If you are put in charge of selecting and ordering promotional gifts you may be worried about the process. It is not difficult to choose and order promotional gifts if you keep a few things in mind. The following criteria can easily be made into a checklist that can stream line the ordering process and ensure that you do not make any mistakes that can jeopardize the success of your company’s promotional gift campaign.

Don’t just pick one item

It is important for you to pick several different items that could serve as potential promotional gifts. While most reputable companies will be able to supply you with the items that you need but there is always the chance that an item you want may be temporarily unavailable. Coming up with several different alternatives can take the stress out of the ordering process since you already know what you will need to do if your preferred selection is not available for some reason.

Proofread any information that will be printed on your items

Once you know which items you will want to order it is time to consider personalization. Most promotional gifts are personalized in some ways. Many times, they will be printed with a company’s name, contact information and, in some cases, logo as well. You need to make sure that you write out what will be printed on the items. It needs to be proofread carefully. If you are unsure, show the proof to another person and have them look at it. This can help you avoid costly engraving or printing mistakes.

You may want to ask the company you are dealing with for a proof. This can be a good idea. By doing so, you know that the information they are putting on the items is correct. It is amazing how many people do not read the proof and then end up with misprints and other problems. Remember: if spelling is not your strong suit you should consider having someone else take a look at it.

Double check ordering terms

Before you finalize your order, check the ordering terms. These can vary quite a bit from company to company. You want to double check the number of items you have ordered. Just like problems with spelling, problems with quantity mistakes can be devastating. There is nothing worse than discovering that you have forgotten or added a zero in your order. You do not want to be swamped with excess items but you also do not want to come up short either. You need to remember that when an item has been personalized it will generally be impossible to return it.

Check timelines

It is important to think about timelines when ordering promotional gifts. Will there be enough time for the items to arrive? You want to make sure that you do not end up waiting on your items simply because you did not order them soon enough. If you do not think they will be here in time you may want to look into how much it will cost to put a rush on your order.