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Posts Tagged ‘Branded Memory’

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Branded USB Memory – Tip 1. When Is A Chip Not A Chip?

Tuesday, January 26th, 2010

This is the first in a series of top tips to consider when purchasing Branded USB Memory Sticks.

With the growing popularity of Branded USB Memory sticks, there are a number of providers springing up to support this. However, there is a hidden issue that any potential buyer needs to be aware of, that not all providers are that transparent with.

USB Memory Chipsets

In essence there are 3 components to any Branded USB Memory sticks, the flash chip (the brains), the circuit board and the body of the USB Memory stick itself.

Whilst the circuit board and body are pretty standard across the industry, there is a wide variation of USB Flash chips. In summary these can be classified as follows:

Grade A: Original ‘branded’ USB flash chips

USB Flash Memory

These flash chips are made by leading global brands such as Samsung, Hynix, Intel, Micro. They will print their name and unique series number on each chip.

These are tested to a high QA tolerance and come with a full warranty. They are the most reliable, but come at a premium price and are the most expensive USB Flash chips in the market.

Grade B: OEM flash chips

These USB flash chips are made from the main chip providers, but do not carry any branding or warranties. They are as reliable as the branded flash chips, but come at a discounted rate.

Grade C: Downgraded flash chips

There is a wastage of chips from the main manufactures, from a combination of the chip cutting process and QA failures. These are sold in bulk to third parties, who aim to recycle and sell on. There is a high failure rate on these USB Memory sticks, up to 40% in some instances. However the low price also reflects this.

Faulty USB Chipset

Grade D: Masked chips

Finally we have fake / counterfeits USB Memory chips. This is when port quality chips are programmed to mask the real size of the memory. For example, a memory stick may show that it is 1Gb, but could actually be a 128Mb chip. The only way that a user would find out the problem exists is if they try to load data that is over the actual chip capacity. The prices offered are extremely low and reflect the cost of the actual chip set used.

So in summary, ensure the supplier informs you in writing what type of chip they are providing. If it is a mission critical or high profile project, it’s worth paying for Grade A branded chip. However, Grade B would suffice for most promotional campaigns.

One final point if the price for the USB Memory sticks sound too good to be true or out of sync with other quotes then there is a high probability of them being Grade C or D chips.

Next in the series- Tip 2 – The dangers of  loading data onto USB Memory sticks.

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Branded USB Memory – Tip 1. When Is A Chip Not A Chip?

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Large or Complex Logo? – No problem with the Slider USB

Wednesday, January 13th, 2010

If you’ve got a large or complex logo then it’s not always easy to choose the right memory stick to really do it justice. Whilst many suppliers will just ask you to “simplify” the logo or reduce the number of colours in the logo its not really the right answer.

Printing and reproducing your brand or logo correctly is critical. There’s no point spending a fortune designing and developing a brand only to them compromise it simply because the product you want to reproduce it on can’t support it.

USB Slider

But, the reality is that many standard style USB memory sticks are relatively small and the print area on the sticks can be even smaller. Small memory sticks are popular but not always the right solution for complex logos. Whilst some of these small sticks can support a full colour print process, squeezing your brand and any strapline onto the print area will, in some cases, mean its impossible to see/read the end result clearly.

There are several options to overcome this problem including using a Credit Card style memory stick. These are not really “memory sticks” per se but credit card shaped product that has a USB connector built into it with some on-board flash memory. The beauty of this product is that because its exactly the same size as a credit card it fits neatly into a wallet and provides lots of space (front and back) to print on. You can also use the latest full colour printing process techniques on these cards to achieve a very high-resolution reproduction of any complex design. But, credit cards are not to everyone’s taste.

If you have a complex logo and it’s a branded memory stick you want in the true sense of the term then you could consider “Slider” model. This memory stick is capless, it has an integral keying loop and it’s a little larger than much other memory sticks without being excessively large. But, the real beauty of this model is the very large print area onto which you can print.

USB Slider

This example shows the how complex graduated prints with lots of text still look fantastic when produced on the Slider model.

