Starting a new business can be a fun and worthwhile endeavor for anyone from a professional business person to a first-time business owner. One of the finer details of getting a business off the ground is promoting it successfully. After all, a business can’t be successful if it doesn’t have any clientele. One way to generate interest in your business and its wares is to offer some kind of promotional item. These can come in a variety of different items including pens, keychains, frisbees, notepads, canvas bags, and even drinkware. Drinkware is a popular choice because everybody has to drink things and most people have their own kind of drinkware. Whether it’s a tumbler or a coffee mug, a receptacle you can use for beverages is a lovely gift for prospective and established customers alike. In this article, we put together a short guide to promoting your business using coffee mugs as a marketing tool for any business venture. Check it out below.
Define Target Audience
All good marketing strategies begin by defining the target audience. You won’t get very far with marketing initiatives without understanding your target demographic, their needs, and what you can do to facilitate them. Usually, a business needs to have a good idea of the following criteria in order to define their target audience:
- Age
- Location
- Gender
- Spending patterns
- Purchase history
- Interests and hobbies
- Buying habits
- Education
To promote your business successfully, you need to have the ideal customer in mind. Because coffee mugs are an all-purpose, relatable item—most people drink coffee every day—it can be a wonderful promotional tool with cross generational appeal.
Customize
Customization is a boon to any promotional item. When it comes to coffee mugs, customizing them can help you take your marketing to a higher level. Customization makes all the difference here. Want a wide mouthed, bistro style mug? Or maybe you just want to stick to the classic design. Whether you’re looking for something elegant or understated, you’re sure to find it when customizing coffee mugs for your business. Be sure to put your logo on each mug as well as your business name and location. Beyond that, have some fun with your customization efforts and don’t forget to be creative. With the right kind of appealing designs, your mugs will fly off the shelves and into the hearts of customers everywhere.
Promotions
One firmly established idea in marketing is that a freebie or promo item can generate interest in a brand. While promotions aren’t going to do all the lifting when it comes to lead generation, they remain an invaluable marketing tool. Some interesting ideas for coffee mug promotions might be having guests participate in a social media contest where they can design a cup or contribute a slogan for the coffee cup. That can be a fun way to increase brand engagement and get customers interested in interacting with your business. For your own promotions, consider using brighter colors and unique designs to catch potential customers’ eyes. Try out exclusives or holiday themed promo cups at certain times of the year. Finally, consider giving away mugs as part of other promos or when customers make purchases. Promoting your business with custom coffee mugs is beneficial and can make a difference in the long run.
Gift Baskets
Nothing says, “thank you” or shows appreciation quite like a gift basket. The simple gesture can be a good way to build rapport with customers and give them an opportunity to build some happy feelings toward your business/brand. Gift baskets can be a wonderful way to build up your brand engagement and awareness. Coffee mugs are one of the most practical items to place in a gift basket because people use them every single day. That’s what makes them such a fun item. Use them as giveaways at trade shows, other events, and on social media. You can also try making a gift basket part of a loyalty program or some kind of special promotion to help get the word out about your business.
Sales
Although coffee mugs make a fantastic promotional giveaway, you can’t go wrong with selling them too. A customized coffee mug that includes business information is all well and good for advertisements, but you can get a little bit creative to encourage customers to buy your coffee mugs. This can include customizing it with a unique logo for other graphics that somehow ties into your business. Put out different themes, colors, sizes, and types of coffee mugs for sale. Since it’s easy enough to buy them in bulk, you can acquire enough products without breaking the bank, then sell them at a profit if desired. Ultimately, custom coffee mugs offer a sensible and worthwhile item to sell at your business.