Promotional pens – what you need to know

Promotional pens have long been a popular freebie or giveaway. They have a few key advantages compared to some other types of promotional items:

• Cheap to produce – even small companies can order thousands without breaking the bank
• Easy to brand – printing your logo and brief message is very simple
• Constantly in demand – pens get used, left out in the open, and shared around

Selecting the right promotional pens
Just because promotional pens are a popular choice doesn't mean that you can't go wrong. Here are some suggestions on how to make sure you get the right ones for your giveaway.

First, consider where you're going to be giving them out. Free pens are a great little giveaway for customers who visit your store, or to leave behind on sales calls. At a tradeshow, however, it's a different story. Tradeshows usually feature so many interesting giveaways that an ordinary pen won't make much of an impression.

Make sure you check out several types of pens, too. The lowest-priced promotional pens often feel cheap and don't write well – it's worth spending a little extra to upgrade to name-brand or more substantial pens. If you want to make a better impression, consider upgrading to wooden, metallic, or other fancier pens. And to really upgrade your giveaway, consider offering pens with laser pointers, fountain pens, or executive pen sets.

Once you choose the type of pen, you'll have to decide what to put on it. The best approach to creating effective promotional pens is to keep it simple: pens don't have a lot of room for graphics and text, so don't overdo it. There's really only one must-have item: your company name. Most often, you'll also want to include your logo. In some cases, a promotional pen can carry a tagline, product name, telephone number, or web site address – but don't try to put all of that info on one pen.

If you're creating a new design, make sure you work with a graphic designer to create the art files used to print your pens. You can use an in-house employee, or hire the promotional products vendor to do the graphic work for you. For the most basic projects, you can simply provide your company logo if you have it in an appropriate format.

Ready to buy promotional pens?
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