Do company/branding tchotkes work?

October 14, 2009 7:14 AM

Does that Aflac frisbee make you think about insurance? Does that American Airlines pen holder make you want plane tickets? These are hypothetical questions. What I am looking for is actual data to support that these type of promotional items are actually effective in raising brand awareness. It is apparently a huge, multi-billion dollar industry, so there must be literature on the interwebs regarding the effectiveness of such products. Will you please point me to such data? Thanks in advance.
posted by rumsey monument to Work & Money (4 answers total)

Response by poster: Yes, branding and pitching are two different things. I am looking for data on the web that illustrates the effectiveness of promotional items in any context, whether it be branding or anything else.
posted by rumsey monument at 7:40 AM on October 14, 2009

Probably one of the more heavily researched example of this of late is the impact that promotional materials (pens, notepads, free samples, etc.) have on physician prescribing patterns.
posted by honeybee413 at 8:27 AM on October 14, 2009

Best answer: I did find this PDF from the Advertising Specialty Institute detailing a study they did last year; it says these tchotchkes are actually more cost-effective than TV, radio, and print advertising. View in Google Docs. Is this the sort of thing you're looking for?
posted by The Winsome Parker Lewis at 8:34 AM on October 14, 2009

Response by poster: Yes, Windsome Parker Lewis, this is exactly what I am looking for. Thank you so much!

:)
posted by rumsey monument at 10:03 AM on October 14, 2009