Swag
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The gift boxes are a great idea!
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Another big winner for me was the "in flight sleep kit" from Webroot, Dominica and I each got one.
Why do I like it:
- Pretty small but inflates to be useful (there is a theme here).
- Unique, never gotten one of these before.
- Useful, like more conference attendees we travel by plane often and this is something we would like to have.
Like the beach ball, these actually made the cut for the trip to Central America this weekend. In fact, these little inflatable neck pillows replaced much larger and heavier neck pillows that we have been bringing with us in the past. So these ended up being quite a large win for us and will likely be a permanent part of our travel accouterments. Brilliant swag idea.
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Along the beach ball idea from Scott,
The fans that VNC had can be quite handy. They fold down and can typically fit in a pocket. They aren't real cheap unless you order at least 1000 of them, but for a vendor that's probably not an issue. My local Star Wars group looked at getting these made, but footing $1000 from what is mostly a poor group for give-aways killed it. -
WD charging cables from SW Austin and Webroot charging cables from SW London:
- Small and cute.
- Highly practical, things that we actively need regularly but never buy for ourselves.
Again, both items that made our cut for international travel! Hard to believe it but Webroot actually scored TWO items that are in our regular travel items list which is incredibly tight. That, to me, is a sign of a really great item. These aren't just things we are "willing to keep" but things we are happy to use and, except for the beach ball, replace inferior items from our normal lives!
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Some kid-focused items are really nice. Symantec has done giveaways of some really cool project kits for kids, high end electronic educational stuff. And several vendors have given away Legos - little tiny things perfect for kid and adults alike (@dominica enjoys doing Legos on her own, she likes themed kits.)
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At our last conference we gave away apples (the fruit not computers). I was sceptical, but they turned out to be very popular.
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@Carnival-Boy said:
At our last conference we gave away apples (the fruit not computers). I was sceptical, but they turned out to be very popular.
And presumably, inexpensive. The biggest question, though, is do you remember which vendor it was?
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I think the idea was to get people to stop by our stand and have a chat, rather than to remember us.
I hate all swag. The best is crap I can give to my kids as a present when I get home. The worst is mouse mats. Who still uses mouse mats?
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@Carnival-Boy said:
I think the idea was to get people to stop by our stand and have a chat, rather than to remember us.
Makes sense.
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@Carnival-Boy said:
I hate all swag. The best is crap I can give to my kids as a present when I get home. The worst is mouse mats. Who still uses mouse mats?
We do, strangely, because we often live in houses with glass kitchen tables and no desks
But I'm with you, what a bizarre swag item. Let's give out 8-track holders too. -
I do mostly prefer swag that is for the kids. But a lot of people seem to love swag, they seem obsessed with it. Something about "free" plus, I suspect, a hoarding problem or something. I don't hate all swag, but I often dislike it. I love really good swag, but it is rare. I like swag that is really nice, very useful and from a vendor that I like. Put that all together and I'm quite happy.
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Useful swag is something that is hard to come by. For me I prefer good quality notebooks, phone chargers and snacks, conference food sucks and you need things to munch on.
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1 good conference Tshirt as well. Which I am going to try and get the Vendors to all chip in on. 1 Shirt all the vendors logos on the back and one graphic for the front. Not 30 of them and 90% of them suck.
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@Carnival-Boy said:
I think the idea was to get people to stop by our stand and have a chat, rather than to remember us.
wait a min, isn't the whole point to remember them, chat or no? but even more so after the chat, assuming you have need of their services?
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Call me simple minded, but I prefer good bottle/can koozies!
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@Minion-Queen said:
Useful swag is something that is hard to come by. For me I prefer good quality notebooks, phone chargers and snacks, conference food sucks and you need things to munch on.
I thought the food was really good at SW this year. One thing over the two SpiceWorlds I've been to - they have ample food! I am beyond frustrated when you are somewhere and they run out of food. I hate rushing the line, rather sit back, relax and hit the food after the line has died down, but usually this causes me to get scraps or in some cases, nothing at all.
Someone else pointed out to me, they liked to hit the vendors when the food started. Most people would be in line for food, and this person would head to the vendors to get some one on one time.
So to sum it up - have plenty of food.
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What @Dashrender said in the first post, plus for prizes amazon gift cards
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I only wear them at conventions, but lanywards with a bottle opener in them. I have several where there is a release clip near the end, and buckle portion is a bottle opener. Though wouldn't be very useful when going to a bar.
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@donaldlandru said:
Call me simple minded, but I prefer good bottle/can koozies!
How many of those can you need? I know very few people who use them and no one that isn't flush with them, drawers full of them. It's a great idea for people in hot locations but being from the north they aren't used there in any quantity and in the south people just throw them out left and right. That's my experience, anyway.
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@scottalanmiller said:
@donaldlandru said:
Call me simple minded, but I prefer good bottle/can koozies!
How many of those can you need? I know very few people who use them and no one that isn't flush with them, drawers full of them. It's a great idea for people in hot locations but being from the north they aren't used there in any quantity and in the south people just throw them out left and right. That's my experience, anyway.
I must be a rare bird then.
It is not uncommon for us to have 20 - 30 people over for a movie night, game party, or what have you once or twice a month. Every drink has a koozie on it including soda. I used to collect lanyards but my wife thinks the koozies are more practical.
