We were lucky enough to conduct an interview with Gordon Glenister, Director General of the British Promotional Merchandise Association (BPMA). We asked him about his experience of the merchandise industry ahead of Promotional Products Week 15th – 19th September 2014. Firstly, please can you give a brief introduction to yourself?
Gordon Glenister
I am the Director General of the British Promotional Merchandise Association, a body representing almost 600 companies and which has been some 50 years in existence. I have been running the BPMA for the last eight years. Prior to that I have had my own incentives and reward agency in Cambridgeshire. I have also worked for some major brands including Grants of St James wines, Bryant & May lighters and matches, WH Smith retail and H P Bulmer cider and beer brands. I live in Cambridgeshire in a lovely little village with my wife and three boys. Aside from a pen, what piece of merchandise do you use the most every day? Easy answer is my branded BPMA mug. We supposedly drink over 1500 cups of tea or coffee per year – I know I drink more – it’s one the most powerful usable products for branding. I once spoke to a marketing manager for a major Car company and he was just going to put the logo on the side of the white mug. I told him to consider a transfer print with the car ad imagery and then inside at the bottom of the mug the “on the road price” he loved it and changed it to this. Why do you think merchandise is so important as part of a marketing strategy? It’s an essential part of the marketing mix for a number of reasons. Most brands want to engage their audience and no single medium works best in isolation – it’s a combination. One of the challenges at present is the shear bombardment of messages we receive every day. TV advertising spend is dropping as our attention spans are so limited. BPMA research confirms that promotional merchandise has the highest response to invoke loyalty than most other media. In order to create impact – repetition of message is essential.
The perfect solution is through branded products that are widely used and relevant to campaigns. Merchandise is tactile, it’s enduring, it’s useful and it can be alluring dependent on what it is. Ironically the largest buyers of Aston Martin merchandise are aspirants, i.e. people who couldn't afford the car but want to be associated with it. Another example is the famous Meerkat which has been central to the Compare the Market brand strategy. What has been the most memorable piece of merchandise that has left a lasting impression with you? It’s my branded whistle that I have had for over 15 years – the brand was Commission Junction and the message was Sales Arriving Daily and I picked it up at Internet World exhibition. It looks like a strange piece of wood, but it makes such a cool sound of a steam train. I have probably showed this to over 1000 people and it’s featured in some of my photos in social media. What do you think makes a great merchandise company? I think a company that exudes professionalism, shows case studies and research on its website, has a well-trained team, understands its customers’ needs and challenges but above all goes the extra mile in customer service. There are many of our members that I would put in this category. What do you think is the future of merchandise? I think there are many different opportunities on the horizon. With advances in print technology and 3D development, I see growth in personalisation so it’s not just about a brand logo but a customer’s name included in the message. The digital revolution is competing with our industry so we must acknowledge it and remind our customers that merchandise offers many benefits over other advertising media. I also believe we will see more different types of branding being more prevalent. This is already happening with clothing. The smarter guys are looking at putting unique URLs and hashtags on branded gifts to create a positive ROI. We’ve also seen more people selling merchandise than ever before, both in traditional outlets like printers and stationers but also online, so the professional distributor has to continually make a difference. If you were a piece of merchandise, what would you be? Funny question and not been asked that before. I’d be an umbrella hat – why because it’s a unique item, rather funny but also protecting the wearer from rain. What advice would you give to a company that doesn't currently use branded merchandise within their marketing mix? Firstly, I would ask them what are they trying to do – in most instances they want to find more customers whilst retain those they already have. I would then go onto talk to them about how branded merchandise will fit into their marketing strategy – particularly if it’s relevant and useful. How about a new customer welcome pack – first orders – you are on trial – why not thank them with an array of different products. If you are dealing with one person at your customer – suddenly a whole load more people at your customers’ premises start to see what you've sent them. I would look at exhibitions – the best responses to stand engagement are driven by the sales people and the method used to stop visitors– not always the glitzy stand imagery – people still buy people. So why not have all the staff in stylish stand out branded clothing with the new product featured on the rear of the garment. Then there is a pre-show teaser mailing idea where you send part of a gift in advance of the show – the other half – redeemed on your stand. I would then talk about the sales people – how they present to clients – have they got meeting “leave behind gifts”, branded cases, branded laptops, branded conference folders. If not they should – they are all leaving an impression of your company.
What is the BPMA week doing to promote Promotional Product Week? This year the theme is Promotional Products Rock – we want to remind buyers that merchandise is cool! We will be conducting a survey around what items people keep on their desk. We’ve also asked people to send photos of their desks – we’ve termed that the DESKIE! And these are being featured on our website. This will be supported by the survey findings. We will also be hosting a number of students from Brunel University who will be working with us on a number of PR Stunts in London which I am sure will create a lot of buzz and excitement. The colour theme is PINK, and a member of my team who is called Pinky will be leading them. To find out more about Promotional Products Week, visit www.promotionalproductsweek.co.uk Share your #deskie images with us on Twitter @HambMerch.
