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Q&A With
Patrick Black
PRESIDENT/CEO, DISTRIBUTOR PERFECT IMPRINTS (UPIC: PERFIMPR)
TALKS TRENDS IN RESTAURANT AND BAR PROMOTIONS
FEBRUARY 2016 •
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PPB
What do you recommend to
bars and restaurants that want to
use promotional products?
Black
I typically recommend three
types of products for restaurants:
products that bring new customers
into their establishment, products that
reinforce branding of their restaurant,
and products that help bring patrons
back to their restaurant.
PPB
What challenges do you face
when working with these clients?
Black
The biggest challenge when
providing ideas to clients is educating
them that promotional products are
much more than a simple commodity.
Many clients call to order items with
no real plan of how they will distrib-
ute the items. I like to help my
clients work out a plan to use their items for maximum
effectiveness so their promotional items will help attract
new customers as well as strengthen relationships with their
existing customers.
PPB
What characteristics set bar and restaurant clients
apart from other industries?
Black
Restaurants typically have a larger number of competi-
tors than other industries. Because of this, being creative to
entice patrons to visit and frequent their restaurant is
extremely important. Creative marketing campaigns coupled
with promotional products can help those restaurants stand
out boldly among their competitors.
PPB
What’s hot with clients these days?
Black
Some of the most popular items with bars and restau-
rants are ones you would expect, such as pens, coasters,
feather flags, banners, yard signs, menus, aprons, t-shirts and
drink tokens. Many of these “staple” products are often
ordered two to three times per year. We also have a large
number of clients who order beer buckets so they can offer
“Bucket of Beer” specials to their cus-
tomers, and several clients who offer an
extraordinary hot sauce, salad dressing,
salsa or other great food product they
like to bottle and sell. We assist these
clients in creating a retail look for their
packaging to help them sell more of
those products.
PPB
What’s not so hot anymore?
Black
Matchbooks used to be a big seller
for bars and restaurants since they are
such low-cost giveaways; however, since
many states have banned smoking in
restaurants and bars, matchbook sales
have declined for the industry.