Far be it from us to call consumers ‘mugs’ – the kind of mugs we’re talking about in this post are the kind you find in your kitchen. Indeed, promotional mugs are one of the most important products in corporate branding; something which is proven time and time again by their popularity, usefulness and effectiveness at raising brand awareness.

A recent survey by the British Promotional Merchandise Association (BPMA) and Sourcing Planet has revealed that promotional items such as mugs are extremely effective tools for marketing and brand awareness. Low cost, usability and effectiveness of mugs make them an invaluable marketing tool, according to the BPMA.

This news follows on the heels of an Advertising Speciality Institute (ASI) report which found that promotional mugs are amongst the top five most frequently-used promotional items, which, as the BPMA notes, is ‘important’ because usage is considered a top priority. An encouraging 70% of respondents did business with the advertiser after receiving a mug, glassware or ceramic item. The ASI found that mugs, ceramics and glassware create almost 200 advertising impressions per month. Advertising impression costs for things such a mugs are extremely low; estimated at about $0.004 per impression.

This proves that mugs are not only a great way of getting your company logo into people’s homes and lives but also they are a successful form of advertising.

Furthermore, German researchers from Dimamarktforschung announced last year that more than a third of those they questioned admitted they kept promotional items for an average of two years or more. They added that they not only regarded the items as useful but also regarded them as ‘souvenirs’.

The German research team also discovered that the ‘advertising recall’ of promotional items in general beats TV and radio, with 57% of participants remembering the brand from promotional items compared to 32% from radio and a surprisingly-low 28% from television.

The BPMA commented, “Evidently, promotional mugs and cups remain a powerful way to get your brand in front of people for a long period of time and use, but research also supports the effectiveness of this form of advertising….

“Promotional mugs and cups are likely to remain key products in corporate marketing and promotional branding for years to come.”

Unlike other promotional merchandise which requires specific targeting, promotional mugs are also a good way of traversing the demographics of the market. Research has shown that mugs and cups are effective across a wide range of demographics, with universal popularity amongst men and women across a spread of age groups.

Technological advancements which have significantly improved this already successful product include new methods such as ‘dye sublimation prints’ and ‘Duraglaze’ prints to combat the problem of print fading on mugs due to the high temperatures used by modern dishwashers. This smart new technology ensures that a high print quality will remain on the mugs for up to 2,000 washes.

Political developments, too, have come into play in the evolution of the industry. The European Union has introduced legislation for ‘anti-dumping duties’ (also known as ‘crockery tax’) to counter the problem of ceramic producers (largely in China), who it was suggested were selling ceramics at ‘artificially low prices’. Prior to this, 80% of ceramic tableware was believed to have come from China. As a result of the EU duties, the price of ceramics has risen universally. While this could benefit producers in other nations (as well as high-end porcelain and bone china manufacturers), it has raised prices for many importers at the lower end of the promotional items market by as much as 30%.

The EU regulations, which came into effect last year, are due to be reviewed this May. Regardless of the outcome, it would appear that promotional mugs are set to continue to be regarded as a powerful and effective marketing tool for many years to come.

You can browse our range of mugs here