Category: Information

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Here at Kan we believe that sustainability is about more than just making sure our promotional products are recyclable. We believe it also involves supporting the local communities where our products are manufactured. In India, where the majority of our fabric bags are produced, we are proud to support several local infrastructure schemes and charities.

Supporting The Shraddha Charitable Trust

The Shraddha Charitable Trust is one of the many charities we support in India. They work to support young adults with severe autism and developmental delay, helping to improve their lives and let them take the first steps towards self-sufficiency.

Supporting The Shraddha Charitable Trust

Young adults are trained in skills such as sticking, folding, plastering, beading and moulding. This enables them to contribute to the manufacture of a wide range of artistic and environmentally friendly lifestyle items. The proceeds from product sales are then returned to the students in the form of a monthly remuneration.

The students receive one to one support from special educators and caring volunteers, who explore and develop their skills. Combined with an intensive therapeutic routine this can help to enhance concentration, retention and social interaction. Over time these activities provide routine, increase confidence and give the trainees a sense of accomplishment. All of which gives them a sense of dignity and well being. Whilst also easing the strain on their friends and family.

Leaf-ware by the Shraddha Charitable Trust

Eco-Friendly Products

The Shraddha charitable trust started by producing simple grocery and rubbish bags made from newspapers. The product line has since been refined, developed and expanded to include a selection of eco-friendly products. The range now includes home decor, shopping bags, gift bags and the innovative Soul Serve leaf-ware. These plates and bowls are made from the Saal (teak) leaf, which was previously usually regarded as a waste product. They are microwave safe, sturdy, elegant and of course, biodegradable making them a sustainable alternative to plastic plates.

The work of the Shraddha Trust has promoted a culture of accepting the challenges of the severely autistic and supporting their life journey. Kan are proud to be a small part of their story.

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Branded gift bags are a versatile marketing tool. With a high quality finish and lots of special print effects available, they are sure to improve your brand image.

Here at Kan we think that our promotional gift bags can be used for almost any purpose, so here are a few of our favourite suggestions!

Take a look at the luxury bag range on our web site to see the range of options, then get in touch with us for a quote.

Wine gift bags

Branded wine gift bags

One of our favourites! A gift that you can drink nearly always goes well. Whether it’s a fine wine to go with dinner on a special occasion, a nice bottle of bubbly for a celebration or spirits for relaxing the evening away, there are lots of choices, and most of them are good!

Trade show gift bags

Trade show branded gift bags

Trade shows and events are the ideal place to get your message out to your customers. That can involve brochures, leaflets and more. Putting it all into a branded trade show bag helps to reinforce the care and attention to detail that every company would like to be known for!

Welcome pack bags

Welcome pack branded gift bags

Whether it’s starting a new training course, freshers week at University, a client arriving at a boutique hotel, or a tenant moving into a new building, welcome packs are always better in a luxurious bag! Nothing makes a first impression like handing over a well organised pack of all the necessary paperwork, forms, instructions and whatever else might be needed.

You could also add some special extras to make your welcome packs even more memorable. Here are some ideas to get you started:

  • For a spa hotel, how about adding a robe to the pack?
  • For a university, why not a lanyard with ID card?
  • For a training course, pens and notebooks would be ideal!
  • For new tenants, a custom key ring could be perfect.

Branded fashion bags

Fashion branded gift bags

Fashion is all about image, and the bag that you take your purchases home in is definitely part of that image.

It’s no good selling the trendiest shoes in town and then putting them in a thin, crinkly plastic bag! Your packaging needs to suit the story of your brand, so use all the right options to be sure you get just the right look.

Promotional giveaway bags

Promotional giveaway gift bags

Have a new range and want to give your potential customers a trial run? A promotional gift bag could be ideal.

It doesn’t matter what it is that you are giving out either. Cosmetics testers, sweets, stationery, maybe even tools! Not only does a branded goodie bag keep all your items together without them getting lost or ignored, but your client’s brand is given top billing!

Restaurant takeaway bags

Branded restaurant takeaway bags

Grabbing a bite to eat and taking it home with you is a popular hobby all over the world. And now you can take all kinds of food home, not just burgers and pizzas!

All of which means you really need to get some branding on your takeaway bags. Otherwise how will people know where that delicious smelling meal came from?

And lots more besides!

Branded gift bags can be used for almost anything, what we’ve shown you is just a small glimpse of the possibilities.

