as a  buyer….i like  a  good   clear pricelist and   good info and pictures….in other words a nice  brochure that  i can save….I WOULDNT PICK UP A  CHEAP  KEY CHAIN OR   COZY, or mug  ETC ETC….

a pad of post it notes maybe….thats  always useful….

One of my customers, a winery, always brings along a pack with the complete info about the winery but also individual sheets with information only about the wines presented. Like this, people can either take the whole info pack or just the info for the wine they like, if they don’t want to carry too much – which is most of the times the case.

A price list and a list with distribution partners (and their contact details) are always useful.

The winery also gives away beautiful black pencils with their name on it - they look very chic and since visitors are tasting the wines, they can make notes with the pencils on the wine info sheets… People looove the pencils. Simple, but very useful, and very beautiful (so not of the cheap looking type…). So everytime they use them, they are reminded about the winery.

I think in general, the give aways need to be useful and should last for a while. So food stuffs go away fast but don’t last. As soon as they are eaten, the company is forgotten.

Not to promote my own company, but we do a lot of trade shows.  Aside from the thing you’re giving, ALWAYS make sure that whoever is working your booth is outfitted in your branded apparel.  Some type of logo polo or tshirt that promotes your company. 

People really remember companies that they see on people’s shirts or even hats. It’s a fact. And, you’re a walking billboard even when you’re not working your booth. 

We’ve done extensive research on logo apparel, so I have the statistics to back it up. Pens are a great giveaway as are the reusable grocery bags.  They’ll put all their items in the bag and all the trade show goers will see your logo. Everyone else’s giveaways will be in your bag.  

If you need any help with logo apparel or the bags, it’s our specialty and I’d be happy to extend a discount.  www.leadapparel.com 

@melissaholmes A lot will depend on your budget and purpose for the event, which should drive your strategy and actions during the event.

I agree that if you can, branded apparel is helpful. For a giveaway, I tend toward the things that I know someone will keep – post it notes (and if you can afford the 4″x6″ size, terrific!) and good pens–avoid cheap, skinny ones, they’ll get thrown away. Another good item that people will keep is a usb flash drive.

If this is local, and people won’t be traveling by plane, a mug or water bottle is good, but they take up a lot of space!

One I like now are tote bags that can be reused for grocery bags. Many people (like me) hate plastic grocery bags and always carry in their own bags. These stay around a long time, plus they are helpful at the event. And, more importantly you have a huge imprint area that is a walking billboard.

I would do something to build my email list–a raffle for something of value (consider your audience) or if you sell products, a coupon for everyone who signs up at your booth. Make sure they know they are being added to your email list (small type on your sign is good). Require as little information as possible, and accept business cards in the jar or basket, but have forms for those who run out.

Again, start with your goals in mind, develop a strategy and then a plan. There are lots more things you can do, but the variables start with your business and target market.

If you want more specifics, message me privately.

@melissaholmes

As you can see by these responses, it doesn’t seem like there’s any one giveaway that any of us can agree upon!

(Personally, I already have too many t-shirts, and I never gave a company business b/c they gave me a free pen.)

So much of this depends on what your business is, and what you’re looking to accomplish.

I see you’re in the web biz. (Me, too!)

If I’m you, I want to collect names. Few people are going to “buy” a website then and there. My goal would be to get them to opt into my email newsletter or at least give me their contact info for more follow up.

We don’t do many trade shows, but recently we got people to sign up for 10 minute website/web marketing reviews. Like a treadmill at a busy gym, people had to sign up in advance. 

We ended up getting two paying gigs out of this, and helped a lot of small businesses improve their online presence. 

I would give away something that somehow ties in with the theme of your business, if possible.

One time I picked up an emery board with a plastic cover over it from an author (?!). I kept it in my handbag and the imprinting on the cover wore off in days, so I have no idea who gave me the emery board. But I did use it a lot for nail emergencies.

Hi, we have exhibited at many exhibitions/expos, also managed five expos and in my experience don’t spend a lot on giveaways – often people will try and grab handfuls of whatever is on offer because they see it as a freebie regardless of this is a targeted audience or for the general public. You may want to have some cheap pens on standby though.

Rather have something useful to give to people that are engaged in conversation and something that they will keep next at their workspace such as near or for their computer. Some years ago I was given a little quirky brush for dusting off the fluff that can land on the keyboard – I still use this everyday and there’s the company name on it, so I cannot forget them.

