How community giveaways can bring people together

By Carrie Kramer

Bringing community members together can result in deeper loyalty, higher referrals and increased goodwill for your organization. In fact, 80% of professionals say building community has positive opens in new window impacts on their organization. The right community giveaways can play a part in creating deeper member relationships.

Encourage social responsibility

Help the community feel like part of something bigger while connecting your brand to a good cause. Kickstart a recycling challenge by sending out a reusable tote to promote your message. Create a reward system to celebrate individuals who recycle the most, encouraging other community members to join in and keep up the good work.

Help community members meet their neighbours with a fun garden initiative to promote togetherness and healthy eating. Provide participants with a blossom kit plus helpful gardening advice. Create an online space where members can post photos of their plants, ask questions and share tips. Encourage people to gather for a harvest meal, sharing their homegrown fruits, vegetables and herbs. Create a custom hashtag for members to use when posting meet-up pictures, and provide garden tools as a useful community gift.

Partner with others

Want to boost loyalty and engagement? Forge connections with other organizations to create a community loyalty program featuring a custom “passport.” Offer participants exclusive discounts or freebies when they collect stamps from partnering establishments. Host a launch event and provide shoppers with laptop backpacks that are filled with samples from participating businesses. Enter people with completed passports into a prize draw for high-ticket community gifts, like a co-branded Under Armour® jacket.

Encourage community members to get to know each other through friendly competition. Establish a cross-community sports league with team jerseys that incorporate elements from each participating community. Host tournaments with co-branded sports equipment and water bottles. Create a shared online platform for communities to connect, share updates, and organize competitions and other events. After every tournament, award the winning team with a trophy.

Celebrate diversity and inclusion

If you’re looking for a one-of-a-kind way to provide value to the community, consider launching a language learning initiative. Invite community members fluent in other languages to teach a workshop or series of classes. Encourage participation with a gift for everyone who signs up. Notebooks with pens are the perfect item to assist them on their learning journey.

Or arrange a series of storytelling events where community members share a story rooted in their native culture. Host a grand finale event—virtual, in-person or hybrid—at the conclusion of the series. Hand out (or mail) magnet puzzle pieces to attendees. Imprint them with words important to each culture from the series. Recipients will be reminded that every culture brings a piece of the puzzle to create a more beautiful image.

Kickstart a monthly potluck for members to gather and share dishes representative of their cultures and traditions. Incorporate friendly competition by voting on dishes for different categories, like tastiest dessert or best presentation. Kitchen knives and cutting boards are useful community giveaway prizes recipients are sure to appreciate.

Host community outings

Draw a crowd by hosting a family-friendly star-gazing night. Create a cozy atmosphere with fairy lights and plush blankets. Encourage attendees to bring their favourite snacks and drinks. Conclude the evening with a raffle for folding chairs.

Host a community craft fair and provide craft kits for attendees of all ages. Set up crafting stations with unique materials and provide participants with branded aprons. Host or sponsor workshops—like pottery making or painting—led by community artists. Conclude the occasion with an art gallery, featuring collaborative projects created during the fair.

Strengthen community relationships

With social responsibility initiatives, partnerships, diversity and inclusion celebrations, and community events—coupled with the right community giveaways—your organization can reap the rewards of a stronger community.

Carrie Kramer

Carrie Kramer is a merchandising category manager with more than 20 years of experience in the promotional products industry and has been part of 4imprint’s merchandising team for nearly two years. She brings extensive expertise in merchandising, product sourcing, and building strong vendor relationships. Working closely with product development partners—and always thinking creatively—Carrie continually seeks out the best promotional products to strengthen her category offerings. Her expertise and creative approach help ensure 4imprint remains at the forefront of wellness-related promotional trends.

All marks are the property of 4imprint or their respective owners.

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