Fall is here! While that means a visit to the pumpkin patch, Halloween costumes and Starbucks Pumpkin Spice Latte…it also means time to plan for 2011!
No, this isn’t a list of Top 10 products, or uber-creative ideas. It’s a list of business trends in the promotional industry that WILL affect your business. There’s a variety of tips to help navigate you through some of the trends. Ok, yes I did include a few cool ideas.
1. Cotton Shortage Driving Up Apparel Prices
Expect increased pricing on decorated apparel, uniforms and t-shirts. Cotton supplies are down worldwide, and prices are skyrocketing – up 65% over the past year and at a two year high and rising. This is giving synthetic yarn producers room to raise their prices – 30% and more – as well. Garment prices are under severe pressure. (ApparelNews.net, 4/30/10) The recent floods in Pakistan, a major cotton producer, are exacerbating the situation. It’s going to be a while before things turn around.
Tip: If have a one-time need, rather than on-going program, ask about discontinued apparel. Last year’s styles and colors are available at discounted prices while supplies last to make way for the recently introduced 2011 apparel products.
2. Promotional Products + Social Media
We are starting to see promotional products being used as rewards in social media campaigns. Example: get a free water bottle for “friending” one 
company’s Facebook page. And social media management company, Vitrue gave away free t-shirts to first people to arrive at a Masahable TweetUp.
Tip: Follow The POP Shop on Facebook to see the latest ideas!
3. Inventory Shortages!
Shipping companies took capacity offline during the worst of the recession. With economic activity up, constrained shipping capacity means freight rates up as much as 150% and delayed deliveries for goods made in Asia. Expect “even more pronounced and serious shortages of containers” in the coming peak-season months. At our end, we cannot remember inventories so tight and stock-outs so severe. Be prepared for Plans B and C. (USA Today, 7/8/10)
Tip: Be sure to ask if the product is in stock at your quantity and color. Our Marketing Superheroes are making this part of the sales process, but I’m hearing some of our competitors aren’t as proactive. Otherwise, you may not be aware of out-of-stock issues until after your order is placed and proofed!
4. QR Codes
QR Codes (Quick Response Codes) are all the rage in Japan and are catching on quick in the U.S. You may start to see them on packaging, billboards, magazines ads or sales circulars. Best Buy, Calvin Klein, Pepsi, Polo, FOX, HBO and other brands already adopting the digital craze. The digital codes can be scanned with a smartphone and you’ll travel to a web link driven by the advertiser for immediate content (specials, video, contest, product info, etc). The content can change often, but the code remains the same. Consumers may be more likely to point & shoot than type in a website on their phone. You’ll want to download a QR reader app for your phone, my favorite is i-nigma. Check out this CSI:NY Video explaining QR Codes.
Tip: You can imprint a QR Code on a promotional product and connecting your audience immediate to relevant information about your product or brand! You can print them in colors, on a curved surface and even embroider a QR code! Email sonyabeam@thepopshop.com for a FREE kit “How to Implement QR Codes into Your Branding”
5. Not Easy Being Green
Products made from a new genetically engineered bioplastic called ‘PHA’ (made by Met
abolix) will compose in water or soil in a few months. One of first products is a Paper Mate® pen. (Fortune, 4/26/10). Sounds great, but “the reality is more complicated.” If these products are not composted but, rather, put in an airtight landfill, they will “likely remain intact, just like regular plastic.” And, you can compost the case of that Paper Mate® pen, but the insides have to go into the regular garbage. (TIME, 5/3/10) NOW AVAILABLE: The Paper Mate Earth Write is the first branded fully biodegradable pen that dissolves in the earth in 52 weeks!
Tip: Email sonyabeam@thepopshop.com for a FREE “Get Green” Kit showcasing a variety of eco-friendly promotional products.
6. Wellness – The Best Way To Control Costs
With medical inflation rising at double-digit rates annually, encouraging wellness is the best way to keep costs under control. Studies have shown that for every dollar spent on wellness, the retu
rn is $ 3.27 in savings. That signifies, among others things, education and incentives to adjust lifestyles. Incentives and recognition to support wellness programs is what we do. We are the exclusive source for Olivia Newton-John’s Liv®, a device providing a more effective breast self-exam. Amazingly, less than 10% of women perform self breast exams. More Wellness Ideas.
Tip: Consider a wellness initiative for your employees or audience. Signal a superhero for creative ideas to fit your brand and budget.
7. Coming (Back) To America
Increasing production costs in China from a rising currency and wages means China’s “overall cost advantage (with USA made goods) is shrinking.” Our suppliers are dealing with increases in the 15 to 25% range. Some products will be moving to lower wage countries. Some will come back to the US when shorter lead times and lower shipping costs are important. In any case, some supply disruptions are inevitable. (AP, 7/8/2010) Meanwhile, we’ve been steering clients to US made-to-order Production Partners who have inventory and are on top of all product safety issues.
8. Now, Cadmium’s On The Watch List
While we’ve been watching lead contamination, some Asian makers have been switching to another heavy metal – cadmium. A recent AP survey found some metal jewelry products consisted of as much as 90% cadmium which can cause kidney disease, bone loss, and lung cancer. The CPSC is working on new safe exposure levels, but McDonald’s pulled drinking glasses to err on the side of caution. (TIME, 7/12/2010) Our job is to watch to make sure the products we sell you are safe so that you have one less thing to worry about.
9. Make It Personal
New digital printing methods are allowing for more and more products to be very targeted to – and personalized for – small groups and even
individuals.
• Fully personalized color calendars with the recipient’s name cleverly integrated into each of the 12 monthly images, such as clouds or snow.
• Variable images completely change from product to product as produced. You can change the image and/or the text as few as one unit per version. Available on select products.
10. Not All Flashdrives Are Created Equal
Flashdrives (USB memory devices) are hot, but beware. Drives are divided into tiers according to quality. Tier-1 and Tier-2 are the most common. A 1GB Tier-1 chip will have 1GB of accessible memory, whereas a 1GB Tier-2 may only have 2/3rds the capacity of Tier-1. It’s still a 1GB drive, but it ma
y have fragmented or bad blocks that will not reliably accept data. Lower priced drives may also use recycled memory or employ “mirroring” to make the capacity appear greater.
Tip: Don’t forget to get the consider the INSIDE quality just as well as the outside. Plus, did you know you can get USB drives in your custom PMS color – only 100 piece minimum. Our marketing superheroes can guide you to make smart decisions.
These Powerful Promo Trends are developed by our parent company, Geiger, the largest privately held promotional firm in America, fifth generation and here to stay!
Want more powerful ideas? Twitter @sonyabeam | Facebook www.bit.ly/FBPOP
proud to share once again Geiger made the Atlanta Business Chronicle’s List of Top 10 Promotional Product Firms. Wahoo! In Metro Atlanta, Geiger has 9 Sales Partners with over $7.5 million in sales. This includes your favorite superhero duo Sonya Beam & Brian Beam.