Here at Kan we can help you navigate all these options (and more) and ensure you get just the right look for your client. Just tell our branding experts what you need and they will get everything organised for you, including making sure the price is right!

Kan Branded Gift Bags

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Flexographic Printing in action
Flexographic Printer in action – Photo by Dale Simonson

Promotional plastic bags and kraft paper bags have a few things in common, they are cheap and can be supplied in large runs, they are perfect for retail situations and they can both look great with the right branding. And that’s where flexographic printing comes into it. Flexo is the way large runs of kraft paper or plastic bags get branded!

But not everyone knows what flexographic printing is or how it works. Here at Kan we like to help our customers understand how to get the best from their promotional products. So we thought it would be good to put together a guide to flexo printing. How it works, what it’s good at, and what you need to be careful of when you choose your artwork.

How does Flexographic Printing Work?

The actual idea behind flexographic printing is pretty simple. An image is transferred to a flexible rubber sheet (hence the name!) The sheet is etched so that raised areas are left where you want ink to appear and then the sheet is fitted to a roller. An ink roller transfers ink to the raised sections which are then rolled onto the bag material, leaving an image behind.

What is Flexographic Printing Good For?

Flexo is a simple, fast printing technique. The prints might not be the most detailed (although technology keeps on improving the results!) but you will be hard pressed to beat the sheer speed that can be achieved.

The flexible plates are wrapped around a roller, so that they can be printed onto a continuous roll of material. That roll is fed from the printing station, straight into an automatic cutting and folding machine, which pumps out finished bags as fast as it can.

Flexographic plates are sturdy too, which means they can be re-used again and again. Need another 10,000 bags? You won’t need to buy another set of plates, just use the old ones for a new run!

What Should You be Careful of With Flexographic Printing?

Flexo plates cannot directly print shading. Halftones must be used to simulate shading, but the rubber sheets are not suitable for very small details, so the halftone pattern will be easily visible on the finished product. For some designs, this can be used as a feature, as long as you know it’s what you will be getting!

Shading in Flexographic printing must be simulated using halftone patterns.
Shading in Flexographic prints must be simulated using halftone patterns.

Multiple colours can be used, but it is a good idea to try and keep registration to a minimum. The high speed, roll to roll nature of Flexographic printing means that some tolerance in colour alignment will be allowed. Trapping, where colours are deliberately overlapped, can be used to mitigate the effects in many cases. Our production teams will be able to advise you further when they see your artwork.

This tolerance in alignment also means that full colour prints should be normally avoided. Misalignment in CMYK printing can cause moiré patterns and other undesirable effects. If you do need a full colour image, high resolution flexo plates could be the solution. But unfortunately, these are only available on a limited range of bags, and come at a premium price too!

Is Flexographic print right for your brand?

The best way to know for sure is to let the Kan branding experts take a look! Get in touch with us and we can advise you on the perfect print techniques for your next campaign.

Take a look at our kraft paper bag range, including our Apsen kraft paper bag, or our plastic bag range to see more examples of flexographic printing in action.

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Top 10 reasons to use promotional products

We know that promotional products are popular with customers. After all, who doesn’t like handy gadgets, useful bags or even getting something for nothing? But we wondered, what do marketers actually use them for?

Of course, marketing and promotion is all about raising your company’s profile, increasing awareness among your customers and ultimately, getting more sales. So how do marketers use promotional products to achieve that goal? According to the PPAI, these are the 10 top answers…

Brand Recognition

It’s one of the simplest reasons, but that doesn’t make it any less important. Just getting people to know who you are is never easy. Especially in a world where people are bombarded with new information constantly. Getting you brand recognised, even in a relatively small niche, means you need your logo to be seen again and again.

Ideal products to use: Shopping bags are a great example. They get used multiple times, in public places, which helps your brand spread further and faster.

Brand/Product Awareness

What is it your company does? How can you make a difference to your customer? Awareness helps answer both of these questions. And once a potential customer knows your company can help solve their problems, your chances of getting a sale start to go up!

Ideal products to use: A USB stick with your product catalogue pre-loaded on it. All the information your customer could need in a handy portable format.

Corporate Identity

Getting a group of people to look like part of a team, and even getting that team to send out the same message about the company, takes work. That’s where a great corporate identity comes in. When your staff look, as if they are all on the same team, it shows attention to detail. And if you can get tiny details right, the big things are more likely to go right too!

Ideal products to use: Branded clothing is a great boost to any corporate identity.

