All successful businesses have one consistent trait, they all keep up with current industry and social trends. This is the idea of predicting where your market is headed and what people, socially, are interested in and how your company can parallel these trends. These are things that all companies need to pay attention to and need to be aware of to run a successful business. One of these current issues is going green. This rising trend, spurred by the idea of global warming and environmental awareness, is taking many markets by storm. People want to know what companies are doing to help the environment. They want to know if the products they’re buying are environmentally friendly and if the company’s “green ethics” match their own.

This has become a big enough issue and concern for many buying customers that it’s important for a company to question what they’re doing to to go green. They need to ask themselves, “What have we done so we can show people this is something we’re concerned with and being proactive about?” One way a company can express this concern is through promo items. If your company is truly concerned with environmental issues, what is a better way to show this than through “green” promotional merchandise? A clever promo item made through recycled material is a great way to reach that buying public; it’s an easy way to reach out to markets overtaken by these trends.  If you’re concerned with your bottom-line, then these are things you need to be on the look-out for.

As a supplier, you want your clients to trust your product. When they order from you they expect an on time, creative, satisfying product. Obviously this sort of relationship can be built with clients with continual client satisfaction, but how do you obtain this sort of relationship quickly with new clients? One way you can gain this trust, as a supplier, is to provide new customers with a preview of the kind of quality and creativity you’re all about. And what’s the secret? Promo Products…

Promo products are a great way to give potential clients a preview or a small example of the kind of quality and creative your company’s all about. I know some of you are thinking, we’re talking about pens, key chains, golf tees, etc. But can’t you tell a lot about a company based on the quality and creativity of these products? I mean, if a company’s will to put the time and effort into designing, creating, and executing a great promo product, or at least take the time to acquire a great promo item; doesn’t this show an attention to detail and commitment that you’re looking for in a supplier? Of course it does, this is exactly what you look for in a supplier.

When you need to get product to a customer, you need to rely on a great supplier.  You need people who are committed to every detail and take pride in all aspects of their craft.  Great promotional items can be a great indication of these traits!

Promo products are marketing food….there are several ways that you can look at this idea. The first being that promo products are things that consumers/clients will eat up. They can be very good at getting a company’s name out to the buying public and also serve as an added incentive/bonus to company clients. Promo products are so good in fact that clients/customers/consumers will always way more and different kinds. They’re novel, unique, clever, and people like getting them and seeing them.

A different interpretation of this saying could be the idea the food is fuel. Food provides our body’s with energy and drive. Promo products can work in a very similar way. If used correctly and effectively, promo products can give a lot of fuel to a good marketing plan. They can add some extra fire to a struggling promotional strategy and give an extra punch to an otherwise dull marketing plan. Promo products can keep your image and brand viewable and marketable to the public where other advertising or marketing might fall short. This is the idea of promo products adding fuel to a good marketing plan.

Whichever idea you and your company focus on can help drive a good marketing and promotional strategy. It can be trying to provide good “food” for the buying public to eat up, or it could be adding a little fuel and strength to your marketing plan. Regardless, adding a little marketing food to your company’s diet will always help the bottom-line.

In several recent posts we’ve talked about how the sales process can be very difficult. We discussed how competitive industry markets are these days and how important it is to get a leg up on your competition through any means. To get in edge in the business world you need to go above and beyond, you need to offer your client something, outside of a great product, that your competitors don’t. In the case, we’re talking about promo products. Promo products are a great way to attract your client or customer to your business and ultimately push them over th edge into buying your product.

A key chain, designer pen, anything that can appeal to the customer and also get your brand image out to the public is a good way to win over your customer/client. Such a small gift is still a gift in the consumer’s eyes. It’s seen as a kind gesture and a way of thanking them on the side for doing business with them. This small gift and gesture can often times be enough to get them to buy into the bigger product you can offer. Call it a bribe, call it a gift, gestures like these can mean the difference between a healthy bottom-line and struggling sales numbers.

In business, is image really everything? Does it need to be stronger and more positive compared to your competitors? I guess I can only answer this in one way….ABSOLUTELY. When people say that in business image is everything, they’re saying this for a reason. Let’s take a look…

Let’s take for example Company A, who has a history of bad business ethics, often is receiving bad publicity in the news, and basically carries a negative vibe with buyers. Now take Company B, who has a proven history of ethical business, strong customer satisfaction, and great publicity. As a buyer/client/customer who’s looking to buy a product, in small or large scale, what company will you immediately be most inclined to do business with? Obviously Company B. If you don’t know much about a product created by Company A, what kind of assumptions will you have and will you be able to trust this product without knowing a lot about it? Whereas, if you are in the dark about a product from Company B, won’t you have a margin of trust because of the company’s background? ABSOLUTELY!

The image your company carries is everything. It allows your customer to be comfortable with your track record, have a positive feeling in the sales process, and also feel confident in going into business with your company. Having a strong company image and give your business an advantage over your competitors before you even offer your product.  If you feel like your company already has a great image, then promotional items are a great way to get your positive image to more of the public. Creating a positive image can mean everything and getting that positive image out there, can be just as important!

In the previous post we covered how to make the sales process more efficient, how it’s vital to facilitate to the clients needs, and make it a smooth and comfortable transaction. Now it’s important to cover how you can “load your sales gun.” The more you “ammo” you provide for your sales people, the more success they’ll find. What I’m talking about here are promotional products and promotional marketing items. Whether it’s pens with a company logo, key chains, or any sort of relevant logo marketing merchandise, these are things that your client can use to get their brand name and image to its buyers. Besides being a gift and kind gesture to your clients/customers, they act as a reminder to anyone they decide to give it to, or anyone who sees them. The more people see your brand name or your logo, the more they’ll think about your company and this is great for your business. Getting your image out to the public through any means possible only equates for a larger bottom-line.

