Montana is Big Sky country--wide open spaces and endless vistas of blue sky. What better promotional product to sell there than skydancers? Never heard of them? Neither had Eirik Anderson, a distributor in Billings, Mont., before a client requested two.
Skydancers are colorful tubes of fabric that float and dance in air when powered by a motorized air system. A cell phone retailer asked Anderson, president of NCF Graphic Solutions Inc., to supply 20-foot skydancers to place in front of two of its stores. "It's a nice way to catch the eye of passing drivers," Anderson says. The skydancers, made of the same material as parachutes, "stand" on a single leg and include two arms and a hat. The chest is imprinted with the cell phone retailer's logo and a Verizon logo.
Initially, Anderson struggled to find a source for this oddball item. He searched SAGE®, an online information service for ad specialties, and discovered a company that provides inflatables. The company couldn't provide skydancers, but referred NCF Graphic Solutions to another vendor. After several hours of research and calls, the distributorship unearthed a source.
Anderson also did some research on motors that power the fans in skydancers. "With the exception of motors, skydancers are just logos printed on fabric," he says. Anderson ensured the client received a quality motor with a 3-year warranty. Anderson says he has benefited from learning about this new, quirky product. "It's a high-ticket item," says Anderson of skydancers, which can cost approximately $1,500 to $2,000 each. "That makes the effort worth it." If the cell phone retailer is pleased with the two skydancers, it may order more for its 16 other stores.
Forging Into New Territories
The opportunities for promotional products are as wide open as that big Montana sky. Or in Bob Marini's case, as vast as the waters of the Great Lakes. Marini is the owner of Rocky River, Ohio-based distributorship Marini Group Inc., located on the shore of Lake Erie. "Everybody orders pens and hats," he says. "We try not to get into the same old, same old. We try to be the first guy on the block with new items."
Marini helped devise a marketing campaign for a chemical company. The company typically sells 55-gallon drums of chemicals, but wanted to target a smaller niche market that orders 5-gallon drums. The chemical company wanted to land smaller clients that would eventually grow into larger ones.
"Rather than send the companies T-shirts or hats, we sent them measuring cups and flower seeds," Marini says. The distributorship packaged the cups and seeds in boxes with letters from the chemical company that read, in part, "Grow with us." The boxes were hand-addressed to 200 recipients.
Anderson also sells offbeat items. "I'm very diversified," he says. "I sell a lot of different kinds of printed products, and I've also excelled in the oddball stuff." One way he lands promotional product orders is by telling new clients: "What's the one thing with ink that you're having trouble finding or keeping the quality on? Let me try providing it." The approach has secured Anderson some interesting orders, including one for teddy bears with a logo embroidered on the front. "From business forms to teddy bears, I do it all," he says.
Mark Triller, owner and president of Triller Print Source & Services, a distributorship in Rutland, Vt., offers fresh ideas to clients that regularly order ad specialties. One customer, a small utility company, gives incentives to employees each year at its annual meeting. "They struggle every year with what to give," Triller says. This year, he provided 24 portable hammocks. "You've got to keep coming up with new ideas," he says. "It's not like checks or envelopes, where repeat orders are typical. Companies don't want to give out the same item twice."
Taming the Terrain
Hammocks, teddy bears, skydancers and measuring cups--creative distributors sell just about anything with ink to customers and enjoy the novelty. "It's fun," says Anderson, "and adds a different feel to the business than if you're just doing business forms and envelopes." He encourages other distributors to "jump on board" with promotional products. Before you do, however, consider this advice:
* Stock samples. "Everybody knows what a business form looks like," Anderson says. But a skydancer? Often, customers like to see ad specialties and feel them before ordering. Triller Print Source & Services gives away promotional products with its own name. Jodi Caggige, who works for the company's customer service department, carries samples and other items in a tote bag personalized with the distributorship's name. The giveaways and tote bag market the company and illustrate the products it provides.
* Be ready to research. When you order printed documents, you probably know exactly who to call for labels, checks and so on. But there are thousands of promotional products--from pens to paperweights--and vendors who sell them. To succeed in this niche, you'll need to research both products and vendors. At times, you'll get requests from customers for unusual items and your searches may come up empty-handed. Triller Print Source & Services is still searching for a piggy bank for a financial institution that wants to promote its low-interest loans. The hitch: The bank wants the piggy bank to resemble an ice cream container to play off a low-fat/low-interest theme.
* Pitch high-end products. Lots of companies look for quality items such as clocks, briefcases, golf shirts and tools. Rather than purchase plastic travel mugs, one of Triller's customers ordered 250 stainless steel travel mugs to give to employees. "They were very well received," Triller says. "The employer sent the message, 'I do appreciate you.'" While you may sell smaller quantities of high-end items, the margins are typically better. And that makes the effort worthwhile: "You can spend the same amount of energy finding a 69-cent pen as a higher-priced item. Start talking about the higher-end items," Triller says.
* Remember functionality. While there are lots of creative promotional products, it's a good idea to also keep in mind practical solutions they offer. One of Marini's customers is a manufacturer who planned a trip to Russia to meet with a potential customer. The manufacturer's sales reps were packing in their suitcases golf balls, T-shirts and other items. "I told them to pick something that would be easier to pack 20 to a suitcase, carry on the plane and get through customs," Marini says. The manufacturer ordered 250 international traveling calculator clocks.
* Select vendors carefully. Distributors accustomed to working with professional printing manufacturers may be surprised at the lax business practices of some promotional products vendors. Marini ordered 1,000 pens for a risk management company. He returned the order three times due to problems with ink coverage, until the vendor got the order right. Another time, Marini purchased golf balls for his distributorship, asking the vendor to imprint the balls in lower case with the company name. When he received the balls, they actually read, "lower case Marini Group."
It can be a frustrating market, but selling promotional products is profitable, distributors say. "If you're willing to put in the time to research, get the product samples and deal with some headaches, you'll get rewarded with awfully nice margins," Anderson says.
Susan Keen Flynn, a freelance writer in Cleveland, is a frequent contributor to Print Solutions. Email us your comments at bholt@printsolutionsmag.com.
