Summer is always fun – sunshine, camping trips, time in the garden with the family.
Although holidays may look a little different with the pandemic still affecting our lives, it’s still a time that your customers and employees will be looking forward to.
Why not celebrate the sunshine and happiness with a summer promo or giveaway?
When you want to get your audience involved with the summer fun with competitions at outdoor events or raise brand awareness with online competitions, we’ve got the gear you need.
We’ve got a list of the top items for summer giveaways, including:
- Kit that’s ideal for the beach
- Gear for your camping customers to enjoy
- Swag for days out at the park
With lots of options to add your company name to your prizes.
Let’s dip our toes in the water…
20 Best Summer Promotional Items for Giveaways [2022]
Idea #2: Mosquito Repelling Lantern
Idea #9: Waterproof Phone Case
Summer Swag Idea #1: Sunscreen
Could we start our list of summertime promotional products without sunscreen?
Most people love soaking up the sun as soon as the clouds start to clear, but that doesn’t mean we can’t be sensible at the same time.
By giving away high-quality, SPF 30 sunscreen and lip balm you’re signaling that you want everyone to have fun, but care about the dangers of sunburn too.
When you’re holding an outdoor event such as a company picnic or summer fair, having branded bottles of sunscreen to give to everyone will be appreciated and shows you’ve really put some thought into your day.
A handy bottle of sun lotion will never go amiss!
Price range: Starting at $3 per item
Summer Swag Idea #2: Mosquito Repelling Lantern
With the sunshine comes the bugs, particularly mosquitoes, so giving away a mosquito-repelling lantern is just the ticket.
Ideal for those who enjoy camping in warm weather, this type of lantern will get used again and again.
These items work by giving off a scent that mozzies are known to hate, so should keep the campsite or garden free from the pesky critters and the diseases they carry.
Choose a lantern like the one in our photo that works as a light for the campsite, too – your prize winners will be eternally thankful when they realize they forgot the torch!
Price range: Starting at $38 per item
Summer Swag Idea #3: Beach Towel
From campsites to beachside, next up on our list of summer promo products is the ever-handy beach towel.
Prize winners will be super thankful to get a large, thick beach mat that they can laze around on or dry off with after a dip in the ocean or lake.
You get plenty of space to add your branding to it and beach towels come in so many different colors that you can be sure you’ll be able to match your logo.
Make the design bright and unique and your summer swag could even feature in lots of summer selfies on social media, too.
Price range: Starting at $12 per item
Summer Swag Idea #4: Hat
Summer is the time to reach for the hats and keep ourselves well-covered in the heat of the day.
Include a hat or visor in your summertime giveaway and the recipients will be very pleased indeed.
You want to be sure the item is something people will actually wear; customize the style of hat to appeal to your target demographic – if your audience is millennial men, a floppy sun hat probably won’t hit the mark!
Similarly, really pay attention to the design and make it cool.
Rather than just adding your standard company logo, think about how visually appealing it is, and could it be tweaked to give a more summery vibe?
Prize winners love useful items and a hat works in so many settings that it definitely deserves a place on our list.
Author’s Tip: Hats are one of the most searched for promo items in Canada and they’re in high demand for a reason – people really love and appreciate the product!
Price range: Starting at $10 per item
Summer Swag Idea #5: Hand Sanitizer
With new environments come new germs, so having a hand sanitizer on hand during a summer break is essential.
Whether you’re running a summer fair and want to create a useful swag bag, or are putting together an event and need some swag ideas, hand sanitizer should definitely be on your list.
More people understand the use of sanitizer as a valuable personal care item and will be reaching for their branded bottle regularly.
Price range: Starting at $3 per item
Summer Swag Idea #6: Lunch Cooler
Sixth on our list is an item that’s just perfect for summer breaks – of the lunch or weekend kind – the lunch cooler.
Lunch bags are handy for people who want to take their own food to work; a nice crisp salad and chilled drink on your break sounds delicious, right?
