Why your company needs to Spazzle!

Promotional Items can build customer loyalty.

When I think of all the imprinted items I have in my office, the first thing that comes to mind is a trade show. Somewhere along the line, I have visited a booth, workshop, or product display, and walked away with an imprinted item from the vendor. Over the years I have reduced the number of items I receive so that I can maintain a minimal luggage requirement for the trip. Good for me, but not so good for those who would like to keep their brand alive after the show.
It wasn’t until a recent telephone conversation that I began to see promotional items in a new light. While talking to a business associate, he made mention of promotional items being used as a tool to increase customer loyalty. We went on to talk about Maritz Inc. - a company we know in common - a leader in the field of customer loyalty and employee recognition programs.

Where I thought of rewards programs from credit card companies as customer loyalty programs, he pointed out the branding of small items can have a lasting impression on customers and employees, too. So, how would a customer loyalty program like this work for the average size company?

I stumbled upon the answer while talking to my son, Kyle Kusterer, a newly appointed account executive for Think Promotional Group (formerly Capital Promotion Partners of Raleigh, NC). Where I described the need for a three voicemail script for lasting impressions in making sales calls, he described using promotional items in a sequence of mailings to stay “Top Of Mind” (awareness) with salespeople.

He showed me a program they provide to their customers – in this case, their customer is a supplier of goods, or services – that sends one, new promotional item each month to the salespeople at the vendor’s customer. Each item is imprinted with a logo or contact information of the vendor. The items vary, but most are simple and useful, e.g., a flash drive, or cellular phone headset.

It’s the lasting effect these items have on the salespeople that caught my interest; when the sequence of items is finished, the salespeople want to know why the items have stopped. A positive and lasting impression is the foundation of customer loyalty and brand awareness. A program like this sounds like a positive branding experience, and one that far outlasts a trade show.

Another company in my area, Brand Fuel Promotions, showed me a wealth of creative promotional items. In visiting their showroom, I was quickly lost in the vast inventory of items and possibilities. However, what I found more effective than creativity in the item design or use, was Brand Fuel’s desire to match an item to the customer’s business and increasing brand awareness. Spending adequate time working with the promotional items company to drive customer loyalty is more important than finding a clever item to give away.

Beyond customer or employee loyalty programs, promotional items can serve as an incentive to attend an upcoming workshop or seminar. As an example, I was recently offered a flash drive as an incentive to attend a local conference with the flash drive serving as an enticement for early registration.

Do you have stories of using promotional items to build customer loyalty beyond the traditional giveaway at a trade show? As a recipient of promotional items, which ones have left you with the most lasting impression, or branding experience? What kind of items do you find useful, and why?

http://salesbarriers.typepad.com/one_goal_revenue_generati/2008/11/promotional-items-can-build-customer-loyalty.html