Promo Prouducts, The Kardashians, OJ Simpson, and Maui

The Kardashians, OJ Simpson, and Maui - How They Effect Your Promotional Products Marketing in 2012

i am currently visiting my family in Maui.  Last night we all sat down for a great feast of local Hawaiian fare - BBQ T-Bone, Safeway take out potato salad, and french bread soaked in butter.  While watching the sunset over Kihei, someone brought up OJ Simpson and his famous white Bronko slow police chase.  What year did that take place?  Wasn't one of his attorneys the dad of the now famous Kardashians?  Out came my son's new IPhone, my sister's Android, and while they were texting the questions, I was asking Siri.  Within minutes we were drilling down all the facts about OJ's trials and his current status in a Nevada prison. 

The world has changed again.  The ubiquitous smart phone and it's not quite as smart cousin, the cell phone, are changing the way people get information in ways never contemplated.  And this means in ways that will effect you.

1. There are 4.0 billion mobile phone owners on the planet. (from 60
Second Marketer).  More people own a cell phone than own a toothbrush.

2. Brands using SMS and MMS can reach nearly 95% of mobile phone
subscribers on both smartphones and non-smartphones alike. (from Mobile
Marketer)

3.  79% of smartphone users use their phone to help with shopping, with 74%
ultimately making a purchase as a result. (from Search Engine Land)

4. Mobile coupons receive 10 times higher redemption rates than print
coupons. (from Mobile Commerce Daily)

5. 70% of mobile searches lead to action within one hour. It takes one
month for the same percentage of desktop users to take action. (from
Mobile Marketer

Your clients need to be able to find you on their mobile phone, your website and other online media need to be mobile phone ready, and you should be considering creating your own app. 

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Best Search Engine Marketing ROI for Promo Products Distributors in 2012

Promotional product keywords are some of the most fiercely competitive on the internet today.  Go ahead, try to get a great ranking for custom imprinted pen.  And yet, we all know or think we know that getting found on the internet is the second most important marketing tool we have in our kit bags.  Only personal contact through cold calls and networking works better.

So assuming we all have limited time, energy, and financial resources, what should a promotional products distributor do for maximum exposure and best possible ROI.  The following list is not scientific, but it should serve you very well.  The thing you have going for you is that the internet has become "local."  By using your local advantage, you should be able to at least get great rankings in your natural market.  In major cities, you will have a much more difficult time getting visible beyond 10 miles or so.  We won't touch on that here.

Top Ten Ways Your Customers WIll Find You Online in 2012 by ROI

The assumption is a rigorous effort applied to each through either cash, time, or both.  So for instance, you might spend $1000 to upgrade your Website or create a mobile version.  You might spend six hours a month on a blog or you might pay someone to do so (value $3000?)  You could spend $6000 per year on PPC.  You might spend $1000 or a bunch of time optimizing Google Places and Yelp, or go crazy and spend $5000 a year for a Yelp upgrade.

    1.    Google Places and Yelp
    2.    Website - Should be Mobile
    3.    YouTube Videos
    4.    Email blast to Customer List
    5.    Blogs and article submissions
    6.    Apps
    7.    Webinars
    8.    Other Social Media
    9.    Online Press Releases
    10.    Pay Per Click - Adwords, FB ads, and Youtube

Note:  The reason that social media is so far down the list is that it takes huge amounts of time compared to the return I am seeing thus far.  Also please note that some pundits lump YouTube and blogs into social media.  I agree with that idea, but these two elements are so far out in front by ROI compared to FB, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Google+ that I preferred to leave them separate.