Branders client Pete Hausamann of Snug Clothing had a cool idea to promote the Swiss T-shirt brand. "We had some neon sunglasses made with Branders for a giveaway, but at the same time we sell it in stores for a low price," shares Pete in an e-mail. The cool idea worked. "Our clients love [the sunglasses] a lot and it helped our young clothing brand a lot to get new customers, because this year, neon colors and the style of the glasses really are in fashion," Pete explains. Snug Clothing also found a brilliant idea of touching base with its market through concert promotions. In fact, Pete gave out some of these sunglasses for musicians to wear during a performance. In the shot above, Lightspeed Champion (aka Dev Hynes) is wearing these same sunglasses during a concert at the Openair Festival in St. Gallen, Switzerland. Do you have a cool Branders success story? Share it with us! E-mail me at cbenjaminATbrandersDOTcom. Hope to hear from you! Image credit: Pete Hausamann

Gifts and giveaways to warm everybody in this brrrr season: This coffee gift set comes with an 11oz white mug that you can customize with your logo, and some chocolate biscotti, gourmet cappuccino, and three coffee candies (as low as $7.02). A good gift to have on standby when friends stop by unannounced. Scarves at all price points, from as low as $1.96 to as much as $7.18, are great fashion accessories for men and women. This micro fleece custom blanket ($8.93) is available in 11 different colors to match your logo. What's great about this is when the season gets warmer, your recipients can still use it for picnics and other outdoor activities. These promotional winter safety kits ($7.97) are great must-haves for those are on the road throughout the season. I remember during many of my business trips how it was such a pain to be walking in the streets without nothing to warm my hand. This winter kit includes hand warmers (they're big blessings when you're freezing), a tube of lip balm, and an emergency blanket. These full-zip promotional fleece jackets ($20.61) with hood are one of the best ways to stay visible in this cold season. Post-winter, they're great workout companions.

Looking for something to get you on top of the competition? Promotional caps are one of your best bets--people wear them on their heads, so they're naturally visible and constantly in the line of sight. They're flexible giveaways--you can use them for a retail shop, a trade show, or a sports event. Here's how to make sure your promotional caps give you the success you want: Find a free-size custom cap. Headsize (I'm tempted to say "headroom") is practically on top 3 of any buying guide on promotional caps. People's head sizes vary, so one cannot buy a hundred or so promotional caps of a specific size because some of them may not fit your recipients' heads. The solution? Get the ones with hook-and-loop tapes to make the back adjustable. Choose a durable, colorfast fabric. Your promotional caps should withstand the wear and tear, so find a quality model that does not fade easily. Embroider your logo. It's more expensive than printing, but the effect is impressive. Embroidery also renders your logo flawlessly--the details and colors simply stand out. Branders client Jessica Gopalakrishnan of Home Gain, a real estate agency, shares that her company ordered some Anvil Cotton deluxe unstructured caps to give away ...

Do you know that promotional items have been used for electoral campaigns for more than 200 years now? As early as the 1800s, political nominees were already using everything from cigarette packs, nylon stockings, women's brushes, sewing boxes, buttons, and parasols to build up on their visibility. We've seen some Obama shirts around (here, worn by Ryan Phillippe) and some really funny ones for McCain, but what I'm really intent on seeing one of these days is a Sarah Palin scarf. They say that during her last pregnancy, she had this "penchant for beautiful scarves." With winter coming up very soon, promotional scarves--whether they were given out for elections or not--will surely come handy. And what do you say, scarves are becoming "the next accessory of expression" for men and women. [Scarves] have been resurrected not as throat warmers but as something that can be added to a dressed-down look like a V-neck T-shirt and jeans to give it a dressed-up flash. You might even call the scarf the necktie of the T-shirt scene, since it seems to look better with a T-shirt than a plain-collar dress shirt. [Source: New York Times]

It's September! Leaves are falling, and in a few weeks' time the temperature will start going down. It's the perfect opportunity to review your wardrobe, ditching the weather-inappropriate ones, and adding some fashionable pieces to spice up your usual ensemble. I've always loved scarves. They're handy accessories to have when you're trying to add some class to an ordinary shirt-and-pants outfit. They're also perfect for men! I just love how a scarf livens up a guy's overall appearance. These Red House promotional scarves (at least $64.82) are not only smart and weather appropriate, they're also super comfy and soft. They come in three shades: charcoal heather, camel, and navy blue--"safe" colors that your male recipients won't hesitate to add to their everyday getup. They're a bit pricey, I agree, and only because they're made of pure fleece, but for a corporate gift that guarantees logo exposure for many years, the investment is priceless. Some easy-on-the-pocket promotional scarves: Port & Company knitted scarves (at least $8.32) - These promotional acrylic scarves come in classic colors that blend well: camel, navy blue, oxford grey, and black. Deluxe acrylic scarves (at least $7.18) - Great savings with these promotional scarves, with set-up charges waived until December 31, ...

