One of the ranges of business gift ideas that remain popular to this day is the great choice of promotional mugs. These days, it is not so much about paying high unit cost for an elaborate design, the majority of enquiries are for cheap promotional mugs that tick the box on the ultimate requirement – to hold tea and coffee – and also allow great branding possibilities as well as being a gift that will receive significant usage.

Cheap promotional mugs make up the majority of the sales of this type of merchandise and again this highlights the trends in the business community to provide a promotional mug to a client or target audience that does the job, with no whistles and bells! The choice of mugs is fantastic these days and the coffee shop generation has contributed to some really contemporary designs coming into this market, but at the end of the day, you want your marketing spend to work to the maximum for you and you can rely on the cheap promotional mugs to do that.

As with most things, the higher volume selling products usually provide the lowest cost base to work from and this is true within the select few cheap promotional mug models. There are at least 3 best selling products that are worth highlighting. They provide attractive and appealing designs, a selection of colours to provide additional choice and the flexibility in terms of branding area and methods.  These are the Sparta, Durham and Bell:

Sparta Earthenware Mug
This design is probably the best known of all cheap promotional mugs. It is now available in several standard colours as well as traditional white. Printing methods are anything from single spot colour work, through to dye-suyblimation up to full colour process printing. This mugs sits well in an office or shop floor environment.

Durham Mug
Another of the traditional cheap promotional mugs. This has a chunkier feel and design, good capacity for drinks and a fantastic print area allowing all the techniques for the other mugs as well as photo mug and heat sensitive printing methods to add extra value. A real best selling option to consider.

Bell Mug
This is a mug that would again have fantastic universal appeal, male and female alike in any working environment. Like the other cheap promotional mugs, the bell has several standard colour options and a good branding area.

Please free to contact Steel City Marketing on 0114 2754150 to discuss cheap promotional mugs or any other business gift idea.

One of the most commonly purchased promotional item remains the mug. Essentially a product that has an everyday use and were it not given would almost certainly be purchased, the promotional mug is an ideal giveaway item to consider for the amount of impressions it can receive during its lifetime. The Sparta mug is probably the most famous of all promotional mugs, with popularity spread equally from the office to the construction site, male and female alike.

The Sparta mug falls into a set of the most popular earthenware mugs. Along with several others, these remain at the lowest promotional mug price points due to the volume sold per annum allowing greater purchasing power from the Far East by the various UK importers. So not only does the Sparta mug have a universally appealing design, it also ticks the box as being the lowest priced earthenware mug on the market.

Traditionally earthenware mugs were restricted to white ceramics. As with most things, advances in manufacturing have improved choice. The Sparta mug is now available in several colours.

Promotional mugs now have the additional feature of covering all the bases in terms of branding possibilities. Spot colour screen printing is obviously fine, along with  additional techniques such as dye sublimation, and full colour process printing. The Sparta mug can equally take a transfer print to the inside rim or base, which can be a great impact branding method for messages, websites or phone numbers.

The benefit to using promotional mugs in your campaigns is not only the likelihood of the item being used over and over again, but also the great print area possible. The Sparta mug does not disappoint here either with a healthy 185 x 70 mm screen print area.

Packaging should not be ignored when looking at purchasing a mug such as the Sparta mug in bulk. Obviously these are usually packed in large cartons of 36, but equally, individually poly boxing can be purchased, allowing these promotional mugs to be sent out as a direct mail campaign, or business gift.

A promotional mug such as the Sparta mug is an incredibly popular choice. Should you require a price, please contact a member of the experienced sales team at Steel City Marketing on 0114 2754150 who will be delighted to assist.

The promotional items that often show the best results are the ones that have an initial impact, encouraging the recipient to show others, to keep the product and therefore gaining many valuable impressions as time progresses. Heat sensitive mugs fit the bill as that type of promotional item perfectly. Earthenware mugs continue to remain towards the top in terms of sales of promotional merchandise and business gift ideas, and often this is due to the value for money they offer, the guaranteed daily use a “favorite” mug will get and finally due to the great print area. To add value and make your mug a heat sensitive one is a really good idea to make sure it is the one used over and over again.

Heat sensitive mugs are produced and printed in much the same way as any promotional mug, with screen printing, dye sublimation and full colour process all possible these days on good “wraparound” print areas. Transfer printing methods even allow branding to the inside rim or base, adding a secondary message that can have significant impact.  Where heat sensitive mugs slightly differ is the final stage of production. This heat sensitive coating is applied to either partly or fully cover the message you want to reveal and when hot liquid is added to the mug, this becomes visible. As the mug cools, the heat sensitive coating is restored to its original colour, which can be in either a black or blue. It is also possible to have a screen printed logo or message constantly visible by adding this after the heat sensitive coating has been applied, another idea to consider for your promotional mug.

Traditionally the heat sensitive mugs have been restricted to the straight-sided Durham style earthenware promotional mug. This still remains the iconic and best-known heat sensitive mug on the market. However, as with most things, advances in technology has allowed other styles to be produced and made available with the same feature. Available now are the small latte heat sensitive mugs as well as the large version, providing the coffee shop generation something to purchase on the promotional side that has a unique feature.

Although the heat sensitive mugs are microwave safe, prolonged heating should be avoided. As soon as the colour change process is complete, the heat sensitive mug should be removed from the microwave in order to maintain the condition of the mug. The heat sensitive mugs are not dishwasher safe due to the nature of the coatings and harsh abrasives should be avoided. In order to keep the mug looking good, the suggestion is to use mild cleaning detergents in moderate temperatures.

Steel City Marketing have been distributing promotional gifts for over 28 years. Our experienced sales can be contacted on 0114 2754150 to discuss heat sensitive mugs or any other promotional and business gift idea you may wish to consider.