& How You Can Effectively Use Them

When you think of promotional giveaways, the first thing that may come to mind are tradeshows. Yes, tradeshows are great places to promote your brand with free swag – things like branded pens, water bottles, bottle openers, phone cleaner, and more – but there’s another place for premium promotional products that deliver results – direct mail. Premium giveaways can essentially act like mini billboards for attracting, enticing, and staying in the minds of potential, new, or existing customers. Read on to find out why premium giveaways really work, and where you should use them.

What are Premium Giveaways?

Like we said, giveaways aren’t just for tradeshows – although we’re not diminishing the fact that they work there too. They can be anything from a small, branded sticker, to an Amazon Echo. Depending on your audience and customer relationships, you may only need to send something small. But, sometimes sending something bigger, more unique, more personal, and higher priced is a great way to do many things, including:

  • Show you care
  • Show customer appreciation
  • Request a response
  • Request a signup/meeting

Branded giveaways can be small and simple – like little, memorable trinkets that customers can place on their desk. The goal is that these trinkets will be positive reminders of your other products and services, and some of the other attributes above (your customer care and appreciation, and so on). Promotional products are possibly more effective today than ever before – for similar reasons to why direct mail is effective. They’re tangible, can be somewhat personal or truly personalized, and break the mind away from today’s digital noise. Customers have become more accustomed to digital and tend to (at times) ignore it or mistrust it, so sometimes a small (and free) act of kindness goes a long way. Gifts can help people feel seen and important, and like your company values their trust and loyalty over the dollar.


“There is something unique about receiving a physical item that you can touch, feel, and actually use, that far exceeds the impact of a TV commercial or search ad.” – Bret Bonnet Quality Logo Products CEO.

Higher priced and higher value premium giveaways require your company to give a bit more – but if planned well, can produce a whole lot in return. They can truly help your company get noticed and stand out, or be remembered, in a competitive market. And, if you send a product that can be used over several months, or maybe even several years, the customer is continuously reminded of and possibly even engaging with your brand.

According to 4Imprint, people are more likely to hold on to promotional items if they’re fun, functional, and trendy. They recommend that, when choosing items, you keep in mind your budget, target audience, number of giveaways needed, and how that giveaway will represent your company (including its brand, mission, products, etc.).

When Would (and When Should) You Use Them?

Like we said above, giveaways aren’t just for tradeshows. They’re also an excellent way to ask for more information or action from customers. What do we mean? Include them or reference them on your direct mail or on a website form. For example, “Get a free Amazon Echo after your first consultation with us”, “Flip this mailer over to find out how you can receive your free gift!”, or “Visit the link below and make your first appointment to receive a free first aid kit”.

The possibilities are endless, and the return is high. The key to higher priced, premium giveaways is to give a little to get a lot. With giveaways, you could possibly be enticing and bringing on a long-term client, loyal customer, or lifetime patient.

Why are They Like Mini Billboards?

Branded giveaways don’t just make an impression upon receipt. They stay top of mind for as long as they’re around, whether that be on your desk, on your keys, in your drawer or on your fridge. While your customer uses your giveaway, others will see them use it, walk by it, and consciously or not – will see and possibly remember your brand.

A study by the Advertising Specialty Institute (ASI) found that “most people keep promotional products for an average of eight months”, which is much, much longer than the lifespan of an online ad or website pop-up. Additionally, like we touched on above, your promotional product recipients can become unpaid brand ambassadors. And after they carry around and use your product, they’re likely to pass it along, with studies showing that “63% of those in the United States and 64% of those in Canada give their promotional products away when they are finished with them.”

Some other notable giveaway stats?

Interested in learning more about how you can use promotional giveaways to interest, communicate with, or acquire customers? Give us a call or check out our services.

A Strata YouTube Channel Original

New mover marketing is all the rage right now, and for good reason – but getting started can be a bit confusing if you’re new to the game. That’s why in this blog, along with in our most recent YouTube video, we’ll help you achieve a clear understanding of what New Mover Marketing is, and how it could be used for your business. First, we’ll go over how new mover marketing is defined, what a new mover is, and how this marketing technique can be utilized to reach and acquire new customers. 

