In this age of digital overload, how does a marketer help their brand stand out and ensure top-of-mind recall in the customer's mind?
The customer's mindshare is an extremely expensive real estate that every company, brand and product is hoping to make an imprint upon. The all-pervasive digital mediums are the go-to platforms to obtain reach and visibility. However, it requires immensely deep pockets to sustain the activity. The digital algorithms are a beast that has to be kept fed constantly — flag off a bit and the search engines no longer pick up your content.
"With the advent of digital advertising, BTL (below the line) activities started taking a back seat. Promotional gifting, which was the mainstay in marketing strategies, became a 'good to do' activity for most companies."
However, think of the economics — the price of a promotional gift item such as a branding ballpen costs an average of ₹5–10, depending on the style of the pen. A customer gets and keeps the pen for months, and each time they use it, the brand name gets visibility. And even if it is not consciously noticed, it becomes a latent memory that subconsciously gets recollected when in need.
There were some issues with the ballpen promotional item — the chief issue being that it is seen as a cheap gift. Clothing, electronic items, bags etc. were preferable to align with the brand not being perceived as cheap. But back in the day, small steel spoons, katoris or cups were commonly provided as corporate promotional gifts. The reason was simple: utility value. They were used frequently. And each time it was used, the brand name was imprinted subconsciously. It was a great marketing tool.
With promotional branding pens, one other issue was that the brand name can get scratched off or fade if not printed or etched properly. If the quality of the ink or refill is not good, it stops writing and the pen gets thrown away — along with all that brand visibility.
Ridleys MaxView has solved this challenge with India's first Inside Printed Pen. Hi-res printing is done on high-quality paper that is inserted into the barrel of the pen and sealed with a tamper-proof stopper — ensuring that the printing can never get scratched off or fade. Since it's a paper insert, it provides 360° printing, which allows companies to add their brand name, logo, address, tagline and a photo or illustration. High-quality refill and German ink ensure really long-lasting writing — approximately 60 A4 sheets of writing per refill.
This is a unique and innovative technology that has just been introduced and is providing marketers a good, viable and cost-efficient branding visibility for their brand and products.
The pen is mightier than the sword may sound like a cliché, but in this case, it is certainly true.
Reach out to us for more details and a sample of the pen — we'd love to show you what your brand looks like inside.