Sustainable Promotional Products: Creating Items People Treasure, Not Trash

Editor's Note: This article was written for Promo Impressions. For more content on promotional products decoration, be sure to subscribe to the biweekly newsletter at PromoImpressions.com.

Sustainability has become an inescapable topic of discussion in the promotional products industry in recent years. Consumers have become more environmentally and socially conscious, and brands are following suit. ASI’s 2025 State of the Industry Report shows an uptick in distributors and suppliers being asked for more environmentally friendly products and for their sustainability credentials. Sustainability reporting is also growing in prominence, both among the businesses that order promotional merchandise and those that supply it, with almost a third of the Counselor Top 40 now producing dedicated sustainability reports.

Sustainable materials are on the rise in everything from apparel and reusable bags to packaging, while both non-profit and commercial organizations alike are upcycling textile production scraps into fashion accessories or transforming advertising banners into promotional items. It is not just what materials are made of that is capturing the attention of merchandise buyers, but also their lifespan, with infinity pencils and reusable notebooks joining the likes of drinkware and tote bags on exhibition stands and at conferences in increasing numbers.

Think Beyond Single-Use Swag to Avoid Landfill

When promotional products end up in the trash, it's bad for everyone — the organization whose brand is emblazoned on them, the supplier who created them, and, ultimately, the planet. Buyers are recognizing this, which is why growing numbers of distributors and suppliers are focusing on products that will not just create a lasting impression but that will last. With almost a third of distributors surveyed in the ASI’s 2025 State of the Industry Report concerned about customers developing negative attitudes towards promotional products, it’s easy to understand the impetus to work with customers to create products that recipients will use for years to come.

Credit: Inkcups

This search for products that will be used again and again is one of the factors that led to the rise in popularity of both reusable drinkware and tote bags that we’ve seen in recent years. Not only do they capture the cultural zeitgeist of the “emotional support water bottle,” but their promise of long-term use also enables brands to highlight their commitment to sustainability. Alongside this, as calls grow for reduction and bans on single-use plastic packaging, a growing number of consumer-facing businesses have responded to consumer demand with initiatives such as enabling consumers to buy coffee for their own reusable cups.

Make It Personal to Make It Stick

For many people, the pieces of merchandise that stay on their desks or in their homes are those that they can’t bear to part with because they feel too personal. Whether it’s a mousepad featuring the skyline of their hometown, a winery-branded tote bag that reminds them of a vacation, or an insulated tumbler with their name on it, when it’s personal, it’s more likely to stick around.

Credit: Inkcups

Adding names, photographs, or even using custom shapes can be an opportunity to inject a bit of fun or personality into promotional products in a way that turns them from trinkets into talking points. This kind of personalization represents an exciting opportunity to elevate the already luxe appeal of products such as higher-end drinkware or tech accessories. With direct-to-object printing, it can even be possible to customize items while people wait, as Inkcups demonstrated with latte cups at PRINTING United Expo 2024.

However, making it personal needn’t always mean adding personalized elements like names and photographs. It can also be about evoking a feeling with vivid, all-over artwork or special effects that take a product from a simple branded item to a coveted keepsake. Think, for example, of whiskey bottles — so beautiful that people use them as vases — or branded coolers that perfectly capture the spirit of a tailgate party.

Produce What You Need, When You Need It

Digital decoration technologies such as direct-to-object (DTO) UV inkjet printing have made it possible and also cost-effective to produce not just customized products but also small batches and even single items when needed. As a result, it’s no longer necessary to produce extra items “just in case” that clutter up office storage or end up in the convention center’s trash at the end of an event. On-demand production also enables marketers to quickly capitalize on new trends and respond to shifts in demand.

In addition to its on-demand appeal, DTO UV printing enables promotional goods producers to reduce waste during the production process. Unlike solvent and water-based inks, which typically dry through evaporation using heat, UV inks are cured by a chemical reaction when passed under UV light, which means it doesn’t generate pollutants and consumes less energy. The process is also less water-intensive than other methods and doesn’t generate waste such as sublimation or transfer paper.

As sustainability reporting increasingly highlights companies’ energy and water usage, attention is also turning to the waste produced during manufacturing. While other printing processes will undoubtedly remain a fundamental part of the industry, it is important to ensure that production decisions are made with due consideration to sustainability. For some, that may mean switching to more sustainable inks or powering production with renewable energy, while others may need to rethink the environmental impacts of their production workflow.

Both environmental and societal sustainability are becoming increasingly important supply chain considerations for brands and marketing decision makers. And while producer responsibility regulations may not yet be a factor for producers of promotional products, in the minds of some consumers, it already is.

If the future is to be one in which promotional products are high-quality items used and valued by their owners, sustainable choices are essential. Any brand would hate to see an image of its merchandise in a landfill, but when promotional products aren’t sourced and decorated thoughtfully, that may be where they end up. If we want to avoid negative perceptions of promotional products, it is up to the whole industry to ensure that just as much thought is given to a product’s life cycle and disposal as to the campaign it promotes.