Public relations & Goodwill

Giving customers a handy thingamajig is a surefire way to make them feel positive about your company. As always, the product should be useful, and great quality. It’s no good giving away something cheap that breaks easily. Positive feelings can quickly turn to negative when things don’t work as they are supposed to!

Ideal products to use: Tea and coffee mugs are a great choice. Everyone needs a refreshment break now and then, and is there a better positive association than that?

Customer Retention and Appreciation

We all appreciate our customers, but a lot of our interactions with them can feel a bit standard or just for politeness. A gift can change that impression and let your customer know that your appreciation is more than just standard words.

Ideal products to use: A bottle of wine can be a great gift, just make sure you put it in a great looking gift bag, with your logo on it of course!

Generate Sales & Referrals

Promotional products can have a surprisingly long life. That’s because useful products get passed on to others when the original owner has finished using it. Every new user is a potential new customer. After all, they now know your contact details and that you are generous enough to give useful things to your clients!

Ideal products to use: Post-it notes and other stationery have spaces for your contact details and are always useful.

Employee Communications & Recognition

Rewarding your staff for a job well done is important. Nothing keeps morale up and and results good as much as having staff that feel valued and appreciated. A high quality gift could be just the thing!

Ideal products to use: A favourite beverage in a high quality gift bag would make anyone feel appreciated.

New Product Information

Getting out news of your latest product isn’t always easy. Something eye-catching and memorable makes an impact and can help get your customers interested and enquiring. If you have to pass on a lot of technical detail too, it can be even more challenging. That’s where adding in a promotional item to you info pack can make the difference between another page of data and a something really catches attention.

Ideal products to use: How about a bespoke USB memory stick in the shape of your new product? You can even upload the technical info so it’s readily available.

Motivate Behaviours & Incentive Programs

Getting your customers to return over and over again with an incentive program is a tried and trusted technique. But to really be effective, the reward needs to be something that your customers actually want. Making it a high quality gift, with your corporate identity prominently displayed of course, makes that much more likely.

Ideal products to use: Electronic gadgets can be a great product for this purpose. Headphones, webcams, phone cases, there are lots of options that could be perfect.

New Customer Acquisition

Getting new customers is the ultimate aim of any marketing campaign. You know your products are great, but you need more people to see them so that they can make the obvious choice! But how do you get them to take notice? That’s where promotional products come in. Try giving a free gift with every purchase, or even just a free gift with your logo and contact details. Either one can generate a whole lot of leads!

Ideal products to use: There are lots of different approaches for customer acquisition, how about a free bag with product and contact details? Pens and stationery can be great too. You could even try more out-there items, like fridge magnets, branded earbuds or almost anything else you can think of!

Conclusion

There are many more uses for promotional products, probably even some that no-one else has thought of yet, and we can help with them all. Our expertise in product branding and finding the right supplier means that all you need is an idea. Then we can help you to turn it into reality.

Take a look at the Kan product range. Then get in touch with us for more information or to discuss your ideas further.

 

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Aspen 4
Aspen 3
Aspen 2
Aspen 1

The environmental impact of plastic bags is big news lately. There is a growing movement to go plastic free in as many ways as possible. We think that’s part of the reason why kraft paper bags are making a comeback. And when you look at the finished results, its easy to see that they are a great choice!

Kraft Paper Bags and the Environment

It’s important for any company to be able to show they are doing the right thing for the environment. A positive impression from your customers can make all the difference in how a brand is perceived. Kraft paper is available from recycled sources. It’s biodegradable and of course can be easily recycled pretty much everywhere. Kraft paper is lightweight, but strong too, which means our aspen bags can be used again and again.

Kraft Paper Bag Branding

Our kraft bags may not be quite as cheap as plastic bags, but the available branding options make them a great way to get your brand out into the world. Just take a look at the examples in the images above.

From a one spot colour print on brown paper, to full coverage, full colour prints covering every part of the bag. You can get exactly the right branding to suit your corporate identity, or even your latest marketing campaign.

If you need more information about our range of kraft bags, take a look at our Kraft paper bags page on Kan-do-it.com and contact us for a detailed quote and expert advice.

You can also sign-up for our email newsletter to get regular updates on our latest products and special offers.

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Key Finder 3
Key Finder 2
Key Finder 1

Are you one of those people who is forever wondering where your keys are? Or perhaps you can never find your phone before you head out to work or the shops? Either way, our Key Finder could be exactly what you need!