You should also have a mobile app for your business so that when they end the conversation with you they walk away with your business in their pocket. Take a look at what I offer – very affordable mobile apps: http://www.appsability.com

Most of all – make sure that you smile and greet people as they go past your stand and never, stand with your hands folded or at the back wall of your booth or sit reading something. Be friendly and approachable – people will be drawn to you.  Good luck with your event!

Let me explain, lol. People may not want MY service… the press releases. But I always worked for clients with products that EVERY business needed. So I pulled prospects into their booth, no matter what. THAT’s what worked like a charm.

Now with online channels, this works better than ever.

Hello – I’ve been looking into adding QR codes to add some of our items.  Awhile back we were giving out packets to our clients at Christmas (around the holidays in general) that included a mouse pad, a few pens and a lighted keychain with some of our stuff on them. 

For booths we’ve always done the nice bag thing with pens and keychains.  I think the keychains are used because of what they are – see an image of these items here:http://buddy-marketing.com/ad-items/ad-items-image/

We don’t always do this now, as we haven’t done any shows in years. However, we do still send a packet to newer clientele at the holidays. 

We purchase and have our items engraved at National Pen.  For printed advertisements (door hangers, postcards, etc.) we are affiliated with A’Deas Printing. We love A’Deas! (http://adeasprinting.com/door-hangers) No problems with either company. Nice folks too.

Eileen

Interesting to see what works for some and doesn’t for others here. Jason Reilly, pens have worked very well for me in my publishing business, in fact they have longevity and I’ve had feedback (and business) from people who picked them up at exhibitions. Plus, my husband who used pens years ago when he was a DJ instead of business cards and it worked for him too. For us the key is not to buy the cheap crummy pens and not the expensive ones, but something that feels nice to write with with and has nice or different design – the ones I used where coloured orange and see through.Re QR codes E N Brown yes, yes, yes!These days I discard business cards once I’ve scanned them into my smartphone – they take up so much space, so I bin them. With my smartphone they automatically sync on my computer and then go into the backup so I have the contacts and there’s no need to keep them.

The quality of the pen makes all the difference. My brother is in pharmaceutical sales. Before self-regulation prevented pharmas from having dozens of handouts per product, they landed on a type of pen that all the doctors wanted. My dad is a physician and always wanted those pens advertising X drug. Not because he cared about the drug, but because the pen was reliable and wrote well. He had dozens of those around his office and his patients always saw them.

Having a quality giveaway that your target audience clamors for can be worth the effort. Unfortunately, most things I see given away at trade shows are throw aways.

You have to figure out what will motivate your target audience. I like the grocery bag idea as that’s something many families are using. 

Since I use grocery bags that I have purchased that seems like a great idea. 

Yes, I’ve seen them before as giveaways and have used paper and plastic bags with my companies logos etc on them at a show or two. 

The nice grocery bags though – I think I might give that a try soon.

Here is a completely different approach and I know that it’s late to the initial thread, but still relevant if someone is looking for a unique memorable idea for “handouts” 

I am an artist/photographer and recently worked with a corporate business and set up a photo booth at their trade show booth.  We uploaded the images to the corporate FB page.  Had an ipad set up on site with app so they could upload their information and “like” our page immediately.    

1)  consumer got a fun experience and image2) client got LOTS of new likes immediately3)  client got an incredible direct contact list to market to

cost…far less than pens!  You can do a simple set-up with an iPad and an ipad stand, backdrop (with Company logo on it).   

BONUS:  many people tagged themselves on the page…thus the images got shared with their friends.  Can’t say the same for a pen or a shirt!  

you can connect with me if you want more details.

leila@leilajones.com

Here is a completely different approach and I know that it’s late to the initial thread, but still relevant if someone is looking for a unique memorable idea for “handouts” 

I am an artist/photographer and recently worked with a corporate business and set up a photo booth at their trade show booth.  We uploaded the images to the corporate FB page.  Had an ipad set up on site with app so they could upload their information and “like” our page immediately.    

1)  consumer got a fun experience and image2) client got LOTS of new likes immediately3)  client got an incredible direct contact list to market to

cost…far less than pens!  You can do a simple set-up with an iPad and an ipad stand, backdrop (with Company logo on it).   

BONUS:  many people tagged themselves on the page…thus the images got shared with their friends.  Can’t say the same for a pen or a shirt!  

you can connect with me if you want more details.

leila@leilajones.com

I hope I am not too late on this thread- I have a great story, was typing it all on here and I hit one button, not sure what it was with my laptop keyboard and everything got deleted. I will share something on this tomorrow- I hope to talk about a great “give-away’ that worked but didn’t work. I will explain later. Sorry, don’t want to type it out all again, plus it is late and i have a busy day on Friday.

@melissaholmes