With the economy seeming to go from bad to worse, I know many of our customers are looking to optimize their advertising and promotion budgets. The Advertising Specialty Institute (ASI) recently came out with new research that addresses just this point. Their study found that among businesspeople over age 21, advertising specialties beat out all forms of TV, radio and print advertising as the most cost-effective advertising medium available.

The average cost-per-impression (CPI) of an advertising specialty item is $0.004, making it less expensive (per impression) than nearly any other form of media. For example, according to Nielsen Media data (the folks behind the Nielson TV ratings system), the CPI of a national magazine ad is $0.033; a newspaper ad is $0.0129; a prime time TV ad is $0.019; a cable TV ad is $0.007; a syndicated TV ad is $0.006; and a spot radio ad is $0.005.

Among key findings, results indicate that:

• 84% of people remember the advertiser of a product they receive;
• 42% have a more favorable impression of an advertiser after receiving an advertising specialty;
• 24% indicate that they are more likely to do business with the advertiser of a product they receive; and
• 62% of respondents have done business with the advertiser on a product after receiving it.

Writing instruments are the most commonly-owned advertising specialty, followed by shirts, caps and bags. In most cases where people kept the items they received, it was because they were useful to them in their day-to-day lives, and nearly three-quarters of respondents had their items for about seven months.

At a time when every dollar counts, this research demonstrates that you can get more bang for your buck by making smart choices about the marketing mix you employ on your projects. Call us today to discuss how to incorporate advertising specialties as a significant part of your promotional strategies and programs.

By John Booth

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Tags: advertising specialties • Advertising Specialty Institute • cost-per-impression • CPI