Stop Littering with Your Logo
How to Make Promotional Products Work
What’s new?
That’s the wrong question.
When people ask me about promotional products, they almost always start there — What’s new? What’s hot this year?
The right question is: What works?
Because if a promotional product doesn’t solve a problem, it’s not marketing. It’s just landfill with your logo on it.
The $4,500 Bag of Junk
About 10 years ago, a radio station called with what should have been a fun project: a $30-per-person budget for 150 attendees at an event. That’s $4,500 total — more than enough to create a high-quality gift people would actually use and remember.
Instead, they insisted on buying seven different trinkets and a bag to put them in. Their logic: “More stuff = more impact.”
The reality: more stuff = more clutter. The only “impact” was the one made at the landfill east of town.
The $1,000 That Should Have Been Wine
A small company hosting an open house once asked for $1,000 worth of giveaways. After a few questions, it was clear there wasn’t a promotional product on the planet that would make sense for that event.
My advice: spend the $1,000 upgrading the wine. Make the experience better. Make the conversation more memorable. They ignored that advice and bought the trinkets anyway.
The results were predictable.
The Hard Part: Saying “No”
It’s not easy to tell a client that what they want to buy is a waste of money. It’s even harder for sales and customer service staff. No matter how many times I preach the importance of asking questions and solving problems, the temptation to “just take the order” is strong.
“If we can be a penny cheaper than Brand X, we can get this $2,000 order!”
Sure — but is that really a win if the product never works?
The Principles That Actually Work
After decades in this business, I’ve learned that choosing the right promotional product isn’t about the product. It’s about the promotion.
Here’s what separates the campaigns that get results from the ones that just get recycled:
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Start with the problem. What are you trying to accomplish? More sales? Higher event attendance? Better retention? Until you can answer this, you’re just shopping.
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Know exactly who it’s for. Age, occupation, interests — and most importantly, where they’ll be when they need your product or service.
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Buy quality. Your promotional item is a reflection of you. A cheap knockoff that breaks is worse than nothing. Turns out the data backs this up: ASI’s 2019 Global Ad Impressions Study found that logoed pens — one of the most common giveaways — can deliver impressions at under 0.1¢ each, making them one of the most cost-effective forms of advertising. But if that pen doesn’t write, you’re not just wasting the money you spent on it — you’re killing one of the cheapest, most memorable channels you have.
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Design matters. Don’t just slap a logo on it. A creative imprint, in the right place and colors, multiplies the impact.
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Plan the handoff. How will it get into the right hands? The method of distribution is part of the promotion.
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Make it memorable. The right product can even become a cultural symbol. Consider the New Yorker tote bag: according to Digiday, it became a style statement worn by subscribers and non-subscribers alike. People carried it for its aesthetic and symbolic value, not just for the magazine that came with it. That’s the upside of choosing well — your brand becomes part of someone’s daily life.
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Track the results. If you’re not measuring ROI, you’re just guessing.
The Bottom Line
If your promotional product ends up in the trash before it ever leaves the parking lot, it’s not just wasted money — it’s a missed opportunity to make a real connection.
Next time you’re tempted to buy “lots of stuff” for “more impact,” stop and ask:
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What problem am I solving?
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Who exactly is this for?
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Will they keep it, use it, and remember me?
Because the best promotional products aren’t the newest or flashiest. They’re the ones that work.
Here's a link to our "Promo Product Success" white-sheet.