Starting a company is highly challenging, especially in the early 2020s. There’s a tonne of competition out there, and we can never be too sure if our message will reach enough people and earn us the revenue to keep us afloat. Obviously, the best way to maintain any business is to have as many people hear about it as possible. We’re talking about ambassadorship.
There are, of course, active ambassadorships, and they generally take a few different forms. But all those forms involve real-life people talking about the brand. Sometimes, it’s the good, old-fashioned word of mouth. Satisfied customers and content employees discuss the brand with the people in their local community, and then word spreads. And nowadays, they don’t even have to talk about it, strictly speaking. All they need to do is share a few social media posts, and our business is going to see potential clients within days.
Next, there are ads, and once again, they involve people talking about our product, but in a different, more corporate way. Ads connect to those who view them and spread the message about us in a fun, engaging, and memorable way.
But there are also the so-called silent ambassadors. To put it differently, we have various methods of spreading corporate messages without involving real-life people. And in many ways, these silent ambassadors can sometimes speak more than any client or ad campaign could.
So, what exactly are silent ambassadors, and how can they help grow a business? Well, this article is here to cover that very subject.
What Is a Silent Ambassador?
Let’s examine a few details. As we stated earlier, active ambassadors are people who talk about our products. They can also be ads that involve people who cover what our brand has to offer. We call them active because that’s what they do — they act by being directly involved in promoting our brand.
So, by definition, a silent ambassador will indirectly promote our brand, but they will do it just as effectively, if not more. Broadly speaking, a silent ambassador sells the product or service without saying a single word. An individual merely looks at the item and knows it belongs to a certain brand. And by carrying that item with them, they expose it to other people who gain an interest in what the brand has to offer. It grows and expands, and before we know it, we have plenty of interested parties without a single word being spoken about the company.
This subheading, though it’s a question, reveals the answer within the pronoun. That is to say; silent ambassadors are branded promotional items. And when you take a look at them and what purpose they serve, the term ‘silent ambassador’ makes a lot of sense.
Typically, a branded item may only contain the company logo and possibly the brand’s slogan or motto. Think of McDonald’s famous arch and the brand slogan ‘I’m Lovin’ It’. Sometimes there can be an entire campaign linked to a brand with specific iconography that stays with us. Whatever it is, it sends a message without explicitly telling us to support the brand in question.
Who Can Be a Silent Ambassador?
Interestingly, the ambassadorship part of a branded product isn’t in the conveying of the message but in the circulation of the item itself. In other words, an item is an ambassador when it moves about or switches hands. That leads us neatly to our next point, and it explains why the pronoun in this subheading changed from a ‘what’ to a ‘who’.
So, can humans be silent ambassadors? After all, we spent the entire intro discussing how humans are, in reality, active ambassadors. They talk about brands and spread the corporate message through word of mouth or social media. That’s, by definition, not silent.
But make no mistake. Humans can be incredibly effective silent ambassadors. And the best part is, they don’t even have to be aware of it.
Passive marketing, in relation to this topic, involves promoting the brand without actually promoting it. In practical terms, that means taking a branded item with us somewhere and actively using it. As we use it, our friends and colleagues might pay attention to the printed logo or message and then actively search for the brand later. And if it’s an item of high quality, they will want to get involved with a brand that is willing to invest in such excellent merchandise.
In that sense, humans can definitely be silent ambassadors. What’s more, they can even use social media for this type of ambassadorship without actively promoting anything. Broadly speaking, in terms of direct or indirect promotion, there are two types of social media advertising, so let’s compare and contrast them briefly. On the one hand, we have an influencer who actively says, ‘Hey, buy this product! Support this brand!’ On the other hand, someone may simply take a drink from a branded bottle without drawing attention to it in the post. The second person we described is our silent ambassador.
Why Design Is Important
Sometimes a branded item will not push the business forward. That happens mainly if we as a brand don’t think about the design of our branded items thoroughly enough.
Design is everything to a branded item. It has to captivate as many people as possible but also manage to remain simple and recognisable. Furthermore, it must have staying power and freshness, an evergreen nature that will remain powerful even after decades of use.
To make our design stand out, we should focus on three details: the logo, the tagline, and our contact information.
Logo
The logo is, in a way, the photo of our brand’s ID card. It’s a visual cue that everyone will remember. To put it differently, it’s an image that immediately associates the viewer with the business, even if the person is not directly thinking about it or actively seeking its services.
