Customized desk calendars offer a fantastic means of reminding current and potential customers about the products and services your company provides. Great distribution options include handing them out to current customers when they purchase your product or service, mailing them with product samples, or making them available at conferences and trade shows.

The variety of promotional calendars available gives you the option to choose a style that best fits your target market. A logo desk calendar is a great way to keep clients looking at your business name as they check to see what each day has to offer. Promotional desk calendars pricing and costs can vary greatly, so consider the following options:

1. Spiral bound promo desk calendars are great for mass distribution because of their small size.

2. You can cater to clients that also own a business with vinyl imprinted desk calendars.

3. Go for something a little different with a pop-up billboard customized desk calendar.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Mail promotional desk calendars to everyone you know

These calendars are smaller and you can easily mail them to clients with little expense on your part. They are spiral bound and you simply flip the page over for a new month. They come with varying photographic themes, with your business information always visible at the bottom. They fold out in an easel so that they stand upright on the user's desk.

I recommend: USImprints offers an American landmarks themed easel calendar. The more you order, the less you pay per calendar, usually between $1.50 and $2.50. The deluxe scenic desk calendar from Calendarsforless measures just over 6x4 inches. Again, depending on how many you order, you will pay $1 to $3.

Offer business desk calendars to professional clients

If your company caters to other businesses, and you have a smaller clientele, then you might want to consider spending a bit more to provide them with full-sized, vinyl desk calendars. These 12-month calendars, typically 23 inches wide by 17 inches long, provide a lot of space for appointments and notes, while acting as a large and constant reminder of your business to your clients.

I recommend: The vinyl on these calendars offered by Farfromboring Promotions comes in black, navy or burgundy and ranges in price from $6.50 to $11.50. Epromos charges approximately $9.50 per calendar for a similar design. If you prefer to offer your clients something less cumbersome, Motivators offers an 11.5 by nine inch vinyl desk calendar in a large variety of colors for $1.50 to $2.

Change things up with pop-up custom desk calendars

Pop-up billboard calendars are a bit larger than the easel style and provide elevated and slanted viewing that makes for an easier reference point. You can also give your clients an option by giving them a calendar that could sit on their desks or be mounted on a wall. These calendars feature a built-in mounting system to accommodate either arrangement.

I recommend: Get a pop-up calendar from Calendars Now for $1.30 to $2, depending on how many you purchase. Garrett Specialties offers several desk/wall calendar design choices, such as beaches or cats and dogs, for $2 to $3.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  Most companies that produce custom promotional calendars and other imprinted promotional items charge a set-up fee they add to the overall price. It covers the cost of the ink, as well as setting up the custom template and layout for your order. It usually ranges from $50 to $200, depending on the company.

Desk calendars can be one of those promotional items that will either sink or swim. Many businesses use promotional calendars, which indicates that they can work. However, because so many businesses use them, you need to make your promotional desk calendars stand out or they’ll end up in a pile or in the trash. So, why should you consider customized desk calendars over other promotional items?

1. Most people use calendars, including desk calendars, to keep track of appointments and other information.
2. With a little thought, you can create promotional desk calendars that stand out from the crowd and are something that people want to use.
3. When done right, customized desk calendars offer you an entire year of customer exposure each time someone looks at the calendar.

While promotional desk calendars aren’t for every business, they can be valuable to others. With a little thought and the right strategy, you can often make a promotional desk calendar work for your business.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Decide on small desk calendars or pad desk calendars

Each format of desk calendars has its own advantages and disadvantages so you'll need to consider your client base and which format would be more popular. Some of the smaller calendars offer you the opportunity to add unique photos or artwork which can be an important factor for personalized calendars. You can also consider offering a choice of sizes to your clients.

I recommend: 4Imprints has many different styles of promotional calendars, including pop-up desk calendars and flip calendars. Calendars Now also has a variety of desk calendars available. EPromos had desk and eternal calendars that might work for your business.

Consider whether to order pre-arranged desk calendars or create your own

Many companies offer promotional calendars which have already been arranged for you. These are often less expensive to buy than printing your own calendars, but most of the choices will have already been made for you.

I recommend: Pick out the pre-assembled calendars that your clients will like from Calendars for Less or check out the ones from Calendar World. Yearbox will create a customized desk calendar for you using your photos, logo and text.

Make your promotional desk calendar unique

If you decide to create your own desk calendars, make them unique. Hire a local photographer and include photographs of your area. This will make the calendar much more personal for your customers and they'll be more likely to use it. You can also use stock agencies to find photographs within a given theme.

I recommend: Search for a photographer to help you with the photos for your calendar or submit a request for information on local photographers. Look for stock photos for you calendar at IStock or Big Stock Photo.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  If you choose to create desk calendar using stock photos, make sure that your license includes this use. In most cases, you can use stock photos for promotional items, but you don't want to misuse the photos or you could face legal issues.