Buzz Worthy
Archive for January, 2011
Which Promotional Items Are Catching a Buzz This Trade Show Season?
0882 days
by Brandon
in Promotional Items
At the Promotional Items Buzz, we make an effort to continually highlight the hottest news in the promotional products industry. This could mean anything from a new item getting used for branding purposes, to checking out how successful companies run their advertising campaigns. Since the trade show season is about to commence, it is worth it to identify some of the promotional items which are expected to be the most successful this year. If you own a business or you are just interested in the industry, you can use this as a guide to see what makes these trade show giveaways so popular.
One of the best trade show giveaways available is the Non-Woven Convention Tote Bag. This type of item is always received with open arms by trade show attendees for several reasons. First, it has an attractive visual appearance so people will be drawn to it at first sight. Businesses can choose the bag colors that they want, so if your brand is recognized by a specific color you can keep your advertising congruent.
Tote bags are also exceptionally useful in a variety of instances including carrying groceries home from the supermarket, taking clothes to the gym, or simply using them in place of a purse or briefcase. With plenty of room to show off your imprinted logo, the Non-Woven Convention Tote Bag is catching a serious buzz at trade shows this year.
Another one of the hottest trade show giveaways this year is the Sani-Mist Pocket Sprayer. This item comes in a pen-like design, complete with a barrel and cap with shirt pocket clip. The container is filled with antibacterial hand sanitizer that can be conveniently used at any point throughout the day.
What makes the Sani-Mist Pocket Sprayer so high in demand? Since it’s flu season, people are looking for any way they can to limit the amount of germs that they come in contact with. Since people live and work on top of each other in the office and at home, it is easy to get sick in the wintertime by sharing appliances and touching common doorknobs. Any promotional antibacterial items will be well received at trade shows this year; the Sani-Mist Pocket Spray just happens to be one of the best of the bunch.
Did you think we could get through a piece about trade show giveaways without mention one of the hottest apparel items this year? Of course not. It’s no secret that embroidered apparel has dominated the promotional products industry for years. So which apparel selection is catching the biggest buzz this trade show season? It’s the Anvil Adult Blended Short Sleeve Jersey Polo. The reason why this polo is so hot is because of its fantastic combination of comfort and versatility.
The shirt is made of a 50/50 split of cotton and polyester, so your body can breathe when you wear it but it will hold up to being worn repeatedly. Polo shirts are appropriate to wear in any season, so businesses know that if they give out the Jersey Polo in the winter it will be worn through the spring and into the summer. If you are looking to really make a lasting impact on potential customers in your target market, then the Anvil Adult Blended Short Sleeve Jersey Polo might be the way to go.
There are plenty of other promotional items which are catching a buzz this trade show season. The key is to catch the wave of these products at the right time. While some will continue to be popular for years to come, others are going to fizzle out after a few months. The only way to learn which trade show giveaways are the best is to experiment with different products and read as much useful information about hot promotional items as possible (the Promotional Items Buzz is a great place to start)!
A Major Logo Change for a Major Company
0890 days
by Brandon
in Promotional Items
It seems that the latest trend for big business is to change their logo to spice things up a bit. In some cases this may result in better branding for the company; in other cases in might backfire. Take the Gap for instance: They recently changed their logo from a navy blue background with their signature white font, to a standard white background with black text and a blue box (see below). The Gap took so much heat from their customers through Twitter and various other media sources that they had to revert back to the old logo. When looking at the logo change, you have to wonder what the Gap was thinking (the new logo is much less appealing than the original) but of course it is their prerogative to do as they please.
The Gap clothing store changed its logo from the blue background (right) to a new logo (left), and then changed it back due to public dissent
Now another company has decided to alter their logo. The most famous coffee company and arguably one of the most successful brands in the world, Starbucks, has decided to remove the word “coffee” from their original logo. Their reason for this is that they no longer want to be known for selling just coffee. The original logo features a green circle with the words “Starbucks Coffee” printed around the circumference. Inside, a picture of the mythological Siren smiles at its customers who cannot resist the beauty of a latte. 
The renown Starbucks logo in use from 1992-2010
The new Starbucks logo will keep the same graphic of the Siren, however with a change in the color scheme and no additional wording. While Starbucks has rationalized this as an attempt to branch out into other markets, the logo was introduced to a lukewarm reception. While the taste of Starbucks Coffee won’t change, the corporation knows very well that re-branding their product could have a negative effect on their sales. If people continue to complain about the new logo, it will be interesting to see whether Starbucks chooses to balk in the same way that the Gap did.
The new Starbucks logo has the words “Starbucks Coffee” removed from around the edges of the circle
A Review of the Hottest Promotional Products in 2010
0898 days
by Brandon
in Promotional Items
Now that we have started a brand new year, it means a whole new line of promotional products are bound to catch a buzz. Some of the hottest items from 2010 will still be here, and some are on the way out.
In 2010, the promotional item with the most buzz around it had to be the Silly Bandz. These silicone bracelets could be molded into any themed shape and packaged in a bag with an imprinted logo. People of all ages enjoyed wearing the bracelets, though kids especially went crazy for them. The Silly Bandz bracelets were perfect as a back-to-school giveaway, but also worked well at trade shows and other promotional events. Because of their attractive shape, bright colors, and entertainment value, the buzz around the product created a great branding opportunity for any company.
Another one of the hottest promo items from 2010 is the imprinted cold beverage travel cup. At first glance of this cup, you would think it is made out of the same flimsy material that you would find at a fast food restaurant. However, they are really made of durable acrylic material to will hold up in just about any condition. What makes this item so unique is the fact that is is modeled after the restaurant-style cup, yet it can be reused as many times as the recipient wants. The cold beverage travel cup is great for road trips and commutes to work, and that is probably why this item had such a buzz around it in 2010.
A final huge trend of the 2010 promotional products market was eco-friendly items. Since the “going green” movement began, promotional products distributors have jumped all over the idea. Eco-friendly promotional items are usually made from either recycled or biodegradable products, or constructed from a regenerative material like bamboo. Companies use these items for “green” branding opportunities. This means that when they want to position their brand name as one that follows environmental trends, these products come in handy. Eco-friendly items come in just about every type of product that the regular version does, but one of the most popular categories is eco-friendly notebooks. A recycled jotter with pen is featured in the picture below.