How Swag Management Can Promote Sustainability at Dreamforce 2024

This swag management post is part of a series about Sendoso at Dreamforce 2019. Learn about our Send Zone experience and RSVP your spot here!

If you couldn’t tell from our recent blog posts, we’re getting a little excited for Dreamforce 2019  next month. Our favorite annual conference always delivers big with parties, inspirational panel discussions, and (of course!) all the fun and innovative company swag.

Promotional giveaways are synonymous with tradeshows and conference events. Showing off your #swag haul on social media has become as much a part of the attendee experience as getting a good seat for the keynote speakers. (This year’s hashtags are #DF19 and #swagforce, in case you’re wondering.)

Because of that excitement, swag management has become BIG business. Companies are spending more than ever to get their message across and use merch to connect with their prospects and customers. In fact, marketers spent an estimated $24.7 billion on promo swag last year alone, according to PPAI Research.

Why? Simply put: Swag works. It really works. In fact, PPAI reported that 80% of people enjoy receiving promotional giveaway items; just as many respond to them immediately, according to its 2019 Consumer Study.

For companies looking to make a big impact, the right swag becomes an important part of the strategy. But there’s another aspect to the swag revolution that needs attention.

Swag Management and Sensibility

Though it’s easy to forget while playing with our newest clever gadget or donning a snappy T-shirt, trade show giveaways make another big impact—on our environment.

For starters, the production of all that swag requires a lot of resources in raw materials, production, and shipping. While producers are heeding the call toward better, more sustainable (and durable) materials, what happens once it gets to market?

While 79% of people in the 2019 Consumer Study say they pass along promo items (meaning they gift, sell, or donate it), that still means a lot of items handed out at events end up in landfills.

Shipping hundreds of small items around the country can also add up in both shipping costs and carbon footprint for tradeshow presenters and sponsors.

With all these important facts in mind, this year we’re approaching swag management a little differently.

Sendoso’s Approach to Swag Management at Dreamforce 2019

We love crafting the perfect swag almost as much as we love our planet. So this year, during our Swag Zone at Dreamforce experience (RSVP here today!), we’re making swag more sustainable and drinks more sippable with branded, reusable drinking straws! They’re healthier for the environment (no plastic), super useful (less likely to get tossed), and small enough to pop into your luggage when it’s time to head home (no stressing about luggage weight limits!)

Beyond making swag more earth-friendly, we’re promoting what we believe is the best way to keep those items out of the landfill: giving the perfect gift—every time, with every customer.

“Okay,” you’re thinking. “How do we know what to give though?”

Traditionally, marketers pick swag based on what we think our audience will like. There’s plenty of studies on it, with several recurring themes. Wearables are a perennial hit and practical items are always welcomed.

We realized though, the thing everyone loves every time? It’s not a shirt or a fidget spinner…

It’s a code!

The Ultimate Swag Management Secret? Pick Your Promo!

There’s no better way to give each visitor their ideal gift than to let them choose. That’s why a digital swag store is one of our favorites ways to nail the swag game. Better yet? Creating a virtual swag store can make the process easy and impactful in all the right ways:

• Reduces Landfill Waste. Visitors to your booth are far more likely to use and keep a swag item they’ve selected personally, meaning it won’t get lost, tossed, or donated.
• Adds Convenience. Ever find yourself standing over a carry-on, trying to make all your swag fit, hoping it comes in under your max luggage weight? With a code, their gift can meet them at home or office. Plus, the process is totally automated. No need to flood your mailroom with packages!
• Reduces Shipping Costs. Sending 500 T-shirts cross-country or internationally by freight can really add up. Delivering perfectly selected swag to someone’s door reduces those costs. All you need to bring is a carry-on friendly stack of code cards!
• Increases Engagement. There’s one more perk to digital swag stores: At the end of the show, instead of an empty shipping crate and a stack of business cards to input? You can have a fresh crop of leads already integrated into your CRM. Bringing new prospects into your funnel with a marketplace means they’ll already be delighted, and more receptive to hearing from you after the show day.

Getting Started with Sustainable Swag Management

We make it easy to create your digital swag store and send delightful, personalized gifts right to your booth visitors and customers. We can help you create a stand-alone store filled with a variety of useful and sustainable items of interest to your audience.

Even better, if you already use a CRM or eCommerce platform, we can integrate your store right into existing workflows. It’s a great way to have visitors opt-in when they redeem their code and snag some swag. We offer integrations for many of the major CRM and eCommerce platforms, including Magento and Shopify.

We love the power of digital swag stores to provide an easy way to connect with your audience and plug your product without plugging up the landfills.

Calling All Trailblazers!

Are you heading to Dreamforce 2019 this November? We’d love to see you!

Reserve your spot at The Send Zone at the Oasis Grill to test your skill in our direct mail-packing Game of Sends, check out the Hall of Fame featuring our best send ideas, and enter our #swagforce sweepstakes for your chance to win our ultimate Dreamforce swag pack!

It’s a great place to take a breather from the Dreamforce bustle, refuel with some of San Francisco’s best Mediterranean food, and get inspired by chatting with one of our experts about how to rise above the noise.

See you there!