The Riches of History
History: Those who don’t know it won’t get rich from it. (Or something like that.) While conventional wisdom tells us that studying is for nerds, double-nerds and maybe the guy who does your taxes, it turns out that a little time spent on study can pay off on your quarterly balance.
Not that you have to run out and get your MBA or anything. But, brushing up on some case studies won’t kill you, right? You know, picking up some tips, seeing what’s worked in the past, getting ideas for future projects, that kind of thing? Sound good?
Good. Dust off your pencil and notepad, because here are six great case studies from some of the best suppliers in the promotional industry.
1. The Pen-as-Self-Promo Gift
Submitted by Matt Fisher, ad specialties director for Fisher Space Pen Co., Boulder City, Nev.
“Our Classic Bullet Space Pens, which come in a variety of different colors, were used by one of our promotional product distributors as self promo gifts to their returning customers. After an order was received, they gave their customers a beautiful Space Pen as a thank-you. People are usually quite thankful and intrigued when given a Space Pen. They begin to use it every day at home or in the office, thus seeing their kind promotional product specialist’s logo every day. Case in point, next time their customer needs something, they’ll remember who took care of them best.
“Our distributor then sent us a very nice thank you letter explaining how every Space Pen recipient had returned with another order. Some even for Space Pens, which makes us very happy as well.”
2. The School Safety Flashlight
Submitted by Jamie King, marketing manager for Sweda Company LLC, City of Industry, Calif.
“The number-one item at Sweda and the number-one priority for Independent School District was the Renegade Flashlight. A buyer requested a reliable, mail-able, FDA-approved and packable item that teachers and students can carry around for emergency situations. The budget was less than $3.00 and delivery was immediate ... five days!
“The FA16 Renegade is a Perfect 10 Item with guaranteed inventory and 24-hour delivery. All students and faculty were encouraged to carry the Sweda FA16 9-LED flashlight for safety at all times in the ‘Be Prepared Plan’ program for all Independent Schools in the district, due to the terrible shooting incidents at educational institutions around the nation. Students and teachers were trained in Morse code using the FA16 Renegade for any emergency situation where silence was needed.”
3. The Drinks-and-Flowers
Submitted by Renee Head, director of marketing for Prime Line, Bridgeport, Conn., from the company’s case study collection. For more case studies from Prime, visit www.primeline.com/General/CaseStudies/CaseHistory.aspx.
“A popular restaurant chain printed their drink menu on the Flexi-Vase, which was displayed at each table. In addition, any patron with a bill of over $75 received a vase (with their logo and drink menu printed on it) at no additional charge.”
4. The Hockey Handout
Submitted by Katharina Pieper, marketing manager for BamBams LLC, Woodbridge, Va.
“We have a yearly order for our popular fleece blanket that is used as a gift to get fans to sign up for season ticket package information for hockey. They have kiosks at the NHL games in Canada, and if people fill out a small info sheet to be solicited for season tickets, they get a free blanket.
“The feedback from our customers has been great, and since it has become so popular and has proven to be an effective way to sell season tickets by offering a free blanket, they keep reordering these year after year. The fleece blanket can be printed in full color and [can] be used to stay warm during the cold hockey games, or as a cheering product to show team spirit.”
5. The Pocket Bar-Billboard
Submitted by Glen Hersh, sales manager at Admints & Zagabor, Bellmawr, N.J., from the company’s case study collection. For more case studies from Admints & Zagabor, visit www.admints.com/UI/Informations.aspx?i=cs/ (Note, the below case study has been edited for length).
“The challenge to the restaurant was to use a promotional product combined with their ad campaign to increase the traffic of their happy hour. They determined that their target market [was] the professional worker [who] works in the building above and the surrounding seven block radius to their restaurant. The marketing director wanted a promotional product that would represent the restaurant/bar industry but did not want to give out matches.
“The promotional products distributor called Admints & Zagabor and together they chose the Advertising Mint Box. This product is a reclosable box with 20-to-25 peppermints and printed in four-color printing around the entire box. Because of the printing flexibility they designed multiple coupons on the back of the mint box to appeal to different markets. The three coupons designed were: (1) a free appetizer (2) one free margarita and (3) $2.00 off premium vodka and imported beer. The restaurant manager was able to get some promotional dollars from the liqueur companies they were promoting and ordered 25,000 Advertising Mint Boxes with each design for a total of 75,000 Advertising Mint Boxes. They distributed them in plastic display canisters with a team of college students going around to all the local companies to distribute them. Then the little travelling billboards went to work.
“The amount of coupons redeemed from the Advertising Mint Box was five-times the amount from the print advertising coupons. They are designing new specials and plan on running this promotion once every three months with new artwork. Additionally, they were such a hit that the restaurant ordered another 25,000 with a new design, to give out to their customers with the dinner check as a thank you and drive traffic to their new location.”
6. The Inbound Opener
Submitted by Kim Walsh, sales and marketing manager for Americanna Company, Plymouth, Mass.
“Companies frustrated from the lack of business they receive from their websites turn to a marketing strategy called ‘inbound marketing.’ The idea of inbound marketing has only been around for a short time, but has already proven itself to be the most effective way for a company to ‘get found.’ A marketing savvy credit union company employed a very traditional promotional product, a jar opener, to execute this modern approach.
“The company knew that the single best way to attract new visitors to their website was to create content that is both educational and fun. They decided to add recipes to their site. Now they needed an inbound marketing tool to get the message out to the right customers. They turned to their distributor and purchased 10,000 jar openers. The jar openers were distributed with their brand and a message to ‘go to their website for these recipes.’ What a great way to drive traffic to their website and provide useful information on a promotional product that will stay in the home for years to come.”