Before you start reading this article, take a minute to take the following branding test:
How many global brands can you identify from the pictures contained in the following grid?
Brands have become paramount to corporate identity in the minds of consumers. This test was created by Jay Doblin, design planner and theorist in 1984 to illustrate the power of effective brands. Here Doblin’s 31-year-old quiz has been updated with contemporary logos.
Did it surprise you just how many you could identify based on seeing close-up portions of logos without their colours applied? — Most people can get over half of these correct – just by viewing the tiny black and white portions of the overall logo. It is a compelling argument for the immense power that branding has over us as consumers, and how our subconscious will memorise logos or emblems without us really being aware of it.
P.s. The answers are at the bottom of this post!
Getting your Brand Noticed with Custom Printed Promotional Products
Custom printed promotional products are used in virtually every industry, and are a way to effectively instill your brand into the mind of a consumer (so that they too will be able to recognise your brand if presented with a black and white segment of it!) with incredible results. Even in the virtual world of today, having a variety of custom printed promotional items such as bags, tapes, cups/mugs or USB keys to have at your disposal will make sure you are taking advantage of the offline world as well as the online world.
In today’s economy, where marketing and advertising budgets are so heavily scrutinized marketers continue to rely on custom branded promotional merchandise for a number of very valid reasons.
1. Brand Awareness
Brand awareness is a marketing concept that measures a consumer’s knowledge of a brand’s existence. What does that mean for a business – it’s extremely important – it means that if price is the same, a consumer will more likely purchase a product where he/she has seen the logo or is familiar with the name, rather than a product or service which is unknown to him/her.
2. Helps with ‘Word of Mouth’ Advertising
If just one person tells his/her friends or peers a positive story, or relays a positive feeling about the value of a product or service, this is vastly more powerful than any written or visual form of advertising – Period. Promotional products containing a custom printed logo helps to initiate conversations about brands, and if this is taking place, the strongest and most powerful form of marketing is taking place.
3. Helps with ‘Good Will’ Advertising
It’s basic human nature. Consumers of every type of product want to know their patronage is appreciated. Receiving a custom printed gift, without having to purchase anything, is as a sincere expression on the part of the company to let the buyer know that their business is valued. Good will is the ultimate intangible asset.
4. Multiple and Prolonged Exposures to Brand Messages
An advertising message gets considerably stronger with repeated and prolonged exposures – The terms is referred to ‘Effective Frequency’ in advertising. With a custom printed promotional item such as a Pen, Bag or Mug the exposure is often on a daily basis, putting the effective frequency at a very high level.
5. Great for ‘Reminder Advertising’
The closer to hand that someone has a brand’s contact details the more likely it is that they will carry out an initial enquiry. That is why custom printed pens and USB keys are still so effective in today’s virtual world – as the phone number and other contact details are right there in their hand when it’s time to make an enquiry. Remember, the easier it is to garner contact information, the more likely it is that they will get in touch.
STP is very pleased to have a custom printing department that is ever-increasing in popularity.
Have your own promotional ideas?
We’d love to hear them and help you with your marketing initiatives.
If you’d like to get a quick overview of what we offer why not head over to the Custom Print Section of our Website to see why it’s gaining in popularity! We have dedicated designers and marketers to help you effectively put your brand in your customer’s hand!
Thanks for reading a here’s a little food for thought!
Bye for now.
Paul
Answers to quiz:
- 1. Coca Cola 2. Shell 3. Apple 4. Volkswagon 5. YMCA 6. NBC 7. Nike 8. CBS 9. Xerox 10. Playboy 11. General Electric 12. IBM 13. Texaco 14. Superman 15. BMW 16. ABC
