Why Your Brand Should Consider Wearable Tech For Promotional Products
Sharing unique promotional products with consumers, prospects and clients is a time-honored marketing tradition. As wearable technology grows increasingly advanced, however, companies must also adapt their outreach strategies to cater to these evolving consumer preferences. Here's why wearables are an essential part of any promotional marketing plan.
What Are Wearables?
Wearable technology includes everything from smartwatches and fitness trackers to safety monitors that parents can use to keep an eye on their children via their mobile devices. Although wearables have diverse purposes, they all feature some form of computing platform that can be worn on the body like a normal garment or accessory.
Some wearables collect data about the user, such as their heart rate or location. Others are designed to perform useful functions, like displaying notifications from a wearer's nearby phone.
Why Wearables and Promotion Are Natural Partners
The wearables market is growing at a significant pace. IDTechEx predictions from 2017 projected that the sector would be worth $150 billion each year by 2027.
Fitness trackers alone may generate $7.3 billion in revenues in 2017. During the first three months of the same year, Apple shipped 3.5 million of its Apple Watches.
What do these developments imply for marketers? In short, increasing demand makes technology an effective promotion tool. Businesses can leverage the popularity of wearables in an as-yet unsaturated market to expand their brand footprints. Furthermore, these products enable brands to connect with their audience on a more personal level by integrating with their everyday lifestyle - especially in the millennial and Gen Z consumer demographics.
Putting Wearables to Work
Companies that seek to capitalize on consumers' love of wearables can't simply flood trade shows and giveaways with cheap fitness trackers. One unique aspect of the wearable tech market is that it lends itself to customization and freedom of choice. Since there are many sources of such technology, consumers want hardware that actually serves their needs.
Making Outreach More Effective
Smart marketers respond to these realities by focusing on providing wearable products that enhance people's lives within their target demographic. For instance, someone who doesn't work out very often may have little use for a fitness tracker. If they routinely walk around or are visually challenged, however, then they might appreciate smart insoles that vibrate to let them know when they've reached their destination.
Understanding the key attributes and triggers of your target audience is essential in selecting the right wearable products that will resonate with consumers and effectively promote your brand.
Finding the Ideal ROI Balance
Wearable tech has a vast range of functionality. Whereas other promotional items can afford to be generic if they get the job done, competitive wearable marketing is more impactful when businesses vary their offerings.
This doesn't mean, however, that advertisers need to exhaust their budgets on wearable outreach.
One of the nicest aspects of wearables is that the market emerged in an already globalized state. Today, firms can select a range of devices built by manufacturers around the world to lower the costs of promotion.
They can then use high-end hardware, like branded smartwatches, to drum up interest in contests and other special events. By adopting a mixed approach, firms derive heightened value from the wearable promotion without missing critical opportunities for growth.
Does your business promote itself using wearable tech? Learn more about these unique promotional products by talking to one of our experts.