What’s a “New Mover”?

In general, a new mover is someone who’s recently moved to your area, and since they’re new, is looking for a new doctor, dentist, grocery, vet, and more, to establish trust in – and hopefully frequent. 

Is New Mover Marketing the Same as Regular Marketing?

In short, no! New mover marketing is a specified, niche tactic that helps you reach new residents in your area while they’re actively establishing new routines and purchasing habits. It’s all about making a strong, quality impression at the same time someone is looking for your services. Different than regular marketing – where you’re mostly informing current customers about new products, services, or promotions, new mover marketing tactics focus solely on bringing in new customers that have just entered your target market. 

The Importance of New Mover Marketing

New mover marketing is one of the best ways to gain and retain more customers. If you really think about it, new movers have no customer loyalty to any specific business – yet. They tend to be more receptive and open-minded to marketing campaigns from any business in their new area. They’re also more likely to listen, and are easily attracted to the first business that reaches out to them (so you need to act fast)! Yet, don’t act too fast, because it’s also important to market yourself correctly and effectively. Remember, you typically only get one shot at a first impression, so make sure you present your business the right way. 

Let’s quickly go through an example of how exactly a new mover marketing campaign helps you attract new customers. Suppose a new family moves into your town. They’re unfamiliar with what services/businesses are available. Soon after move in, they see a mail campaign for your grocery store in their mailbox. Because they’ll (sooner rather than later) need to go get some groceries, they may be more inclined to visit your store instead of another because you reached out and introduced your store and its services, first. As long as you market yourself correctly, you now have a new, and potentially loyal, customer! 

Next Steps

With new mover marketing, the opportunities are endless! Be sure to watch the video, below, to dive a bit deeper. You’ll hear from Strata’s Director of Marketing, Caitlin, as she goes through more specifics. Or, if you’d like to get started on your next new mover marketing campaign and discuss this concept with one of our experts, contact us today. 

A Strata YouTube Channel Original

When building a multichannel marketing campaign, one of the first steps is to build a cost structure to set the direction of the project. If you don’t plan ahead, costs can add up quickly, so to help you out, our most recent YouTube video goes over the different costs behind a successful multichannel marketing campaign and how to make your next campaign both cost effective and impactful. Let’s go ahead and take a look at the first cost of a multichannel campaign.

Platform Cost (Managed Service Cost) 

Picking a strong technology platform is a make-or-break decision that will determine how successful your multichannel campaign will be. Effective and coordinated multichannel marketing is only made possible through technology, so it’s essential you have access to it. A recent survey revealed that 52% of marketers utilize 3 to 4 marketing channels in one campaign, so the correct platform that can properly track and execute a campaign on many channels is imperative. If this is your first rodeo, pick a vendor to coordinate and manage these campaigns. Doing so will essentially convert the majority of the upfront costs to variable execution costs and will make the campaign easier to manage. Make sure the platform you choose properly aligns with your business strategy, as only 16% of marketers claim they have this alignment. Generally, your company should budget between $20k and $40k for a solid, multichannel-capable platform that will get the job done.

Want to learn about the two other costs associated with multichannel marketing campaigns? Click on the video below to hear from our Research & Development Director, Harrison. Or, if you’d like to discuss this concept with one of our multichannel experts, contact us today to get your next (or maybe your first) multichannel campaign up and running.

Bring Your Campaign to the Next Level

With over 40 million people moving every year, there’s a huge market for new customers moving into your target area. That said, many businesses have no idea where to start when it comes to targeting and reaching these new movers. Today, we’ll give you an overview of what new mover marketing is, the customer journey that a new mover takes, and the best channels and campaigns to reach them. Let’s dive in!

From Movers to Buyers

One of the most important things to realize about new movers is that they’re currently nobody’s loyal customer (yet). They’re a key group to target because they’re open to new businesses and products, and on average, develop 72 or more new business relationships within one year of moving. They’re also 5 times more loyal than your regular customer due to being new to the area. Once they find something they like, they’re willing to frequently buy it with ease. Making up 17% of the U.S. population, you can’t afford to miss these walking (and unpacking) opportunities. So, how are their (frequently loyal) buying habits formed? New movers are heavily influenced by timing. Whether you contact them before or after their move decides how they feel about your communication, and what they’ll do about it…

Pre-Move Buying Habits

Data shows that movers begin to stock up on home items right before they move. Products such as kitchen utensils, light fixtures, and everyday household tools are high on their list during this pre-move time.

