Custom Plush Animals Bring Your Logo to Life

Can a stuffed animal help build your brand? Yes! Stuffed animals are an excellent promotional product to help you advertise your company. In the promotional trade, we call stuffed animals "plush" attributed to the soft construction. Plush animals can convey your message in friendly and effective way.

Here are six of the reason to consider plush as part of your marketing mix:

1. Broad Appeal: This product reaches across all ages, demographics and industries. They are fun for adults or to take home to kids, too.

2. Interactive: Plush promo products connect on a an emotional level. They make you smile. You put them on your desk to personalize your space.

3. Creative: You can get as creative as you want when selecting a plush to promote your business. Use the plush to create or promote a slogan, i.e., You can re-Lion on our great service. It adds a playfulness to your company image.

4. High perceived value. People think this is a valuable or expensive giveaway but there are many inexpensive options that make your company look generous.

5. Small product with a big impact. Small, plush animals are easy to carry home from trade shows and make great gifts for the kids. Does your company have a mascot? A funny slogan? Get a custom plush made to promote it.

6. Unique. A custom plush character sets your company apart from its competitors.

But most importantly, we love the creative ways companies use plush to build engagement with their brand. How have companies used plush animals?

• A university hid a hawk mascot throughout the campus for students to find as a way to promote safety on the campus.
• A national hotel chain uses a plush bear as a welcome gift for guests
• A Human Resources department in Florida gave a sea-related character as a way to say thank you to employees for their hard work.
• An elephant mascot was given as a reward to children when they completed an after-school program.
• An auto dealership put a plush bear in the front passenger seat in every car as a way to differentiate themselves and target Mom buyers. 
• A pharmaceutical company hands them out to kids in the hospital if they are diagnosed with certain illnesses that need the medicine they produce. They are comforting. 

If you are targeting Moms, kids. or salespeople who need to take a gift home from a business trip, a plush animal may be the perfect way to advertise your brand. 

Are plush animals appropriate for your business?  Contact me at 847-398-5500 or dona.blunt@newportpros.com to learn more about how plush animals can give your business more "character."

Small Promotion Yields Big Results at Trade Show

Looking for an inexpensive trade show booth giveaway that attendees will love and use daily? How about making their smartphones or tablets easier to use?

One of the phone accessories that people enjoy using is a raised "dot" that sticks to the home button on smartphones.  It's useful for phone users in that it gives them a more tactile way to find their essential Home button. It's also an opportunity to personalize a phone or tablet so you don't mistakenly pick up someone else's device.  Part of the Dot's popularity is that it attaches with a special 3M Brand adhesive so it it is easily removable and doesn't leave a sticky residue.

For marketers, it's a chance to offer value and get your brand in the hands of your customers and prospects. Although the Dot is small, you can pack a lot of brand message into the giveaway. Here's how: The Dot can be distributed on a custom-printed card, with provides plenty of room for your marketing message. There are custom card options to accommodate one dot or a larger card with two dots.

Not only are these great trade booth handouts, but the item can be used in advance of the show to drive traffic to your booth. For example, a Dot on a custom-printed card was sent out as a pre-show mailing to customers and prospects with the message "Spot the Dot."  The mailing told show attendees if they brought their phone to the booth during the trade show hours with the Dot attached, they would receive a special promotional offer on a future order. Make the incentive attractive and you could have a traffic jam in your trade show booth.

The product's raised surface works with either the round "home" button on iPhones or with the rectangle home button on Android models.  Both the Dot itself and the custom card can be printed in 4CP to showcase your logo and brand information in full color.

Give me a call today at 847-398-5500 or shoot me an email at dona.blunt@newportpros.com to talk about pricing for the Dot or brainstorm other ideas to drive traffic to your next trade show booth.

For more ideas on how to create buzz or drive traffic to your trade show booth, check out my Trade Show Marketing Ideas board on Pinterest.


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Hot Summer Promotional Products

Summer is in fun full swing but it's not too late to grab some promotional products to help keep your brand in front of your customers during summer events.

Here are a few of our top selling promotional products for your summer promotions, corporate picnics, and even client appreciation days.

Retro Sunglasses
You can't go wrong with these retro sunglasses to giveaway as swag at beach events, picnics, and even golf tournaments. The price is perfect and they come in a variety of fun colors sure to match up with your company logo.

Deluxe Folding Chair
With a large imprint area for your logo, this deluxe folding chair will work hard to promote your brand. If your company is sponsoring any summer outdoor concert events or hospitality events, put these chairs out for your guests to ensure that all concert goers see your logo. Then give a few away to VIP customers or valued employees. Four colors are available, so choose wisely.

