Squeezing The Most From Your Promotional USB Flash Drive Budget
Advertising and marketing budgets have been hit hard over the last couple of years and whilst there are glimmers of the economy recovering its still early days and consequentially purse strings are still pulled relatively tight. That said businesses can't afford to stand still and the need to advertise and promote your business and products is still of paramount importance but, where hard cash is being spent its critical that you squeeze as much as possible from your budget.
When it comes to buying promotional USB flash drives there are several factors that you should consider because they will help you to get the best possible "bang for buck":
- Don't pay for unnecessary memory – USB flash drives are available in a wide range of sizes starting from 32MB all the way up to 64GB. Popular USB flash drive sizes are 1Gb – 2GB and these are normally ample for any corporate gifts or promotional give-aways. If you buy USB flash drives larger than this then the costs start to rise quite substantially. Similarly if you buy flash drives smaller than 1GB the price reduction is relatively small but more importantly the likelihood of the flash drive being used on an on-going basis is dramatically reduced. Without on-going use you don't get the benefit of your brand being continually recalled or promoted.
- Reduce the number of colours you want printed – Ink costs and each colour printed has a set-up cost associated with it. Whilst some suppliers might absorb some of these costs to secure your business its unlikely that they'll swallow all of them. If you have a complex logo or a logo with 4 or more colours see if you can simplify it. Its not unusual for there to be various "complex" and "simple" versions of a company logo available because good designers understand that a logo will be used in a variety of way and so they plan ahead accordingly.
- Plan ahead and order early – The vast majority of USB flash drives that are printed up with a company brand or logo are manufactured to order from factories in China. Despite the distances involved and the freight costs associated with shipping flash drives around the world it is still considerably cheaper to get flash drives this way. If you order flash drives at the last minute then you'll pay a premium to get them printed locally and you'll have far less choice in terms of memory size and style of memory stick.
- Only buy gift boxes if you really need them – this speaks for itself but its worth checking that any price you are quoted does not include a charge for gift boxes (unless you want them). Most branded USB flash drives will come in individual "poly" bags or they'll be in a free plain white box.
- Pre-load any data during the manufacturing process – one of the best ways to offset the cost of buying branded USB flash drives is to pre-load them with your company sales brochures, media files, presentation files and so on – saving this data onto the flash drive means you won't have to go to the expense of getting them printed. The trick though is to make sure you have the data ready early so that it can be loaded onto the flash drive at the point of manufacture (this is usually free). If you are late supplying your data then expect to pay a fee for it to be loaded post manufacture.
- Get several quotes before ordering – we all have our own favourite or "preferred" supplier(s) but when you're sourcing branded USB flash drives its definitely worth shopping around and getting several quotes. If you do choose a new supplier make sure you get a firm quote in writing, read any associated T & C's and payment terms and make sure the price is a fully inclusive price. In particular watch out for print set up, print origination charges and high delivery charges!
- Buying the cheapest USB flash drives can end up costly in the long run – before you just accept the cheapest price you are quoted its best to make sure you are comparing "apples with apples". Some unscrupulous vendors will supply graded or re-cycled flash chips unless you specify "new". Whilst most of these will work you can expect a much higher failure rate and much slower performance – not exactly what you want if you're printing your brand on them! Choose your vendor carefully, check out their testimonials and if you're at all concerned take references.
Avoid buying your USB flash drives during the peak demand periods – there are a couple of times of the year (every year) when the price of flash rockets and this has a knock on effect on the price of USB flash drives. The times to avoid if at all possible include the early run up to Christmas (late September and October) when many large manufacturers buy up flash chips for their Christmas manufacturing schedules and the time around Chinese New Year when there is a general scarcity in the market.
Questions and Answers
Branded flash drives can be an effective way of promoting a business due to their practicality, image and visible branding area. But with so many choices available where do you start?
USB flash drive devices have forever changed the way people work with data. Light weight and convenient USB flash drive production gives people a fast and convenient way to custom brand products for gifts, incentives, trade shows, and marketing or PR content. Plus they are way more environmentally friendly than cd or dvd covers.
Although a relatively recent convert to the benefits of flash drives the sector itself has certainly pushed the boundaries of what the product can deliver. The range of flash drives and fully bespoke products produced for some of the leading drink brands and labels is impressive with items such as USB bottles, USB barrels etc.
One of the most effective promotional products you can invest in these days are custom-made USB flash drives. Create a design that fits with your company image, manufacture them in materials that will last, print your name and logo on them, and you have a practical and unforgettable marketing tool.
One thing that is often overlooked when companies buy branded USB flash drives is that the flash drives are fundamentally designed to hold data and a failure to load the drives with data before they are given away is a failure to recognise the wider opportunity these products offer.
Its no exaggeration to say that USB memory sticks are now incredibly popular to the point where they have replaced CD’s and DVD’s as the way to backup personal data and carry it from place to place. Their popularity is driven by their ease of use, their portability and their relatively low cost. Make sure when buying them you comply with the current legislation.
The online world is changing and this is one of the main reasons that there is a great room for marketing and promotion. The ways to promote the products of any specific company are infinite, however the companies need to concentrate on the top ways so as to get the maximum profit.
When you need high avenues of free advertisement for traffic and promotion of your business, you would definitely understand how traffic and promotion is making the world go round with free ads.
There are two kinds of advertising above the line (ATL) and below the line (BTL). Above the line advertising is one which involves commission such as radio, TV ads or newspapers and below the line advertising is print based such as flyers, direct mail, trade fair marketing or point of purchase ads. There is no commission for advertising agency in this kind of advertising. Now a day's above the line advertising is not preferred as much as below the line.
We have added many features to the Fusion Electronics Direct site to allow users to be able to search for there products they are looking for. We have got some new product ranges from Fusion which are the New headunit range and the full sub and amp range. They look really sleek so no matter what vehicle you have it will look perfect.
The debate for white paper is intensifying in the b2b blogosphere about whether the white papers are still relevant for b2b marketing. But if you ask me, then honestly speaking, white papers are still an integral part of b2b marketing. This article will state you the reasons why white paper is still essential for b2b marketing.
Here's an interesting idea – don't just hand out an inert paper based business card during your next meeting or at a trade show or event card but instead upgrade your business cards and hand out the latest USB business cards
If you're planning to hand out USB memory sticks branded with your logo printed on them then one of the things you might need to consider is whether to pre-load any files onto the USB sticks before you hand them out. If you do decide to pre-load files then should you make these run (start-up) automatically as soon as the USB stick is connected to a PC?
There are so many promotional USB flash drive suppliers springing up today that it's often difficult to work out who's a legitimate, supplier that sells top quality products that won't let you down or more importantly won't let your brand and your customers down with the supply of shoddy and inferior products. How can certificates help?
For years the humble Twister USB memory stick has been the preferred choice of the majority of people buying branded USB sticks for their business, school or university. It's relatively small size, the wide range of colours it is available in coupled with the fact that it has no cap or lid to lose has made it a perennial favourite for years but is all this about to change.
You'd think sourcing branded USB memory sticks for your business or school would be easy after all there are plenty of companies in the market supplying them. To some degree that's part of the problem – there are now so many companies competing for your business that the overwhelming choice on offer can bamboozle you!
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