they drink from it. This is much more effective than, say, passing a billboard.

Don’t forget that your promotional products won’t just have an effect on those who own them, but also anyone who sees the product being used. For example, if someone is carrying around a tote bag bearing your company’s name, this might be seen by anyone who passes them in the street.

Will My Customers Actually Use or Keep the Product?

In short – yes. Obviously, not every (potential) customer will be interested in keeping a branded product in their home; they may have no use for it, or no room to store it. But studies show that the average consumer will keep a promotional product for an average of 7 months.

For more durable and practical products, such as umbrellas, this average increases to 14 months. All this time, not only will your potential customer be looking at your logo every time they use the product – but they’ll also be seen using it, either inside or outside the home.

Furthermore, over 50% of people who own a promotional product will give it away to someone else when they’re finished with it, rather than throwing it in the bin. This will further spread brand awareness!

To increase the likelihood that your customers will actually use your promotional products, take into account your target market. Try to offer the kinds of products that your particular audience will be most likely to use. For example, if your company is popular with the over-70s, USB drives and tech gadgets may not be a sensible choice – but things and mugs and umbrellas might be perfect.

How Much Do Promotional Products Cost?

The cost of any promotional product will vary depending, of course, on what kind of product it is. For example, our magnets start at £15.95 for a pack of 20 small magnets – that’s less than 80p each.

Our personalised mugs vary in price depending on whether you want a single image or a wraparound-style image, and how many mugs you order. The more you order, the more you’ll save – a pack of 200 single image mugs comes to just £4.26 per mug.

In general, products which cost more to purchase are:
Larger
Higher quality
More durable
Reusable
Multi-purpose
Designed to be used for a long period of time (months or years)

Though a personalised coffee mug might be more expensive than a branded paper cup, for example, it will have a more lasting impression on the owner (whether that’s a customer or an employee), and will therefore generate more sales and interest in your company.

How Do I Know I’m Getting a Good Return on Investment?

Promotional products offer a greater return on investment than traditional types of advertising (such as newspaper ads and billboards). In terms of cost per impression (CPI), promotional merchandise is the most cost-effective form of advertising, at around 0.5p per impression.

A 2014 study by the British Promotional Merchandise Association also found that:

96% of marketers who had tried promotional products thought they were worth the money, in terms of increasing brand awareness
73% of the public said that they would purchase from a company that had given them a promotional gift

Data also shows that many customers will also remember the brand on their promotional product for many years after they have thrown or given the item away.

In terms of your own business, the most direct way to monitor whether you’re getting a return on your investment is to closely monitor your sales, website views, searches and clicks, both before and after you roll out your new promotional merchandise.

How Do I Factor Promotional Products into My Advertising Budget?

As excited you may be at the prospect of rolling out your new promotional merchandise to your employees and customers, don’t go overboard.

Make sure to factor in your spend on promotional products into your current advertising budget, to avoid overspending.

You may need to make some reductions in other methods of advertising, such as targeted online ads and promoted Facebook posts, in order to make room for your new ad specialties.

Think carefully about which promotional products you’ll need over the next 12 months when you begin your annual advertising budget. Start with products at a lower price point if you’re unsure.

Plan for a year’s worth of upcoming events, such as new product rollouts and seasonal sales. Be aware that it might take a while before you notice any additional revenue from your new products – but it will be worth it in the end.

Where Can I Order Personalised Promotional Products?

At 123Print, we offer a range of personalised promotional products including:
Flyers
Postcards
Keyrings
Magnets
Mugs
Stationery such as notepads, letterheads and rubber stamps

All of our products are fully customisable. You can select one of our templates to edit as you please. Or simply create your own design entirely from scratch using our editor.

Upload your own artwork (such as your company’s logo) for free. Choose a colour scheme and font that matches your business’s aesthetic.

You can order your promotional products in quantities of up to 2,000, the more you order, the more you’ll save. With fast shipping, competitive prices and a 100% satisfaction guarantee, you’ve got nothing to lose!

A Guide to Custom Printed Magnets and Their Uses

Have you ever wondered how to elevate your business cards? Maybe you’re looking for unique wedding “save the dates” that your guests won’t forget about? Or you could just be wanting a custom way to decorate your refrigerator. Vinyl printed magnets can do all of this and more.

Investing in personalised, professionally printed magnets is a unique way to stand out and have important information stick where people need it. This guide will talk you through what custom printed magnets are, how you might use them, and a few key reasons why choosing a magnet can attract people to your business or party.

What Are Personalised Magnets?

Personalised magnets are, as you may have guessed, fridge magnets that are entirely customisable. They’re made of a tough, flexible, hard-wearing vinyl (with a magnet on the back, of course). Vinyl magnets are designed to last for years, unlike other kinds of stationery, such as cards.

