Not all custom pens are created equal. You can make a one-time investment in a large quantity of disposable pens and have your pen needs met. You may wish to offer a selection of mid-range pens that allow the owner to continue using the pen if the ink is refilled.

In special circumstances, you may want fine writing instruments that inherently come with additional costs for maintenance and replacement parts.

1. Any budget can accommodate the purchase of disposable logo pens.

2. A mid-size budget allows for either more pen choices, or ink pens with replaceable cartridges.

3. Taste for a fine writing pen, such as a Montblanc, will require more than the initial investment.

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

Wholesale pens can fit even the smallest budget

Take advantage of wholesale disposable personalized pens if you have a small budget. Even if you want to add a logo to the pens, the cost will be much lower compared to other options. Buying in large quantities will save you more in the long run, if you know you won't end up stockpiling vast quantities of leftover pens. You can find prices as low as less than $1 per pen depending on the quantity you want to order.

I recommend: National Pen has a large selection of logo pens to choose from, at discounted or sale prices. Level Promo Gifts has a large inventory of many wholesale pens available at discounts for various quantities.

Ball pens are the business pens that fit into a mid-size budget

Rollerball pens are quite popular as far as corporate pens go. The ballpoint pen offers various degrees of printing, from ultra fine at .7mm to the thicker 1.22mm. They are also offered in gel or ink styles to further market to personal tastes. Pricing and costs of pens in this category generally range from $15 to $100.

I recommend: Levenger offers a variety, in price and type, of ballpoint pens. Office 1000 has a large selection of discounted prices on ballpoint pens.

Designer pens may need the benefit of a large budget

Montblanc, Cartier, Aurora, and Fisher, are just some names of top-of-the-line pens which are not only expensive at initial purchase, but also require maintenance, have accessories, and need parts replaced over time. Large budgets may be able to handle the supplies for fine writing instruments. Top brand pens are an investment. Prices easily range from $100-$400, or more.

I recommend: Bittner is a starting place for choosing from a broad selection of fine writing pen brands. Paradise Pen has a quick refill finder that allows you to search by brand and types. Refill needs can run up to $20, depending on the brand of pen.

Tips & Tactics for Personalized Pens

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  Consider personally engraved pens when your message goes beyond the company name and logo. Cross has always been a popular brand of pens given as gifts, and the pens can be engraved wherever the pens are sold.

Even in the age of electronics, we still need good pens; ballpoint pens, fountain pens, gel pens, rollerball pens or markers are often the best tools for a job. Pens are also a popular giveaway item - promotional pens are easily personalized and company logo pens are inexpensive when bought in bulk. Fancy, high-end pens make excellent one-size-fits-all corporate gifts for clients.

When shopping for pens, consider the following:

1. Many types of ballpoint pens, gel pens and rollerball pens are used in all offices.
2. Personalized pens or logo pens are useful marketing tools for your business.
3. High-end fountain pens and ballpoint pens make distinctive corporate gifts.
4. Pens have even become a new type of low-tech device to provide identity theft protection.

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

Ballpoint pens and other types of pens are an office essential

Find a one-stop shop for a variety of general office-use pens, such as ballpoint pens, fountain pens, rollerball pens, gel pens and markers.

I recommend: Quill Pens has a wide selection of pens for all uses and offers online access to your order history to make reordering easy. Green Earth Office Supply has an unusual selection of recycled pens. For general office-use ballpoint pens, go to any office supply store, such as Staples, OfficeMax or Office Depot.

Personalized pens and logo pens are mobile marketing tools

Personalized pens, also known as promotional pens or logo pens, are a classic marketing tool that can be customized for your business. They make great take-aways for trade shows and put your company's name in the 'write' hand of your customer.

I recommend: Branders.com has a wide selection of promotional pens to fit all budgets including ballpoint pens, rollerball pens and gel pens. Dayspring Pen Shop has a special "fast ship" section for last-minute orders.

Fancy fountain pens and ballpoint pens make elegant corporate gifts

If you want to impress clients with a memorable corporate gift, consider high-end pens, such as fountain pens or other stylish pens. They're affordable and inexpensive to ship.

I recommend: Absorbent, Ink. offers a variety of fancy fountain pens, ballpoint pens, rollerball pens and more.

Gel pens can protect your business

Some of today's gel pens use ink that can't be washed away, which can help prevent check fraud and identity theft.