Acrylic Mason Jar Tumblers
Mason jars are hot, hot, hot when it comes to promotional drinkware. Designed to look like the nostalgic preserving jars, these BPA free, colorful tumblers come with fun straws to make drinking even more fun. Your customers will hold on to these tumblers for a long time giving your brand some long-term exposure.

Beach Picnic Pack
This fun picnic pack includes everything you need for a fun summer outing. The insulated main compartment holds food, drinks or other beach essentials for four people. The Picnic Pack is designed to be water and sand resistant keeping your food and drinks safe until you are ready to eat. This is an impactful gift for valued customers and employees.

Jelli Mini Fan
Give your customers and prospects a way to beat the heat with this Jelli Mini Fan. The fun translucent colors and attractive price point make this promotional item a winner for outdoor and summer events.

Need more ideas for summer promotions? Give me a call at 847-398-5500 or email me at dona.blunt@newportpros.com and we'll get some creative ideas going for you.

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Man's Best Promotional Product?

Want your prospects to love your brand? Show their pets some love! Big or small, we love (and pamper) them all--pets that is.

According to the American Pet Products Association in its 2013-2014 National Pet Owners Survey, we are sharing our houses with a lot of pets. The total number of pets owned in the U.S., in millions is as follows:

Freshwater Fish        145.0
Cats                           95.6
Dogs                          83.3
Birds                          20.6
Small Animals             18.1
Saltwater Fish             13.6
Reptiles                       11.5
Horses                          8.3

Given our love for pets, it's no wonder that there are so many promotional items that are pet related. Sure pet stores and vets use these items to promote their business because pets are their business. But here are some ways that clever businesses can advertise their brand while endearing themselves to their pet loving customers.

Practical items are always appreciated, like pet collars, pet food covers, travel water bottles for pets, pet bag dispensers, doggie t-shirts and even pet bowl placemats. These items will get used and used again.

Our furry friends shed and that doesn't look so good on a dark suit in an important business meeting. So help those pet lovers with furry friends to catch those few stray hairs at work or play.  The hairs can be easily cleaned up with a 3M Brand Lint Sheet Pack. These disposable sheets are more portable than a lint roller and are just as good at removing pet hair from clothing and other surfaces.  With a logo or message imprint area on the packet cover, this item will advertise your company to a wide audience who will definitely appreciate this useful item. Best yet, this item isn't limited to pet owners as it is universal enough for everyone to use.

If you want to have a little fun with a branded promotional item, these novelty pens in the shape of cats or dogs are adorable.  Who wouldn't find either one of these fun pens to write with?  The uniqueness of these items will make your logo stand out and be noticed and the recipient will have a useful item that brings out the kid in them.

But wait, don't forget the kids! How about an adorable drawstring backpack for children with different animal designs that even include the ears! There is both a dog and kitten drawstring bag, as well as other animals. Parents and Grandparents will line up to grab one of these promotional items for their kids or grand kids whether they have a pet or not. With a large imprint area under the cute face, these bags are a unique way to reinforce your logo and build brand goodwill. 

Most people find puppies and kittens to be irresistibly cute, so how about an appointment-style Puppies & Kittens Wall Calendar with twelve different images?  It's just one of many useful items that appeal to both pet owners and pet lovers while advertising your business.

We have quite a few other pet-related options so give me a call to brainstorm how to promote your brand to your pet-loving prospects and customers at 847-398-5500 or email me at dona.blunt@newportpros.com.

Have you ever received a pet-related promotional item? Did you use it? What item would you appreciate the most?

Get "Set" for Promotional Success

When it comes to promotional products to thank your customers, use as  raffle prizes in your trade show booth, or award an employee for exceptional service, sometimes just giving out one item is not sufficient. That's when a ready formulated gift set is appropriate and really makes a statement.

For example, if you are greeting a new employee or visitor, this 5-piece Road Trip Set makes for an impressive gift.  The insulated cooler bag holds a plastic tumbler with matching straw, a mini notebook with pen, as well as an LED flashlight plus a stylus pen. Not only do you save money when buying all of the items bundled together, every item is imprinted with your logo for multiple exposures of your brand.

Want something even bigger? If five items are not enough, this 10-piece Road Trip/ Mobile Office Set contains all of the items listed above but then adds a drawstring backpack, an insulated coffee cup, a journal book a gel pen plus a tech case, perfect for phones or other tech devices. Wow! Anything you could possibly need for a road trip or to set up your mobile office is covered.

Here's another thing to consider. Break the set up to go small, but reap the cost savings of a bundled promotional product. This grouping of best sellers can be given as an entire set or split up into individual items used for different events. Give a few items to "C" level clients, more items to "B" level clients and all items to "A" level clients. A winning promotional giveaway strategy!

