To giveaway or not to giveaway

I noticed an article (advert really) recently that promoted the idea of USB flash drives as a giveaway. Branded with your logo and preloaded with your propaganda, the writer argued, these could boost business and, unlike brochures, would not end up in the bins at the show exit.

Our views on giveaways are well known; only use them if they are very specific to your target client and of no possible interest to the general public. This idea does have some merit though. Sure, the flash drives could end up loaded with the kids’ homework or the spouse’s shopping list but, if the information preloaded were of real use to the recipient, there is a much greater chance of it being retained.

So, what could you load that would ensure the recipient valued this particular flash drive over all the others in his/her desk drawer? Answer that and this idea might be worth investing in.

Since I did find some merit in the idea, I think it only fair to promote the business that came up with it – They are called USB2U and the article is here