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>> Logo on Giveaways
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Author: Brigitte Püttmann
Show her designs >
Promotional items for friendships
Small gifts can make friends, so the saying goes. For this reason, the use of promotional items has generally also become established in business interactions. Naturally, these items should always be useful to the business partner. This is the only way you can be sure that your gift will have the desired effect of attracting your client's attention, which is what a good promotional item should achieve.
Functions of a promotional item
In summary, we can state the following: A promotional item should serve to communicate a message about a product or company, to create a positive impression, and to confirm and cement awareness of this lasting impression. The implicit part of the message conveyed by a promotional item is of particular importance. Perhaps only the logo and a slogan are printed explicitly on a product. However, the item may make numerous implicit statements. For example: A useful, high quality stationary item with an innovative function and with the logo, website address and telephone number printed on it (without consideration of the accompanying circumstances of making the gift), for example, makes the following statements: "Logo market - The designer market place, www.logomarket.com, Tel. +49 (30) 2654 1190" = explicit, factual message; implicit revelations: "We are creative!", "We pay attention to good design!", "We are here to help you!"; implicit statements on your relationship: "Our relationship to you is important to us", "We take you seriously!"; implicit revelation: "We would like to help you with your work"; implicit call: "Call us!", "Visit our website!" The implicit part is dominant both in quantity, as well as in meaning.
Promotional items conveying a consistent message
The message is consistent only if all signals point in the same direction. Otherwise, they will produce an adverse gut reaction. An example that is easily understood is that of a company using the slogan "Quality is our job!", but then distributing cheap, dried out writing utensils. The challenge in using promotional items lies in the harmonious coordination of the factual level with the subtle but decisive messages between the lines.
Cultural features of promotional items
Mailing of Swiss penknives to Arab nations would have catastrophic consequences. In this case, the intended implicit statement on versatility, precision and quality would be completely overshadowed by the symbolic meaning implying termination of the business relationship. The background handed down through generations: In Arabia, sultans made gifts of richly decorated daggers when they were challenging a subject who had fallen into disfavour to commit ritual suicide or go into exile. Another example would be to wrap gifts in Japan in white, the colour of death. However, enormous misunderstandings can also occur in our own countries, depending on the education and cultural background of the target group. The bottom line: The recipient should constitute the origin for the planning of every promotional item!
Target groups for promotional items
The better one's knowledge of the target group, the better one's knowledge of what will make them pay particular attention, which promotional item is relevant for the target group and will engender emotions. The bait must attract the fish, not the fisherman. This means that your own taste is irrelevant to the choice. Furthermore, we must be prepared to ask ourselves: Is the promotional item capable of sending the message we want to convey both explicitly and implicitly? Is the promotional item relevant to the target group? Is it capable of engendering emotions? Is the promotional item in keeping with our style? How sensitive each individual is to these different messages communicating objectives can be observed when giving "private" gifts. In such cases an item also changes hands and carries multiple messages. The recipient constructs answers to the questions:
 How useful is this gift to me? (Factual aspect)
How much aesthetic enjoyment do I get from it? (Factual aspect)
How much am I worth to the person making the gift? (Aspect of relationship)
What does he think of me? (Aspect of relationship)
How much effort has he made? (Aspect of relationship, revelation)
How much taste, style and money does the person making the gift have? (Revelation)
How much do I owe him? (Call)
How grateful should I appear to be? (Call)
If all aspects of a gift's message are correctly balanced and give satisfaction, then a gift will be perceived as consistent and positive.
Handing over of promotional items
The handing over cannot actually be separated from the gift itself in this context, as the way the gift is handed over communicates as much as the gift itself.
How is it packed?
Is it delivered by post or in person?
If it is delivered in person - what words accompanied the handing over of the gift?
How is it connected to the event with regard to its content?
Staging the handing over of a gift well can make a weak gift into a good one and a good gift into a brilliant one that the recipient will remember for many years to come. If the object carrying the advertisement and the handing over both have the right touch, then the chances are that the message will be understood correctly and also retained in the long-term memory.
Logos on promotional items
Logos with little detail are most effective if you wish to print your company logo onto a promotional item. Too much detail and transitional coloration cannot be sufficiently well illustrated in small formats - they merge into a coloured blob. It is imperative that a logo can be reproduced in small format, particularly for its application on promotional items.
Printing on promotional items
Screen printing is one of the most common printing techniques used on our promotional items. Screen printing is characterized by excellent quality such as high durability and colours that will also cover dark materials well. Dabber printing is mainly used for items that have complicated shapes and are to be printed on. Laser engraving uses a computer-guided light beam that burns into the surface of a ballpoint pen, thereby engraving it. Engraving is the only technique that permits simultaneous serial and individual engravings. Offset printing allows the production of very fine grids that vary in area and therefore delivers excellent print quality. Offset printing supplies uniform colour coverage as well as sharp and clear reproduction of letters. Etching is a chemical process in which the surfaces of materials are attacked or partially worn off using aggressive liquids or gases. The duration of the acid bath determines the depth of the etching. Locations that are to be shielded from the etching process are covered by protective layers of wax or synthetic materials.
Digital printing techniques complement classical printing techniques such as offset and screen printing. The costs of equipment, film and stencils are particularly high for small print runs. This is circumvented by digital printing. Neither do films need to be put together, nor do printing stencils need to be installed. The transfer printing technique involves first printing a mirror image of the motif onto carrier paper and then applying it to the textile using an iron. This procedure also permits the representation of full colour logos, as well as photos or picture motifs. This technique is employed for printing onto high quality textiles or textiles characterized by material composition that will not permit direct printing of the advertisement. Embroidery requires the setting up of an embroidery program for each motif. This defines the number of stitches, the stitching style and density, which in turn determine the price. Printing onto porcelain and ceramics involves printing the decorations onto glass items that are generally underlaid in white to guarantee optimal brilliance in colour. The specialist printing technique Glossy Impression produces an optical effect whereby the surface of the glass appears alternately frosted and transparent. This permits the production of a subtle but also princely-looking advertising area that can be harmoniously integrated into the Frozen Glass Optics.
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