So remember, next time you send your sales rep out on the road, or to an important client meeting, give them a loaded gun. Give them an opportunity to wow the client with a way to increase their brand recognition.  Any little thing can make a difference and promotional items can be great marketing ammunition.

So what exactly does this clever little phrase mean? What does it mean to “grease your wheels” and how can this be applied to the sales world? Hopefully by the end of this post it will be clear. To “grease your wheels” simply means to make something run smoother, more efficient. When you grease up a chain on a bike, it’s to allow the chain work smoother. When you put WD-40 on a squeaking door, the door opens and closes easier, any resistance is eliminated. This same idea can be applied to the sales process. The easier you can make the sales process for the client/customer, the more willing they’ll be to do business with you. If, however, the transaction is full of hassles, hang-ups and run-arounds then the client will have serious regrets about dealing with you or your company. It’s simple: The easier, smoother and, well, better you can make this process for them, the more they’re going to want to do business with you.

Here are some easy ways to grease your sales wheels:

• Do Your Homework: know your product, know your company, and know your client
• Be Accommodating and Accessible: put your clients’ needs as a priority and always try to be available if the client needs to reach you
• Learn From Mistakes: analyze positive sales processes and negative ones as well and apply the things you learn to future transactions

The last thing a client wants is a painful sales process and the more you can do to facilitate their needs, the more business the client will want to do with you. Greasing your wheels may be a strange analogy, but a smooth ride for your clients is a key to great business!

Loyalty in business does not necessarily have to be one sided. Brand-Loyalty is a phrase that is often thrown around and is a focus of many marketing plans. How does a business create brand loyalty? How do they get consumers to keep buying their products, even if they aren’t the cheapest, flashiest, or most convenient? This, my friends, is the loyalty that you hear about in business. What you seemingly never hear about, however, is company to customer loyalty.

Company to customer loyalty is just as it sounds, it’s the business showing the same amount of dedication to their customer base as the customer has hopefully shown to the business. An example of this type of loyalty could be a company deciding not to take the opportunity to raise their bottom-line a little bit by hosing a long time client…. or signing with a different client just to save a small margin. I mean, could you imagine doing business with a company that is willing to show this kind of customer loyalty?!

Simply put, for a business to show this kind of dedication and loyalty to their customers, it means that they have an immense amount of pride in their craft, their product, and the way they handle their business. They also respect their customers and want to build long term business relationships, not just one time sells. These are the type of people you want to do business with and be loyal to!

A few days ago, I pointed out that promotional products greater name recognition.  Now I want to talk about how that’s beneficial beyond the obvious. Here are a few reasons: 

1)     They’re tangible Most promotional products are products you can hold, you can touch, you can use.  They aren’t tucked away in a magazine or available in sight and sound for a quick 30 second shot on TV. 

2)     They’re useful (give quick examples)Oh, yes.  They’re not pet rocks or couch potatoes.  They provide a purpose, solve a problem, or make you feel good.  That makes them INHERENTLY valuable.  A lot less likely to be tossed in the bottom of the drawer – or in the trash.  Since they are useful and valuable, they’re more likely to stick around for a while. 

3)     They’re personal The reason you get a promotional item is because they want you to HAVE it.  You take it because you want to USE it.  Once you have it and start using it, it becomes…yours.  It’s not long a promotional item or a giveaway, its your customers personal property.  One that THEY use.  One that has YOUR name on it. 

4)     They’re long lasting Most corporate gifts are something that the recipient can use for a long time.  Be it a pen (until the ink runs dry), a calendar (for 12 or 16 months), or a golf umbrella at a tournament (a lifetime). 

5)     They’re portable If they’re tangible, they’re often portable.  That golf umbrella or golf towel can be seen on the golf course.  The pens goes with you everywhere.  In your pocket, on your desk, in you hand.  If you lose it, someone else is being advertised to.  The custom made sunglasses, the shirt or hat with the logo, the picnic set.   

6)     They’re memorable A story.  I grew up in a small village in Rhode Island called
Oak Lawn.  This was the late 1960’s. We had three gas stations nearby, one of which was a Shell station.  Back in the summer of 1969, I was in the second year of following my first love.  The
Boston Red Sox.  Now the local Shell station was giving away pictures of several players, along with a mug.  Every time we got in the car I wanted us to get gas.  I convinced both parents to exclusively go to that station to get gas – and the latest autographed picture.    

By the time I was old enough to drive – about eight years later, I, for some reason, preferred that Shell.  Always did.  And now I can remember why. 

Here it is, 38 years later.  I  still got those autograph pictures.  Pictures of relatively obscure players long retired.  And when my son asks me for a glass of milk before he goes to bed, he gets it in that glass mug that my mom brought home so long ago. 

Message:  promotional products can build AFFINITY.

Let’s face it, no matter how good, how amazing, or even how BRILLIANT your company’s product is, no one will buy it if they don’t know it’s out there. It seems as though creating a dynamite product is only half the battle these days. You need to know how to inform your buying audience that this product is available and, more importantly that they can’t live without it. I know this sounds simple enough, but it’s a step that many businesses don’t take seriously.

As a company you need to separate yourselves from your competitors, stand out from the back and find ways to uniquely advertise your product to put it firmly into the minds of the audience. This is where promotional items can really help. Key chains, pens, any logo merchandise can help; while it may not seem that these items are advertising your product necessarily, they’re advertising your company and your IMAGE!

You know, and I know, in any industry, Image, is Everything.