Marketing your small business requires a delicate financial balancing act — most small businesses have a limited promotional budget and, naturally, want to get the biggest return on their advertising investments.
According to the Advertising Specialty Institute, 85 percent of consumers remember businesses that provide branded apparel and are 2.5 times more likely to have a positive opinion of a company compared to online advertising. Also, people under age 55 prefer promotional items to ads from newspapers, magazines, television, radio, and the internet.
But, in a world where every company is vying for attention, how do you stand out from the crowd? The best way for businesses to advertise calls for a careful analysis of customer preferences and a special attention to the upcoming trends.
Clothing Trends This Year
By identifying important social and business trends in 2020, you’ll be able to provide your customers, partners, and employees with promotional items they’ll appreciate — and more importantly, use. Trends set to make an impact in 2020 include:
- brightly colored apparel,
- co-branding,
- casual business apparel,
- clean design,
- eco-consciousness,
- cool tech, and
- outdoor living.
The Retro Look Is In
Nostalgia is always in style.
Retro trends in 2020 include a return of old-school baseball tees and an emphasis on the ultra-bright colors that were popular in the 1980s and early 1990s.
Consider choosing a piece of bright outerwear, or this vintage-looking Eco-Jersey Baseball T-shirt by Alternative.
Co-Branding and Brand Partnerships
One of the easiest ways to increase awareness of your own brand and company philosophy is to team it up with a familiar brand people value.
Don’t worry: you don’t have to establish a formal partnership deal with Nike or Carhartt. All you need to do is choose promotional items from these companies. For instance, choose a sweat-wicking Nike Dri-FIT tee and you tie your brand to Nike’s famous “swoosh,” while providing your customer with a high-quality piece of athleisure wear.
Business Casual is More Relaxed than Ever
Business apparel is more relaxed than ever before, blending comfortable fits with professionalism. Use this to your advantage when choosing work uniforms or rewarding employees with clothing they can wear in and out of the office.
A smart softshell vest can keep your employees comfortable and looking good when working in cool environments, while a denim shirt is perfect for Casual Friday.
Polo shirts remain popular as casual branded work uniforms, including long-sleeved polos. Look for brands that offer male and female cuts, so all members of your workforce look their best. Trimark’s Brecon women’s and men’s long sleeve polo shirts are excellent examples, providing consistency in your work uniform while acknowledging differences in body shape.
Simple and Clean Styles
While bright colors are a major trend in 2020, luggage, backpacks, and other carryalls focus on uncluttered, simple designs with plenty of interior pockets and extra features. This trend extends to tote bags and sports bags, as well. From a promotional viewpoint, that’s excellent news, as logos stand out prominently on simple, unadorned bags.
Take a look at:
Sustainable Products for the Eco-Conscious
Sustainability made huge strides in 2019, with people around the world demanding action on multiple environmental issues.
This focus on the environment will continue in 2020 and offers ways to advertise a small business while demonstrating your commitment to the planet. According to ASI, 42 percent of people have highly positive impressions of brands that offer eco-friendly promotional items.
Products made from recycled or sustainable materials will be popular items, as will products that provide alternatives to single-use plastics, such as reusable drinkware and cotton tote bags. Reusable stainless steel straws are especially popular, given the environmental impact of plastic straws.
Useful New Tech Promotional Products
Environmental consciousness doesn’t mean a rejection of technology.
One of the big promotional business trends of 2020 will be small, lightweight, and powerful tech accessories. Impress your customers and business partners with these tiny technological marvels, or use them to reward a hard-working employee:
Outdoor Activities and Products
Coupled with increased interest in sustainability comes an interest in outdoor activities. Camping, golfing, hiking, or just kicking back in comfort on the back porch — outdoor activities attract a huge segment of the population.
Marketing your small business to the outdoor set is easy with such crowd-pleasers as:
The upcoming trends of 2020 offer multiple ways to stand out from the crowd while advertising a small business and increasing brand awareness. Whether you opt for practical athleisure wear, rugged, but colorful outerwear, or cool technological gizmos, matching your promotional campaign to the interests of your target audience helps get the most out of your advertising budget — and brings in the most business too!