(Coshocton, OH)—Coshocton-based marketing firm and promotional products distributor Hasseman Marketing & Communications is growing again. Hasseman Marketing is excited to welcome Dustin Haywood back to their team. Haywood worked at Hasseman Marketing for 10 years previously and rejoins the team as Director of Marketing.
“I could not be more excited to have Dustin back on the team,” says Hasseman Marketing CEO, Kirby Hasseman. “Not only is he a great team player but he is incredibly talented. That will be great for us and our clients!”
In his new role, Dustin Haywood will not only help to market the services that Hasseman Marketing has to offer, but he will also provide marketing services to clients as well. This includes new digital marketing services for Hasseman Marketing clients. In addition, Haywood will also help to increase the video production services Hasseman Marketing offers.
“I am happy to be back home,” says Haywood. “The last several years I have had the chance to increase my knowledge base and skills and I can’t wait to use those to help our clients.”
If you want to help to grow your brand, inspire your tribe, or create a celebration with your organization, you will want to include branded drinkware. It makes sense! A great coffee mug or tumbler can be used nearly every day. It’s a very intimate branded piece (I mean, you put it in your mouth!)…and you don’t have to worry about sizes. A great piece of branded drinkware fits everyone!
But how much does a branded coffee mug cost?
It’s a good question…but a tough one. As we mentioned in this blog post about how much a custom t-shirt costs, it’s a little like asking “how much does a car cost?” It’s a tough question to answer because it depends on a lot of factors. So today we will tackle many of those factors so you can be more knowledgeable when picking the branded coffee mug you put your brand on!
What Kind of Material?
The kind of branded coffee mug you want can play a huge role in the cost. It’s an important question for you to understand because it will ultimately play a big role in whether or not your recipients actually want to use the mug. As I say all of the time, “Most everyone has a favorite mug. But they will often set that aside if you give them one they like better.”
Ceramic
When people think of a traditional coffee mug, the first thing that comes to mind is often the white ceramic coffee mug. And while that is certainly still an option, there are plenty of styles and options around a ceramic piece. Why use ceramic? For many people, it comes down to flavor. Why? Because ceramic is a solid and neutral material, it neither absorbs nor imparts flavors, leaving the coffee to taste just as it should.
Plastic
To me, the reason to choose a plastic coffee mug or tumbler is simple…price. Price is an important consideration in any branding campaign. But it should not be the only consideration. If you are going to use a plastic coffee tumbler, make sure the piece is BPA-free (here’s why). The safety of your customers, employees, and team members need to be at the top of your priority list…so please consider that when choosing your option! As a positive, there are some great BPA-free options and some are actually Made In The USA.
Stainless or Metal
Stainless or metal coffee mugs have become more and more popular over the past 10 years. I love my stainless travel mugs…especially when I am on the road. In addition, stainless has a very high perceived value with your clients. This adds power to the “gift” when you provide it to your recipients. Any time your client thinks you spent $20 on an item you spent $15 on…you are on the right side of that equation! In addition, a stainless coffee mug or tumbler often offers some cool and creative decoration techniques (more on that later).
Finally, in recent years, the technology around stainless has evolved to keep your hot drinks hot and your cold drinks cold for hours (think Yeti). This leads nicely to…
Single Versus Double Wall
For years, having a double-walled drinkware piece simply meant the mug would not “sweat.” But over the past 10 years, the technology of the Double-wall Vacuum Sealed Coffee Mugs has totally evolved. How does it work?
The key to this high-performance that keeps drinks cold (or hot) longer than traditional double-wall drinkware is a vacuum seal. This process essentially removes all air and other matter from between the interior and exterior walls of the tumbler. Creating a vacuum chamber in the middle of the tumbler stops all heat transfer by either conduction, convection, or radiation.
As you might expect, the double-walled vacuum sealed coffee mug is more expensive. But if you are looking for someone to connect with your brand for an extended period of time…it well might be worth it!
