Many businesses have taken to using promotional items as “premiums" that can be earned through a loyalty programme. The premise is a simple one – people love the feeling that they’ve got a great bargain on some nifty, neat toy. They like it even better if they feel that they’ve earned it. Loyalty programmes, like the ones using reward points to earn merch from credit card companies, are designed to increase sales of your products.

Loyalty programmes are not exactly a new phenomenon – many of us can still taste the sticky glue on the back of the Green Shield stamps of our childhoods. Today’s versions of the loyalty programmes tend to track points earned through a computer rather than by handing out rows and rows of stamps to stick into a redemption book, but the principle is still the same. Shoppers earn points based on their spends, then trade in the points for cool merchandise.

Many firms have found a way to make their loyalty programmes do double duty by including promotional items among the shwag that customers can earn through purchases and other actions. Often included among the lower tiers of the reward levels, they’re popular because it doesn’t take long to earn enough points to redeem, and because they mark the owner as a “member" of the club. Companies benefit twice – once from the sales that earned the points for the reward, and then again – and again and again – whenever the chosen reward is worn or carried in public.

The most popular promotional items used in loyalty programmes include perennial favorite promotional items like apparel and leisure/playtime items. They appeal to the customer’s loyalty, and to their vanity. Many of the more popular items, like gourmet picnic baskets, are things that most would never spend actual cash money on, but given an opportunity to get one for “free", they’re very happy to have it. The top promotional items to use as loyalty programme rewards include:

Apparel as promotional items

Hats, t-shirts and jackets are near the top of the list in the rewards fulfillment category. It’s a real coup when you get customers to wear your branded apparel because they become walking billboards for your company or product. It’s product endorsement at the most personal level.

Playtime and fitness promotional items in loyalty programmes

There are many “playtime" products that are often included in loyalty programmes, especially those aimed at the youth, professional and retiree markets, three of the most lucrative markets. These promotional items run the gamut from inexpensive branded plastic Frisbees to high end pedometers. They’re popular rewards with all sorts of businesses, from breweries and wineries to fitness clubs and retail stores.

Upscale leisure time promotional items

A separate and distinct category from playtime products, leisure promotional items are aimed at the upwardly mobile professional customers who enjoy the finer things in life. They include items like branded picnic baskets, wine sets and crystal sets, and are often redeemed to be given as items to others.

Coffee promotional items

There’s also a whole gamut of products aimed at the coffee-drinking public, including printed mugs, travel mugs and high end vacuum containers and flasks to carry along your favorite potable. Like all of the promotional items above, these benefit your company in two ways – not only are they a reminder to your customers, they also advertise your company and products whenever they’re used.

If you haven’t considered a loyalty programme before, you might explore the possibility by contacting a fulfillment company who make it their business to run and manage different types of loyalty programmes and promotional events. For a better idea of the types of promotional items available, take a look at the online catalogs of the UK’s best suppliers of promotional items.