If you’re looking to boost sales and leave a lasting impression on consumers, have you considered using promotional products? These are sometimes dismissed as too simple but they can actually be an incredibly powerful tool when it comes to effectively marketing your business. Here’s why they work:

• Customers will remember you. Something as simple as a small promotional item can leave a lasting impression on a consumer. For example, one survey found that 76.2% of people who had received a promotional item over the previous two years could still remember the product, the company and the message that was associated with the promotional item.

• They are also much more likely to reach out. A promotional item can help to boost your sales by triggering customers to reach out and do business. Research has found that more than half of those who received a promotional item went on to buy from the advertiser. Sometimes, this is as simple as your product being in the right place at the right time – the customer needs to buy something specific and your brand name is right in front of them.

• Promotional items boost positive feelings towards your brand. This is according to one study that found that almost 53% of respondents had positive feelings towards a brand after receiving a promotional item from it. People like free stuff, especially if it looks good and/or is useful.

• You can establish a pretty broad reach. One of the objectives of marketing is to engage as many people as possible and you can achieve this with promotional products in a way that is hard to do with many other marketing tools. Every time your product gets used by the person who received it, you are effectively getting more advertising exposure. More than half of us keep promotional items we receive for more than a year. During that time these products get picked up and used many times and are often shared with others – or simply noticed by someone else while sitting on a desk or shelf. All of this helps to increase the reach of your brand and encourages people to engage with it.

• An inexpensive option that achieves a lot. Promotional products have a lower cost-per-impression than many other more obvious forms of advertising, including TV ads and print ads. Given the constant brand exposure that they offer it’s almost a no-brainer to use promotional products when the initial outlay is so low. Low cost, high reach – any marketer’s dream.

• You’re giving consumers what they want. 8 out of 10 people say that they like getting promotional items, so creating these for your brand is a great way to give consumers what they want from you. Key to this is the need to ensure that your promotional products are useful – this is what defines likeability.

• Environmental options. Not only can you promote your company’s message, you can do so while adding an ethical note. Innovative products ideal for branding are available from UK manufacturers, so lowering the carbon footprint of transportation too.

• Does the product fit with your brand or message? A free biro may be appropriate for a student fair, but may not for a corporate board room. Similarly, while a branded wireless phone charger may look wonderful, is the cost per unit worth the potential campaign returns?

• Finally, give some thought about the longevity of your chosen product. Some items are great but just be aware they may have a short exposure life (e.g. food items, pads, disposable pens) whereas other products will be around for much longer (calendars, clocks, umbrellas, desktop chargers, USBs etc).

If you’re not using promotional products in your marketing to engage consumers and expand the reach of your brand then you could be missing out.