Cheap Ideas to Promote Your Way to New Business

Okay let us face facts; business is not good right now for many small business owners.   Inflation is shooting through the roof, home prices are falling like a rock and business is stagnate.   To keep yourself front and center with your customer consider giving them some promo items.   For a trade show I just attended I gave away the Leeds Multi-Function Sling Tote and the Leeds Saturn Sling .   For short money I had two great items to give to prospective clients.

 I printed my own multi-color brochures and stuffed them in each item along with a cheap pen I had already in my hands from Bic.   All total I got off for under $10 for each item and they were gone within an hour.  I provided direct links above to the vendor I purchased from as I was happy and their price couldn’t be touched when I tried five other vendors.  To be frank almost two months later I have not heard back from three of the five big name vendors I contacted as apparently by $900 order must be too small to warrant a call back.  Promomanagers selection is a little limited online but it seems to be growing.  I found the entire process beginning to end to be great.

 What I have done in the past is just give away a business card but am finding now that those are easily lost.  If you go with an imprinted item make sure you have your phone number on it and your website.  Don’t be obnoxious and place a huge copy of both on the item or nobody will use it.  One tip I was given is to use a subdued color or font so that it doesn’t overtake the message and make it so “loud” that nobody wants to actually use the item.  Do not place any type of wording on the item that might be considered offensive in any way.  Make sure it is an item that customers will use willingly which is why I picked totes.  Everyone uses a tote or backpack even if it is just their children that stuff it with toys.  They do not get thrown out like cheap stress balls that animals end up chewing on or worse end up choking on the darn things.  Pens are great but people stopped reading the message on pens about 1995.  They are a great adjunct gift but I would never hand a customer a pen alone as it goes into a draw with the other 500 pens they have been given recently.

 When buying these items quality is important.  Buy reputable brands versus going overseas.  I saw a guy at a recent trade-show for greener products handing out a plastic tote.  I asked him what type of message does it send when rather than giving out a green tote you give out a cheap plastic one?  If you are in the recycled business give out a recycled item.  Make your gift relevant to the event you are attending and also your product or brand.

Last but not least, make it useful.  Times are tough right now, give the customer something they can use rather than something you were sold.  Consider your targets needs and come up with an item that will help them or is in turn something they can give away to their customers.