Drinkware Promotions Make a Good Sell (Drink It In)

If you start the day with a cup of coffee or a glass of orange juice and finish the day with a glass of wine or a drink of water, you know just how vital beverages are. I, for one, can never choose which beverage I’ll enjoy most, and I typically order two to three options every time I go out to eat.

With at least one drinkware option in front of most people almost all day, it’s no wonder their popularity as a promotional option has grown. “Drinkware products are becoming more of a commodity item in the industry,” says Renee Maxey, president of American Zebra Line in Houston. “Not too long ago, suppliers who only sold bags or pens began selling drinkware items.”

What’s more, they’re an easy sell, Maxey says: “They are value priced and everyone uses some type of drinking vessel or beverage wrap.”

Moving along

Despite being quite ubiquitous, drinkware still has room for improvement — and it has seen much advancement recently. Gone are the days of simple, sketched images. Now, sharper printing techniques are applied to cups and mugs, upgrading the art possibilities. When the folks from Counterpoint and Digispec introduced Visstun last summer, they unleashed high-definition printing on reusable plastic cups (now available in paper, too) that “enables customers to be more creative and to promote ideas with the full impact of photo-quality images,” says Paula Piano, the company’s sales and marketing manager.

Aakron Rule Corp., based in Akron, N.Y., also introduced full-color digital printing available on many of its drinkware items this year. “This makes it very affordable and easy for all clients to show off the vivid colors of their companies’ logos,” says Denise Morgan, Aakron's marketing director. “One customer was very creative, ordering stadium cups for drinks at a weekend event. The imprint on the cup provided attendees with a detailed map of the grounds, first-aid information and other useful information about the event.”

The advancements haven’t stopped at printing capabilities. To fit with drinkware’s natural tie-in with environmentally friendly promos, Aakron Rule also introduced SAFE biodegradable plastic. “Aakron has made a commitment to the environment by developing a new type of environmentally friendly SAFE Biodegradable Plastic,” Morgan says. In as little as nine months, this U.S.-made plastic will biodegrade in landfills and composting conditions, and the material is available on more than 40 of Aakron’s products, including stadium cups, bottles, beer steins and mood drinkware items.

As demand for drinkware has increased, color and style trends have also expanded, making room for more varied options in the marketplace, says Jennifer Grigorian, director of advertising and marketing for Sweda Co. LLC in Monrovia, Calif. “Given what we know about the impact on the environment that single-use water bottles have, it is not only great exposure for your company brand and logo, but also a feel-good decision to use these water bottles instead,” she says. “Plus, think of all the money you save refilling from a filtered tap.”

Paired up

Given that its place in life is to hold something, drinkware can be perfectly paired with other promotional products to create just the impressions your clients desire. “Drinkware can be filled with coffee, hot-chocolate mix, tea, candy, mints or nuts,” suggests Gary Haley, senior vice president of sales for Beacon Promotions in New Ulm, Minn. “Or, it can carry a business theme of a client’s product or literature inviting the recipient to take a short coffee break and read or experience the advertiser’s product.”

With endless tag lines to fit your theme, drinkware lends itself to a wide array of promotions. “Drinkware is my favorite packaging option for gifts,” Grigorian confides. “You can put together a great gift by giving someone a fun, colorful water bottle they will use for outdoor activities and put a higher-end executive pen with personalization inside the bottle. It is a great way to be remembered by your client both during work and leisurely activities.”

With so many usage options, there are virtually no limitations here. In fact, Visstun has printed cups for everything from meetings and events to weddings, birthdays, anniversaries, and bar and bat mitzvahs. “The great thing about a cup is everyone can use one,” Piano says. “A cup can be used for a school with pencils or crayons in it. We have also seen customers order a cup and stuff a T-shirt in it for an event souvenir.”

BP-what?

The drinkware industry faced a major PR challenge earlier this year when concerns about the safety of plastics were ignited in the media. At issue was whether bisphenol A, or BPA, common in many plastics, has harmful health effects and whether people are ingesting harmful amounts of the chemical from their drinkware.

BPA is used to make polycarbonate plastic, a clear shatter-resistant material. It is found in many items, including eyeglasses, food cans, baby bottles, CDs, sports safety equipment and dental fillings. People may consume BPA if it leaches out of plastic into liquids.

While the Food and Drug Administration has continuously affirmed the safety of BPA in food and beverage containers, the U.S. government’s National Toxicology Program admitted this spring that experiments on rats linked the chemical to changes in behavior and the brain, early puberty and some possibly precancerous changes in the prostate and breast. Since the scare erupted, Wal-Mart, the world’s largest retailer, and Toys “R” Us have pledged to rid their stores of many items containing BPA.

So, what can you tell your clients who are wary of purchasing drinkware? “If there is a concern about BPA in a product, ask the supplier for a statement of content on the product,” Haley says.

Maxey also suggests checking with your suppliers. “Read and evaluate the articles provided by the manufacturer, not the media,” she insists.

If your clients are adamant about staying away from options containing any BPA, reach for the alternatives. Las Vegas-based Visstun’s reusable plastic cups are made of 100 percent 20mil polypropylene plastic. “They do not contain any polycarbonate and are reusable and top-shelf dishwasher safe,” Piano advises.

Many companies offer BPA-free alternatives “for those who are still a bit skeptical about using any type of reusable bottles,” Grigorian says. “We have many BPA-free water bottles, and they are very hip and stylish,” she adds. “They come in a variety of shapes, sizes, colors and, of course, price points, so everyone can get what they need and most importantly stay hydrated in the hot summer months!”

Case Study

Client: Three local businesses.

Objective: The businesses hoped to amp up goodwill, while the local junior high school baseball team needed to raise funds.

Plan: The local businesses agreed to buy stadium cups for the junior high baseball tournament. Each business had its advertisement printed on the cups from Beacon Promotions. The baseball team then sold root beer floats in them.

Result: The baseball team raised much-needed funds, while the three businesses all benefited from exposure for their small investment.

Another use: A new coffee shop owner bought stainless steel mugs and packaged some of the shop’s homemade treats inside the cup to hand out at the grand opening. Customers who brought the cup back another day were given a free cup of coffee.