The use of promotional give-aways are an essential part of putting on a successful stand at trade shows and exhibitions. There are thousands of items available, so choosing the correct ones for your show are vital. For example, look at your target audience and analyse them. What age group are they? Is the majority male or female? Are these people businessmen / woman, general public, students, or even children? So get your target audience into perspective.

Getting a product which is practical in size is also important. If you are a small company and are fitting your stand and literature in your car, there is no point trying to transport 250 budget umbrellas. Make sure that the product(s) you choose are manageable and transportable.

Remember, promotional gifts are one of the key factors that attract people to your stand in the first place. No matter what services your business offers, when there are 50 exhibitors, and one of them is handing out little gadgets and give-aways, you can be assured they will attract the most to their stand, and if that is the case, then the give-aways have done half their job. Once you get them to your stand, that is when you do your thing, and market your business.

It is always good to try and find something a little different to give away. Lets face it, when people think about promotional gifts, they automatically think, pens, coasters, mugs, mousemats.... and so on. These are still the most popular items because they are useful. We sell more pens than any other products and there are thousands of them available as they are useful and still an excellent general give-away. However, there is a difference between a general give-away and a trade show give-away. The trade show give-away needs to attract, then carry your company logo and message throughout it's lifetime. There is a huge range of products available so don't limit yourself to the basics, look at something people are not likely to throw away, with either a novelty factor, useful factor, or even better, both. Think of what you would like if you were a visitor! Getting it right can make a big difference to your business.