Sympathy Sentiments

As I was searching through a kitchen drawer the other day, I found dozens of pens, pencils, letter openers, sticky-note pads, oversized paper clips, rulers, dental floss, calendars, magnets, whatsits and thing-a-ma-bobs, each with the name of a business on the front. In looking through my “collection” I discovered some things I love and use and others that I can’t imagine why I picked them up. Some, I’m not even sure what they are!

They are all advertising specialties. You know, those giveaways that are going to bring customers swarming to your door. Advertising specialties can put your name in front of prospective customers and keep it there. That way, your name will be on their minds and in front of their faces when they decide to buy. But too often, they don’t work the way you expected them to.

The trick to using advertising specialties effectively is to understand who your customers are, what they value, how they will use your giveaway, and where they will be when they make a buy decision.

Pizza delivery restaurants give out lots of refrigerator magnets. Where are you when you decide to order a pizza? You probably just looked in the fridge for something to fix for dinner, didn’t find anything and are closing the door. At that moment, you spot a magnet and say, “Pizza!” Some of the magnets even come with detachable coupons.

Where will your customers be when they make a buy decision? At home, at the office, in their cars, on the phone, at the computer . . .use a specialty that will be in front of them there.

Or maybe you just want something that they will use a lot to keep your name in their minds. A mug. Or something like a wall calendar where your name will be in front of them 365 days. (366 in a leap year!)

However you hope to influence your customers, make sure you choose an item they will actually use. Will they want another ball point pen, pocket calendar, or stress ball? How many wall calendars do they get from other sources? Will yours be one they are willing to put up on the wall? Does your item look or feel “cheap” or of poor quality? If so it won’t give a good impression of your business.

If you use advertising specialties, choose something that is unique, doesn’t look cheap, will be used by your customers, and will be nearby when they make a buy decision. That doesn’t mean you have to give away expensive items. A couple of my favorites are ball point pens. One, from British Airways, has a clip that folds out to look like wings on a plane. It’s not great to write with, but it’s really cute. Will the pen cause me to fly British Airways? Probably not, but it is one more positive impression I have of their airline.

Want to try something a little different? Why not get tote bags, t-shirts, sports bottles, or other items made up and sell them. If you have a clever logo or slogan, people might be willing to pay. For example, the National Museum of Funeral History in Houston (yes, a museum about funerals) sells mugs and more with their slogan, “Any day above ground is a good one.” If you are actively creating a brand people respond to, you might be able to start a whole new product line. One source for image products is http://www.cafepress.com/.

Oh, one last thing about using advertising specialties. You have to actually give them out. Buying them and leaving the box in the closet won’t bring you a single customer.

Copyright Cathy Stucker. As the Idea Lady, Cathy Stucker can help you attract customers and make yourself famous with inexpensive and free marketing ideas. Get free tips, articles and more at http://www.IdeaLady.com/.

Throughout the ages, colors have been used to evoke certain emotions, and an examination of the history of color offers fascinating insights into the human condition, as well as showing how different cultures have developed different attitudes about color. Here are a few examples of what various colors have come to represent over the years:

Red

Red has traditionally been associated with courage and love in Western culture, but in China, red is the color of happiness and good fortune. In fact, white has traditionally been the color most preferred for wedding dresses in America, but the Chinese prefer to dress their brides in red.

Orange

Orange is considered a warm color, perhaps because it has evoked the feeling of fire, all the way back to mankind s earliest beginnings. Painting walls a subtle orange, leaning toward a warm brown, stimulates the appetite and can reduce tension. However, as the orange color becomes brighter, it begins to take on a high energy feel and can lead to anxiety.

Brown

Brown is another warm and comforting color, stimulating the appetite and actually making food taste better. That makes coffee brown, in all intensities, with or without the cream, an ideal candidate for dining rooms.

Yellow

Since it s always been associated with the sun, yellow has traditionally been considered a cheerful color. Yellow is also the first color most people see in early spring, when the daffodils begin to bloom. However, there seems to be an East/West cultural difference when it comes to yellow. The Chinese revere yellow enough to have considered it the imperial color since the 10th century, yet several Western studies have shown that yellow is many people s least favorite color.

Green

Green is another color that has both an up and down side. It s associated with the new growth of spring, prosperity, and clean, fresh air, yet it can also carry a negative connotation, in terms of mold, nausea, and jealousy. Throughout the ages, green has most often been considered to represent fertility, and during the 15th century, green was the most popular choice of for the wedding gowns of European brides.

Blue

Because it s associated with the color of the sea and the sky, blue has come to symbolize serenity and infinity. That s especially true of the more greenish shades of blue, such as aqua and teal. On the other hand, cooler shades of blue can have a tendency to cause feelings of sadness.

Purple

Over the millennia, purple has been associated with royalty in Western civilizations, due to the difficulty and expense involved in producing purple dye, which was made from a particular species of mollusk shell. Even today, when purple can be produced just as inexpensively as any other color, the use of purple is still considered to represent elegance and sophistication.

There are stories and connotations for every color, and different cultures assign different meanings to colors. For instance, American brides generally prefer white wedding dresses, while many Asian cultures dress their brides in black, reserving white for funerals. But regardless of what culture on is from, one thing is certain: colors will always have effects on human beings and should be carefully considered when decorating a home.

(c) Copyright 2004, Jeanette J. Fisher. All rights reserved.

Professor Jeanette Fisher, author of Doghouse to Dollhouse for Dollars, Joy to the Home, and other books teaches Real Estate Investing and Design Psychology. For more articles, tips, reports, newsletters, and sales flyer template, see http://www.doghousetodollhousefordollars.com/pages/5/index.htm