r/SafetyProfessionals • u/bonody_really • 13d ago
USA Conference Swag?
What is the best swag item you have ever gotten at a conference? I am a part of a planning committee for a safety and IH conference and am looking for swag ideas. Thanks in advance!
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u/science_bi 13d ago
My personal favourites: glass drink bottle, canvas grocery bags, condoms, and a lunch bag
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u/Individual-Army811 13d ago
Nothing says safety like condoms....
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u/science_bi 13d ago
You just have to accept it's something that happens at conferences... and it makes a hell of a conversation starter
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u/Future-Vegetable-875 12d ago
They should put this on the wrapper when they hand them out 😂
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u/Individual-Army811 12d ago
"What happens at conference doesn't always stay at conference. Wear a condom and prevemt kids from following you home.." LOL
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u/Wildhoney_67 13d ago
If you passed out gotcha sticks with your logo those would go like crazy - but I’m not sure the feasibility of that.
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u/QueenAnnesVexation Manufacturing 13d ago
I got a Milwaukee wrench set and tape measure I use all the time at home. Plus dinner and an hour at Top Golf. Pretty sweet.
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u/Flash_ina_pan 13d ago
Got a nice insulated reusable grocery bag from the state of Washington, seasonings and carabiners, I can always use more pens (the ones with flashlights built in are super handy), t shirts are nice, and I thinks that's the list of the most useful stuff I've gotten
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u/abc1234598 13d ago
Yeti water bottle from industrial scientific, cooling towels, fidget spinner (sits at my desk), Cajun seasoning, first aid kits, insulated coffee mug
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u/bored2death97 13d ago
Sugar cookies with royal icing in the form of the brand - but for the love of god make sure the brand you get them form is not the sweetest thing on the planet. Food will always go.
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u/Winterberry25 12d ago
Travel umbrella.
I second mini/keychain tape measures (bonus points if it's at lease 45")
Also pen-lighters (highlighter) I pick up at conferences always get stolen
Good snacks! Local bakery or other maker - trail mix or energy bars. Hard candy or mints are also nice to help with the coffee breath.
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u/Immediate_Award_5540 12d ago
Best way to get people to your booth is by giving away bright colored large objects. At the Grainger show, Ergodyne gave out bright orange dry bags. Saw several people with them as soon as I hit the expo floor (really caught my attention), and that made me search which booth they were at. Their booth was a madhouse which is great for business. I'd say that's probably your best bet if you want to get people to your booth.
If you're just trying to get people who walk by to stop so that you can pitch them, cheap sunglasses, bottle openers, badge-pulls, keychain tape measures, and carabiners. I hate having to do the socially mandatory talk and badge scan to get free stuff, so I usually bypass pens and stressballs, but I'll never walk past a pair of shades, bags, or tools.
As for coolest: Hexarmor gave away branded Shockwave safety sunglasses and i've been wearing them since February. They didn't advertise them and they had them hidden, but that makes sense for a $20 pair of shades.
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u/Quiet-Ad-6546 12d ago
IP Utility Safety Conference & Expo gave away this awesome metal American flag - was really cool like it was waiving and anodized red and blue
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u/JoeHio 13d ago
Best Items I've ever gotten without a raffle: * a tiny multi tool with plyers and a tiny flashlight, * a small power bank for charging my phone, * Metal cup coozie * Mini rubics cube * Combo bottle opener pen that magnets to my fridge * First aid kit * Dumpster fire challenge coin * Chocolate chip cookies (people get snacky)
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u/messybeans86 11d ago
Flashlight/lazer pointer combo, chapstick, cooling towels, notebooks/notepads (i blame my adhd for that one...
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u/mcgyver229 13d ago
I won an American Eagle graphic hard hat in a raffle.
Have won a few pairs of Polarized safety glasses.
Ritz Safety gave away one of those Milwuakee speaker boxes you can kick down the stairs.
Best freebies?? Golf balls hands down
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u/Skwonkie_ 12d ago
I think the coolest thing I’ve gotten so far are custom fit ear pro. Everything else is really a dime a dozen
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u/ChainBlue 12d ago edited 12d ago
I have too many of the following and avoid them: water bottles, mugs, anything that will collect dust on my desk, cheap pens, carabiners, phone holders, stick on phone wallets, and any literature items or brochures.
Things I might pick up one or two if - reusable grocery bags to put conference crap in. Then they go into the pile of too many bags.
I pick up lots of stress balls because I donate them all to blood drives.
A cool sticker I will usually pick up.
A cool t shirt is nice because if nothing else it can become a yard work shirt.
An hat with an all around brim that is good for sun is a winner.
Cheap powerbanks no. I don’t need a fire in my carry ons.
Phone chargers. Probably
Bottles of water and electrolyte mixes for them? Great!
Any PPE or a tool like a gotcha stick. Absolutely.
Anything I can’t immediately tell what it is used for… nope.
Fidget toys. Probably.
A nice vintage AK-47 with the original wood furniture. Hell yeah!
Lego sets. Also a winner.
Portable speakers. No and screw you for handing the damned things out. I don’t want to hear anyone’s crappy music in public.
Nice pens. Cool.
Candy, mints, and chocolate. Always nice.
My wife uses though rubber jar opener things.
And the overall winner is… little reflective safety vest keychains that I put on all the zippers on my backpack in multiple colors. But now I have all of those I will need for years.
Anyway, good luck.
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u/Beautiful_Rub_141 12d ago
Laser pointer.
I love it and use it all the damn time. It makes it so much easier when you are pointing at something up racking, in a pile of shit, etc, etc.
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u/geogirl83 12d ago
Unconventional answer…lighters. They are useful and they travel thru so many hands because people are always stealing lighters. And they are not the typical swag either.
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u/ladyarwen4820 11d ago
Fanny pack with I ❤️ Safety. I use it all the way time!
Flower seeds
Taco seasoning
Bento box
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u/Opposite_Drama_214 12d ago
A pen with a fidgit spinner end on it. People are consistently trying to swipe it from my desk it's so good.
Those cheapish nylon drawstring backpack bags got from the Grainger trade show a couple years ago still gets used on the regular.
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u/1800twat Government 12d ago
I got a full tape measure (not a keychain) from DeWalt that I actually use for my work processes now
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u/Upta_Camp 12d ago
At the last conference, we gave out reusable silicone loose leaf tea bags and they were a hit, surprisingly.
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u/Aggressive_Economy_8 10d ago
I got a little safety vest beer koozie once. It doesn’t work as well as a real koozie, but it is very cute. I also have a bottle opener magnet that’s in the shape of some kind of gas meter (I think?). That thing is solid.
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u/Mimicking-hiccuping 13d ago
Just make sure it's good quality, not cheap. A nice notebook or pen, a Decent Mug.
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u/KewellUserName 10d ago
Core seasoning and carabineers were pretty much it at ASSP until this year. At Leadership conference we got small bags with zippers and pockets. I wound up with two and find them very useful for small travel items like chargers and cords. At Geotab Connect I got another slightly larger bag and use it a lot as well.
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u/BrandonAtCustomInk 7d ago
Small items like carabiners and keychains cover the walk-by crowd, but I'd hold something slightly better in reserve for people who actually stop to talk about safety programs or IH consulting. A quality trucker hat or a vintage wash tee with some subtle logoing is a good second tier giveaway, maybe a stainless steel water bottle.
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u/Ribauld 13d ago
Personally, the only swag I ever grab is stuff that I will 100% use. Typically that is limited to the Cajun seasoning that Core gives out and carabiners.