How Is It Being Decorated?
As you may or may not know, there are lots of ways to decorate a coffee mug. And depending on what way you go, it can have a huge impact on the cost of your project. I will go over a few of them here.
Silk Screening
I like to consider this the most standard decoration technique for coffee mugs. Silkscreen is a sophisticated stenciling technique for surface printing, in which a design is cut out of paper or another thin, strong material and then printed by rubbing, rolling, or spraying paint or ink through the cut-out areas. Most of your one or two color imprinting options can be well managed with this technique. This can be a very cost-effective way to imprint your coffee mugs, assuming you have enough quantity.
Pad Print
Pad printing can be a good technique for imprinting mugs when you only need a small quantity. It’s essentially the act of creating a die and “stamping” that imprint onto an item. It’s usually a process used to imprint items that are difficult to decorate using other techniques and is often done one at a time.
Sublimation
Using sublimation, you can create beautiful, full-color designs on a coffee mug. What is sublimation? Sublimation printing uses heat to essentially bring ink and fabric together as one. The process allows the ink to go from a solid to a gas without turning to liquid, a bit like dry ice. The conversion is initiated by heat and controlled by pressure. The upside is that, when done right, the images are beautiful and they are not going to come off. There is a downside though…most often, this can be a time-consuming and costly process.
Laser Etching
Laser etching can be a really cool-looking and elegant way to imprint a coffee mug or tumbler. Laser engraving is a process that vaporizes materials into fumes to engrave permanent, deep marks. The laser beam acts as a chisel, incising marks by removing layers from the surface of the material. What is created is a light imprint or a tone-on-tone look that can look sharp without being completely “in your face” from a branding perspective.
Other Factors To Consider
Okay…so we have talked about the kind of coffee mug or tumbler and the way it might be decorated. But there are a few more things you want to consider (or questions you might want to ask) before you order your organization’s coffee mugs. Here are a few!
How Many Do You Need?
In nearly every area of life we understand that when we order more, we can often get a better price. That is true with coffee mugs as well. On the other hand, if you only need them for a small team, you might consider your decoration options above so you can get the number you actually need. For example, some people can pad print or sublimate just a few coffee mugs, while you usually need to silkscreen more.
Personalization
We have long known that personalization is a powerful tool. It’s simple. If you put my name on something (maybe in addition to your logo), then I am much more likely to keep it! That puts my name with your brand on a branded piece that I use all of the time. As I said…powerful. But recently the technology to personalize has improved. More and more branded items are allowing you to personalize your customer’s name on them. Combine that with a time (during the pandemic) when it was more important than ever that we do NOT get our coffee mugs mixed up…and the number of orders that include personalization has increased a ton. It’s a powerful tool to use when creating a branding campaign (especially for current customers), but it does usually add cost.
Where Are They Shipping From?
One factor that is often forgotten is shipping. When it comes to branded drinkware, the location the items are shipping from is very important. Coffee mugs are expensive to ship, so I highly recommend that you ask where the FOB point is. If you are in Ohio, and you need an order quickly, shipping 288 coffee mugs from California can become cost-prohibitive.
But How Much Do They Cost?
Yes. I realize that after all of that I have still not given you an answer. I think you may now know why! It’s even harder as I write this because current issues with the supply chain are wreaking havoc on pricing! But because I want to give you an idea, I will define the parameters and give you an idea of what you should be paying…regardless of who you buy custom coffee mugs from. Below I will define the parameters for each of the options below. It will not be a hard and fast quote (you can reach out and request that here), but it can at least give you an idea of where to start.
Traditional Coffee Mug with One Color Imprint
This is basic and cost-effective. You can do something like this for anywhere between $2.15 and $4.00 (depending on quantity). And as I mentioned above, there are plenty of other ceramic styles and options to choose from.