If you think the Slider memory stick might solve your memory stick challenge then give us a call and we’ll provide you with a personalise quote and we’ll even mock one up for you free of charge so you can see just how it will look.

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Large or Complex Logo? – No problem with the Slider USB

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Put Your Branded Memory Stick Spend On A Credit Card In 2010

Friday, January 8th, 2010

Custom USB Flash Drives are now firmly established as a key tool within the Promotion and Sales industry. Whether you have a sales event or show where you want a convenient way to distribute information about your products or services or perhaps a conference where you want to hand out the event information from the event branded memory sticks are the way to go.

USB Credit Card

In fact these incredibly useful gadgets can be used in many many ways including but not limited to:

  • On-pack sales promotions
  • Competition prizes
  • Trade show “give-aways”
  • Press Launches (and lunches)
  • Product Launches
  • Staff rewards and incentives
  • Customer mailers
  • Re-seller and partner fairs

The most popular style or shape of branded memory stick used for these activities tend to be “stick” shaped (not as in a stick from a tree but small, rectangular shaped flash “sticks”) but there are other options!

One of the key trends in 2010 is expected to be the move to a bespoke or truly custom shape that is unique to the customer using it. Examples would include custom USB disks in the shape of a car or truck to support the launch of a new vehicle or perhaps in the shape of a company logo or brand. Any 2-D or 3-D shape is now possible and bespoke memory sticks really do up the ante in terms of brand support, brand building and product recall.

But, custom memory sticks are not for everyone. If you are looking for something a little different, a little more sophisticated with the scope to support a complex logo or design then you might consider a branded credit card USB. These come in a variety of styles and types but they all adhere to the basic “form factor” of a credit card. Not only do they support a full colour, photo effect print but they can also be supplied in a complementary wallet or case. Costing just a little more than a standard branded memory stick they are certainly worthy of consideration particularly if your target audience is ABC1.

The small additional cost is worth it in terms of the visual impact and much greater perceived value. If you are interested then give us a ring or fill out the on-line enquiry form and we’ll get back to you with a tailored quotation. We also offer a free design and mock-up service to help you visualise the end product.

USB Credit Card

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Put Your Branded Memory Stick Spend On A Credit Card In 2010

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Branded Memory Sticks – A Review of 2009

Sunday, January 3rd, 2010

With the economy still in recession and advertising and marketing budgets often the first casualties it was never going to be the easiest of years for the promotional industry. Several key sectors including the banking sector, a long standing stalwart of the promotional industry, either stopped or reduced significantly its promotional spend in 2009. Other sectors such as health and telecoms continued to spend but their overall activity was markedly down on previous years.

USB Pens

For many businesses the focus became one of survival and cost cutting. All unnecessary costs (perceived or real) were stopped, many staff lost their jobs and inevitably some businesses failed.

Against this backdrop where advertising and promotional spend was approved it had to deliver and getting value become a mantra for budget holders and buyers alike.

Branded memory sticks (also known as USB flash drives or pens) were just beginning to gain a real foothold in the promotions sector in 207/08. Costs were falling, delivery times were shortening, the quality of the product was improving year on year and the target audience “got it”. Branded memory sticks were popular. They were popular with companies looking for something innovative and useful to give that was within their budget and supported their brand and recipients of memory sticks loved them because they were (and still are) incredibly handy and useful bits of kit.

But as we entered 2009 it really did look as though it was not only going to be an “Annus Horribilis” for the promotions industry as a whole but it was also going to be the year in which the growth of branded memory sticks faltered.

Talk of the demise of the memory stick was overstated and premature because whilst its day will inevitably come in 2009 it showed steely resistance and demonstrated just why it is one of the most loved and best performing promotional products.

