It will not have escaped the notice of those involved in the purchase of promotional products from the Far East that the rate of sterling has significantly depreciated against the US dollar over a very short period. Nobody has reaped the benefits more of a strong UK pound against the dollar than those involved in the importation of products from China.  

Galpeg’s trading offshoot, Promocameras has witnessed the drop in prices over the last few years, with distributors keen either to pass on new prices to their customers to maintain their competitive edge or to retain the cost savings, especially on repeat orders.  The cost reductions on digital cameras have now reached a plateau and, in fact, there has been a small price increase for entry level models.

The price increases from manufacturers in the Far East are set to continue, as the costs of raw materials and labour rise.  It has been well documented in the media that businesses in China are failing at an unprecedented rate, and it is up to importers of promotional products to be very selective in the manufacturers they choose to engage.  The scenario of paying in advance for products from the Far East only then to hear that the company has gone into receivership is now a more realistic possibility. Only those companies that have stringent buying procedures in place will avoid such unpleasant consequences.

Unfortunately, end users will have to revise their price expectations on promotional products.  The consequences will be that buyers will be looking for keener prices and may not accept the automatic price increases levied by existing suppliers.  These suppliers or distributors will fight to maintain their customer base and in turn will apply pressure further down the food chain.  This natural occurrence will reduce profit margins and as a result some companies may be unable to survive.

As with the property market, buyers of promotional merchandise will have to go through a re-evaluation process by understanding the new price points of products that meet their budget restrictions.  What was possible to purchase at a certain price point last year will no longer be available and either the volume or actual item will have to change.

The full effects of price increases on promotional products will be most felt when the major importers set their prices for 2009 and have used up their existing stock or forward currency purchases.

Today’s choice of writing instruments has never been so great.  Design, quality and price are the key factors that are considered when deciding on the appropriate promotional pen that will convey the values associated with a brand or corporate identity.  In recent times the choice of colours and materials used to construct the pen have expanded and also the use of several different materials into one design.  With a greater range of colours, there is less of a requirement to compromise on the colour that best matches the corporate identity or brand colour.  This means that the pen will look more unique to the organisation that it is using the pen for promotional purposes.

Today, manufacturers of promotional pens can produce to match almost any corporate colour on request.  The only limitation is the minimum order quantity and this can be in some cases substantial.  

An essential element of choosing  a suitable pen, is the quality of the refill tips.  There is no point in having a pen branded for marketing purposes and the user finding that it leaks or dries up.  If it leaks, especially on to clothing, the user will forever have a negative view of the promoting company.  If the ink easily dries up, the user may regard the organisation as unreliable.

Today’s quality pens are still manufactured in Europe and especially in Germany.  Second or third tier brands, which are not particularly known, such as Prodir, Klio Eterna, Senator, Lecce, Uma and Ritter produce quality promotional pens at very affordable prices with distinctive appeal.  These pens are available through promotional gift distributors such as Galpeg and offer a cross section of design and branding opportunities.  Ritter offer bio-degrable pens, Eskesen produce pens which allow you to encapsulate images that give the appearance of movement, such a bottle of beer filling a glass, Lecce offer individually flow wrapped pens.

Other pens that come predominantly from the Far East offer additional features to the standard aspect of being a writing instrument, such as a USB Pen or a Laser Pointer.  These more gadgety type products are usually more bulky but have the benefit of added value at usually reasonable prices.

So if you want a pen with a specific USP that will get your company name or brand noticed, then do contact Galpeg on 020 8444 4455 and ask us to help you choose the WRITE pen for your next promotion.

Pens are both inexpensive and retainable.  The key to picking out promotional pens is the quality of the pen.  I  get many calls asking if I can get cheap pens?  Of course, I can!  But we do not offer the really cheap pens that either fall apart quickly or the ink dries up.  We only feature good quality pens such as Parker, Cross, Waterman and Bic pens that will actually write when you pick them up.  Don’t get caught into buying cheap pen that will be descarded very quickly.”

Why Promotional Highlighters? Highlighters are a great desk item.   If you’re are tired of giving out pens, why not try highlighters instead? Your logo or message will be seen over and over again - and for the price, you can’t beat their effectiveness.

Why Pen / Highlighter Combos? These promotional products add a great deal of functionality.  Recipients will love the 2 in 1 effect of the highlighter/pen combo.

The potential complexities of sourcing premiums or promotional products from the Far East can be easily underestimated.  For those unfamiliar with the term Premiums, these are products that may not necessarily have any branding or personalisation and may in fact have been designed specifically for a promotional campaign.  Premiums are usually a reward for some form of action conducted by the consumer, such as a purchase or multiple purchase of a particular product and generally have a far greater perceived value to the consumer than its actual cost.