Post-Move Buying Habits

After their move, new home buyers are likely to spend an average of $9,400, while renters spend around $4,700. Still, this number varies with age, area and demographic. Most of these buying decisions are made within the first few months of moving, which makes it the best time for your company to make contact, introduce yourself, and showcase your product.

A new mover’s first purchases will depend on their personal needs and priorities. For instance, a mover with medical needs may find a doctor immediately, while a mover with a large family may first find a new grocery store. Either way, they’ll have to find both eventually – and it’s likely they will within the first few months. Thankfully, new movers don’t need to be convinced to buy (they’re already more than ready), you’ll just need to convince them to make the right buy (from your company).

Staying in Touch

It’s not only important to get in touch with these potential loyal customers, but to stay in touch. After making a strong first impression, you’ll want to make more points of contact to ensure your company stays top of mind. It’s essential you have a good combination of marketing across several channels that are strategically picked and placed.

New Mover Marketing Tactics

There are several ways to reach these new movers, first, but since we’re experts – we’ll tell you the best ones. First is direct mail. Direct mail ideally arrives at the same time or a few days after new movers enter your neighborhood. Delivering direct mail that welcomes and attracts the new mover while introducing your business is a great way to begin an ongoing relationship. And the stats back this up – as 40% of consumers try new businesses after receiving direct mail. Direct mail is perfect as a first touch to new movers, as it’s personalized, meets them in their new home, and catches them at the right time.

A great way to ensure this direct mail delivers ROI is through BRCs (business reply cards) or eBRCs with incentives. A BRC is a vehicle that allows a prospective customer to provide information to send back to your business, and if incentivized, can return high response rates and bring you valuable customer data.

What’s the next best channel for reaching new movers? Digital advertising. Hand in hand with direct mail, digital ads can create brand awareness, link to your chosen landing page, and target specific online audiences. Digital advertisement placement and audience targeting are the top optimization tactics used by advertisers today.

Email is next – and combined with both direct mail and digital ads, email can be that final touch that brings your company new customers. Using either the BRC information or engagement with digital ads, emails are easy to obtain, making it almost effortless to add new customers to your automated or personalized promotional email campaigns.

The Visible Influence

New mover marketing allows marketers to influence movers’ buying decisions from the beginning of their move all the way until they walk into your doors. It’s about building immediate and vital relationships – because once a new mover buys from you and your shop, they’re 90% more likely to become a repeat customer.

If you want to dig even deeper, it’s smart to use a program that gives your business insight into your customers – such as live statistics and touchpoint behaviors. These meaningful insights will allow your shop to make enhancements on the fly and improve your campaigns, ultimately increasing ROI.

If you successfully target new movers, create convenient touchpoints that meet their needs, and maintain conversation as they have questions and reach out, the new mover will not only finish their journey as a customer, but as a loyal, repeat one. Looking for ways to incorporate a new mover marketing strategy into your next campaign? With years and years (and years) of experience under our belts, we’re new mover marketing experts. Contact us today.

How to Effectively Communicate Your Martech Solution Choice to Leadership and Internal Users

You’ve found a martech solution that addresses some of your biggest challenges. It can save your department time; help you execute more effective campaigns; and generate quality leads. But, first you have to convince two key stakeholder groups that will use the new software – your executive leadership team and staff members who will be using it.

Internally “selling” a martech software implementation can be difficult, but most of the challenges can be traced back to two basic objections:

  • CXO perspective: Is the technology worth the investment?
  • User perspective: Do we really need to change things?

Securing buy-in from management and users will require effective communication of the software’s potential benefits, but what and how you communicate to each stakeholder group should differ. Here’s how to effectively communicate the benefits of the martech solution you are getting behind, which should help you save time by clearly and thoroughly demonstrating your rationale, addressing what matters most to these key audiences:

Justify the Investment to Leadership

Securing top-level buy-in is the natural first step. After all, there’s little value in spending time winning over employees if key decision-makers aren’t on board. That being said, you should be prepared to answer questions regarding how well employees might accept a system change.

