Show Gratitude and Loyalty with Promotional Items

Promotional items are always a good idea. People look forward to getting them and love them when they do. (And stats show they save some love for the company that gave them the items, too.)

But…who can think about them now? Every business, that’s who.

The COVID-19 pandemic has created chaos. I think it’s safe to say no business has gone untouched, and few businesses have returned to anything close to normal. But if you think that means it’s time to abandon your “normal” practices of giving promotional items as gifts to employees, clients, and key prospects, you are making a big mistake.

Promotional Items Bring People Together

In 2020, your employees and customers have felt detached, in most cases because they areThose working from home may remained productive, but it’s hard for them to feel the same connection to co-workers and other team members when they are so isolated.

If there was ever a time we needed the unity and sense of belonging promotional items can provide, it’s now, in Q4 2020. They speak louder now than ever. And what they say is critical:

  • To employees, they say “Thank You.” They provide a reminder of the company’s concern for them. And right now, it reinforces the positive outlook that “soon, we’ll be back together – hang in there.”
  • To clients, they say “Our Relationship Is Top-of-Mind.” We appreciate your trust in us, and we are committed to coming back stronger than ever. We’re there for you just like we’ve always been.
  • To prospects, they say “We’re Confident and Consistent.”  Even in these times, we adapt and move forward and pay attention to business. Isn’t that just the kind of company you want to work with?

Promotional Items: Popular Without a Pandemic

You’ve heard me praise promotional items before. Why?  Let me refresh your memory with a few statistics from the 2020 Global Impressions Study from the Advertising Specialty Institute.

  • In the U.S., 57% of consumers who have received promotional products have kept some for 5 years or longer. Ads come and go. Promo products stay.
  • Speaking of impressions, a promotional item that is kept around for years continues to generate more and more impressions, often reducing the cost per impression to a fraction of a cent.
  • Promotional products are the most highly regarded form of advertising, ahead of all traditional media. (And the Internet, for all its perceived importance with younger demographics, checks in at #6.)
  • Worldwide, 85% of promotional product recipients remember the advertiser who gave it to them.  If you are that advertiser, it means your company is visible, and your key audiences are appreciative.

Essential in the Middle of One

What is holding your business together during our battle with the coronavirus? Obviously the steps you’ve taken have worked. But I think the real answer is the relationships you have spent so much time and effort building.

The respect, goodwill, and trust you have developed with your employees, clients, and even prospects are most important. They are invaluable to your ability to survive, even thrive, during COVID-19.

Promotional items are an excellent way to nurture those relationships when they need it most. Now is not the time to skip those holiday gifts, annual recognitions awards, and “thanks for your business” mailings.

In fact, if you haven’t been doing those things, there will literally never be a better time to start.

How to Have a Superior 4Q in 2020

Through 100 years of helping businesses become more efficient, we’ve learned a great deal about employee and client relationships. And we know how to choose promotional items that reinforce those relationships.

We can even help you to drop ship promotional items to your lucky recipients. 

Our expertise is built, in part, on our ISO certification, which holds us to a higher standard of customer service. And we have four consecutive Best of Print and Digital awards to show for it, based on feedback provided by our customers.

Clearly, 2020 has been a roller coaster, so far mostly downhill. But you can counter that uncertainty with promotional gifts. Contact Superior or your talented Superior sales representative today and ask for help choosing the best promotional gifts to help propel your organization and its people in 4Q.

If you want your employees and clients to feel like they “belong” then promotional items belong in your Q4 plans.

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