What will your role be in the buying and selling of promotional products in 2026? How are you preparing yourself now?
We’ve seen some major shifts over the past couple years, and everything points to the fact that change only is going to accelerate.
More and more, the buyers of promotional products are digital natives. Those in the millennial generation grew up with a screens and devices in their hands where they can find answers to many of the questions they face throughout their days. This includes the question of, “Where can I get items for the upcoming sales meeting?”
The next wave of technological changes that now is upon us is artificial intelligence (AI). As the internet expands, it learns from itself. Soon, when that buyer asks his computer the “where can I get” question, it may answer with not only where, but what.
By comparing data, the AI can find out what has worked for others and make those suggestions. AI also can look for user recommendations and buyer feedback, and even come up with where, what and, very possibly, from whom.
This is not some long-term, “flying cars” futuristic vision. AI is here now. Have you ever posted a picture to Facebook and had the app accurately identify the person before you tagged them? That’s AI. Have you bought a new camera recently? The new one that I just bought can tell me if one of the subjects in the photo blinked when I took the picture. It can find a face and track it.
There is one thing you always will be better at than technology, and that is trust. Trust can’t be reproduced in bulk, or be purchased, downloaded, stored or warehoused. It must be earned over time. No one can counterfeit it. Since people prefer to deal with someone they trust, it earns a premium that they will pay. And that is what we call branding.
You always must be working on being smarter than a computer and more trusted than AI. What are you doing today—right now—to build your brand? To build your trust advantage?
