Where does the practice of corporate gifting come from? Some concepts aren't always clear to everyone, sometimes they’re even ignored by the majority.
Despite this, they often prove to be of extreme relevance. This is the case of the trend of giving away promotional products or corporate gifts to customers and employees.
Though highly diffused, this practice brings a lot of advantages, which sometimes are neglected.
For this reason, in this article we’ll shed light on its origin, its development in history up to modern times. Then, we’ll analyse how impactful they are in the marketing strategy of a business and how you can use them to promote your activity more successfully.
What do we mean by promotional products and corporate gifts?
By promotional products and corporate gifts, we usually refer to advertising goods offered as a gift by companies during private or public parties in order to be remembered.
They’re objects of various kind (mechanical, electrical or electronic devices, house or car accessories, objects for personal use, etc.), with a characteristic, pleasant and funny appearance, which will potentially induce customers to appreciate them.
In practice, they focus on aesthetics and personalisation to arouse curiosity in those who receive them.
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Brief history of promotional products and corporate gifts: how they've evolved over time
Historically, the first promotional product ever made dates back to 1789 during the presidential elections, when George Washington distributed medals with his image on them. However, the real success of promotional products was determined by another occurrence.
In 1886, when France gave the United States the Statue of Liberty, the French company Gadget, Gauthier & Cie made miniature copies of the monument and distributed them during the inauguration. These souvenirs were engraved with their name: Gadget.
Interestingly, “gadget” is the term used in Italian to identify objects given away with the purpose of growing the recipient’s interest in the services and products offered by those who distribute them. In other words, it has the same meaning as “freebie”, “promotional product” or “corporate gift”.
In fact, English language does have the term “gadget” in its vocabulary, too, but it has quite a different meaning. According to the Cambridge Dictionary, it indicates “a small device or machine with a particular purpose”. This is a far cry from the idea of giving a gift that recalls the distributor.
Nonetheless, the etymology of the term draws back to that particular event, when many inhabitants of the Big Apple wanted to keep a copy of those miniatures in their own home, thus starting a trend which grew in the following years.
The culture of corporate gifting has developed to the point that freebies cover a new, strictly promotional role nowadays.
Modern companies use them on purpose to attract customers and make a good publicity to their work reality.
While this custom was initially widespread in museums and institutions, the history of corporate gifts underwent a turning point in the second half of the twentieth century, when it became one of the most successful marketing strategies.
Corporate gifts: how did the modern concept develop?
The idea of promotional products has evolved over time. Nowadays, it's associated with a method to expand the influence of a company's brand, or to draw more and more customers towards the company.
It's generally a funny, amusing alternative, but it can be useful, too, if the giveaway object is of common use.
Corporate gifts represent a form of advertising to all effects, which seeks to expand a business in a discreet yet attractive way.
You can think of it as a less conventional calling card.
There are various types of objects that can be distributed as a gift. Pens and USB sticks are the most common, but there's no shortage of accessories for leisure or holidays.
Thus, beach umbrellas, thermal water bottles, and travel bags, too, can be easily found in the vast selection.
Any item can become a promotional product, regardless of whether it's meant to be used in the office or on the beach. In any case, the aim is always to highlight your brand by leaving your mark.
As there are endless possibilities to personalise your freebies, you can promote your company in an original way and prevent it from going unnoticed.
To this end, it's essential that you design your promotional campaign carefully before starting distributing your corporate gifts. This will help you to be clear about your objectives and to define a modus operandi, which will allow you to employ your personalised objects in the most fruitful way.
Planning a strategy includes targeted marketing studies to determine the message you wish to communicate to future customers and the image you want to transmit.
It's of paramount importance that your corporate gift is usable, practical and long-lasting. In this way, the recipients will be able to use it for a long time and have your company brand always under their eye.
What features make for the perfect promotional product?
As a marketing strategy, a perfectly functional promotional product must have certain features in order to attract more people.
First of all, they must be commonly used objects, which everyone benefits from during the day, at work or for other activities (as in the case of personalised shopping bags).
It's no coincidence that stationery materials are among the most popular corporate gifts, as they're suitable for office and home desks alike. These promotional products allow to reach a large number of people and advertise the company in many situations.
However, we shouldn't underestimate the persuasive power of futile but particular objects. What matters is that they never go unnoticed. This is the case of advertising flags: they have the precise purpose of putting the promotional message forward and exert a strong attraction despite being of no use.
Even funny objects, such as magnets, ensure you effective promotion, as long as you pay attention to graphics and aesthetics. An appearance evoking a pleasant, colourful and playful spirit can be decisive in attracting the users’ attention.
One detail that can make a difference is the material in which your corporate gift is made.
For instance, an object composed of recycled material, which is eco-sustainable, will be highly appreciated by people, who are increasingly sensitive to this theme. In this way, you can advertise your company twofold: on the one hand, promoting its name, on the other underlining its attention to modern and relevant values.
You can find different examples of ecological promotional products. Even in this case, the possibilities to personalise your corporate gifts are endless.
What are corporate gifts for and how can you benefit from them?
Finally, we'll focus on the positive effects of using corporate gifts to promote your company in practice.
Just look around to see how major companies, such as McDonald's and RedBull, use them to attract more and more customers and thank them for their loyalty.
Objects have a really high potential; you just have to understand how to exploit it.
The advantages of consciously using promotional products are significant, especially when it comes to personalised corporate gifts which people can easily identify with the company.
The creativity and originality that characterises them is the key to a successful promotion because it builds the so-called brand awareness.
Basically, showing the brand of your company and making the public remember it thanks to funny and unique objects, makes your business more popular.
The free distribution of promotional products in itself enhances the visibility of the company because it increases the exposure of your name in the moment of the giveaway as well as when the object will be used in the future.
In addition, if customers are satisfied with the corporate gift received, they'll use it – and, consequently, show it – more willingly, contributing to publicise the company.
The usefulness of promotional products as marketing objects is evident during large events, such as fairs, in which many sellers and competitors participate.
In these cases, offering freebies can help working realities to stand out from others. The originality of the company that welcomes its clients with corporate gifts will make its competitors appear more anonymous.
However, this doesn't mean that any object can be turned into a promotional product: a low-quality, poorly crafted article won't help to grow the image of the company at all. On the contrary, it may even be counterproductive.
As a consequence, you need good-quality corporate gifts that are aesthetically appealing and express the spirit of your company. Moreover, they should be suitable to be exposed or used, so as to be with the customer during the day.
One further aspect to consider is that corporate gifts can be important for company's workers as well and not only for clients.
Acknowledging their work with an article that makes them feel valued and important for their professional reality increases their confidence in their skills together with their sense of satisfaction and of belonging to a team.
In this case, promotional products are essential to improve the internal balance and harmony among the staff. Thanks to the recognition received through a small freebie, they'll feel integrated in the project and be proud of taking part in it.
All you have to do now is find out the best personalised promotional products and corporate gifts for your activity!