It takes no time to get it working. Download the app to your phone, connect to the Key Finder using bluetooth and you are running! Now, when you lose your keys, just fire up the app, hit the find button and listen out for the beep. Or, if you lose your phone, hit the button on the Key Finder and listen out for the alert sound to start playing.

You can even use it to keep track of bags and other valuables. Attach the Key finder and your phone will alert you if your bag gets too far away. Not only that, but GPS can show you where contact was lost too, so you know exactly where to start looking.

With a range of stock colours and branding available in both spot colour and CMYK printing, we can help you create a product that suits your client’s next campaign perfectly. Get all the technical details on the Key Finder product page.

Keeping your promotions fresh is much easier with interesting new products, so check Kan-do-it.com and sign-up for our email newsletter to get regular updates on all our latest goodies!

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Jackrabbit – Open
Jackrabbit – Closed
Chimpanzee 04 – Open
Chimpanzee 04 – Closed
Butterfly Plus – Open
Butterfly Plus – Closed

USB memory sticks are really useful already, but our latest products manage to make it even more handy. Now you don’t have to find a laptop or desktop PC to plug them into. With the addition of a Micro USB connector, you can plug them into a wide range of mobile phones and tablets as well. Future-proof features like this mean that these products will be kept around longer, helping to increase brand awareness.

The Butterfly Plus and Chimpanzee 04 are updated versions of our most popular USBs, while the Jackrabbit is an all new design.

The Butterfly Plus has all the branding options of our regular Butterfly, from spot colour to full colour prints, resin domes and laser engraving.

The Chimpanzee 04 shares the same large branding area as the standard Chimpanzee 02, perfect for full colour, full coverage prints.

The Jackrabbit can be printed with spot colours or CMYK and comes in a range of stock colours.

Which means these flash USB memory sticks are perfect for promoting any corporate identity!

Whether you need to keep a few product info sheets handy or take a full library of photos and videos wherever you go, you can choose exactly the capacity you need. Anywhere from 256mb to 64GB.

Take a look at the technical details on our main site and then contact us for more info or a detailed quote. We update our USB chip price list every week, so that you can be sure of getting the best prices whenever you order our USB memory sticks. Sign up to receive our email price list every week.

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Promotional Products

The world is full of advertising, which means it only gets harder and harder to make an impact with your promotions. So how can you sidestep the noise and clutter of traditional advertising and connect with your audience? Well promotional products might be the way!

We spend so long looking at screens and walking past advertising hoardings that it becomes second nature to filter out all that extra visual noise while we focus on what needs to be done. But with a physical object, especially if it’s something useful, we can’t help but remember it.

Objects that we interact with regularly become part of our lives. That USB stick with all your files on it. The shopping bag that you take every time you got to the supermarket. That lanyard that you carry your keys around on. And all that creates a positive association with the brands shown on them. In fact as many as 8 out of 10 people say they have positively changed their impression of a brand because of a promotional product! [1]

Half of consumers say that they come in to contact with promotional products most or at all times of the day, and these items are kept around for a long time too. People just don’t throw away useful things. The majority of consumers keep a promotional product between 1 and 5 years, and sometimes a lot longer than that! [2]

Want to get a specific message across? Well promo products can help there too…

Trying a campaign based on music?

How about a branded festival survival kit, including wet wipes, rain poncho and hand sanitiser, all in a re-usable, branded fabric bag?

Launching a new product?

How about a business card USB with images of your product, technical details and even a video demonstration pre-loaded on to it?

Attending an event?

Lanyards are important for all your staff, but don’t forget printed paper bags to contain your information packs! And if you throw in some extra stationery it can really make them useful.

But of course, promotional products aren’t just for targeted campaigns. General, day to day marketing works just as well. Having your logo on retail bags is a given, but now we need to look at sustainable materials too, like paper or fabric. Having pens available in your store or office for visitors to use, and maybe even take away with them, is a simple and effective way to reinforce your brand. Or to bring it right up to date, why not have a branded wireless phone charger on your reception desk for anyone to use?

One thing is for sure. A good promotional product can give you or your client’s brand a positive impression, for a long time, and for a relatively small outlay. That sounds like a big win compared to paying a fortune for views that can easily be lost in a busy social media feed!

Take a look at our promotional product ranges on Kan-do-it.com, and let’s see how we can help make your next campaign better!

[1 & 2] PPAI Consumer Study report 2017