I recommend: Quill Pens has an interesting article outlining how pens fight fraud. See a selection of gel pens at Amazon.com.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  Keep the utilitarian ballpoint pens in the supply cabinet, and the expensive fountain pens in your desk drawer.
• •  Don't try to include too much information on logo pens - usually your company name and phone number or website address will do.
• •  Distribute your personalized pens at trade shows and conferences and hand them out to customers on a regular basis.

Whether you need company pens for every day utilitarian use or for corporate gift giving, you can find what you need without breaking your budget. Invest in making the most of pens by creating custom pens that include your company name along with one of the following: website address, physical address, or phone number.

Even with all the electronic and online access available at our fingertips, people still carry pens, lose pens, and share pens. Your corporate pens can always be marketing for you, if they are engraved pens.

1. Pens for every day use are the most inexpensive available and can be engraved with company details cheaply.

2. Designer pens are at the high end of the pricing spectrum, but personalized pens can make a great impression as a corporate gift.

3. Variety is good. The ballpoint pen is popular and is available in a few colors.

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

Get the most benefit from wholesale pens

Corporate logo pens are popular with any type of business, and if you are able to purchase in bulk, you can save money on your pen investment over the long run. Just make sure you don't have plans to change a company logo before you purchase in large quantities.

I recommend: Check out the reasonable wholesale pricing of pens and pen sets at Mitech Trading. Select from several of the popular BiC style pens at AdSources with discounts starting with quantities of 300.

Utilize the writing pen as a motivational tool and to generate good will

Most people enjoy receiving a gift, so whether you offer ballpoint pens at employee gatherings as a doorprize, or logo pens at a business meeting as a giveaway, you are getting your company name in front of many people.

I recommend: PensXpress offers several types of pens available for personalizing. They also offer sample packages so you can get employee opinions on most popular preferences. The variety of pens available, with and without logos, at PensGo.com may be enough to satisfy your pen needs.

Target your market with the right ink pens

Collect sample pens to try in the office, give to friends, or share at business meetings, and narrow in on your favorite type of pen. But, you want to keep your marketing strategy in mind. If you are reaching out to on-the-go types who need a pen to stuff in a pocket, a large grip pen probably wouldn't be ideal, but a thin stick pen would. There's usually a happy middle ground that will appeal to most of the pen recipients.

I recommend: Take advantage of the experienced staff at Branders.com to help you decide the best type of logo ball pens, or other type of pens that fit your budget and reach your target market effectively. CustomInk.com has several smooth and grip pens to select from. Both companies allow you to see how the finished product looks online before you buy.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  There are gel pens available that have permanent qualities that make it impossible to wash the ink away, making 'check washing' more difficult for identity thieves.

Pens are as versatile as the writers who use them and the uses for which they are chosen. Every pen is different from the inside out. Even though the mechanism of the ballpoint pen is the same as the rollerball, why do they have different names? And concerning gel pens, why are they safer to use when you are writing important checks? These are all questions that can be answered just by taking the time to educated yourself on the most important key terms in the pen industry.

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

Ballpoint

The ballpoint pen is just a fancy name for the average, everyday pen. A roller mechanism inside the pen allows the oil-based ink to be released as the roller meets the paper. The ink dries immediately and can be replaced in only some styles.

I recommend: The Great Idea Finder details the history of the ballpoint pen.

Fountain, cartridge

The fountain pen contains a reservoir within the pen that is filled with liquid ink. In a cartridge pen, the entire ink cartridge is replaced inside of the pen rather than refilling the ink inside the pen as in a fountain pen.

I recommend: Covington Innovations explains some of the benefits of using a fountain pen.

Rollerball

The writing mechanism in a rollerball is the same as in a ballpoint pen. The difference, however, is in the ink. Rollerball pens use water-based ink that is designed to be absorbed deeper into the fibers of the paper than oil-based ink.

I recommend: The Levenger Company describes the pros and cons of the rollerball pen.

Gel

A gel pen contains a water-based substance that suspends the pigments to create a highly viscous ink. Gel ink can therefore be used on darker and harder-to-write-on surfaces. Gel ink is also safer to use on important documents because it cannot be tampered with; other types of ink are vulnerable to tampering.

I recommend: The National Check Fraud Center explains how gel pens can protect the next check you write.

Nib

The nib refers to the point of a fountain pen. Nibs come in various shapes and sizes depending on the writing style.

I recommend: PenTrace details the various nib shapes and sizes.

Piston filler

A piston filler is the type of reservoir inside of a fountain pen that is filled with ink. It has its own unique way to be re-filled.

I recommend: Penoply describes how to fill a piston filler.