7 promotional item mistakes & how brands can avoid them

With more than a decade of experience in the promotional marketing sector, allbranded wants to make sure your company is getting the most value for your money when ordering promotional swag items. Whether you are using these promotional items as employee gifts, handing them out to clients, or trade show attendees, your business should take into account a few things.

This can include what competitors are offering and what the best approach is to give your target audience a promotional item that they will enjoy. Then through this and the use of promotional giveaways, learn more about your business, therefore giving your company more brand awareness and loyalty.

As we are considered experts in the field, we have gathered the seven most common mistakes made and how you’ll want to avoid them in the future.

# 1 Mistake to avoid - No clear objective

What is the point of the products?

• Thanking employees
• Onboarding kits and boxes
• Drive website traffic
• Gather leads
• Contact information
• Creating memorable company merchandise

Whatever you might be doing, you need to define the objective for your promotional product. For example, if your objective is to provide a piece of promotional merchandise people will carry with them everywhere, consider a water bottle. Bottles are a great way to build brand awareness due to their functionality.

On the other hand, if you want to drive website traffic and generate leads, stand out from the crowd and order unique promotional products. These different items might help you achieve that goal.

💡Professional tip: Be sure to put some thought into it for how much you want custom printed and the print space each item will provide you to gain what you want with your promotional giveaway.

#2 Mistake to avoid - Choosing poor quality products

If you are on a tight budget, it might make sense to order cheap promotional items. However, cheap can sometimes be perceived as cheaply made or low-quality merchandise. If the promotional giveaways are perceived by your target audience as cheap or flimsy, it can reflect poorly on your brand.

When the point of promotional products is to promote and represent your business, it's important to select items of good quality that reflect positively on your brand's image. Without taking this into consideration, it can negatively affect your overall brand image in the long run.

While we do offer a wide selection of cheap promotional items under £1, it does not mean that they are poorly made products. Be sure to check the material of a product before you buy.

💡Professional tip: Before you place a large order, consider ordering a sample of the product to ensure high quality items.

#3 Mistake to avoid - Ignoring the target audience

Not considering the preferences and needs of your target audience is a critical mistake. The point of offline marketing like this is to connect with your audience. This cannot be done with products customers might disconnect from.

Failing to connect with audiences might lead to the products being discarded right away after someone receives them. This will ultimately defeat the purpose of using merch as marketing tools.

Discover a curated list of some of the most popular industries that take advantage of branded merchandise to get their message across.

💡Professional tip: Promotional products should resonate with the recipients and be relevant to their interests and lifestyle.

#4 Mistake to avoid - Insufficient distribution planning

Even the most awesome promotional products won't have the desired impact if they don't reach the right people. Much like the mistake above, if you don’t consider the best means to hand out the product, your overall objective and promotional product purpose might fail to have a lasting impact on the recipient.

Consider how you'll get the products to your target audience, whether it's through events, direct mail, in-store giveaways, or other channels.

The presentation of the product is also important to consider. If you are handing out some corporate gifts, it might make sense to take the promotional item out of its original packaging then put the item in a more traditional gift bag. Whereas at a business conference, it might make more sense to hand out a promotional goodie bag that can include a variety of products.

💡Professional tip: Having a well-thought-out distribution plan is crucial because this also has an effect on how people will perceive your company or brand. How you hand out your materials is just as important as what the product itself is.

#5 Mistake to avoid - Overcomplicating design and messaging

Keep the design and messaging of your promotional products simple and clear. Too much information or a cluttered design can confuse recipients and dilute your message. If the audience cannot read your brand logo on the promotional pen, then it doesn’t really make sense to use those pens as promotional products.

The correct printing method can make all the difference. Which one you choose depends on the material and product type you order. If the wrong branding method is chosen, your messaging might not last as long on the product. Poor printing leads to an ineffective product.

Read more about the printing methods in our printing methods guide or more in depth in our Glossary on the method-specific pages.

💡Professional tip: The goal is to create a memorable and impactful product that communicates your brand's essence effectively. 

#6 Mistake to avoid - Bulk order versus low minimum promotional items

Since printing a product has some upfront costs that include the printing methods, it makes sense to reduce those by ordering in bulk one time instead of smaller quantities more often. If possible, ordering larger quantities to use throughout the year can provide many benefits including:

• Being able to customise the product more to reflect your company’s or brand’s unique personality by allowing us to source directly from the manufacturer
• Lowering your cost per unit with our all-inclusive pricing
• Making sure you’re always prepared for last-minute promotional swag giveaways that always pop up

💡Professional tip: In case you do not want to order large quantities at once, we offer products with low minimum promotional items.

# 7 Mistake to avoid - Waiting until the last minute

In most cases, many products need to be ordered and printed. For this reason it is important to order as soon as possible. Do not wait until the last minute. For large orders, it is always best to give the process some wiggle room.

💡Professional tip: If you are pressed for time, we offer fast production with our priority products. That means your products can be produced within 48 hours after the artwork approval.

If you are able to avoid these common mistakes when shopping for promotional swag, then you’re off to the right start. Read more tips for how to order products online like a pro. Browse our online store today to begin customising your promotional items and save the most when you order in bulk.