As the holiday season approaches, many companies are considering adding an “ad specialty” to their outreach to clients and potential clients. Choosing the right one, of course, is more complicated than jumping at what’s new, cool, or on sale. But if you get it right, the whole project can pay for itself.

CHOICE of item is fundamental. What represents you, is useful or otherwise engaging to your client, and will stick around to show off your brand repeatedly? Candy is dandy, but something with more staying power will yield the multiple impressions you need.

MESSAGING matters. You generally have very little space to work with on an ad specialty item, so how you fill it is important. Do you promote your main brand, a sub brand, or a product? What’s the call-to-action? Making everything tiny isn’t the answer; making smart choices is.

DELIVERY also has significance. While most ad specialties come from the factory in plastic bags, you can often add a presentation box for a little extra. You can also imprint the box with your logo, add a message card inside, or even get your logo printed on ribbon or gift wrap. To your recipient, what might differentiate a “freebie” promo item from a gift?

QUALITY has implications. While better quality and/or “Made in the USA” items tend to be more expensive, they might send a message that is very powerful. More simply: envision your target client reaching for a handy tool with your logo for years to come, or getting frustrated and chucking your logoed item in the trash.

Need help brainstorming your ad specialty adventure? We’d be happy to both share our resources and help with your messaging.