USB Flash Drives

In a very short space of time the branded memory sticks has risen to become a firm favorite and whilst there have been many casualties in the sector the memory stick is not one of them. Why? Well, branded memory sticks deliver and they deliver on many key metrics. They are:

  • Incredibly well received and popular as a gift or promotional item
  • Excellent at carrying a logo or brand
  • Small, portable, convenient to use
  • Ideal for pre-loading data onto such as sales collateral, press releases, product guides, presentations and audio/media files
  • Relatively inexpensive for what they deliver

They do face challenges in terms of price stability which is not helped by the strength of the $ (USD) against other local currencies in which they are purchased and their price is subject to sudden swings as major player like Apple swoop into the market and buy up millions of flash chip modules. This is unlikely to change in 2010 but as 2009 has shown the core benefits of the product make it a real winner and something that is going to be at the heart of the sales and promotions industry for a few more years!

If you are interested in buying branded memory sticks in 2010 then give us a ring at USB2U or if you prefer fill out our on-line enquiry form and we’ll get back to you with a personalized proposal.

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Branded Memory Sticks – A Review of 2009

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Not too late to order for Christmas!

Wednesday, December 16th, 2009

Christmas is fast approaching and you may be thinking about an alternative corporate gift for your staff or customers. A branded USB could be a perfect solution and if you act quickly you could even have these printed and delivered before Christmas!

Impact Branded USB Memory Stick

Branded Memory Sticks are typically used for events, promotions, staff giveaways and corporate events. You can also load your company data files or brochures onto the drives making them a great alternative to paper based options or CD’s.

At USB2U we have stock available which can be printed, loaded with your data and delivered before Christmas! All you need to do is place your order and provide the artwork and data by the 22nd December. We’ll email you with a proof and your branded USB’s will be printed and delivered within 48 hours!

There are many different models and capacities available such as the Twister, Harbour and Chic. Please call 01604 685040 or email trade@usb2u.co.uk and an Account Manager will discuss your options and provide a quotation.

Merry Christmas

…from all at USB2U

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Not too late to order for Christmas!

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Branded Memory Sticks – Size Matters

Monday, November 30th, 2009

Sales of branded memory sticks continue to surge as more and more companies look to use them to promote their brand, their products or to use as a give away at conferences and exhibitions. Branded Memory sticks make great vehicles for brand promotion and brand development and the fact that you can pre-load them with tons of sales material (PDF brochures, videos, and presentations) helps justify their cost.

USB Sizes

After all if you can load all of your sales material onto a memory stick you can offset your print and transportation cost(s) and these can be significant if you are, for example, exhibiting or running conferences overseas.

When you’re buying branded memory sticks there are a couple of size related issues to consider to make sure that you get a product that delivers for you particular activity or event:

  1. Physical size: As in life not all USB memory sticks are born equal when it comes to size. A couple of years ago most memory sticks were pretty large with the average memory stick being around 7-9cm long and 2-3cm wide.These were (and still are) great if you need plenty of space to print you logo or message on but with the miniaturization of the core flash memory component there has been a comparative reduction in the size of the case or shell that the flash memory fits into. As a consequence the more popular memory sticks used for branding today tend to be the smaller models and styles. For example the ever-popular Twister (Swivel) Memory stick is 5cm long x 1.7cm wide and the new generation of “baby” twisters are a tiny 3cm X 1.5cm.Bearing in mind that the USB connector on the end of the branded memory stick is just over 1cm wide they can’t go much smaller and too small leaves little room to print you logo on!So, when choosing a memory stick consider carefully how your logo will look on it, don’t choose a model that’s too big and cumbersome and looks dated and bear in mind the bigger/older models can obscure other USB ports around them which then means you may need to consider supplying them with a USB cable. Similarly whilst the small, baby style of USB sticks look cute many of them are simply hopeless at carrying a brand and strap line and they are very easy to lose.
  2. Memory size: The most popular choice for memory size at the moment is 1GB (this will store 250 music tracks, 1,000 pictures or tens of thousands of documents). A couple of years ago is was 128MB and if pricing trends over the last couple of months carry forward into 2010 then 2GB prices will be on a par with 1GB.The key to choosing the right memory size is make sure the user has enough space on the flash drive (after you have loaded any data yourself) to use for themselves. You don’t just want the memory stick to be plugged into a PC, any pre-loaded data taken off or viewed and then discarded. To get positive brand association and exposure you want the user to carry and use the memory stick and ideally use if for as long as possible. So, choose the most memory you can afford within your budget. If in any doubt talk through the options with your supplier.