With the declining cost of consumer products in recent times from the Far East , the requirement for a premium that is both impactful and cost effective is that much harder.  Almost all premiums tend to originate from the Far East and with easy access by marketing departments to sourcing  sites on the internet, there will be a huge temptation to cut out the Premiums specialist and go direct.  This is also the case with companies buying promotional products that are branded, whether it be electronic products, such as USB drives, digital cameras, digital photo frames, MP3 players or more traditional products such as promotional bags, branded umbrellas, promotional keyrings and branded clothing.

The plethora of regulations that accompany the importation of  lot of the products, the process involved in the successful execution of an order, from independent QC inspection right through to managing the payment process, makes what would seem a very straight process, a potential minefield to the inexperienced but enthusiastic marketing executive or marketing manager, who wants to show how capable they are of saving the company money.

Other considerations are product safety testing, which if not correctly conducted, can lead to product recall; Also WEEE registration for importers of electronic products, which came into being in 2007 and relates to the recycling of products that may consist of hazardous substances that need to be part of a controlled recycling waste programme.  These products must be RoHS compliant and this has to be certificated by the manufacturer of the country of origin.  Any lack of knowledge about the importation requirements of specific products from the Far East could lead to unanticipated problems, that could be both expensive and a disaster for the planned promotion.

However, an experienced sourcing company with adequate financial resources can eliminate the risks associated with such an operation. Galpeg have been importing products from the Far East for over twenty years and recently successfully completed the purchase of 500,000 fridge magnets in less than 20 days.  The client was Ogilvy and Mather and Galpeg had their own staff at the factory ensuring that not only were 59 different designs in different quantities, produced to the required quality, but also produced on time and packaged to maiximise the protection and labelled correctly to ensure easy identification of each design.

I read with interest the letter from Liz Karn to the editor of Promotions Buyer magazine in the October issue. Galpeg unfortunately experienced the bad debt of a promotional distributor earlier this year, only to hear that a new company had emerged, the director of which was a relation of the individual responsible for the demise of the company that went into receivership.  Furthermore, it would appear that this company is using the website infrastructure of a major trade supplier and distributor.  

I can only condone the comments made by Liz in her letter.  To support individuals who have left a trail of bad debt behind them cannot be acceptable.  I can only hope that the BPMA, which is becoming a great deal stronger through the admirable efforts of Gordon Glenister, ensures that such companies are not given the membership of the association.  It is important that the BPMA sets high standards and does not in the pursuit of revenue, lower them.

There is no doubt that many companies will suffer financial difficulties in 2009, as users of corporate gifts and promotional products cut their budgets.  The association needs to have accredited members, on whom buyers of promotional items can rely.  I fully support the idea of members who have been part of the BPMA for at least 10 years having a different accreditation identity to those who have not been in the association for so long.  Galpeg has been a member for only eight years, but it has been supplying promotional products and premiums since 1975.  There are not many companies that have been trading under the same name for as long as we have.

The importance of financial strength and ISO 9001 accreditation has been discussed in a previous blog, and I can only say that all trade suppliers must be extra vigilant when extending credit and not allow distributors to override the agreed payment terms.  Watch for any signs of deterioration and speak to other suppliers, as well as the BPMA.  Unfortunately, every supplier may be nervous to voice concerns.  If there is no substance to any rumours, then the distributor may become aggrieved with the trade supplier and not place future orders.  The BPMA has a role to play here, not only for the benefit of trade suppliers, but also for end users.  

I know that the BPMA and Promota held talks about a merger, which unfortunately failed, but the BPMA has the opportunity to take the initiative and fill a role in the vetting and monitoring of distributors, for the benefit of all concerned.

Is this the start?………………..  

Comments coming in from suppliers and distributors point to a reduction in corporate expenditure on promotional gifts.  Is this an indication of what to expect in 2009? Promotional products, corporate gifts and premium based promotional products cover a large spectre of activity and there is likely to be a mixture of information circulating within the industry.In previous downturns, dare I say recessions, promotional companies have benefited, as budgets move from the traditional advertising expenditure to more measurable  campaigns. With the domination of the internet and more advertising expenditure moving online, the promotional products industry will have to work harder to compete in this arena. The corporate gift will always be in demand, even during a recession, as companies fight for business within their marketplace.

