Corporate Swag Ideas: Branded Caricatures for Trade Shows and Conferences

Corporate Swag Ideas Guests Will Actually Keep

Let's face it. Most trade show swag winds up in the dump.

Flyers get tossed. Candy gets eaten immediately and then forgotten. A stress ball, a pen, or a koozie will sit at the bottom of a bag until someone finally tosses the whole thing.

A caricature is different.

Ashley was the person who hired me for the Brennity's grand reopening. An upscale assisted living in Fairhope, they did an extensive remodel. Ashley was so happy to to finally get a caricature! She said she'd always wanted one.

More than half the guests who sit for me to get a caricature drawn tell me that it’s something they’ve always wanted. And giving guests something they’ve always wanted is a great recipe for drawing a crowd. (pun intended)

When someone sits down for a live caricature drawing, it’s not just a giveaway. It’s an experience. People watch. They interact. They point out fun details. They're NOT on their phones.

There’s a big reveal, and everyone gets a good laugh.

The finished piece feels personal because it was made for one person, right there at the event. Because of that, they don’t get tossed. In fact, I’ve even had a guest take an Uber back to an event they’d left because they’d accidentally left their caricature behind!

And the great thing is that my caricatures can be branded with your logo, contact info, QR codes, or whatever else you like. Whether the caricatures are drawn digitally on a tablet or traditionally on paper, your branding can be included.

Branded traditional caricature for Embassy Suites

Caricatures themselves are what make guests gather around your booth, give your sales team a chance to chat with people in line, and cause a buzz on the trade show floor.

And the branding gives guests a reason to remember your company. Caricatures are often hung in guests’ homes and offices, where they see your logo whenever they look at the drawing. How’s that for ROI?

If you’ve been searching for corporate swag ideas that won’t get tossed the minute guests get back to their hotel, you just found it!

A booth attraction that draws a crowd- literally!

Digital caricatures can be printed or emailed to guests. Woolpert chose printed copies and even ordered special lanyards so guests could wear their caricatures and show them off throughout the trade show.

At a recent trade show at the Grand Hotel in Point Clear, near Fairhope, I created digital caricatures for Woolpert. Their team told me they hire a caricature artist wherever they go, and their booth is always the biggest hit of the trade show.

The woman who hired me told me they had to guard against competitors getting one because they always want one too!

Woolpert chose printed caricatures and ordered special lanyards so guests could wear their drawings and show them off throughout the trade show. Digital caricatures can also be emailed and used instead of an AI avatar.

Branded Digital Caricatures

Digital caricatures are drawn live on a tablet or pad. I can add your logo, contact details, QR code, or other branding in the app I use to create the caricature. Digital drawings can be printed or emailed, depending on what works best for your event.

Traditional Caricatures Give You Room to Customize

This employee posed like this on purpose. He said he was going to take it home and frame it. If that's not internal branding, I'm not sure what is!

Traditional caricatures give you lots of choices for paper size and design. You can create the branded layout in-house, or I can take care of it for you. Add your logo, contact information, QR code, border, or other artwork. You can make the paper fit your event and your branding, such as for the caricature above for Coca-Cola.

I recently drew at an event at the Orpheum in New Orleans where the client wanted 5×7 caricatures. Their in-house artists created a border, and I had the paper printed for them.

Tullamore D.E.W. Irish Whiskey sponsored this event at The Orpheum in New Orleans and had a special border created to go along with their branding.

I prefer to work larger when possible because people waiting can see the drawings better.

A larger sheet also gives you room to include more people in one caricature, along with your branding. And since guests often hang their drawings at home, your company’s logo and information can stay on display long after the event.

Branding That Stays on Display

Whichever you choose, digital or traditional, your logo and company information can be included. Caricatures are on many people’s bucket lists. At least half of the people who sit for me say they’ve always wanted one but never had the opportunity.

You can give potential clients something branded that they’ll actually KEEP, something that won’t wind up in the circular file. And when they hang it at home, your company’s logo and information stay on display.

For a trade show, that’s a pretty nice place for your branding to end up.

About Kathy

That's me. Kathy Buskett, drawing caricatures in Las Vegas at CES for Samsung for the product release of the Galaxy Note

Hi, my name is Kathy Buskett. I’ve been drawing at events for 27 years, including 15 years creating digital caricatures. I spent 10 years working corporate events in Las Vegas for companies such as AT&T, Samsung, Caterpillar, Coca-Cola, Harley-Davidson, and Cirque du Soleil.

I now live on the Gulf Coast, and I travel for events. I can draw digitally or traditionally, depending on what fits your booth and your guests.

Looking for corporate swag ideas for your next trade show or conference?

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