More Than Standard:
Promotional Products That Make a Statement.

As part of an interview with Swiss Post (DirectPoint), our Head of Procurement & Marketing Roman Hasler spoke about current developments, trends, opportunities, and no-gos in the promotional products market. The conversation, led by Marcel Suter, formed the basis for a mailing and an online report. Below is the unabridged original version, including the thoughts and insights that were shortened in the final published interview.
 
 
 

Many expect a clear, dominant trend. In my view, that does not exist. Instead, we are seeing multiple smaller developments happening at the same time. What is clear, however, is that companies want to present themselves in a more individual way, regardless of the specific product.
Promotional products are no longer just logo carriers, but deliberately chosen statements designed to leave a lasting impression.
 
 

Demand for branded products with clearly recognizable added value has increased significantly. Products whose value is known to the recipient have a completely different impact.
At the same time, something interesting is happening on the supplier side as well. Brands are increasingly opening up to the promotional products market because traditional retail is losing importance and new distribution channels are needed. Suppliers like us benefit from this.
 
 

A very important one. Promotional products have a key advantage over purely digital measures: physical touch. Being able to touch something physical activates memory more strongly. It is all about finding the right mix.
It is also interesting that trends from the B2C space often take around one year to reach the promotional products market. Marketing teams often lack the courage to adopt new ideas early.
 
 

The major hype slowed down somewhat during COVID, but the topic is still very present. Especially for companies with around 250 employees or more, sustainability is an important criterion.
Promotional product suppliers without relevant certifications such as ISO 14001 or EcoVadis will increasingly struggle. At the same time, we clearly see that the share of recycled materials is continuously increasing.
Nevertheless, price remains a decisive factor. In many cases, the more economically attractive offer still wins.
 
 

Material trends come and go. Currently, corduroy and metallic looks are particularly in demand, especially for bags. At the same time, a lot is happening behind the scenes. Printing technologies are becoming more efficient, faster, and more cost effective. One example is DTF (Direct to Film). There are also developments in inks, such as low water or water free options with improved environmental performance.
 
 

Personalization with individual names was considered a megatrend a few years ago. In practice, however, it has hardly established itself in the promotional products sector.
The effort required in production and processing is often simply too high. Classic engraving has proven itself and remains simple, efficient, and effective.
 
 

These are less in demand. Promotional products need to be self explanatory. If a product becomes too complex, it quickly loses its impact.
Of course, there are individual projects in this direction, but in the broader market this is not a dominant theme.
 
 

As mentioned earlier, price remains decisive, but delivery time is becoming increasingly important. Many projects are planned on very short notice, influenced by B2C behavior with fast delivery expectations. This has two downsides: higher costs and less room for creative, customized solutions.
 
 

This is of course subjective. But in my view, a clear mistake is simply handing out a cheap standard item just to have given something.
Less, but more targeted and with higher quality, is a much more sustainable approach when it comes to brand impact.