When it comes buying branded memory sticks size is important so take your time and get it right.

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Branded Memory Sticks – Size Matters

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Branded Memory Sticks – Buyer Beware

Thursday, October 22nd, 2009

OK, so you’ve decided you need some branded memory sticks to support your marketing and advertising activities or perhaps to hand out at an event or seminar or maybe even to give away to staff or customers. Not surprising really as branded memory sticks are incredibly popular and are always well received.

Memory sticks are a great way to get your brand promoted, they have real and perceived intrinsic value, they’re portable, useful and they look great printed or engraved with company logos. Not only this but, the price of memory sticks has fallen to a point where they are now a viable option for many activities and events but, when shopping around for the best deal you do need to have your wits about you.

Branded USB
Branded USB
Branded USB

When sourcing printed memory sticks it’s understandably easy to be led by price and price alone. After all, times are hard at the moment and budgets are tight and it’s critical that you demonstrate to the budget holders that you’ve secured the best deal you can. But, don’t let price be the only arbiter because making a buying decision based on price alone, particularly from a supplier you’ve never dealt with before can this can come back and bite you where it hurts!

Here’s a true tale that illustrates this point – A customer recently asked us to beat a price for a large quantity of 1GB branded memory sticks. The customer in question had gone directly to a factory in China and was presenting us with an incredible price challenge. Despite our best efforts we couldn’t get anywhere near the price and the order was placed on the factory.

When the order arrived and the customer started to load data onto the memory sticks they were surprised to find that although the sticks had 1GB labels on them that they could not load more than 128MB of data! On checking with the factory they were informed that the internal memory was 128MB not the 1GB ordered and paid for. The memory sticks had been “dressed up” to look like 1GB sticks and the factories response was that it was the only way the could meet the customers target price!

The factory has refused to accept the memory sticks back so the client is stuck with thousands of branded memory sticks that are useless for their needs. Whilst litigation would normally be an option, cross border litigation against a factory in China is a little more challenging!

The moral of the story is that if a price seems too good to be true then it most probably is and when sourcing branded memory sticks you are best to use a reputable, local company that have a proven track record of delivery and support.

At USB2U we have been supplying branded USB Memory sticks since 2002. We only work with known and trusted factories that we have met/vetted and whose QA processes meet our strict standards. We also ensure that all memory sticks we import are fully RoHS compliant and meet all the latest WEEE and REACH Compliance Regulations. With USB2U you’re in safe hands and we’ll always do our utmost to offer you the best price we can whilst ensuring your needs are fully met.

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Branded Memory Sticks – Buyer Beware

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Go Large with a 256GB (Gigabyte) Promotional USB Memory Stick

Tuesday, September 8th, 2009

With the announcement a couple of weeks ago by Kingston Technology of the launch of the world’s first 256GB USB flash drive how long will it be before USB memory sticks of this size are being given away free as part of promotional and marketing campaigns.

A 256GB Memory stick is capable of storing 51,000 images or the equivalent of 54 DVDs-worth of data in your pocket. That’s a HUGE amount of data and it really does open up all sorts of data storage options, including the ability to store High Def movies and trailers on a USB memory stick. The downside is that they are not cheap. At the moment the RRP for the Kingston Data Traveller 300 – 256GB is around £550 each!! But this does come with a five-year warranty and 24/7 Tech Support.

So, suggesting that these behemoths of the USB Memory stick world could be given away free by companies simply as a way of promoting their brand or products seems absurd but consider the history of the humble USB memory stick.

In 2002 a typical branded USB memory stick was 16MB. Today the most popular size of USB Memory stick chosen by companies for promotional activities is 2GB. In 2002 using a 2GB memory stick for promotional use would have seemed equally absurd but just 7 years later millions of them are given away free of charge every year.