For company logos to remain in the public eye, they have to satisfy a few essential criteria:
- They must be captivating to the eye
- Their design must be simple, clean and concise without too much noise
- They must represent the key aspects of our brand
- They have to have staying power.
We can always look to famous brands for examples of good logo designs. For instance, we can glance at Vodafone, British Petroleum, O2, Mini, and BBC. Each of these brands opted for a streamlined design that’s easy to recognise and stands out from the competition. And yet, these logos all convey what their businesses are all about. Plus, they do so with great simplicity and no fluff.
Tagline
Taglines, slogans, mottos — they go by many names, but they all refer to the same idea. In short, taglines are short phrases that succinctly represent the main idea behind the business. There’s Nike’s ‘Just Do It’, Samsung’s ‘Do What You Can’t’, KFC’s ‘Finger lickin’ good’, and many others. And just like the logo, the customer needs to associate the tagline with the business. That’s why we must ensure our tagline is short, catchy, and to the point.
Contact Info
If logos are visual cues and taglines are audible ones, then our company contact information is the best possible hook for clients who are interested in our services. To put it simply, when a person wants to remember a brand, they’ll think of the logo and the slogan. But when they want to engage with it, they’ll ask about its contact info.
Nowadays, contact info can contain phone numbers, addresses, email addresses, websites, and social media pages. Putting all of those details on particular branded items will allow their owners to engage with us in the future. What’s more, even people who have never heard of our brand can get to know us from the contact info on a printed ceramic mug or leather keyring.
Value of Promo Items
As a promotional tool, branded items are precious. According to studies, an individual is most likely to use a promo item for approximately two years. So let’s do some quick math. A single product can generate at least a hundred impressions per month. In other words, that’s 1,200 impressions a year. And if only one of those impressions per month results in a customer, we have 12 new customers eager to buy our products or pursue our services. Again, that’s from a single product. Buying a batch of 100 per month will yield bigger results, and if we focus on variety over quantity, that number can be even greater.
Obviously, if we want to keep that traffic going, we will need products that often change hands or the ones that have a long life span. The longer a product will last, the more expected it is that the owner will use it. In turn, it’s more likely that other people will see that product in use and want to do some research into our brand. Short-lived products that change hands frequently, like pencils or pens, have the benefit of constant circulation, so a lot of people will pay attention to what’s printed on them.
With that in mind, let’s cover some of the best options for silent ambassador branded items out there. This list is by no means complete, but it’s an excellent way for upcoming entrepreneurs to use the power of silent ambassadors.
Pens and Pencils
Typically, a pen or a pencil doesn’t have a long shelf life. Pens run out of ink, and pencils get sharpened until they’re used up. So why would they be excellent brand ambassadors when we compare them to other items on this list?
First of all, it’s because people engage with pens and pencils all the time. We need pens in order to take notes and write down important information. Even in the age of digital messaging and smart reminders, we still need the feel of a pen in our hands. Furthermore, signing documents will always require the use of ink.
Pencils are also incredibly handy and see a lot of traffic. Whenever we want to write down some temporary information, we will use a pencil and then erase what we’ve written when we don’t need it anymore. Pencils are especially useful for people who design and draw for a living, such as architects, graphic designers, painters, sketchers, comic book artists, storyboard artists, etc.
Tote Bags
A tote bag is a multipurpose tool — it can hold anything from groceries and clothing to light tools. We will generally take a tote with us when we’re going shopping in order to reduce the usage of single-use plastic bags. Green, eco-friendly practices are always a welcome change of pace, so in that sense, a tote is an item most brands will prefer to have in their arsenal.
From a marketing standpoint, totes have lots of room for company information to fit. We can use both sides of a bag to put everything we need about our company, including logos, slogans, and contact info.
Hats
People often wear hats for both fashion and function. When we refer to function, we view a hat as an item that protects the head from the sun’s heat. That’s why baseball hats become such popular promo items during summer. But fashion also plays a huge part in it. Broadly speaking, both young and old customers love the look of a baseball cap on their heads. And no matter where we place the company info, it will be visible every time the person goes out and wears it.
Hats are also a great option since they are not particularly expensive. A single batch of hats can cost half of what we would pay for a batch of durable drinkware or reusable cutlery. But thanks to its usefulness and wearability, a hat can serve us as a promo item for years, decades even.
