For the planner deeply embroiled in the hot-button issues of the day - eliminating attrition, boosting attendance, getting the job done with fewer resources - it's not a shock that decisions about promotional products and gifts can find their way to the bottom of the to-do pile.
But planners who don't put sufficient thought into the selection of meetings merchandise are missing out on an opportunity to extend their organizations' brand and image with constituents.
From trade show booth giveaways, to lanyards and notepads, to internal incentive awards and speakers' gifts, the products an organization gives away reflect on its professionalism and its commitment to clients and other partners.
"Planners definitely can benefit from thinking more strategically about merchandise," said Bill Prickett, public relations manager for the Dallas-based Promotional Products Association International (PPAI).
Research performed by PPAI indicates that promotional products can increase trade show booth traffic and direct mail response rates. In the study, attendees who received a giveaway before and during the show were about one-and-a-half times as inclined to stop by the booth and almost twice as likely to have positive feelings toward the company.
But, Prickett warned, "The use of promotional products is not a guarantee for success. It's all about integrating products into the meeting, and carefully planning how the products will be distributed."
Giveaways
"The companies I started out working for said, 'We need something to give away - let's just have something to hand out,' " said Candy Adams, a Carlsbad, Calif.-based trade show consultant. "But with experience I learned it's all part of integrated marketing. It needs to look like you thought it out, and it has to tie in to your message."
This was the approach taken by the Phoenix and Scottsdale convention and visitors bureaus when they sought out a gift for a series of promotional events on which they recently cooperated.
"We wanted something that was going to be useful and have a long shelf life," said Doug MacKenzie, director of communications for the Phoenix CVB. The group enlisted the help of Linda Stevens, president of LS Enterprises in Phoenix. Stevens helped them select a sturdy black messenger bag, with padding that allowed users to tote a laptop in it and with the two CVBs' logos stitched on discretely in black.
"It's a good-quality item and a good value - two components that reflect the greater Phoenix region," MacKenzie explained.
Distinctive giveaways don't have to be expensive if you know where to look, according to Stevens.
Phoenix-based airport transportation provider Super Shuttle International came to her looking for an item for less than three dollars that it could distribute at trade shows, and to send to travel agents and executives. Super Shuttle came to Stevens thinking it wanted mousepads with its logo, and left with an order for a memorable desktop novelty - exact replicas of their signature vans, complete with opening and closing doors.
"It was a hit for all three groups they sent it to," Stevens remembered. "I got Ford [Motor Co.] to pick up the mold charges, since Super Shuttle had just changed its fleet over to Ford vans." In the end, it cost Stevens' client $2.76 per item to have the vans manufactured and shipped from China.
Just choosing the right item isn't always enough, Adams said. For trade shows, she recommended tying pre-show and post-show communications to the product.
"It's all about promotion, promotion, promotion," she said. "If you send them a compelling message about why they should come see you, they're more likely to stop by." One of her clients sent select attendees watchbands, along with the promise of receiving watches to go with them if they stopped by the booth at the trade show. Another sent out T-shirts and letters after the show to prospects who had stopped by the booth. Both had favorable results, Adams said.
The PPAI study of promotional item use at trade shows supported Adams' advice. The best response came from registrants who, prior to the show, received an invitation to pick up a mug at the booth.
Necessary Evils
While toy cars, stylish bags and watches might light up the eyes of some meeting attendees, the less-flashy meeting items also present organizations with avenues to impress their image upon attendees.
"Every material that has to be used at a meeting - name badge holders, pins, lanyards, tote bags, pens, paper - is an opportunity to get your name or a sponsor's name out in front of people," said Melissa Anunson, marketing manager for PC Nametag in Madison, Wis. "You can do things like pens for under a dollar per person. They usually will take it with them, and other people will see them write with it as well."
One of the meetings industry's ubiquitous, not-so-flashy products, the lanyard, can actually have a lot of value if the right one is chosen. Attendees will keep lanyards that they find comfortable, user-friendly or distinctive, according to Anunson. "They will get reused if they're very high quality or made from a unique material like metal, leather or 'jelly.' "
Chums, a promotional materials company based in Portland, Ore., has built its business around creating innovative, durable lanyards and other such items for clients who want new and distinctive products for events.
"We're always searching out new attachment looks, and for things no one else has done," said Janet Luty, director of sales for Chums. "Since 100,000 lanyards get thrown away every year, we want to come up with creative ways to make them so people will keep them."
One of Chums' more popular items, Luty said, is a lanyard that converts into a sunglasses strap after the meeting, increasing the likelihood that it will go home with the attendee instead of getting left in a hotel room or trash bin.
Speaker Gifts
Thank-you presents for speakers make a statement about your organization to people who are likely some of the most powerful in your industry. And speakers and the planners who hire them agree on one thing: a thoughtful gift that takes their personal tastes into account makes a great impression.
"If you're going to give a speaker a gift to take home, it's best to try to personalize it," said Phoenix-based speaker and certified meeting planner Cara Tracy. "Call their staff, ask questions, pay attention. And think about the effect that gift will have on the ongoing relationship you're hoping to have with that person."
But what about occasions where a planner must choose one gift for several speakers at once? Joanne Dennison, a speaker and president of Ordinary Success in Martinsville, N.J., said she has appreciated gifts that are either very practical or light and humorous.
"I have a very beautiful clock I got from speaking at a Meeting Professionals International conference, and it's lovely enough that it sits in our living room," Dennison said. "On the other hand, I also love the can of juggling balls I got from the National Speakers Association's D.C. chapter. They played on the theme that speakers juggle a lot of different roles in their lives."
Dennison and her colleagues agree that it is better to give no gift than to give a bad one. One year when Nancy Woolever's association, the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), wanted to trim expenses, several speakers received a fluorescent orange ruler with the organization's logo on it.
"Big mistake," said Woolever, manager of education for the Alexandria, Va.-based association. "We got lots of complaints that we should just not have given a gift. We pulled back too far." The next year SHRM opted for wine totes that came with glasses, napkins and a corkscrew - a gift that was much more appreciated.
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