Your clients’ end-users can record all your dates, meetings and appointments on their digital device, but if that's lost or experiences severe technical difficulties, the end-user is lost.
It is no longer the case of one versus the other, but having that written backup is always sensible and pragmatic.
According to consumer research firm NPD Group, sales of calendar items grew 10% to reach $342.7 million, from 2014-2015 to 2015-2016. During this time – “decorative calendars” grew 8% to ^65 million. Blogger Bertel King wrote, “Having to open another tab, fire up another piece of software, or launch another app to access my calendar amounts to one more onscreen thing vying for my attention. Suddenly a paper planner starts to make sense."
Carrie Lewis, marketing/communications manager, BIC Graphic, opines, “I think calendars carry the misconception that they are an ‘old school’ promotional product. Many Millennials are focused on organization and use paper calendars and planners to keep control of their busy schedules. Paper calendars and planners have even seen an uptick in sales in recent years, coinciding with the trend of bullet journaling/scheduling and the preference for pen and paper schedule-keeping within younger generations.”
Lewis adds that the attractive benefit of promotional calendars besides the obvious (the customer seeing the brand daily for a year) – is that there are now designs and motifs that will appeal to all types of businesses and end users. “Whether a business wants to embrace a modern trend like gratitude journaling (#8108) or promote their message on a tried-and-true leave behind like a Stick Up Grid (#5323) there is a calendar style for any audience,” she described. Asking a client who their audience is, and what kind of message they want the promotional calendar to deliver will help figure out which design will do best for their business.
Indeed, described Phil Martin, MAS, national sales manager for Warwick Publishing Co. desk calendars “seem to be the step-child” when it comes to innovative marketing campaigns. The desk calendar has maintained the test of time as it is a highly effective reference tool that takes up little space.
“Because a variety of Warwick’s calendars can be printed in full color and customized, it opens the door to more marketing campaigns,” he comments. Calendars can be utilized in numerous ways which provides the distributor with versatility in presentation: coupon programs, as a greeting card, mailing programs, schools, product introductions, moving notifications, invitations, giveaways, trade show handouts, sports programs, and safety programs,
“We did a very large order for Ford Motor Company that did not go out to one single customer – instead, they went out to Ford Motor employees,” he relates. Further, instead of the standard ad copy, the Ford Motor mission statement was printed on the calendar.
You may still receive a challenging objection – that “people will still use their smartphones as a calendar.”
Martin declares, “When I hear that from someone, I will usually respond that I have never dropped my desk calendar in to a toilet or puddle. You don’t have to worry about the screen cracking or leaving it laying around somewhere. It is always where you keep it. You don’t have to worry about spam, junk mail, ringing all the time, blue screens of death, viruses, etc. And, you only have to update it once a year!”
Lewis agrees, adding that devices aren’t always reliable, and for most of us (and end-users) are full of distractions from social media, text, emails, etc. Checking a digital calendar to see what’s next on a to-do list can end in distraction from what needs to be done in the first place. Additionally, “it’s faster and easier to open a planner to today’s date then it is to take out a device, enter your passcode, find the app, launch, etc.
However, she emphasizes, paper calendars also have space for tracking goals, tasks and priorities. Digital options don’t usually allow enough room on the screen for extra information without swiping or opening another app. Paper calendars also allow for customization that is personal and creates a planning system that is adapted to work best for the individual. Phone calendars are limited to the installed program features.
Doing the math can persuade, too: there are 365 days in a year. If the average person looks at their calendar 12 times a day, this equals 4,380 viewing per year. And, that’s just one person! Considering calendars for a promotion makes great sense.
CASE STUDIES
Carrie Lewis, marketing/communications manager, BIC Graphic: A home improvement center wanted to give their Saturday morning workshop attendees a useful and memorable promotional item as a gift with their registration. They chose the DIY Projects calendar (#1505) because the Pixaction 2.0 technology provided recipients with video how-to projects beyond what they learned in their weekend workshops. The home improvement center loved the relevancy of the calendar to their business and included class registration information on the drop ad imprint. The following quarter they saw an increase in workshop inquiries and were able to expand their class offerings to accommodate the customer demand.
Phil Martin, MAS, national sales manager, Warwick Publishing: A dental supply company wanted a unique handout for their dental clients or potential clients. They selected the 955 Valoy because they can customize the calendar with information. The 955 comes standard with a full year printed on the back panel and a phone index under the pad. Because these two spaces can be customized they printed “SMILE” on the back of the calendar and under the pad they had an image of teeth with all the corresponding dental numbers. This is a great little reference calendar sitting in every dentist office across the country. They were very well-received and the dental supply company has repeated the order for several years. That’s the true beauty of the calendar – repeat business!