Basic White Coffee Mug with Full-Color Imprint
This is the basic mug option that allows you to provide full-color graphics. With an item like this, you will be looking at anywhere from $4.25 to $7.50.
Plastic Travel Coffee Mug with One Color Imprint
Above I mentioned some of the concerns with plastic coffee mugs, but there are plenty of great BPA-free options. When considering this option you might be looking at anywhere from $3.50 to $7.50.
Stainless Double-Walled Travel Mug with Full-Color Imprint
This is the most expensive option, but it’s also the one with the highest perceived value. The range is wide depending on the brand specificity. For this option, you can spend anywhere from $10.00 to $30.00. This is the reason I have said that you should never buy a Yeti-branded coffee mug. There are some amazing options for this style. If you need help selecting one, feel free to reach out and we can help.
As you can see, there is a lot to consider. My hope is this arms you with information on how to get the right coffee mug for the right budget for your brand. Good luck!
It’s a tradition like no other. For over 15 years, Hasseman Marketing has hosted an “End User” trade show and has invited our customers. It’s evolved and grown over the years and we are quite proud of it. This year’s event will be Thursday, October 14th from 11 am to 3 pm at Coshocton County’s Lake Park! And since we missed hosting the event last year, we are ready to get back after it!
But why should you come? We want this event to be fun AND add a ton of value. Here are 6 reasons to attend The Hasseman Marketing Trade Show.
Incredible Product Access
We invite some of our top (and favorite) supplier reps to showcase their lines at the show. I like to say “There is no way I could fit all of this in my trunk.” You get to see and touch and feel the product and see what it’s really like. We all know that many products look the same online or in a catalog. But when you get them up close you can really see a difference. This is the perfect place to make sure your brand materials are on point.
Idea Generation
As you walk around and see the latest and greatest in Promo, you will come up with some great ideas for upcoming projects. The reality is, the show is at a great time of year for year-end gifts for your team or customers. But some of our best customers come every year and start to plan their marketing for the next year and beyond.
Great SWAG
Nobody leaves empty-handed! We put on a fun event where (with the help of our suppliers) we invest in putting some really cool SWAG in your hands. In addition, we build the event around a theme so you can see how we use a bunch of different items around a theme!
Additional Services
You may think you know all that we do at Hasseman Marketing, but we find that most people discover some new ways to promote their organization! Having all of the ideas in one place can be very illuminating! For example, did you know we do website development or in-house print services? We do. And you can find more about them at the event.
Tasty Food
You have to eat right? We have food and drinks as well. Each year we get compliments about the tasty treats and we know this year will be no different. The event this year is on Thursday, October 14th from 11 am to 3 pm at the Lake Park Pavilion (in Coshocton). Our goal is to create an event that provides value and fun…and you never want to miss.
Things Have Changed
I am not sure if you heard about it, but a lot has changed since we were able to do this event last! And while we are excited to get back together to get back to normal, there are some real business reasons you should attend. Your organization might have changed logos, brand messaging, go-to-market strategies, where people work, and so much more. Or, like some of our clients, you might just need to update your materials because it’s been 18 months since you’ve needed them!
Back in September of 2020, when we first posted the job of Jr. Designer at Hasseman Marketing, we had high hopes. We wanted someone that had some training in design but had not had a chance to show off their skills. In addition, we wanted someone that was a quick learner and a team player. And of course, we wanted someone that was willing to jump in and work hard.
Luckily, we got all of that and more in Katlyn McIntire.
Katlyn joined our team in November as a Junior Designer and has exceeded expectations. That is why we are so happy to announce that Katlyn has now been promoted to Graphic Designer on our team! As a part of that role, Katlyn will work on designs for clients, help with virtuals for promotional products projects, and will run our production printer. She can be reached via email at [email protected] or by calling the office at (740) 622-7429.
At Hasseman Marketing, we love t-shirts. They are one of the most powerful promotional items you can find. It’s a great item to use to build your own tribe and to send your message.
