How to Choose Promotional Items Your Customers Will Cherish

There are marketing gurus whose pronouncements turn knowing your customers into an arcane art that can only be practiced by those who have the magic. There’s no magic to choosing promotional items that will attract the kind of customer that you want – just some common sense rules and approaches.

1. Know who your customers are.

One of the best ways to know what your customers want is to know who they are. Invest a little time in surveying customers to learn a little about them. Who buys your products and services? In one case we know of, an office supply company had always thought of their customers as “businessmen”, but when they had their phone sales people ask a few pointed questions while taking orders, they learned that in reality, the decision makers for buying office supplies were office managers and secretaries. You may think that your children’s clothing line is bought by parents, but find that your real market is the children themselves. Don’t assume – ask.

1. Figure out what your customers want.

Once you know that your customers are young, single professionals, or business executives, or office managers or anything else, it’s much easier to figure out what’s important to them. Once our office supply company realized who was really buying its products, they were able to refocus their marketing efforts to concentrate on what’s important to a busy office manager. Once they figured out that convenient ordering was high on that list, they designed an easy to read one-sheet order form with their most popular office items and included a tear off pad of fax order forms with every customer’s first order. Their sales increased by 10% the first month.

1. Do some market research.

It’s always better to ask than to guess. Take advantage of technology to make marketing research easier. Does your company have a web site? Post a survey asking customers what they want. Use your email list to send out a questionnaire to your existing customers.

1. Go where your prospective customers are.

The best place to find new customers is in their natural habitat. Do you sell products for young children? Register with a few internet forums for parents and lurk for a while to read about their concerns and needs. Send out promotional offers to day care centers and nursery schools. Adapt the strategy to your own market – every industry and group has their hangouts. Learn them and use them to get market intelligence.

There’s no magic to learning about your customers. All it takes is a bit of common sense and a little work. It may take a little time to run a survey or eavesdrop on conversations, but the payoff is a higher return on your investment in promotional items and marketing campaigns.

More information about promotional items can be found online by searching for the leading online suppliers of promotional products. You can tap into their wealth of experience to ensure that you have the perfect promotional gift or business gift to promote your business.