Designing appropriate promotional pens is perhaps the most important step in the whole process of rolling out these pens as part of an advertising strategy. A great design is what turns a promotional pen from something that is used without looking at in to something that is casually glanced at every now and again slowly and deliberately imprinting a corporate logo or name in to a possible future customers mind.
The design used when creating promotional pens should directly reflect the nature of the product, company, or service being offered. Fluorescent orange would probably not be acceptable for a funeral home, but may be alright if you are promoting a new nightclub. Likewise a beige pen would probably be rather dull for a nightclub, but quite appropriate for a funeral home. Even if your produce or service is quite exciting, like a night club or new brand of alcohol the wise business person is still weary of creating a garish promotional pen; don't be afraid of colors, however just because lime green is offered does not mean you have to use it. For a more classy option that is more interesting than say a beige or a black try something like jewel tones (sapphire, navy, ruby etc); these can be quite striking and add just the right amount of color to any application.
The lettering on the pen is equally as important as the color of the pen. Be sure to choose a font that is east to read. The idea here is to let people read the name of your company or product, not make them squint; it is more likely that they will ignore the lettering rather than make an effort to read it. The color of the lettering should also stand out from the background, but not be overly obnoxious either. Depending on the background color metallic embossed lettering is quite attractive.
Lastly take in to account the style of the pen housing. The more inexpensive ballpoint pen casing is acceptable for most situations, however to really impress future clients and customers consider a heavier roller ball casing. This will definitely add to the cost of the pen so you will not want to leave these lying around college campuses, however for the more professional crowd these will definitely make an impact and let them know your company is serious about getting (and keeping) their business.