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APTCO introduces Styli – the stylus truly designed for a touchscreen
Monday, February 4th, 2013Viral marketing wasn’t invented by social media
Friday, June 22nd, 2012A lot of people want you to think so, but viral marketing actually has a much longer history, going way back before web 2.0. Before web 1.0, once know simply as “the internet”. Let’s start with the definition: a method of product promotion that relies on getting customers to market an idea, product, or service on their own by telling their friends about it.
There are many other definitions to be found, but going back to the root concept, promotional products could be considered the original viral marketing. Consider the power they hold.
By carrying, wearing, or using a product branded with the name, logo, and message of your organization, a person is offering their endorsement. In the terms of today’s social media, they’re being “fans” of your brand.
They stick around a long time, often for years if they are of high quality. Not like the billboard or magazine ad that is seen (maybe) and gone.
Even when they are not kept, they often move on to another owner. A recent survey found that the average promotional pen has seven owners before it is discarded. The marketing they do is even more effective if it includes an incentive, like this example:
They are a gift, a tangible way to say “thank you.” TV commercials – uh, not so much.
The advertiser has complete control of their original target audience. Determine who receives them and how. No waste here. The pass-along audience later on is just an added bonus. With a well-conceived promotion, you can easily measure the return on the investment in promotional products.
Survey Says Everyone Steals Pens
Monday, March 5th, 2012Well, everyone who works in an office, that is. Paper Mate® (who has quite an interest in pens) commissioned a survey of 1000 people from around the US who are full time office workers. Scott Crist, global director of marketing for Paper Mate says “I am surrounded by people who have ample access to pens and still my own pens go missing.” The usual excuses come from those who claim it was a mistake or that they absent-mindedly walked off with a pen. Seventy-eight percent reported it was an accident. Twenty-two percent said they took it knowingly.
Curiously, while 70% of office workers reported they’d had pens “disappear”, every single person surveyed admitted having taken one at least once. There certainly doesn’t seem to be much guilt felt by the practitioners of this theft. In fact, a sense of entitlement might be a more apt description. In an office setting, writing utensils disappear more often than other office supplies. Seventy percent say pens vanish most, followed by pencils (55%) and highlighters (55%). A pen is about twice as likely to “be lost” as a stapler (35%), a pair of scissors (36%) or tape (38%). Paper clips and binder clips account for 43 percent of the losses, rubber bands for 38 percent.
So why does this topic get our attention as a promotional marketing company? Because writing instruments are the 2nd largest category in the promotional products world. (Apparel is number one. There’s nothing like a walking billboard.) Over $1.5 billion dollars worth of custom branded pens and pencils are sold every year. This doesn’t happen accidentally. It happens because businesses of all sizes perceive pens to be an inexpensive and effective vehicle to extend their branding far beyond their doors.
Let’s put these two things together, and you’ll see that a pen with a promotional message, already having a low cost-per-impression, actually can get up to double the mileage as it gets “borrowed” by someone in need. Advertisers sure have no problem with that. I’ve left plenty of my favorite pens lying around where they might be “found”.
But let’s not forget that what makes a pen a really effective promotional item is the message it carries. Not just a logo or company name. When a pen can be tied to a campaign or program – something that brings a benefit back to the advertiser – then you’re really doing something!
