According to data from the Promotional Products Association International (PPAI), 83% of consumers say they like receiving promotional products, and 85% remember the advertiser who gave them an item. More importantly, promotional products generate a cost per impression lower than nearly any other advertising medium, including digital ads.
Branded tumblers, coolers, towels, pens, and more can serve as powerful brand ambassadors. Whereas ads tend to be perceived as self-serving and even pushy, promotional gifts are associated with trust and generosity.
The best gifts create a moment, spark an emotional response, and leave a lasting impression long after the logo is seen. A branded hoodie becomes your go-to source of warmth on winter days. You love how soft and thick it is. A branded mug becomes part of your morning ritual. Filled with piping hot coffee, it’s the much-needed kickstart to your day.
Now, food gifts are becoming the sweet spot in promo marketing.
Keep it Memorable with Promotional Food Gifts
As companies embrace promotional gifts that go beyond kitsch to create immersive experiences, food gifts are emerging as a powerful driver of ROI. Here’s what a food gift can do:
Spark Emotions
Taste and smell are directly tied to the brain’s emotional center. When someone receives a food gift, it feels personal, not transactional. Consider a corporate cookie gift arriving at your home or office. One bite of the crispy-on-the-outside, chewy-in-the-middle cookie can easily transport you to Grandma’s house. More than a marketing message, it’s a burst of comfort.
That emotional response gets subconsciously associated with your brand, making your company feel trustworthy and likable long after the last cookie is polished off.
Skip Clutter
The trick with promotional gifts is providing something that won’t end up in the back of the junk drawer or, worse, the trash can. That’s the beauty of a food gift. That moment of unboxing and consumption becomes a mini brand experience, a moment to be savored, photographed, shared, and remembered, without hanging around as unwanted “stuff.”
Build Trust
In-your-face ads can feel coercive or even manipulative, but food feels generous and caring. It conveys that you’re there to support, not force. This lowers resistance and builds trust, and trust builds long-term loyalty.
Create a Ripple Effect
It’s a little hard to share a pen set with others, but you can certainly share custom cookies with printed logos. You can give them to coworkers, family members, or clients. Before you know it, dozens of people now associate your brand with good vibes. Promotional food gifts extend brand exposure organically, without additional cost or effort. Your gift recipients become your brand’s evangelists.
Cut Through Marketing Fatigue
People may be numb to ads and emails, but a surprise food gift interrupts the noise in a positive way. It feels welcome, not wearisome. It creates delight instead of distraction.
Chocolate Shipped Cookies: A Compelling Case Study
We were recently informed by a client about a new business doing some interesting things in the food space. As part of our commitment to supporting growth and prosperity in the community, we wanted to pass their information along. If you’re interested in additional food-related products we directly provide, you can explore those through Big Spirit here.
Chocolate Shipped Cookies tapped into the power of food gifts when they pivoted from being a local Utah bakery to a nationwide cookie gift delivery service. The company leaned into corporate gift giving, with a retooled website that made it easy for companies to set up customer loyalty programs, employee appreciation incentives, and corporate holiday cookie gift initiatives.
They offered cookies and packaging bearing company logos for high brand visibility and customization options with personalized notes and inserts for strong calls to action. Sales skyrocketed as companies discovered how thoughtfully designed food products can function as powerful brand touchpoints.
Edible Experiences That Earn Engagement
High-converting promotional food gifts include:
- Cheese and meat sets
- Nuts
- Chocolate
- Gourmet corporate cookie gifts
- Sweet and salty gift box combos (think chips and candy)
- Wine
- Cakes
- Popcorn
Try pairing a food product with a useful accessory for a combo that packs a punch: wine and goblets, ice cream toppings and a branded ice cream scoop, coffee and a straw tumbler.
Choosing the Right Promotional Food Gift
Not all promotional food gifts pack the same punch. Ask yourself these questions to choose a gift that will have the biggest impact:
Does it fill a need? Choose something with broad appeal that fits the recipient’s taste and style. Skip the fruitcake for a target audience of 20-somethings. For the healthy set, shy away from sugar-laden snacks.
Does it engage the senses? Choose something that looks beautiful, smells tantalizing, and tastes great. Beware of gifts that could engage the senses in a negative way, such as something that doesn’t stay fresh in the mail, something messy, or something that’s overly sticky.
Is it shareable? The more widely your food gift is shared, the more exposure your brand gets. A dozen cookies? Highly shareable. Chocolates and nuts? Also shareable. Spices or jam? Not so easily shared.
Does it create an experience? Look for products with beautiful packaging that lend themselves to elaborate unboxing experiences. These experiences encourage social sharing, which spreads the word about your brand.
How well does it reflect your brand? Is your logo visible on the packaging and food item, even when it is shared? Think hot cocoa packets with your brand name, charcuterie items on a branded board, or cookies bearing your company logo.
Make sure the food gift captures your brand’s ethos. If your company sells workout equipment, lean into healthy treats. If you sell kids’ toys, go with fun, kid-friendly foods.
Is it customizable? Make sure that the food gift can accommodate customizations like inserts or packaging that can be printed with your logo, contact information, and strong calls to action.
Does the food gift company support your efforts? Look for promotional product companies that catch your vision and offer a simple, streamlined ordering process.
Many companies will offer a free discovery call to understand the ethos of your company and offer suggestions that match your culture and goals. They may have experts on staff, such as designers, to help you customize your packaging and inserts. The trick is to find a company that does the heavy lifting for you while still honoring your unique preferences.
Choose Big Spirit Inc.
At Big Spirit Inc., we create more than promotional products. We create powerful brand extensions that keep your company top-of-mind for customers and prospects. Rather than pushing one-size-fits-all solutions, we focus on impact-driven promotions that support long-term brand equity. Contact us to tell us about your vision for your promotional products and we would love to consult with you, providing solutions that best fit your marketing goals.