When we do reach the point where a 256GB USB memory stick can be a economic proposition for the promotions industry it will be interesting to see what use the massive amounts of storage they deliver are being put to. With at least 5 years there is plenty of time to put our collective thinking caps on.

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Go Large with a 256GB (Gigabyte) Promotional USB Memory Stick

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Branded USB Hubs – Kills The Promotional Mouse Mat…….!

Friday, August 14th, 2009

Have you already provided your clients with Branded USB Memory sticks? Looking to offer something a little different, but still within the same price bracket of promotional USB Memory Sticks? Then why not consider Branded USB Hubs.

Branded USB

Branded USB Hubs are the equivalent to the mains power extension sockets. In essence, it takes one USB port and splits into 2, 4 or 7 additional ports. Allowing the end user to plug in a whole range of different USB devices, such as Promotional USB Memory Sticks.

They are simple plug and play and you can never have enough USB Ports. Click here to view our range.

So what other advantage by Branded USB hubs provide:

  • As a promotion gift it has real intrinsic and practical value.
  • The print area is typically larger that then average USB Memory Stick allowing greater scope for branding and getting your marketing message across.
  • By adding a USB extension lead it allows the USB hub to sit proudly on the users desktop and as such your brand is always front of mind.
  • A blister pack can also be branded with your logo and marketing message.
  • USB hubs now come in a range of different shape, colours and sizes for greater impact.

A word of warning however, USB hubs draw power from the usb port it is plugged into. As such power hungry USB devices may slow the hub down. There is a solution to this, simply add a mains power supply to the unit and the problem is resolved.

All in all Branded USB Hubs are an excellent alterative to the tired branded mouse mat. To view our range, please click here.

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Branded USB Hubs – Kills The Promotional Mouse Mat…….!

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Branded Memory Sticks

Thursday, August 6th, 2009

Fiscal budgets are tightening as the economic recession begins to dictate how quickly a business grows. If your company is experiencing a decrease in sales, it likely also means you have less to spend on advertising. One way to generate more revenue in lean times is to offer branded merchandise to customers. Branded memory sticks allow companies to advertise their products of services through client interaction with other people.

There are a number of factors to consider when placing an order for branded memory sticks. What capacity will you require for your design? How will your memory stick look? What information will you want on your finished design? How many memory sticks will you need? How many different colors will you want? Let’s examine these individually for a better understanding.

The storage capacity of memory sticks is growing rapidly. It wasn’t so long ago when 32MB flash drives for digital cameras were considered state-of-the-art. These days it is not uncommon to see 120GB solid-state drives available as portable hard drives.

For a promotional item, however, a general range of storage capacity is more likely to range between 128 MB and 8GB. What you decide to offer your customers will depend on how much you want to spend and how many sticks you decide to order. As with any other bulk purchase, vendors will give discounts for those who want larger quantities.

The amount of space available will likely determine how much information you will have on your pieces. In general, a company name or logo, along with a contact number, physical address, and e-mail address may be all you’ll have room for. These are the simplest details that allow customers to reach you for more information about who you are and what you do.

What do you want your branded memory sticks to look like? Your line of business may help you decide. There are gadget and novelty models shaped like popular objects like cell phones, padlocks, action figures, bottles, and mp3 players. There are material types to consider, like plastic, metal, or some combination of both. There is a wide range of colors available, and some designs allow for multi-color designs.

There are even eco-friendly drives that use 100% recycled plastic shells.

No matter who your supplier is, most of the physical product will be shipped from overseas, since only a few major manufacturers in Asia produce the core electronics in branded memory sticks. Often enough, the custom designs are then applied through a third party and shipped to the individuals who order them.

In summary, the core marketing power of branded memory sticks are what make them so appealing. The sturdy devices fit inside a pocket or briefcase, and allow customers to store computer files and important information when they’re away from home.

This convenience, when presented as a promotional gift item, is the kind of goodwill customer service that will make that person eager to praise your community spirit. They will tell friends a little about their (hopefully) positive experience with you, and recommend them as a product or service provider to their friends.

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Branded Memory Sticks

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