OnFulfillment Blog | Event Marketing Materials

Spring has sprung. Warmer weather is on the way. People are shifting their social activities outdoors. And that means one thing: it’s time to start thinking about your spring and summer promotional campaigns.

Seasonal gifts and giveaways are available in all sorts of price ranges, from under $5 to more than $100. No matter what your budget, there are plenty of warm-weather items to choose from that will make your brand stand out.

Here are some of our favorite spring and summer giveaways, organized by price point, to help you rise above the competition.

The post-COVID resurgence of in-person events has had a spillover effect on the branded promotional merchandise industry. Companies need giveaways to spread the brand, leading to increasing orders for branded promotional items ranging from apparel and office supplies to drinkware, electronics, and scores of other tools.

Unfortunately, the recent implementation of tariffs on goods imported from Canada, Mexico and China—the primary suppliers of many promotional products—are expected to have a profound impact on the promotional merchandise industry. There have been hints that higher tariffs may be coming for select goods from Europe as well. Although there is a certain amount of gamesmanship and negotiating going on, causing delays in the implementation, it’s a virtual certainty that changes are afoot.

We’ve all heard the phrase “don’t sweat the small stuff.” That’s great advice—at least, for most situations.

But when it comes to event management and fulfillment, it’s almost all “small stuff.” The big stuff—like booth construction, signage, product displays—is right there in front of you, easy to see, track, and fix if needed. Instead, it’s the dozens of often overlooked administrative and organizational tasks that pose the real challenge. Collectively these jobs make an oversized contribution to the ultimate success of every trade show, conference, and seminar—and it’s not uncommon for many of them to slip through the cracks.

In fact, the small stuff is so important to effective event management that it brings to mind another popular phrase: “The devil is in the details.”

There might still be snow on the ground in many areas, but it won’t be long before golfers start dusting off their clubs and hitting links. And golf season means opportunities for companies to host or sponsor tournaments, whether to raise money for charity or attract new prospects and customers.

No matter the reason, there is a lot to consider when participating in a golf tournament. Like any outdoor event, tournaments must be treated differently than the typical indoor trade show or seminar. Signage must be designed to withstand the elements. Giveaways should be tailored to the event and activity. Golf tournaments also generate a high level of energy and friendly competition, all of which present unique and memorable branding opportunities for a highly targeted audience.

As a marketing professional, you probably don’t need to be told that branded promotional products are big business.

Companies today devote millions of their annual marketing budget to corporate-branded swag, apparel, and various other promo items for prospects, customers, partners, and employees. According to an article on LinkedIn, companies allocate 15% to 20% of their marketing budget to events, trade shows or external branding, a large portion of which is earmarked for promotional products. In the U.S. alone, that translates to between $21.2 billion and $26 billion annually, depending on the source; worldwide, that figure is far higher.

That is a lot of money. Yet shockingly, despite the huge budgets devoted to this space, many companies have no idea what promotional materials they currently have in inventory, where those items are, or how much of that inventory has actually been handed out.