Gifts are ready to be given

We are witnesses to a concentration process on the Hungarian promotional gift market. Economic recession left its mark on the segment: Győző Sauer, 3L Gift Kft.’s managing director told Trade magazin that it is very difficult to offer solutions with the price/value ratio that partners expect. The company defines itself as a marketing tool consultant and tries to establish long-term cooperations. They are capable of compiling individual offers from 15,000 gifts. Ferenc Keresztesi, Present Store’s managing director is proudest of the fact that despite the difficult economic environment they manage to expand. They have to work twice as much as before the recession and to look for cheaper suppliers on the world market. Only a handful of European manufacturers were capable of maintaining their high-quality portfolio, as 90 percent of promotional gifts come from the Far East. The two experts agree that in in-store promotions the most successful are tangible gifts that can be handed over at once. Packaging together has become less frequent, due to theft and the complex preparation and listing process. There are constant favourites though, such as glasses with drinks or mugs with coffee and tea; T-shirts and towels do well too.

The only problem is that marketing managers sometimes only have half of the budget for the same number of gifts in a promotion campaign. Those campaigns are successful in which the gift reminds shoppers of the product and is useful as well. 3L Gift’s expert told us that the football World Cup had a strong influence on this year’s products, footballs, whistles and keyrings were sold out before the event. Present Store is a sponsor and exclusive supplier of the 2010 Pécs, European Capital of Culture project. This is a great challenge for the company, for instance they had just 2 days to supply 800 logo umbrellas for the opening ceremony in January. Festivals are also important for promotional gift companies and the start of the school year also constitutes a seasonal peak. Large companies commission gifts for their big events – this usually means that they want gifts delivered rapidly, which limits the number of solutions gift companies can offer. Promotional gifts of medium or high value – bathrobes, tableware, watch, jewellery, electronic devices – are often used in loyalty building promotion campaigns. A new competitor of tangible promotional gifts is virtual or electronic gifts, such as ringtones, mobile minutes or web storage space. Experience gifts are also available, as a nice meal in a restaurant or a trip can appeal to many. There is demand for special gifts on the domestic market, but ideas and conditions of realisation do not always meet. – It is difficult to come up with great ideas that are useful and nobody had realised before, but it is not impossible – says Győző Sauer. Ferenc Keresztesi is convinced that the keys to survival are a good strategy, precise numbers in planning, regular training, effective meetings and several-year knowledge of partners’ demand..