Just as you can order a personalised business flyer or invitation to advertise your upcoming party, you can also order a magnet to do the same job – with the obvious bonus that it will stick to anything magnetic, like a fridge or filing cabinet. This puts it right in the line of sight of whoever owns it, rather than being stuck in a drawer!
You’re free to choose the images, colours, and fonts used on your personalised magnets. So, you can create something that not only sticks to people’s refrigerators but also sticks in their minds.

At 123Print, our magnets come in two different sizes. Our small magnets are 85 x 55 mm and are perfect for business cards. In comparison, large magnets are 140 x 108 mm and work great for when you need more space to share important information.

Attracting New Business with Promotional Magnets

Magnets are very much like business cards; they can be easily distributed, and they are something that customers can carry around with them in a pocket or purse. They also are effortless to circulate in the mail because they are small and thin.
However, vinyl magnets have much more functionality than a business card does, meaning it won’t get lost in that purse or pocket. On top of being easy to distribute, the magnets will also make you stand out against your competitors.

Why Order Magnetic Business Cards?

When people go to a tradeshow, they are inundated with plain business cards to get lost in the bottom of their swag bag. However, receiving a magnet is always a positive and will set your business apart. Here are the benefits of using vinyl printed magnets for your business:

1. Unlike a business card, the magnet itself has uses for your customers; they can hold essential notes or drawings on fridges, or function as decorations themselves
2. Magnets are also durable and long-lasting. Unlike most traditional advertising methods, magnets are something that could last for years. Business cards can get lost or ripped, mugs break, and T-shirts go out of style. However, magnets being flexible combined with their sticking power will last much longer than any other promotional material

Since magnets last longer, they can create more impressions. If your potential customer puts the magnet on their refrigerator, they will see your business multiple times a day. The more time your information is on people’s minds, the higher the chance that they’ll contact you.

What Should I Include on a Magnetic Business Card?

To make the most of your custom printed magnets, here are some critical pieces of information you should include on the design:

1. Your business name
2. A logo
3. Business slogan, especially if it is not obvious what your business is from the name alone
4. Your phone number
5. Website or any business social media accounts (Facebook, Instagram, etc)
6. If your business has a physical location that customers would visit, you should include your operating hours and address.

While magnets are often used as a business card, larger magnets can also boost business. Larger magnets can be used for such things as advertising a specific event or promotion. For these types of magnets, consider putting important information such as the event date and start time, and what you’re offering (e.g. 10% off).
As you can see, vinyl magnets are a great way to attract business. However, if you’re not a business owner, there are still ways that magnets can be used in your everyday life.

Make Your Party Stand Out with Vinyl Magnets

Are you planning a big party or wedding? Are you worried that your guests won’t show up, because they misplace the invitation or simply forget? Personalised magnets can help by acting as your save the date cards, or even as the invitations themselves.
No more worrying that your save the date will get lost in a drawer, crumpled, or torn. Our hard-wearing vinyl magnets are long lasting, and designed to be stuck in a memorable place, such as the refrigerator – meaning your invitees won’t soon forget your upcoming celebration!

The Benefits of Ordering Magnetic Invitations

There are many reasons why magnets make a good option for party invitations. For example:

1. They are entirely customisable. No more trying to make a pre-set design work with your theme. You can choose colours, fonts, images, and designs that will match whatever aesthetic you are going for.
2. If you don’t want to create a design from scratch, we also have a wide selection of templates you can choose from.
3. You can also use magnets as the actual invitations, rather than just the save the dates. This can save you money, as opposed to sending a full wedding invitation suite with all of its inserts and note cards. Simply print the date, time, and venue of your celebration on the magnet, and include a link to your wedding website, which will contain all of the little details.
4. Your wedding or party will instantly seem classier and more “upmarket” if you send a magnetic invitation, rather than a flimsy paper one.
5. Your guests won’t forget the date of your party or wedding if it’s staring them in the face every time they go and get the milk from the fridge!

An unexpected extra of having magnets as save the date cards is that they make good keepsakes for you and your guests to remember your special day. Due to the durability of vinyl magnets and their functionality, you and your guests can keep these magnets for years to come, and they can remind you of the fun you had that day.

What to Include on a Save the Date Magnet

Don’t be tempted to cram as much information as possible onto a magnet – you don’t want the design to look too busy or cluttered otherwise people won’t pay attention to it. Stick with the bare bones basics, such as:

1. Your names (and the names of whoever is hosting the event, if applicable)
2. The date the party or wedding is happening
3. Start time and an approximate end time
4. Location (venue): its name, address, and post code
5. An email address or a contact number that your guests can use to RSVP

You should also include a link to a website, such as a wedding website, where your guests will be able to find more information – such as the dress code and the gift list.

Where Can I Order Personalised Magnets?

Whether you are a business owner or planning a party, try out our vinyl magnets today at 123Print. With dozens of templates to choose from, or the option to create your own design from scratch, you can’t go wrong.

Before you place your order, we’ll show you a full-colour preview of your design, so you can make sure it’s perfect. We’ll print and send your magnets in under 48 working hours – and if you’re not happy for any reason, one of our professional team will be more than happy to help until you are!