Justify the spend by communicating to leadership how the marketing software investment will tie in to organization values and support top priorities. Make sure you can answer questions:

  • What are the current problems?
  • How are they holding your business back?
  • What are the expected measurable benefits?
  • What’s the scalability of the software?
  • Are there sufficient training and IT support resources?
  • How will the software integrate with existing systems?
  • What is the cross-departmental value?

Distill Research and Evaluation Notes to Make Your Case

Research and evaluate various software options and articulate why your choice rose above the competition. Avoid bombarding the executive team with a massive spreadsheet of key features and pricing information. Hone your notes and research until what remains is a succinct list of benefits that address issues most important to the C suite.

Be Prepared to Explain How the Software Will Combat Pain Points

Be able to verbalize, if not already apparent to leaders, the problems the software will measurably resolve to justify the investment. Communicate the expected outcomes associated with the software and emphasize that you will perform continuous evaluation to ensure you are reaching your goals. Look for relevant case studies to support your reasoning. Investigate whether other departments within the organization are successfully using the same software or a comparable platform that saves time and resources.

Link Software Features to Measurable Objectives

According to a recent Gartner article, sound technology purchasing decisions should be grounded in SMART objectives. Develop objectives that are specific, measurable, achievable, relevant and time-bound that you expect the martech to effect. Avoid broadly stated goals such as “Generate more inbound leads.” Rather, assign a percentage growth and a time period: “The new tool will help the marketing team generate 30% more inbound leads in 2018 compared to 2017.”

Secure Buy-in from Internal Users

Lack of employee buy-in is a major hurdle to overcome for successful martech adoption. The software champion first needs to generate acceptance of a new system, then maintain enthusiasm through the onboarding period.

There is always resistance to change, even if the change is positive. Even if that legacy system is rife with issues, they’re a known quantity to users. It can be a tough sell to convince employees that learning an entirely new way of doing things is worth the trouble. But adoption is essential in getting the desired ROI from the system – so this step is critical as well.

While conversations with the leadership team focus on specific measurements and business values, communication with potential system users needs to convey the idea of the software. Tell a story, in essence, of how the product can change their work lives for the better. Talk about time saving, elimination of headaches and other real pains they experience.

Start Early

Educate employees about the new software far in advance of the launch so that even the most tech-averse users will have time to warm up to the change. Meanwhile, advanced communications might win over more tech-savvy employees who tend to be early adopters; they can help generate enthusiasm among peers. Don’t forget that most decisions are base on emotions. Communicate the idea that the new software will make their lives easier rather than harder. This also helps make users aware early on that executive staff is committed to successfully implementing the new software.

Manage Expectations

Acknowledge that change is difficult and that the launch of something new is inherently messy. Recognize that employees will need to “retrain their brains” to adapt to the new interface. Then, stress that the long-term benefits will make the transition worthwhile. Frame an authentic story around how their workday looks today, highlighting inefficiencies and challenges. Contrast it with how their workday will improve post-implementation.

Listen to Users’ Concerns to Gain Valuable Input

Taking user concerns seriously is an important part of the implementation process. Gather information on what might be needed to help navigate potential barriers to a successful launch. Understand the challenges on the employees’ end, and foster a collaborative approach to achieving the end goal – easier, more efficient processes for users.

Follow Up with Extensive Training and Evaluation

Congratulations, you’ve secured executive sign-off and an implementation schedule has been set. Your role as project champion now transforms to project nurturer. The smoother the adoption period, the faster the new technology will start proving ROI.

Lack of proper training is a top reason martech solutions are underutilized and fall short of expectations. Ensure that the necessary time and attention are devoted to training and onboarding.

Also, check in frequently with users to identify any perceived issues or barriers to complete adoption. Assigning a tech-savvy early adopter to act as a liaison is a solid way to get smart feedback. If something isn’t working, address concerns immediately – don’t let issues fall through the cracks. This is a fast path to dwindling returns. Likewise, gather feedback on employees’ perceptions of the most valuable benefits.