Most people love surprises, gifts, and goody bags. It seems to bring out the kid in all of us. Using swag is an easy way to make your clients and potential clients happy, and also to promote your firm’s name out in your community. Distributing firm Swag might sound too simplistic to be a significant part of your marketing strategy, but don’t overlook this easy and effective marketing opportunity!
While in today’s world social media marketing has become the order of the day, there is still a critical place for grassroots marketing. People are still people and marketing is more effective when it creates relationships.
Receiving gifts, even small ones, can help you and your firm build those important relationships with clients and prospective clients. Thus, swag continues to be a tried and true means for sharing the love and getting and keeping your firm’s name in the minds of clients, both current and potential.
With that thought in mind, here are a few hot swag items to add to your marketing arsenal.
1) When Marketing Really is Child’s Play: Balloons and Coloring Books
You might assume that having balloons made with your firm’s logo is childish or somewhat silly in an age of sophisticated SEO and Google Analytics. But this simple swag still works!
When your firm is setting up a booth or sponsoring any community events, festivals, etc, make sure you take the time to have balloons made with your firm’s logo. Invest in a helium machine and ribbon and make sure to have balloons made in a variety of bright colors (they are inexpensive and available at your local Walmart).
Balloons command attention and while you might not be interested in holding one in your hand, rest assured that children still love them. Most of us can relate to having our child pull and point until we make our way over to whoever is handing out balloons. And from a marketing standpoint, if you can get the child to your table, they will bring their parents, your potential clients, along with them! BINGO!
Recently one of our members reminded Ken and I that they had heard Ken speak about using balloons and were skeptical; nonetheless, they went ahead and tried out his theory at their next community event and were astounded at how successful something as simple as balloons was in driving kids and their respective adults to the firm’s table! They were able to draw far more attention and capture far more adult emails than anyone else at the event, all from something as simple as giving away balloons!
Along that same vein, Firm coloring books and crayons are another great swag item. Have them on hand in your office to entertain the little ones when you or your staff are meeting with the parents. More importantly, these small items also make great swag to have on hand at events you are attending, or to provide to your local daycare and aftercare programs, elementary schools, doctors and chiropractor offices, auto body shops, etc.
You can have coloring books designed to feature you and your firm staff in them, with simple texts about how you help people who have been hurt or injured… or you can design the coloring books to convey good
general health tips or life lessons. (that you could make available as a community service to schools, day cares, etc. in your market)
Make sure your firm’s name and contact information are printed on the books, of course (or added via a label). The same with small packs of complimentary crayons.
Speaking from a mom’s perspective, don’t waste money on the cheap crayons that break as soon as your little one tries to color with them; I suggest small packs of Crayola, with your firm’s contact info and a “We love helping people!” sticker attached.
2. Pizza Cutters: Who doesn’t love pizza? Even in the keto/ calorie counting/ fitness driven world of today, people still love and splurge on pizza. Consequently, pizza cutters are still a very popular swag that clients really appreciate! Ken started giving away pizza cutters with his firm’s logo years ago, and these simple items remain one of the most useful and popular swag items today. In fact, Ken and I are still using a small red and white Hardison & Cochran pizza cutter that must be over 10 years old! (Dickens Printing is still making this classic swag) Who would expect a little plastic gadget to work so well or last so long?
One of our ingenious Florida PILMMA members, Jason Melton, of Whittel & Melton, teamed up with his local pizza delivery restaurant to provide these little cutters with every pizza the restaurant delivers! Imagine how many people you might be able to reach with your firm’s name if you tried a similar tactic in your own market?
3. Cell Phone Swag: Adhesive Cardholders and Pop Sockets:
Virtually everyone has a cell phone these days, so cell phone swag is becoming more and more popular. Two of the top items these days are the Adhesive Cardholder and the Pop Socket.
Cardholders: In case you haven’t seen them, Adhesive Cardholders are small stretchy pockets that adhere to the back of a cell phone and allow you to insert your license or credit/debit card and carry them attached to your phone.
I picked up Texas PILMMA member Greg Hermann’s Cardholder at a PILMMA event several years ago and stuck it on the back of my phone to see if it really worked. Surprisingly, this little pocket works perfectly! It allows me to grab my phone and go, without needing to carry a wallet or purse, knowing the cards are tucked safely inside the little adhesive pocket.
And of course, if I were in an accident, I’d have the Hermann & Hermann contact info right at my fingertips. This little piece of swag can carry a powerful punch!
While we are always looking for the latest in innovative and edgy marketing tools to help us dominate our market, sometimes it’s the simple things that can be the most effective! So, why not share a little swag love with your ideal client base today?