I'm back! I hope you enjoyed having Garrett for company during the last two weeks. Garrett will still be with us over the next few weeks so you'll still be hearing from him about everything promotional. What I like about this whole eco-friendly movement is that it forces suppliers to be more creative in finding alternative materials to create new products. Imagine this: shopping bags made of doy packs; jewelry and cosmetics from fish scales (even T-shirts, says one China-based news site); soy and bamboo fiber and even recycled PET (yes, the very bottles that hold our drinking water) into clothing! See? If we really try, we can actually incorporate used materials in most products that we use, and that's good because it means we're not touching new resources. One of my favorite eco-friendly materials is bamboo fiber, which is now widely used in socks and is proving to be a good alternative because of its antibacterial properties. No more stinky socks! (Those who do the laundry are having a silly dance right about now.) Promotional socks embroidered with your logo make great gifts to male recipients in your gift list. Their wives will love you more, we can promise you that. A ...

I notice that when I see successful individuals they look and play the part. They dress nice and have expensive cars--basically they look like they have money. But success isn't just measured by just your salary. Individuals are successful because they achieved the goals they set out for themselves. For example, being apart of a loving family, or getting the gold in the Olympic games. People set out goals that they want to achieve whether it be short-term goals or long-term goals. On the other hand, when I see successful businesses, they also look and play the part. Their web page looks professional, or I might see their logo on something with more value to it than a pen or a mug. Not that anything is wrong with putting a brand name on a promotional pen or mug, but it's also beneficial to put your brand name on something with more value. For example a promotional fleece jacket, or a premier duffel bag. When people see brand names on promotional items that are more costly, you are telling them that you are a successful business because you treat your clients with care and respect. This gives your business the clients that ...

While giveaways guru Celine is away, our intern Garrett is guest-posting this week. It's just like wearing around a promotional T-shirt with your logo imprinted on it. Why not compliment that with a new promotional lanyard? A custom lanyard is as easy to see visually as a promotional t-shirt or a pair of promotional pants. This is beneficial on the promotional aspect and on the fashion side as well. Looking better put together because of matching colors with even a lanyard. That's a class move. You would be promoting your product while making your life a little bit easier.

One of the best advice I've heard about promotions is "Go where your customer goes." Everyone's basking in the sun this season, so why not incorporate some outdoor promotional items in your marketing campaign? This season's most recommended giveaways include the following: T-shirts, which offer a lot of display area for your corporate logo. Stand out in the crown with bright, attention-catching shades. Sunscreen are so in these days! Young and old alike use it, so you're reaching a bigger demographic with a promotional item like sunscreen. I am loving this carabiner-style sunscreen that you can so easily lodge onto your jeans belt loop or on your backpack's zipper pull. Golf umbrellas provide shade to patrons and offer a huge imprint area. Among the many promotional golf accessories available, golf umbrellas offer the highest potential in raising awareness because they're out there for all to see.

If you're thinking of the best promotional items for this season, don't look far. What better way for your brand to be "out there" than with custom T-shirts? At this time, everybody's raring to soak up the sun or lounge in the beaches, so why not join the whole gang? Whether it's for the youth, the baby, or adults, Branders.com has thousands of choices, it'll make you cry, "Uncle!" Plain shirts make a great canvas for your corporate logo. If you're bored with white shirts, why not get them shiny bright tops like this? Your brand is sure to stand out. Just make sure to play around with a couple of colors so you know which one complements your logo. Promotions doesn't always mean spending and not getting anything back. Custom shirts are great merchandise that you can earn a buck or two from.  Hotels, resorts, and B&Bs can use these are souvenir items, and it's a sure investment, as long as they're not overpriced and they're well designed. After all, everybody wants something to remember a fun holiday by. Need help choosing from Branders' promotional shirts? Call your account manager for advice. If you don't have one, SIGN UP HERE and ...