There have been a lot of blogs written on why giving away USB flash drives and other promotional gifts works.
By doing a quick Google search, anyone can find hundreds of statistics proving the effectiveness of free gifts in terms of increasing sales, likability and brand awareness.
Giving USB flash drives and promotional gifts works
The free stuff companies give away for marketing often creates a professional and consistent image that sends a message of confidence and trust to their clients.
Some of the more common items given away are t-shirts, sweat-shirts, jackets, hats, socks, water bottles, cups, bags, backpacks, umbrellas, frisbees, pens, pins, notepads, notebooks, calendars, keychains, coasters, stickers, magnets and USB flash drives.
Here are ten statistics illustrating the advantages of giving away promotional items:
- 83% of consumers like receiving a promotional gift with an advertising message.
- 90% of people currently own or possess a promotional product.
- 53% of consumers use a promotional gift at least once per week.
- 66% of people can remember the name of a company who gave them a promotional gift in the previous year.
- 58% of people say they keep a promotional product for between 1 and 4 years.
- 84% of people agree branded merchandise increases brand awareness.
- 85% of consumers do business with a company after they receive a promotional gift from them.
- There is a 44% increase in the effectiveness of a marketing campaign when a promotional gift is added to it.
- Promotional gifts on average generate 5 referrals from satisfied customers.
- Promotional gifts are less expensive but more effective for brand recognition than print, TV or radio.
Based on those statistics (all found by a simple Google search), it is easy to understand the benefits companies enjoy by giving away promotional items.
Why giving USB flash drives and promotional gifts works
- Builds trust – An effective way to instill trust is to give someone a gift without wanting anything in return. A physical item can also make a company feel more ‘real’ to their clients. In an age where so much is done online, receiving promotional gifts gives recipients physical proof of a company’s existence.
- Increases brand awareness – This is probably the most obvious reason companies give promotional gifts. It enables people to see their logo and branding while keeping them fresh in their minds. As an added benefit, not only is the recipient of a promotional gift regularly seeing a company’s brand, but so are other people around them.
- Increases likability – People love free gifts, and they usually like the people who give them free gifts.
- Creates excitement and happiness – People tend to get excited and feel happy when they receive a gift.
- Makes clients feel recognized, appreciated and valued – People enjoy it when companies say “thank you”, “we care about you” and “we appreciate you”. At the moment when someone receives a company’s gift, it doesn’t matter that they may be giving the same gift to hundreds of others. Recipients honestly feel recognized, appreciated and valued.
To further illustrate the points above, I’ll share the following story. I once received a Pepsi t-shirt for free at a fair in Texas. Texas is actually Dr. Pepper country, and Dr. Pepper is the soda my parents bought for us to drink when we were kids. However, because of that t-shirt, I sometimes bought Pepsi to drink for myself as I grew older, and I still do today. For all I know, the t-shirt I received as a free gift when I was a kid is the reason why.
Get the best USB flash drives from MediaFast
USB flash drives can be customized to give your brand continued visibility, and they make excellent promotional gifts. Furthermore, after recipients view the content you install on the USB flash drives you give them, they can reprogram them with something for themselves. At the same time, your company brand will still be on them, and that will ensure they remember your company and what it has to offer.
We only use brand new components to make all of our products, and our client’s satisfaction is our number one priority.
To learn more about USB flash drives or our other promotional items, contact us today.
Having owned an advertising magazine in Utah, I’ve worked in marketing for over twenty years.
I started writing for MediaFast in 2014. The first time I held one of their video brochures, I thought something like, “Wow! This blows away our magazine and any other print advertising I’ve ever seen. This is like a TV commercial, and I’m holding it in my hands. Amazing!”
Since then, video brochures, video mailers and video boxes have become leaders in marketing performance. It’s a privilege to write about them. I also love MediaFast—with its top-notch product quality, industry leading customer service, and all of the wonderful people I get to work with.
