Quick Tips to Save Money on Promotional Products
Ordering promotional products is an investment for your business, and it’s one you should take seriously.
Want to save money on your promotional products?
We’ve provided you with five easy tips on how to save money on your personalized promotional products. You want to get the most out of your investment, and we want to see your promotion succeed.
Read these quick tips to see how easy it is to save money on custom promo products from On The Ball Promotions.
1. Split the cost with another business, aka Co-Branding
They say sharing is caring, but sharing can also save your business some advertising expenses.
Your first thought might be that sharing ad space with another business or organization will take away from your ad’s impact, but that’s far from the truth.
You simply need to advertise with a business that complements yours, or one that is so entirely different that you would lose no customers in sharing the ad space.
Here are some promo item co-branding we’ve seen:
- Small town/neighborhood businesses: grocery store and mechanic (Sound weird? Trust us, it works! They are different industries, and both services are necessities to those separate audiences.)
- Funeral Home and Flower Shop
- Restaurant and Theater or Art Center
- Tax Attorney and Marketing Firm – great for marketing to local business owners
- Book Store and Coffee Shop
- Choose your profession and partner up accordingly: HVAC, plumber, electrician, carpenter, painter
How realtors use co-branding to save money on presentation folders
Realtors often use co-branding on their pocket folders, but they take it to a different level. Instead of splitting ad space straight down the middle, the realtor is the main advertiser on the pocket folder.
Rather than co-branding, they sell advertising spaces, much like the ads you see in a theater playbill. By selling advertising spaces, they are often able to completely cover the cost of their pocket folders.
So how can realtors sell ad space on their presentation folders without hurting their brand image?
Much like two businesses who participate in a co-branding initiative, realtors only choose advertisers who relate to—but con’t compete with—their business.
Here are some businesses realtors sell ad space to on their pocket folders:
- Mortgage brokers
- Insurance agents
- HVAC professionals
- Plumbers
- Electricians
- Landscaping companies
- Grocery stores
- Restaurants
2. Non-profits, churches, and fundraisers: Use sponsors or donors
This is a great way to provide donors with more brand visibility. To help offset the cost of purchasing promo giveaways, let sponsors help pay for those items.
Here’s how to save money on branded event giveaways with sponsors:
Offer ad space on your calendar, photo frame, or presentation folder to help offset to the cost of purchasing these logo items. You win because that’s money that you don’t have to take out of your marketing budget, and your donors or sponsors win because their brand is seen by a larger audience.
Here are some ways we’ve seen sponsor logos work
- Golf charity tournaments. Many golf events have different sponsorship levels. Include this option in the highest sponsorship level, since their logo and branding will be taken home with the event attendees, making a longer-lasting impression than just sponsoring a hole.
- School events. This is popular with sports events and music or theater productions. Sometimes those advertising print ads are sold to businesses, or sometimes they are added because that sponsor gave something to the organization or event (either service, hard goods, or a monetary donation).
- Non-profits. If a non-profit group is advertising for an event, they will often include sponsor logos on event invitations. They do this because those sponsors have typically donated a large sum to appear in that position.
3. For long-term products, buy in bulk
This is perfect for non-dated items like cardboard frames with just your business logo, logo note cards with your company logo, or custom printed gift card holders.
We offer upfront, bulk discount pricing, so order more and save. As long as the message will stay the same, we say stock up.
Here are some tips for buying branded giveaways in bulk:
- Don’t add a date. Once you add a date (like an event date), once that date has passed, those leftover bulk branded giveaways are mostly worthless. Buy promo items with just your logo or just the event name so that you can use these giveaways for multiple events and purposes throughout the year—and also use them for years to come.
- Stock up on multi-purpose items. Pocket folders with your logo can be used for press release kits, employee welcome folders, board member meetings, or general staff use. Logo note cards can be used for birthday greeting cards, employee anniversary cards, business thank you cards, or even as your company Christmas cards. Buy something that can be used by everyone to further your branding reach.
4. Email sign-up for special promotions
Retailers and e-commerce websites alike often have email lists that provide product info, tips, and, yes, money-saving promotions.
We’ll be honest, we’re no different.
Our email newsletter contains helpful product info, like product use case studies, effective ad design tips, and special offers. Don’t worry, we’ll never share or sell your email address. Sign up for the On The Ball Promotions newsletter.
We’re here to help you save money on promotional items.
We work with a variety of businesses and organizations every day, each one with a different budget. We’re here to make sure you get the most of out your marketing budget.
Need some help finding the best promotional giveaway to fit your ad budget? Shop OnTheBallPromotions.com, send us an email, or call us at (800) 475-2255.