No matter how advanced our society gets. No matter how many iPads, laptops, or literal goggles that project our smartphone interfaces into our living rooms come out, there’s no substitute for pen and paper.
Pretty much since we evolved beyond the rock and chisel, ink and paper has been the primary means of jotting down ideas. And while a lot of things in the world change, a pen is still a thoughtful gift, promotional item, and tool.
But, there’s still room for innovation, and pen designs have changed with the times. There was the advent of rollerball technology first; then the fad of gel pens (especially in fun colors); and as touchscreens became the norm, pen designers integrated stylus tips.
In an industry like promo, tech will always have merit as a high-perceived value and high-profile gift. But a pen is arguably one of the most useful gifts you can use in a promo, so its application and intended audience is much wider.
That doesn’t mean you should just choose the cheapest option and go with that. Adam Finer, co-owner of Retro 1951, Richardson, Texas, has been a pen collector since long before his career in the industry, so he knows what makes for a pen that people want to (literally) hold onto.
“Quality is obviously one of the key factors,” he says. “It’s got to last. It’s got to be something that you could hand down to somebody else. A smooth writer, a nice feel in the hand.”
Everyone has their own preferences with a pen. Some people like a big heavy pen. Others like something light to the touch. Some like ballpoint tips, and some like gel. It’s like sports equipment, really.
In terms of weight, however, pens are a little bit like a tech product, where a certain amount of heft implies quality. Salina Brill, North American marketing manager for Goldstar, San Diego, says one product in particular the company recently introduced has that weight, with the added benefit of bamboo and recycled aluminum, ticking environmental boxes that so many end-users care about.
“Not only is it recycled aluminum, it has that bamboo plunger, and there’s a little plastic piece on top that goes around the bamboo plunger to encase it,” she says. “Even that is RPET recycled plastic. It really does have everything thought of throughout the piece. That’s what I like: that just through and through, it’s a really good item.”
Dress It Up
In addition to the function, though, a pen can serve as a statement piece. With that in mind, you need to pay attention to different finishes and decoration techniques to tell the brand story in a way that highlights the logo and fits into a desired aesthetic.
Brill observes that lately, end-users have been very into rose gold finishes, especially in the later months of the calendar.
“It’s a really good item or set of items when you’re choosing the rose gold for any kind of autumn campaigns because it has that warm feel,” Brill says.
Bigger than rose gold, however, has been monochrome. We see it in the fashion world, too, where tops and bottoms match colors to create a singular piece. When you incorporate a logo into that design, you have a trendy, modern look.
“Just that tone-on-tone color, people have been loving that,” Brill says. “I think it’s just sleek, and really a notch up compared to the regular pens that we’re seeing out there. It’s like a next level of sleekness, of being modern.”
Brill says that while Goldstar can do either laser or full-color imprint decoration, she recommends going with full-color on a monochrome pen to make it more bold and underscore the brand identity.
“Usually you’ll have a pen and it’ll have chrome accents, and it could kind of take away from the actual logo itself,” she says. “But in this case, it doesn’t take away from the logo. Because it’s monochrome, it’s kind of adding to the logo and plays off the color so well.”
Everything Old Is New Again
Also just like in the fashion world, trends from the past resurface. As the baggier fits of the ’90s and ’00s return to the runway, so do things like gel pens. As someone who grew up in those years, I remember kids trading different color gel pens on the school bus and in the cafeteria, searching for fun new colors to write their notes and homework.
“People love that smoother writing experience,” Brill says about gel pens. She mentions the Islander Softy Brights pen, which comes in eye-catching shades like bright pink, orange, and green, as examples of people going beyond the traditional looks in favor of a little more spark.
“People are not just necessarily sticking to corporate colors,” she says. “You know: the red, blue, darker colors. They’re moving onto the brighter, vibrant colors for different events. Something that goes along with their brand, but still taking it to the brighter side.”
When to Start
Pens have universal appeal, but there are still times when distributors are placing more orders.
Finer says there are two main windows that he’s noticed more action.
“Obviously, right before the holidays things tend to pick up, so September, October, November tends to be a ramp-up for the holidays,” he says. “And right now: April, May, June for graduation, Mother’s Day, and Father’s Day.”
Brill says Goldstar starts fielding a lot of orders for the holiday season, too, but she notices a distinct connection between a lot of the industry trade shows and order placement.
“I would say December is slower, January is slower as people are at the shows, and once the shows are kind of concluded, everybody’s going out and writing their orders,” she says. “Then we see a really big uptick in business starting in February, and then a really big jump in March. I would say, for the most part for the year, March and August are the really big months for us.”
It sounds crazy to say that you should pay attention to the fashion world to predict the next writing instrument trend, but it’s kind of true. Look at how designers are using colors, and then look at what suppliers are doing with different eco-friendly constructions and ink choices. It can feel instinctual to play it safe, but sometimes it’s worth remembering that the bold are the ones who make history.
