What Are the Most Popular Promotional Products?

Posted on October 07, 2021 4:06 PM



Promotional products continue to be a leading form of advertising as they have the highest advertising recall, beating out television, online, and print advertising. Ninety percent of consumers can remember the brand of a promotional item, while only 7% can remember the advertiser on a TV commercial. Additionally, 82% of consumers who have received a promotional item have a more favorable impression of a brand after receiving the promotional item. The promotional product industry has an estimated value of over $23 billion, and with good reason – promotional products get the job done! 

Just how popular are promotional products?

The average American household owns thirty promotional products. In fact, research conducted by Promotional Products Association International (PPAI) found that almost 100% of consumers say they are willing to go out of their way to get a promotional product. Additionally, more than half of consumers use a promotional product at least once each week, and about 8 in 10 individuals keep branded promotional products for more than a year. However, selecting the right promotional product to advertise your business can be a challenge because there are so many choices. We have broken down which promotional products are the most popular, along with their effectiveness. 

Promotional Clothing

From t-shirts and outerwear to hats and accessories, promotional clothing is a fantastic marketing tool for three reasons: clothing is highly visible, cost-effective, and desired. Brand recall is highest for apparel items that are branded with your logo and/or name, with 85% of individuals remembering the advertiser. 

·         Hats are a great tool, with 69% of consumers owning them, and a single promotional hat can make over 3,000 impressions. 

·         T-shirts can generate 2,500 impressions each, and 56% of individuals own a promotional t-shirt for two or more years. 

·         Outerwear is the second most influential promotional product according to advertisers and can easily generate over 2,000 impressions. 

Branded Office Supplies

Items such as writing instruments, desk calendars, and stationery are very popular as well! Industry experts estimate that 64% of consumers own promotional desk accessories, and the average promotional desk accessory is retained for 14 months. 

·         Writing instruments are widely owned by 89% of the population. They are also easy to give away and share, making them a dream tool for brand awareness. Despite being a very inexpensive item, pens can generate almost 3,000 impressions each, with each impression costing about 1/10th of a cent. Lastly, 20% of the population own ten or more promotional writing tools. 

·         Desk calendars are excellent items to give away as well; individuals typically use them for the entire year. Additionally, 60% of calendars in homes and 76% in businesses are promotional calendars. 

Customized Drinkware

Did you know that 90% of consumers own multiple branded drinkware items? And over half of those consumers use drinkware 2 to 3 times each week or more, generating brand awareness wherever they appear. 

·         Cups and coolers can generate 1,400 impressions per item. 

·         Mugs are more effective than radio advertising, with 57% of consumers remembering the advertiser on a mug, but only 28% of consumers recalled the name of a radio advertiser. 

Promotional Bags

Bags make a great promotional item because they can easily garner over 6,000 impressions per bag. And with 73% of consumers owning branded bags, it is easy to see how powerful a tool they can be. Also, bags are a multifunctional promotional tool, as they are easy to pair with other promotional items to create custom thank you gifts, care packages, or swag bags.

Partner with Fully Promoted to get the Most Popular Promotional Products for Your Brand

The takeaway? Nothing is better than receiving a gift. Promotional products make it possible to please your customers, build brand loyalty, and improve sales all with one marketing strategy. And there is no one better to help you bring your promotional product campaign to life than Fully Promoted!

Get started on your promotional product advertising by contacting your local Fully Promoted or shopping with us online 24/7.