When talking about promotional products, you’ll notice that we often focus on their commercial value and how effective they are as a marketing tool for businesses. Though this remains true, it’s important to add that their purpose extends far beyond commercial use. Promotional merchandise can also serve as valuable assets for supporting community initiatives.

Let’s say your business is hosting a charity run or shelter drive, or maybe you are exhibiting at an climate change event, and you want to use this as an opportunity to raise awareness of your cause and build community spirit. Promo products are a great way of doing this.

When you give attendees a practical product printed with your branding or information about your social cause, this will spread your message to the masses and draw attention to your initiative. It communicates your social issue outside of the event, ensuring that you can make an impact for months to come.

Heres my advice on how you can use branded event products to share powerful messages for your community cause.

Promotional Items For Environmental Clean-Up Campaigns

The number of environmental clean-up campaigns has increased substantially in recent years thanks to our growing awareness of environmental issues and the need to address them.

These community-led efforts involve cleaning up parks, beaches and rivers to remove litter and properly dispose of waste in a bid to tackle pollution.

Promotional products suitable for such a task include printed reusable tote bags that can be used to collect waste, branded eco-friendly water bottles to keep volunteers hydrated and printed eco clothing items with slogans promoting environmental stewardship.

How Merchandise Can Promote Charity Runs and Walks

Charity runs and walks are popular events for businesses that want to raise awareness or money for health-related causes, such as cancer research or mental health.

Organising such an event for your employees, clients, or the general public creates a brilliant opportunity for promotional merchandise that participants can use after the event.

Branded baseball hats, embroidered sweatbands, and custom water bottles are helpful for those partaking in the activity. They can be kept as a keepsake and serve as a walking advertisement for your charity since they will likely be worn and used beyond the event. Printed drawstring bags also remain popular for running events as post-run promotional gifts.

Branded Giveaways For Awareness Of Food Bank and Shelter Drives

Organisations can also get involved in charitable causes, such as food bank collections and shelter drives. These are where you collect donations to support local food banks, shelters, and homelessness charities.

In this instance, a frontrunner for promotional giveaways would be printed foldable bags with clear and bold messaging about hunger awareness. These could be distributed and used to encourage people to purchase food for donations.

Even branded clothing items, like embroidered beanie hats or custom gloves, are a good choice. Volunteers for social causes can wear them and give them to those in need as additional donated items, further spreading the important message of poverty and homelessness.

Youth and Education Programs How Promotional Giveaways Can Help

Social causes for youth and education, such as those supporting after-school programs, literacy campaigns and youth sports teams, lend themselves well to promotional giveaways. You can print products with motivational quotes or catchy slogans and add your branding, then gift them to the children or young people participating in the program or event.

Some great examples of promotional items suitable for such a young audience include promotional school supplies, like printed notebooks, printed pencils, and promotional backpacks, or custom children's sports t-shirts and printed sports bottles for sports teams.

Branded Giveaway Ideas For Health and Wellness Awareness Events

If you are planning a health and wellness awareness event like a health fair, screening or talk aimed at educating the public on mental health, branded event products can be used to enhance your message and leave a lasting impression.

For example, nothing says health and hygiene more than branded hand sanitisers or custom stress balls for promoting positive mental health practices. Even promotional first aid kits with company logos printed on them are impactful as they’ll be kept by those attending the event and act as a constant reminder of the importance of health and safety.

Promotional Merchandise For Animal Rescue and Shelter Support

Another category is animal welfare and protection, which are social causes that promote animal adoption and support local animal shelters.

It almost goes without saying that the promotional items most fitting for these charitable causes are custom pet accessories. Think printed leads or promotional pet collars and printed pet bandanas for dogs that all display the shelter branding and promote responsible pet ownership. These custom products can be gifted to those who adopt from the shelter or attend an event, helping to spread awareness and encouraging more people to support these charities.

Local Arts and Cultural Festivals Can Promo Items Help Promote?

A great way of celebrating and preserving local culture is through holding events like community festivals, performances and art displays. They bring communities together in a positive and empowering environment to be entertained, fed and educated all to put money back into the area.

There are quite a few branded items that you can opt for at these types of events. Attendees will need printed reusable cups, event tote bags, and custom event wristbands, which are valued as commemorative objects. So why not also use them as an opportunity to raise further awareness by branding them?

Learn How Promotional Products Boost Cause Visibility To The Community

You may have heard this many times before but promotional products can be best described as walking billboards. When they are printed with your logo, slogan or brand elements, they showcase your cause whenever they are worn or on display. Unlike traditional billboards that remain in one location, these items travel with individuals, providing continuous and widespread exposure to your message.

The proven promo items that work best for this are printed T-shirts, custom badges and printed reusable bags since they are worn by the recipients meaning they are constantly visible. They also provide an excellent printing space so that you can ensure the message behind your cause is clear.

Promotional Items Can Help Bring In Important Funds

 Since community campaigns don’t typically sell products or services to make money, they rely on fundraising support to survive. Though asking for donations can be effective and yield good results, it can be hard work and take a lot of time to reach a substantial figure so finding ways to boost these numbers is important.

Branded items for charity causes can be used as incentives in fundraising drives by being sold to the public rather than gifted. This money then acts like a donation going directly into the charity fund.

Some examples would be printed cotton bags, custom car air fresheners, printed water bottles, custom enamel badges, printed button badges and promotional trolley coin keyrings.

You’ll often find these types of printed products at POS in retail stores and supermarkets.

 Branded Products Also Create a Sense of Belonging

 An important aspect of community events and causes is very much in the title itself - community. The purpose, alongside raising money and awareness for a social cause, is to build a community of people who all care about the same thing and want to take action to change or support it.

 When you give away promotional merchandise in aid of your cause, you create a shared identity and sense of belonging amongst the people who receive it. Wearable items, such as printed caps and custom t-shirts, fosters a community team or member mentality that can be worn with pride and used to find like-minded individuals. While for event-specific items that volunteers and members can enjoy using on the day. It makes them feel involved and engaged at the event.

 For 2024, Why Not Explore Eco-Friendly Promotional Products for Community Causes

 You must also be mindful of selecting sustainable or ethically sourced promotional products that align with community-focused values. This means eco-friendly promotional items made from sustainable materials, most notably recycled plastic, organic cotton, bamboo, or wheat straw.

 There are plenty of eco-friendly promotional products that can be used to represent a community cause, including biodegradable ponchos, which are handy for outdoor events, and promotional RPET baseball caps, which are ideal for events that involve physical activity.

 Need Support Finding Branded Merchandise That Will Work For Your Community Cause?

 As an account manager at The Branded Company, it’s my job to guide clients so that they create meaningful, impactful campaigns supported by the most suitable promotional products. This requires me to understand community needs and current trends so that I can provide educated advice which leads businesses to making the best investment for their brand.

 As a tool for positive change within your community, it’s clear that promotional products are a huge asset and worth the investment. They can help bring more awareness to your cause, build a sense of belonging to those who show support and make sure your message is heard loud and clear.

Need help and unique branded product ideas for your event? Get in touch! We would be glad to help.

Written by Muzi - Senior Sales Account Manager & Community Man! At The Branded Company

Tel: 0116 298 2555

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