Everybody needs a good pen. It’s one of those nifty, everyday items that always comes in handy, especially when you need to jot down a quick note or sign something. Because pens are such a universal tool, companies have been using them to promote their business for years. While most of us wouldn’t think much of receiving a promotional pen, these babies have immense marketing potential.
In fact, they’re one of the most effective yet affordable ways to drive up sales and get your brand out there.
A Brief History of Promotional Pens
As mentioned, pens are one of the most popular promotional products. In fact, in a 2019 poll, they took up over 6% of all promotional product sales. At first glance, this number doesn’t seem all that impressive, especially in a £23.6 billion per year promotional industry. However, the real beauty of pens is their price tag. They cost around 10p to make, yet they have an immense marketing reach.
This is one of the reasons why they’ve held out this long. First patented in 1888 by Jon J. Loud, ballpoint pens became a popular alternative to fountain pens. This was because their ink dried quickly and didn’t smudge. Some years later, Fritz Ullman, founder of the company uma Schreibgeräte Ullmann GmbH, capitalised on the demand for ballpoint pens to do some promotion for his business. His decision to use pens as an advertising tool was a game-changer that altered the course of marketing history forever.
Since they were so versatile and convenient, pens became a favourite marketing tool in the following years. Nowadays they come in a variety of styles. These styles include stylus pens, multi-coloured ink pens, pens with torches, bookmark pens, you name it. What’s more, you can easily custom design them with unique artwork to reflect the nature of your business. Overall, they’re a tried and true promotional tool anyone can use to get their brand some exposure.
How Promotional Pens Drive Sales
Pens might be a ubiquitous promotional tool, but do they really help sales that much? Absolutely! For proof of this, look no further than the now-famous free pizza pen coupon saga.
The story goes that some years back, a well-known pizza chain was struggling to get sales on their $5 Pizza Nights. They’d done every bit of advertising they possibly could, but thus far, they’d had no luck. Until they decided to team up with a promotional product distributor to create some promotional pens. These pens were eye-catching, full-colour pens that had a full wrap imprint of a pizza coupon on them.
Every time a customer purchased a pie on the pizza shop’s $5 Pizza Night, they got a coupon pen. The coupon was valid for 30 days, so the customers could come back any time to pick up their free pizza. Predictably, this strategy was a success. The pizza chain experienced a sales boom the likes of which they hadn’t seen before.
Since the customers had to bring the pen with them to redeem their free pizza, the marketing campaign had a high reach. Furthermore, the pizza shop printed the word “REMINDER!” on the red pens in big bold white letters, alongside the coupon. This design was quite eye-catching and raised awareness about the campaign amongst customers who didn’t know about it.
Promotional Pens: Plenty of Exposure for a Low Price
The best part about the pizza story isn’t how successful the promotional pen campaign was. It’s how little it cost. The pizza shop spent barely $15,000 dollars or roughly £10,800 buying the pens. However, they managed to generate over 500 million dollars in sales that year, or about 360 million pounds! That was a 20% increase in comparison to the sales they made the previous year.
So, as you can see, promotional pens have a lot of power. This power is still going strong in the modern age, despite the advent of the internet and online ads. Research showed that promotional products are twice as likely to motivate customers to do business with a brand. What’s more, people reported that they’re more inclined to keep a promotional product for 12+ months if it’s useful.
Therefore, if you’re looking for a low-cost way to get your brand out there, promotional pens are the way to go.
Related content:
Promotional Pens – How to Use them for Successful Marketing
Final Thoughts
Pens are one of the best promotional tools out there. With a long and storied history, they are incredibly effective at raising brand awareness for a very low price. This is especially true if you custom design your promotional pen with beautiful artwork. Not only will customers associate your brand with something unique, but you’ll have exposure for years to come.
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Explore our range of advertising pens now and provide your staff with a productivity tool they can use every day. Contact us now at 0800 0148 970 or simply email us today if you have any questions regarding our selection. Our team will be happy to help you choose and order the perfect pens for your faithful employees! You may also wish to consider complementing your order of pens with some eco promotional notebooks or some printed notepads which are sure to be well received by customers and employees alike!
