Objectives And Audience:

We at A BETTER IDEA! believe this is the most important step in your promotion. Your promotion may be aimed at a single objective, such as building traffic at your booth, or many objectives such as introducing a new product while building traffic and increasing sign-ups. No matter, as long as you know what those objectives are.

Who is it that you want to influence? It's important to target your market because one campaign rarely influences everybody...and one promotional product may not necessarily hit the target for all groups, though many do have universal appeal.

Budgeting:

How much do you want to spend "per person reached" by your promotion? What is the total expenditure you'll allow for the entire program?

Themes And Tie-Ins:

rThemes and tie-ins give personality and flavor to your promotion. Let your imagination run free. Don't forget to check the calendar for holiday or special day tie-ins. Themes can be anything from a baseball motif to an animal mascot to a simple play-on-words to some other related component that best communicates your message in an attention-getting way that drives your message home over and over again. Your promotional poducts consultant can help you select the themes and tie-ins that would best fit your promotional needs.

Products:

Appeal is a key word here, but appropriateness is also important. The items you choose should relate in some way to the theme of your campaign, to your target audience and even to the geographic areas you have targeted, but they must also appeal to your target audience. Your consultant can be very helpful in choosing just the right products to get you the results you desire.

Distribution:

How will you get your promotional message into the hands of your target audience?

Ways To Distribute Promotional Products:

Handed directly to customers or prospects as business gifts.

Handed to visitors at trade shows or open houses.

Shipped to the customer as a business gift.

Direct-mailed to call attention to your mailing and offer.

Mailed out upon request of customer or as an incentive to respond.

Given to salespeople by a sales manager as motivator, incentive or award.

Given to employees by management as motivator, incentive or award.

Handed to or mailed to a customer as a reward for trying a new product.

Handed or mailed out to satisfied customer who refers someone who purchases your product or service.

Given as "dealer incentive" to retailers on the condition that specified purchase of one or more products is made.

Given free with purchase at time of purchase, as: in-pack (enclosed in product package). on-pack (attached to exterior of product package or riding with it in special sleeve, carton or film wrap).

Packed as part of point-of-purchase display, sent to dealers.

Mailed with self-liquidator -- a consumer item offered for proof of purchase and cash amount to cover cost of merchandise plus handling and postage.

Packaging:

Now that you know how you're presenting the promotional product, consider what you present it in. In some cases, you may not want any packaging at all -- (say for baseball caps given out to production team members as the second prong of a safety program). But in other instances, (especially for gift-giving purposes or direct mailings), you may want special packaging. Some products do come gift-boxed and ready to present. Some you may wish to attach to things, like letters, fliers or brochures. Or, for some, you may want extra-special packaging, such as gift-wrapping, gift cards, tagging, labeling or special mailing tubes, boxes, totes or cartons. Packaging can be used to enhance the perceived value of a promotional product, giving you more bang for your buck. The staff at A Better Idea! can advise you as to the best and most affordable options based on your objectives.

Copy:

Here are some copy suggestions for the following types of products...

Promotional Products

Awards

Business Gifts

You want to be careful not to "load" a small space with too much information. When in doubt, it is usually wiser to say less than more. At times, a simple illustration and a couple of words is sufficient. At other times, copy alone is best. Either way, what you say on the item that will be used over and over again -- an item that will often stand alone heralding your message -- is vital to your campaign being remembered.

Here's what you might consider:

1.)  Promotional Products:

It depends on the product you choose, and the goal of your promotion, but here's a brief checklist of things you'll want to consider:

Name of your company

Special message (Relating to theme or tie-in)

Photo or artwork of or relating to the product, yourself, salesperson, company, etc.

Company slogan

Company logo

Contact information such as phone number and address

Other information such as deadline dates, event dates, directions, calendars, tips or graphics

2.)  Awards:

Remember, this is a commemorative piece that will be cherished by the individual and displayed proudly. The wording should act to freeze the individual's accomplishments in time, so the more specific you can make the award, the better. However, depending on the item that you choose - a watch versus a plaque -- you may have strict copy limitations. Your consultant can help you streamline your sentiments when there's a small imprint area. Here are some things you should consider:

Name of individual receiving the item (this is called "personalization")

The name of the award

Reason for the award

Date

Organization's motto

Organization's logo

3.)  Business Gifts:

There are many ways business gifts are used...as thank-you's for past business; in promotions to generate future business; as an incentive for referrals, etc. Usually, messages on business gifts, especially high-end ones, are a bit more subtle than traditional forms of promotions. They usually include the company logo and sometimes slogan,... and on very special occasions, the recipient's name or initials. It all depends on the products, the purpose, and the budget. But here's what you might want to consider:

Company logo

Company slogan

Name or initials of individual receiving the item

Optional: phone numbers, addresses and other messages

About Artwork:

1.) What does "camera-ready art" really mean?

2.) Artwork -- what you need to supply

3.) What "camera-ready art" is not...

What Is Camera-Ready Art? Camera-ready artwork is artwork that's ready for the camera that captures the dots and density of your artwork and then translates it into a screen, mold or laser template, or whatever based on the imprinting method being used. No matter what color you'd like your imprint to be, the type, artwork and graphic materials should be a very high black-and-white (B&W) contrast ready to be photographed on a process camera. Specific instructions should accompany the artwork. Photos are submitted separately.

What You Need To Supply For Art:

If you are supplying your artwork on paper, you'll want to follow these guidelines to ensure your imprint looks as clear and crisp as possible:

Be sure the images are in black on a clean white background. If you are combining type and graphics, and they've been printed out separately, be sure that every image is placed where you like it within the confines of the product's imprint area and affix each element in position with a spray adhesive or rubber cement. If you are supplying computer-generated art, all type or artwork should be output to a laser printer with at least 1,000 DPI (dots per inch). Although most typical office laser printers produce 300 dots per inch, which is fine for most other applications, it is not high enough resolution for camera-ready artwork. Be sure you've marked it for color either on a photocopy of the original or on the original itself in non-reproducible pen/pencil. If artwork contains complicated separations of colors, you'll need to supply a separate piece of art for each color. Many computer software graphics packages today offer this ability.

What Camera-Ready Artwork is NOT:

Photocopies of any type

A fax

Business cards or other printed pieces

Laser-printed copy less than 1000 DPI

Components which need resizing to fit properly

Artwork with pasted and lumpy or taped components

Artwork with smudges or marks with pen or pencil

Continuous tone images; i.e., B&W and color photographs