However, it is more likely that those holding the purse strings within organisations are likely to review their budgets.  Indeed one supplier of corporate confectionery recently commented that whereas previously orders averaged £3000, in the last few months, this has reduced to nearer £2000. This is the time of the year when budgets are being set for 2009 and with the current uncertainty in the stock market and anticipation of all the impact feeding through to the real economy in Q1 of 2009, one can only expect to see belt tightening amongst users of corporate merchandise. The full effect of this anticipated reduction in expenditure is likely to be felt most by Q2 and Q3 of 2009. This will certainly  impact both the small and large distributor.  The promotional gift industry is made up of a cross section of companies, from single person companies operating from the front room of their home, to the well established company with 50 to 100+ employees. Both will not be immune;  the one man band may see his key client or two reduce their budget, which will immediately impact on the bottom line and the larger distributor will notice the smaller but well organised distributor fight for business with reduced margins just to gain entry into a new customer.  This will result in a reduction in overheads costs and possibly profit margins.There are two public listed promotional gift distributors in the UK, who have both sought to counter this possible trend, by not only supplying corporates directly, but also acting as trade suppliers to other promotional gift distributors.  Both their share values reflect the current and anticipated economic climate for 2009.  No doubt, they will both seek to make further acquisitions of niche trade suppliers and encourage new distributors from other sectors such as office suppliers to enter the marketplace , which will have a knock on effect for the specialist promotional gift distributor.Although the above might sound fairly grim, where there is  uncertainty there is usually opportunity and those companies with a healthy balance sheet, sufficient cash resources to implement a tactical marketing strategy to see through the next year, will be in a strong position to take advantage of the shake out that will  inevitably take place.

Most promotional gift blogs talk about the products that make up the greatest percentage  of the promotional or advertising gift market, such as promotional pens, mugs, mousemats, umbrellas, bags and keyrings. How about the less familiar items and the new products that are available but not easily found. These items are not readily available on the market and generally have to be specially ordered, which means that minimum quantities are necessary and lead times are longer.  However, the upside is that you are unlikely to be using a promotional item that everyone else can get hold of and therefore the impact will be that much greater.  It is possible, you might be the first off the block to promote your company or organisation with the next big thing!!!  Let me introduce a couple of examples:  How about the Fly Alarm Clock:

What a great item to help get you up in the mornings.  Perhaps you have a number of alarm clocks to help you get up, but you still find it hard to get up. The Fly Alarm Clock has a blade that takes off and flies around the room making a mosquito type noise.  Only once you switch off the alarm, does the noise stop.  A great a fun item that can be targeted at both adult and children.  The blue back light of the clock element is very calming and the black outer casing can be personalised.  The clock can be purchased from as little as £2.85 + VAT for a quantity of 3,000 units.

Another example is the Water Powered Clock - a greater promotional gift for the environmentally conscious person.  No need for batteries anymore.  The ecologically friendly clock, with a revolutionary design, simply runs on fluid instead of a battery.  Prices start from as little as  £10.43 + VAT for 500 units

There is no doubt that the branded exhibition bag provides the ideal way for delegates attending conferences or exhibitions to be focused on the corporate identity of the hosting or exhibiting company.  Recently at the largest trade exhibition for Photographic products in Germany called Photokina, both Canon and Nikon positioned personality girls at key locations outside the venue to distribute large sized laminated bags with effective branding of the Canon and Nikon logos.  Both corporate companies, who compete for market share realised the full impact of having as many visitors as possible carrying around the exhibition their brand hanging from their shoulder. The bags were large in size with rope handles and the high varnish laminated finish of both brands proved to be really effective advertisements for both companies. If you want to do an exhibition bag for your next show, make sure that it is large and effective, because the more it stands out, the more it will be noticed and attract visitors to your stand .�  �

Galpeg Corporate Gifts is fully committed to promoting the use of eco friendly promotional products.  These are environmentally friendly products  and such have seen such an increase in demand that today there is an extensive selection tavailablem: from recycled pens, recycled pencils, recycled bags and recycled mugs. These products represent good value as such they are low cost promotional eco products.  However, for customers with a larger budget and looking for something a little more expensive, Galpeg Corporate Gifts has a selection of solar powered products such as a solar powered pedometer, water powered calculator, mobile phone solar charger, solar powered torch and solar powered charger. For full details and for all your promotional products and corporate gifts just call our sales team on 0844 770 4545.�

My previous blog touched on the importance of ensuring that your  corporate gift supplier has the necessary design resources to provide you with a visual interpretation of how your promotional gift will look when personalised.  In today’s economic climate, perhaps a more important consideration is the financial stability of the promotional gift company and the length of time that the company has been trading for.  If they  have been accredited with ISO 9001, then this will also help indicate that they are sufficiently established to offer you a level of service that will provide you with the piece of mind that your promotional products order will be delivered on time and to the correct specification.  Price is always a key issue, but this becomes a secondary matter if you experience being let own by your promotional products supplier.  The old adage: ‘Cheap can be Expensive’ springs to mind. One way of preventing this from happening, is to check the credit worthiness of the supplier. You could be giving an order to your supplier that is of greater value than their credit worthiness.  If they do not have the necessary cash flow resources to handle such an order, then this could affect their ability to fulfil the order you have placed.