3 Most Extreme Marketing Gifts of All Time

Whether you call it a giveaway, a promotional product, marketing gifts or marketing incentives, they're a major part of global marketing tactics and you can't argue with the results that they get. The PPAI (Promotional Products Association International) has recently done a study showing that spending on marketing gifts has passed $14 billion dollars. So, do they work?

In short, yes, absolutely, marketing incentive programs do work, and they tend to work better when there's a professional marketing company running your program. A program run correctly can attract new customers while keeping existing customers investing in new products, all while bringing in referral business as well. However, incentive gifts have been known to get a little excessive, and here are just a few examples.

Car: It is unbelievable, at first, that someone in their right mind would offer cars for free as marketing gifts. Still, Oprah Winfrey, a name familiar to most of us, did it in 2004. She initiated a partnership with Pontiac for an on-air stunt where all members of her studio audience that day received a marketing incentive to remember for the rest of their lives. All 276 audience members received a Pontiac G6 car, costing Oprah and Pontiac around $8 million. Both parties certainly received a lot of publicity, but not all of it was positive. These were given as marketing gifts, yet the receivers still had to pay for the sales tax, which many couldn't afford. Giving away expensive marketing gifts can be a good idea, but it is still necessary to be transparent if the gift will cost your customers or clients some money as well.

Gasoline: There are a couple of dealerships in Southern California situated directly across from each other who got into a war of marketing gifts. They started out simply, with free oil changes, a free tank of gas, etc. A few years later and now one of them is out of business and the other is struggling to pay off the gifts they promised. What could have led to that? They got so high as to offer free gasoline for life any time someone purchased a new car pending approved credit. There were more than 100 people who bought a car during the promotion period. This kind of makes you wonder whether or not they even took the cost of gas into consideration.

Diamond Ring: As far as marketing gifts go, this isn't necessarily an outrageous idea on the surface, but I think it qualifies as a bit "off the mark." A car dealership in Utah was offering marketing incentives in the form of a diamond ring to any customer who purchased a vehicle in excess of $30,000 and put a down payment of at least 33 percent. Okay, a diamond ring is great, who doesn't like diamonds? The problem is that these marketing gifts were in the form of a diamond solitaire ring, which is generally reserved for individuals looking to propose marriage. Marketing incentives should be items that will be appreciated and treasured, but this seems to take it a bit too far.

Should you happen to be able to afford gifts like those listed, spend wisely. Most businesses are going to stick with a plan that allows them to mix items, offering gifts that customers will appreciate, yet not feel as if you're trying to buy their loyalty. Professional companies will help you avoid this and come up with a perfect marketing program for your needs.


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