You can also get smaller sets that still save you money. This Technology Promotional Pack includes a tech pocket for protecting your smartphone or iPod, a ballpoint/stylus pen as well as a matching screen cleaner cloth. It comes in so many colors that it will be easy to find a set one that compliments your logo or company brand color.

Another technology related promotional gift set is this Executive USB Technology Gift Set, which contains a dual-zippered, hard, black leatherette case, a mini matching padded mouse pad, 2 Black retractable USB cords, a black leatherette 3-port mini hub, a slim, black leatherette optical mouse and attractive black and Silver ballpoint pen.

Finally, more does not always mean merrier. You can still make a huge impact with only a two piece gift set, like this attractive Hot and Cold Beverage Set.  It's a great gift that you know will get used in winter or summer, giving your brand  a lot of exposure. It comes in a lot of attractive colors to tie in with the theme of a promotion or your brand.

If one of these gift sets is perfect for an upcoming meeting conference or other occasion, give me a call to brainstorm some ideas and get you some pricing. You can reach me at dona.blunt@newportpros.com or 847-398-5500.

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Top Promotional Products for Golf Events

Summer is almost upon us and that means Golf Season! While it's a great time to grab your clubs and have some fun, golf season is also a great time to promote your company. There are numerous Golf tournaments, charity golf events, or even travel incentive golf trips during the summer months that provide advertising and brand building opportunities for large and small businesses. Whether you are participating in or sponsoring a large national tournament or supporting your local community charity golf event, you are going to need logoed promotional products to help advertise your company.

We provide our clients with a huge selection of golf-themed, logoed promotional products. Why? Golf events offer your company EXPOSURE. As long as there will be people at the event who represent your target market, it's a strong marketing tactic to get your name in front of people. And, it is easy to find your target since there are so many industry association golf events during the summer. If you target real estate agents, check for association golf outings. If you target financial advisors, there are probably quite a few options. If you target women business owners, check to see if the women's business groups in your area have an event planned. They probably do.

You do not personally have to be a golfer in order to effectively promote your company at a golf occasion. From a business perspective golf events are most often associated with sales meetings, team-building exercises, key client thank-yous, chamber events and charity fund raisers. Becoming a sponsor for part or all of one of these venues is a great way to get your name and brand in front of your prospects.

To get you thinking, here are 5 of our top selling golf promotional products. 

1. Rain Wedge

What is it? It's a waterproof golf bag hood cover. Tournament Directors across the country have praised the Rain Wedge for its ability to brand their organization long-term and for the compliments they've received from their tournament participants. Unlike golf balls, tees and towels (which get lost, used up, or tossed away) a Rain Wedge will be kept and used for years.

2. Golf Shoe Bag

This high quality golf shoe bag makes carrying your golf shoes a breeze. There is a side mesh compartment for golf balls or shoe spikes as well as a separate compartment to accommodate polish, shoe mitt, etc. Nylon webbed carry handles make it easy to hook to your golf bag or carry. Plus, there is a nice, large space for your logo or marketing message.

3. Golf Ball Cleaner

This unique golf ball cleaner fits in your pocket and stays wet to clean your golf ball while keeping your pocket dry. It can be imprinted in a variety of colors!

4. Golf Umbrella

I have to say that I use a golf umbrella all the time. The extra large coverage area is perfect for golfing or just bringing in the groceries on rainy days. Which means it will get used and offer your company exposure on and off the golf course. It's lightning and wind resistant. You can print your logo on the umbrella and/or engrave your logo on the wooden handle.

5. Golf Event Sponsor Gift Pack

While the above items are great to give as gifts to VIP customers or to offer as raffle prizes, you may not want to hand these out to just anyone. That's why this Golf Event Sponsor Gift Pack is perfect to hand out as a promotional giveaway or include in a swag bag for all registered golfers at an event.

To keep the cost down, you can even team with up with another company to co-brand the kit. We can provide total customization with a different sponsor logo on each product in the kit for no additional cost and free setup. If you are an event planner, you can offer this option to budget-conscious companies. Each kit comes equipped with a 24 oz Polyclear water bottle, a 15" x 18" golf poly blend towel with grommet and hook, six 2-3/4" tees, two ball markers and divot repair tool.

Summer is almost here so give me a call today to help you get in the swing of effective golf promotions.

Dona Blunt, MAS (PromoDona)
847-398-5500
dona.blunt@newportpros.com

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It's Promotional Products Work! Week and I wanted to share some great facts with you on why promotional products are so effective in helping businesses build a strong brand, create trade show buzz, generate referrals and repeat business, and boost response rates on your marketing investments.

Here's a fun video that shares why promotional products have so much staying power.

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Do you use promotional products to help grow your business? What has worked best for you?