With hundreds of thousands of Corporate Gifts and Promotional Items available, it is impossible to list them all here. But the following is an overview of some popular choices and how they are best used. Calendars, Diaries, Desk Pads Wall Planners, and much more. Calendars have been a perennial favorite because of their interactive nature, usefulness, and the likelihood that they'll be seen by recipients on a daily basis. Few products match the frequency of exposure calendars provide, given that most people check their schedules several times a day, 365 days a year. When choosing calendars as a promotional gift, consider what format is best for your recipients and the chances that your calendar will be kept and displayed if they happen to receive several that year. Here is where it pays to keep your audience's tastes and behaviors in mind. First, what type of calendar would your audience find most useful? Calendars come in all shapes and sizes, from spiral wall calendars to tiny pocket planners. A desk diary may be more appropriate for an executive gift, whereas a wallet-sized calendar card can make more sense for a mass, customer mailing. If you want to be right under your clients' noses all year, then a desk pad might be a smart alternative. These are often a little more expensive than a standard calendar, but worth the extra dollars if you consider the value of having so much space to promote your products and the practical value to your clients. A wall planner is still a very handy item to pin up on post office walls.

The advantage of diaries is that you can often customize the cover, the first few pages, or possibly every page in the book. If you use relevant information about your company or tips to improve your recipients' performance, then the diary becomes a valuable, useful asset beyond appointment keeping. 

Give your calendars out annually and early (at least two months before the new year begins) so that your target audience will look forward to and begin using them before they receive any other promotional calendars. 


Writing Instruments

A look at your own desktop will probably reveal multiple pens and pencils, many logoed. There's a reason the promotional popularity of this medium has endured over the years, second only to imprinted apparel. Writing instruments are daily tools that recipients not only see, but also hold—increasing the time spent with the product, your logo, and your advertising message. The frequency of use is high and therefore cost-per-impression is low. Your choices in writing instruments—including pens, pencils, highlighters, and markers-range from the novel and inexpensive to the elegant and expensive. 

The imprint itself will also affect the value of the pen in the recipients' minds. How you customize a pen depends somewhat on the style. Personalization also serves to ensure the long-term value of a pen, as very few people will dispose of a pen (or anything else) that has their own name on it!


Key Rings

Think of the number of times a day that you use your keys. Now you can appreciate the amount of logo exposure that a good key tag can offer. Some basic thinking needs to go into buying key tags. If you want your recipient to appreciate it for the long term, you'll need to spend a little more money and go for a good brass or leather option that will stand the test of time. If you are looking to appeal to a wider audience, you may select a less expensive alternative in plastic or acrylic. Either way, key tags offer a multitude of choices in function, style, and price. If your company is not in the vehicle, housing, or security industry.


Mugs and Glassware

There are over 10,000 mugs and more than 7,000 glasses available from promotional products suppliers, according to a search in the industry sourcing tool ESP. The quantity of choice makes this one of the most prolific product categories. Metal commuter mugs, ceramic mugs, latte cups, ice tea, baby cups, and liqueur glasses. Choosing the right mug or glassware for your promotion requires careful analysis of who will be drinking from it and where they'll be drinking. When they're drinking and how much might also play a role. If your budget won't stretch to two glasses-nicely packaged and presented as an optional extra—consider giving a coffee or tea mug instead. Also, consider whether you want your recipients to take the glass or mug home. If you do, then customizing may need to be discreet.

As a result, we don't always need to see a company's signature or logo every time we bring it out of the cabinet. On the other hand, a fun, funky printed mug is more likely to become favored at the office than at home, providing exposure to the user as well as his or her colleagues.


Bags

Many people say - "I've got lots of bags, I don't really need more.” However, these are often the same people who call and borrow one when they go away for the weekend or camping. Beach bags, tote bags, and laptop bags spring to mind. Fortunately, bags are available in every shape, color, style, and range in durability and reliability. Depending on the material, you can print, transfer, emboss or embroider on them. Not only are they highly visible, but they also travel! Yes, one thing you can count on is that a good bag will be seen in many places—from airports and gyms to bobbing on children's backs as they bike to school. Insulated bags and wine carriers are popular options for people who like to give a bottle of wine at an event or at the end of the year but don't want the memory to fade with the last drop. 


Umbrellas and Other Mobile Billboards 

Next time you're at a trade show, or watching any local sporting event, take a look around at how many imprinted umbrellas you see, or people wearing boldly printed jackets, caps, and T-shirts. You'll also likely see these same people standing beside a bag or carrying a backpack. And you would think that water bottles with company names on them must make the drinks taste better at halftime, as they grossly outnumber the unprinted variety.


Corporate Apparel

Corporate apparel, like an imprinted T-shirt with a matching cap, is a mobile advertisement for your company. Imprinted apparel makes up nearly one-third of promotional product sales, attesting to its popularity among advertisers and corporate gift-givers. Its versatility is one reason for this market share. Today there are styles, sizes, and colors for almost any taste, occasion, or audience. Many companies that have embraced casual dress codes have looked to corporate-approved, imprinted apparel to keep their stam acceptably and comfortably dressed. Industry apparel suppliers now offer coordinated lines of men's wear and women's wear. There are oxfords, golf shirts, sweater sets, vests, ties, chinos, skirts... even socks and shoes that can complete an office-inspired look. 


Office Accessories 

If you are going to send a promotion or gift to someone who is an office dweller then you need to consider whether or not it will be received as a valuable and valued item. Perhaps no other product category requires as much consideration regarding functionality, since desktop "real estate” is very valuable and extremely limited. Look for products with a purpose that is appropriate to the office for which they're intended. For example, desk accessories for a mechanic might be quite different than those of a high-power executive. The former needs durable items that are easily cleaned the latter would likely h an office accessory has its new Italian leather desk blotters here) and the late scoff at a hard plastic clipboard. Yet each office place with the right audience. There are so many things that come under the hear accessories that it helps to group them as desktop computer-related and decorative/wall items. r the heading of office desktop, mouse pads.


Desktop Products 

Desktop products include note pads/note holders, pens (which we have already covered), paperclip holders, and paperweights. calculators, address books, etc., are available as inexpensive novelties or as serious and practical products. Many suppliers offer coordinated lines of desktop items, allowing you to plan a “series” promotion. You can create an incentive program around a set of stylish desktop products, gifting one each time a client makes a purchase or an employee reaches a goal. Once the recipient has collected the complete set, he or she is far more likely to favor your desktop gifts over others, because they present a tidy, coordinated look.


Decorative/Wall Items 

our time to someone older than The final category of office accessories is decorative items for the desk and wall. Clocks, executive toys, stress-relief items, photo frames, etc., are examples. If you consider giving a clock to anyone, beware that in many cultures, including Asian, European, Celtic, and followers of the increasingly popular practice of Feng Shui, the gift of a time pc may make a negative impression. It can mean that you wish to a meeting, or that you are giving away the value of y with that person. 

Even the best products fall short of spectacular results if they aren't audience-appropriate, fail to carry the most effective marketing message, or are distributed at the wrong time to someone other than a smartly targeted decision-maker.