They are colourful additions to just about every kitchen cupboard in the office world, and can be quite the statement about the organisation they promote. I heard of one firm where the first order did not contain enough hot pink mugs for every female in the office to have one, and much pouting ensued. The mug was also available in a neon orange, mint green and the standard corporate shade of blue, but nothing would do for the girly girls but that everyone who wanted was able to have a free bright pink mug courtesy of the company. A new order was hurriedly placed and eventually, everyone’s requirements were satisfied.
Corporate Branding Reinforced
Not only are corporate mugs a great promotional tool for a company, they’re useful too. The receptionist making tea for visitors will often use a corporate promotional mug to reinforce the company branding, and they’re frequently seen at meetings. Firms chasing business will hand them out to good prospects or regular customers, and they can also be used as a way to promote awareness about a new product or successful project. A mug is a popular gift for the first customers of a new store or branch of an expanding company, as well as a way for counter staff to reinforce branding in warehouses and other trade locations.
Commemoration and Thanks
They can be commemorative, as in the mugs handed out to every finisher in a 10k race a few years ago. They can be boasting, like those produced by a construction firm and sent to residents affected by their latest project, which proclaimed that it was opened under budget and on time. The accompanying letter apparently apologised profusely for the disruption the project had caused during the building works and asked that the residents accept the mug as a token of thanks. They can be given to staff by management to show appreciation for their hard work, and the Times Top Companies annually have the chance to commission mugs to commemorate their place in the rankings.
Souvenirs
Promotional mugs can also be souvenirs – of places visited and events attended – to bring back fond memories of a good holiday or a great day out. New York has a thriving souvenir mug and cup culture, and I was spoiled for choice when I went out there a few years ago. Yes, it’s a tourist souvenir, the mug I eventually chose, but it’s also a promotional product featuring a design of the skyline of the city and a big red apple. When I bring it out for other people to use, they always want to know what I was doing there, when I visited, where I stayed and what I thought of the place. It’s a conversation starter, that’s for sure.
I’m not Fussy, I Just Want a Brew
Promotional mugs, either given as gifts or corporate spares from the store cupboard, are the default mug of choice for new starters, temporary workers and visiting staff from other offices too, so every office cupboard has a stash. The general rule of thumb in most offices is that anyone who doesn’t know which mug to use should choose a promotional one when in doubt, as anything else is likely to be a personal mug belonging to someone in the office.
A Competition Prize or Giveaway
Mugs from a corporate sponsor are also a good item to use as competition prizes or giveaways. Customers or regular consumers of a brand can become very keen on collecting tokens to send in for a free mug or set of mugs, especially if they’re not just promotional but limited edition. The limited edition mugs found in Easter egg and Christmas chocolate gift boxes will sell on eBay for significant amounts to serious collectors; that is if you can persuade the people who already have them to sell them in the first place.
A Low Cost, High Value Item
Mugs are fairly cheap to produce, but are seen as good gifts to receive. They have lasting value, are in use regularly around the office (and even the home at times) and therefore reinforce the company’s brand on a repeating basis. They can be normal ordinary very useful white mugs with a logo or message, or as with the hot pink ones I mentioned earlier, they can be highly sought after gifts. I still have the one I bought when a new local radio station opened near where I lived in the 1980s, much patched though it is now. The rim chipped and was glued back on. Then the handle came off and was glued back on, at which point I decided that it really was time to turn it into a pen pot rather than an active mug for hot beverages. And so it remains today, sitting alongside me as I type this, commemorating a radio station which has since closed down. The ideal promotional product, perhaps, outlasting its company by over 20 years.