Masks
Pandemic or not, PPE is important, and the most recognisable piece of PPE is the protective mask. Over the past few years, people have taken this health-protecting unit and turned it into one of the most popular branded items on the shelves. And indeed, we can definitely use a face mask as an effective silent ambassador. It has plenty of room to fit a company logo, and depending on its design; we may even place some contact info on the side. If the mask is made out of fabric, the user can wash it and reuse it for years to come.
Drinkware
Drinkware is a broad term, so for the purposes of this list, we will limit ourselves to custom tumblers, thermal bottles, and reusable cups. Each of these items has a lot to offer, with the biggest benefits being durability, longevity, and multipurposeness. For example, a single thermal bottle can hold both hot and cold beverages, and some of them even have caps that serve as plastic cups. And thanks to their designs, we can put all relevant company logos and information neatly on the bottles’ surfaces.
Mugs
Once again, one might assume that a ceramic mug doesn’t belong on this list since it can be fragile. However, not only are mugs excellent brand ambassadors, but they see more traffic than even some of the more durable products.
A single mug, if we take care of it properly, can serve us for several years. Considering how often people drink tea, coffee, and other hot beverages, it’s an item that they will frequently hold in their hands. With our logo and brand info printed on the surface, the mug will advertise our company to anyone who notices it. And in an office environment, that kind of engagement is incredibly frequent.
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Backpacks
Rounding up our list are promotional backpacks—possibly the most complex but also most versatile silent ambassadors. Namely, we can literally take our backpack across the world, and it will always work its marketing magic. Furthermore, it can see a lot of traffic across our town, region, or country, giving us additional domestic customers.
The key, of course, is to have an item that will be durable and offer plenty of options. For instance, a decent backpack will have at least half a dozen compartments, a mesh pocket for a water bottle, and strong straps that don’t break. We also need to consider the type of backpack for our clients or employees. Some options may include school backpacks, laptop bags, hiking backpacks, compact gym bags, etc. The possibilities are vast.
Benefits of Promo Items
Modern businesses rely on various advertising methods, including social media influencers, paid ads, and celebrity endorsements. But time and time again, silent ambassadors have proven themselves to be the most effective way of promoting a brand. That’s because they have plenty of benefits as a marketing tool.
Money Savers
Ordering a bulk of products may seem like a significant expenditure. However, we always need to look at the long run. Namely, with typical ad campaigns, we have to invest a lot of money every month. Social media marketing also seems inexpensive, but it demands constant engagement and frequency in posting. We can do it ourselves, but it will take precious time away from running the business. Alternatively, we can hire social media experts to cover the workload, but that will cost us extra.
On the other hand, we merely need to sell or give away our branded items and let viral marketing do the lion’s share of the work. Sometimes, an item can advertise a business even decades after it was sold or given to someone. In comparison, social media ad campaigns have a short life span.
Creativity
Broadly speaking, we can be far more creative with a branded item than with an ad campaign. We can play around with the logo or slogan placement. For example, some brands make a pattern out of the company logo and print it all across the item. What’s more, we can even combine the branded item with other marketing methods and boost the appeal further.
Creating Bonds
Gaining new customers is important, but we can’t forget about retaining old ones. After all, the core base of our consumers is what keeps our business going. That kind of brand loyalty will require us to form bonds with our clients, and the best way to do that is with a tangible object, i.e. a silent ambassador. The higher the quality of the item we’re selling or giving away, the more likely it is that our customers will come back for more. And more importantly, the more likely they will share their experiences with other people, spreading interest in our brand.
Promo Product Demographics
One term we often hear when running a business is target demographics. This term refers to the people who are most likely to engage with our brand. Those demographics can be based on a variety of factors, including age, gender, social status, likes and dislikes, religious beliefs, activities they engage in, and the type of customer they are.
To figure out what the demographics are for our particular products, we need to focus on the following:
- Current customer analysis in search of common patterns
- Market research into the current popular trends
- Competitor research aimed at the types of products they offer to their customers
- The utilisation of analytical software
- Constant updates of the demographic information we already have.
Silent Ambassadors Summarised
As we can see, silent ambassadors are vital to any marketing campaign. Some would argue that they are more important than anything else. Hopefully, this article has helped shed some light on why they play such a crucial role in raising brand awareness.
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As always, we are here to answer any questions you may have. Contact us to talk through your ideas. Together, we’ll make sure your chosen promo items fit any event or giveaway you have in mind! You may give a member of our experienced team a call on 0800 0148 970 or simply email us today.
