Visitors check out the offerings of different promotional product suppliers at the TIPPS (Team Iowa Promotional Products Showcase) event on Feb. 23 at the DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel in Cedar Rapids. The annual event organized by Team Iowa allows the promotional services company to network with suppliers as well as identify prospective clients.
If you can put a logo on it, Team Iowa will help.
The Cedar Rapids-based company connects businesses from the Corridor with promotional products, which co-founder Darrell McChesney says help clients gain an edge in the marketplace. With a premium on name recognition, making memorable swag is the name of the game for Team Iowa, which scored the title this year of Best Promotional Services Company, as voted by CBJ readers.
Darrell and Greta McChesney founded Team Iowa in 2010, but the couple had already logged more than a decade’s marketing experience with Solberg’s, another promotional services company also based in Cedar Rapids and run by Ms. McChesney’s family.
“It was time for a change for some different reasons, so we started our own business from that … and it was a pretty smooth transition, actually,” Mr. McChesney recalled. “So we have a considerable amount of experience in promotional products and corporate branding.”
Mr. McChesney, the director of business development, oversees the company’s small staff of about a half-dozen employees, and primarily serves corporate clients located in the Corridor.
Writing instruments, tote bags, apparel, company awards and trade show merchandise such as banners and table covers are all offered by the company. It is also invested in apparel such as uniforms and corporate wear, which Team Iowa customizes through a contract with a local decorator.
To set clients apart, however, many customers are opting for giveaways with a bit more flare. Electronics such as stylus pens, Bluetooth devices and power banks to charge cell phones are among the more upscale items companies are giving away lately, Mr. McChesney said.
“Right now, if someone’s going to give something out that’s going to be eye-catching, it’s going to be something in technology,” he said. “You give somebody a promotional item right now that has to do with technology and you’re going to have a bit of a ‘wow’ factor.”
“We sell thousands and thousands of koozies, and thousands and thousands of lip balms, and those are great items because you can get a lot for your dollar,” he added. “But if you want to ‘wow’ someone, you don’t had them a koozie.”
That ‘wow’ factor could be the difference between having a brief conversation with a prospective client and being passed over. Trade shows are a major draw for Team Iowa’s customers, although marketing efforts don’t necessarily have to wait until the event. Pre-mailers packaged with promotional items and sent to attendees in advance can help stoke interest in particular company or service.
In order to do that, Mr. McChesney said he spends considerable time finding materials that meet clients’ goals and budgets. While some clients are intent on finding standout products built for quality, he said others are intent on simply maximizing the volume of a particular giveaway to be passed out in bulk.
“We try not to do that marketing approach where you just cast the net out there and pull it in and see what you get,” he said.
While promotional products may appear like a niche market to some, Mr. McChesney estimated there are more than 65 companies in the Cedar Rapids area alone offering similar types of services. Yet the sea of competition only motivates Mr. McChesney and his company to exceed customers’ expectations.
“I don’t really worry about what other people are doing. I try to focus on what we can do and what we can do best.”
To gain needed exposure, Team Iowa also hosts an annual event called the Team Iowa Promotional Products Showcase, or TIPPS, where local businesses are invited to network with promotional product suppliers from across the country. Since launching five years ago, the invite-only event normally draws about 150 people.
TIMES ON LIST:
1st Time of Best of list