On this T-Shirt shop we will be creating fun t-shirt designs that will inspire, educate and entertain. We have started with just a few designs, but will be adding to the mix as inspiration or demand strikes!
As always, we will continue to offer customized t-shirts for your organization as well. How much do those cost? Great question…and one that is hard to answer. Here’s why. If you want to lean in on an awesome t-shirt for your organization, please feel free to reach out to us here.
As you can see, we have plenty of cool things happening. Make sure you never miss an update by signing up to be a part of our VIP list here. We send out one email each Monday morning to keep you up to date.
Whether you enjoyed it or not, 2020 taught us a lot of lessons. It turns out we need to wash our hands and cover our mouth when we cough. But once we got past the lessons we learned in Kindergarten, we found 5 marketing lessons from 2020 that can help us get ready to succeed in 2021…and beyond.
Use Foundational Marketing
When things are going well, it seems like every marketing tool and gimmick can be effective. But when times are tough, the opposite can be true. Not only can marketing efforts not work, but some can actually turn your clients off. That’s why 2020 taught us to make sure we have our “foundational marketing” shored up. This includes a more basic and cost-effective way of going to market. We found that our requests for direct mail went way up in 2020.
Why? Because our customers wanted to reach directly out to their prospects…and they wanted to do it in a very cost-effective way. Scratch that…they NEEDED to be cost-effective. When that happens, we often need to go “back to basics.” This means we saw an uptick in direct mail, postcards and custom calendars. These tools create the foundation for your marketing, and you should consider using them to build your brand in 2021.
Create Content…That Serves the Client
When everyone was required to start working from home, we saw a big spike in content being created. From our perspective, that is a good thing! But there is an important lesson to remember when creating content: it should serve the client. So much of what passes for “content marketing” these days is just a long form advertisement. While those pieces of content certainly has a place, the best content is created with the customer’s needs in mind. As a rule of thumb, no one searches for a commercial (unless they are created by Ryan Reynolds). Create something that answers a question you are asked all of the time. Giving value builds credibility with your audience and helps to create a relationship that can really help to grow your business.
Personalization Matters
Whether you want to create a marketing message that stands out, or you want to show your team that they are valued, personalization matters. As I said here, the most powerful marketing word is simple…someone’s name. This has always been true, but 2020 made us understand in a whole new way. Not only does personalization matter to help your marketing stand out, it can also be a safety precaution! No one wants to drink out of the wrong tumbler during a pandemic! Giving value through content is a great way to show someone that you care…and so is putting their name on a branded gift!
Real Cause Marketing Matters
One of my favorite trends in marketing has been the increase in organizations tying their brand to a cause. When we can promote our company AND do some real good in the world, that is a slam dunk. It’s become such a trend that it seems some companies are hopping from cause to cause, hoping to catch lightening in a bottle from their ‘good work.” I don’t think that is the way to do it. It feels forced, and the audience will sniff that out. On the other hand, if you can help a cause that really resonates with your brand and your team, you can not only make a difference…you can create great marketing too!
For years, we have been proponents of focusing on higher quality branded merchandise and promotional products. The reason is simple: these items represent your brand. If you use cheap promotional products, that is what prospects will think of you! That concept has been highlighted in ALL CAPS during the pandemic. Why? Because most of the events where companies handed out “cheap swag” were cancelled. So in order to reach their customers, organizations were forced to drop ship branded merchandise directly to customers. And let’s face it, if you are spending $10 to $20 to ship something to your clients, you shouldn’t waste your money just sending a $.49 pen!
But an interesting thing happened. When organizations needed to be more thoughtful about their branded merchandise, effectiveness of the media actually increased! It turns out, when you create quality branded merchandise, your customers and prospects get excited to rep your brand. It’s called Delivering Marketing Joy…and 2020 has taught us that it is alive and well in marketing done right.
These are just 5 marketing lessons from 2020. We are excited to use these lessons in 2021…and beyond!
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