Ideas for Reaching Your Goals
Here are some goals your organization may have and some unconventional thinking about them:
- Build brand awareness
- Everyone can recall at least one promotional campaign they think was great. Does anyone really remember the names of brands that tried to copy it? How about a promotional campaign that hasn’t changed in years? Don’t you just tune it out after a while? Breaking through to consumers and generating awareness isn’t easy. Start with doing something different.
- Drive website traffic
- Have you ever given away a promotional product with your web address on it? Ever wonder how well it worked? You’re not alone. What incentive is there for someone to visit a website when they’ve already been given the incentive to go there? Try a two-step offer. Give prospects something that’s low-cost (and green) upfront. Then offer them something of greater value when they visit your website.
- Differentiate your brand
- Have you ever heard the expression “live your brand?” Brands are inherently as unique as the people who manage them. Unfortunately, what makes a brand unique sometimes doesn’t get communicated effectively. Ask yourself the question, does my merchandise speak to who we are? If not, shouldn’t they?
- Create Buzz around an event
- The greatest promotion ever won’t drive someone to attend an event in which they aren’t interested. Tie your promotions and incentives closely to the topic of the event and you’ll find that you’re reaching the right people, and wasting less on the ones who aren’t. Once you’ve done that, build-in a viral component. Chances are if someone is excited about an event, they’re more likely to tell their friends and colleagues about it.
- Promote your organization’s social or environmental cause
- Nothing damages the image of an organization more than when it doesn’t deliver on its promise. Living your brand is more than just a state of mind. It has to translate through to every way your organization touches people. When your promotions and promotional products are a natural extension of your mission, vision and values, it reinforces who you are. And when you can do it in a unique and exciting new way, it gets you noticed.
- Fundraising
- People love to show their support for causes for which they feel strongly. That’s why most non-profit organizations offer some type of branded promotional apparel. But have you ever thought about turning that zeal into an organized method of fundraising? With the right programmatic approach and line of products, your supporters can interact with your brand while supporting your organization.
- Drive booth traffic at conferences
- If I only had a nickel for every pen that was ever given away at a trade event. And what can you expect at next year’s event? That’s right, more pens. Wouldn’t it be more cost effective and smarter to entice your target to spend 5 minutes speaking with you at the booth with a slightly higher value (and green) incentive? This will help keep the swag collectors away so you can spend more quality time with the people who are interested in what you have to say.
- Boost response from direct mail or email
- Second only to the quality of your lists, is the perceived value of the incentive you offer your target for responding. A good incentive will buy you a higher response rate, but you might also consider a two-tiered offer. Perhaps a prospect isn’t ready to commit now, but you still have an opportunity to invite that them to interact with your brand. Drive prospects to your website for a free industry white paper or some other offer asset. This establishes your organization as a thought leader and will help keep you top-of-mind for when they’re ready to commit.
- Educate or train employees
- The carrot or the stick? I don’t know about you, but I prefer the carrot. So will your employees. Develop a smart, organized and easy to use program to educate or train your employees. If the information is complex or in-depth, break it into bite-sized pieces and reward them along the way. Your employees might have a responsibility to stay at the top of their game, but as the saying goes, you’ll catch more flies with honey than you will with vinegar.