Dental Trade Show Giveaways: Ideas People Actually Take Home

At dental trade shows, congresses and training events, hundreds of professionals walk past your booth in a single day. Good dental trade show giveaways make sure your brand does not get lost among the brochures after the event, but shows up again in everyday practice. That applies equally to manufacturers, dental suppliers, dental labs and service providers.

What makes a good trade show giveaway

At the booth, it takes seconds to decide whether something is taken along. After that, it is decided whether it gets used. A good giveaway therefore meets four criteria:

It fits the industry. A promotional item around oral care makes sense in the dental world. Practice teams are happy to take it along and pass it on.
It is flat and light. Visitors carry bags all day. Whatever fits in a jacket pocket or wallet gets tucked away instead of left behind.
It carries the brand across the whole surface. Logo, brand colours and a clear note on where to go next should be recognisable at a glance.
It has a use. Whatever is picked up in everyday life brings the brand back to mind weeks after the event.

The floss card as a giveaway at the booth

A dental floss business card has the format of a classic business card at 85 × 55 mm, is only 1.6 mm thin and contains around 10 metres of waxed dental floss. Front and back can be printed edge to edge in CMYK. The front shows your brand, the back a QR code leading to the product page, to a booking page for a demonstration or to the trade show offer.

The format is practical for logistics: several hundred cards fit in a box that goes under any booth counter. On the counter, a small bowl or a display stand is enough.

Ideas for use

A business card that does not disappear in the pile

Hand out the card instead of, or in addition to, your regular business card. The back carries name, contact person and contact details. When someone goes through the collected cards after the event, yours is instantly easy to find again.

A bridge from the booth to your website

A QR code on the back leads straight to your own trade show page: product presentation, video, contact form. That also lets you measure in the end how many visitors came back for another look after the event.

A conversation starter at the booth

A floss card sparks curiosity. Almost everyone who picks one up asks about it. That is the moment when your team gets into conversation.

An insert in the trade show mailing

Before the event you invite customers to your booth by letter, and afterwards you thank them for visiting. The card fits flat in any envelope, and on request it can be tucked into a greeting card with your trade show message.

Training events and in-house shows

The card also works as a reminder of the date at your own training evenings, in-house shows and practice visits. For labs, we have collected more ideas in the article on promotional products for dental laboratories.

Design tips for trade show cards

One message. A logo and a short line about your trade show topic have more impact than a product list.
A back side with a job. QR code, booth number or contact: say clearly what the next step is.
Stand out with finishing. Hot foil in gold, silver or copper on the logo makes the card stand out in the bowl.
A design that lasts longer. If the back is not tied to a date, you can keep handing out leftover stock at practice visits after the event.
Set up the print data correctly. Format, bleed and special colours are described in the print specifications.

How many cards do you need?

A simple calculation: estimate the conversations and visitors per trade show day, multiply by the number of days and add the cards for mailings before and after the event. Plan generously if you will also use the cards in field sales afterwards. The minimum order is 500 pieces, and larger runs get cheaper per piece. From 5,000 pieces, strawberry, lemon, coconut and vanilla as well as black dental floss are available in addition to mint.

Plan in good time

Trade shows are fixed long in advance, yet promotional items are often ordered last. Allow for the production time you see in the card designer, and add a few days for shipping to the booth or the office. If you would like to check the quality beforehand, order a free sample.

Design it yourself or let us design it

In the card designer you upload your logo, see the card live in 2D and 3D and get the tiered price straight away. Only have your logo and an idea for the trade show? Then send us both via request without a designer. We design the card and send you a draft for approval.