By giving away a cooler bag as a summer promo prize, you can delight your winners and give them even more incentive to relax in the sun rather than stand in a queue at the lunch truck.
It’s a great way to eat healthy on a summer road trip or to take fresh fruit down to the beach on holiday.
You can’t get much more versatile a gift than that!
Price range: Starting at $45 per item
Summer Swag Idea #7: Can Cooler
A cold soda or beer on a hot day are what dreams are made of, and your customers will be in seventh heaven with this can cooler.
Keeping drinks cold whilst in the garden or local park is a perennial problem; by solving it for your competition winners you’ll make them remember you for sure.
This item is a step up from the traditional koozie and will last for summer after summer, being used at sporting events or lazing by a swimming pool, so it’s perfectly versatile too.
Price range: Starting at $25 per item
Summer Swag Idea #8: Flip Flops
When you want to create a summer swag box for your competition entrants, look no further than flip flops.
Whether your summer prize recipients call them slippers, sandals, thongs, jandals, or simply flip flops, they’ll always be appreciated once it’s time to hit the pool.
Flip flops ooze summer and can easily be teamed with other summer goodies to make a great gift set, like Hubspot did in the picture above.
Go one up from the standard foam-and-rubber flip flop and choose to give away a high-quality pair with neoprene arches and molded rubber soles that will last longer and give a high-end feel to your prize.
Price range: Starting at $4 per pair
Summer Swag Idea #9: Waterproof Phone Case
Swimming pool selfie, anyone? That’s what’s on offer with the ninth item on our list of promotional gifts fit for summer – the waterproof phone case.
Summer is all about the beach, pool, or waterfall so give your customers a chance to get some great snaps whilst they’re at it.
As well as being something a little bit different, you can also encourage some great user-generated content when you give away a waterproof phone case in a summer promotion.
Author’s Tip: Be sure to choose a case that works for as many phones as possible to keep all of your recipients happy and negate the need to have a range of different-sized items to send out.
Price range: Starting at $3 per item
Summer Swag Idea #10: Drawstring Bag
A drawstring bag makes a great promo gift for your summer giveaway.
Out of all the promotional bag styles on offer, we reckon the drawstring bag is the right choice for promotional giveaways.
It works as a great beach bag that can easily be thrown over one shoulder or two and can fit all the prize winners’ summer essentials without being bulky.
Choosing a bag made from non-woven material will make it durable, and therefore a more eco-friendly gift, so you can stand by your environmental credentials.
Price range: Starting at $5 per item
Summer Swag Idea #11: Sunglasses
When it’s time to dig out the shades it’s summertime, so sunglasses are perfect promotional merchandise for summer.
High-quality and well-designed promotional sunglasses should go down a treat with your audience.
Choosing a classic design, like the Malibu sunglasses in our picture, will show that your business understands timeless forms and you also get a reasonable amount of space to add your design or logo.
Author’s Tip: When choosing your custom sunglasses, aim for lenses that are polarized to keep the users’ eyes well protected.
Price range: Starting at $2 per pair
Summer Swag Idea #12: Folding Chair
Make sure your prize winners or gift recipients are happy campers and give them a folding chair.
Having a sturdy, comfortable chair that packs away neatly into the trunk or flatbed is a camper’s or picnicker’s dream, so you can make a really happy connection with your customers with this item.
Your logo or branding will be on show for years to come when you give away a chair made from solid, non-rusting metals.
Price range: Starting at $35 per item
Summer Swag Idea #13: Reusable Straw Set
Looking for an eco-friendly swag option for your summer giveaway? We present to you the reusable straw set.
From cocktails on the beach, coconuts in the forest, or fresh fruit juices in the backyard, having reusable straws around for summer is a great idea.
By giving away bamboo or metal straws including a wire cleaner, like you can see above, you’re making life a little easier and a lot more eco-friendly – which is exactly what any branded swag idea should do.
Author’s Tip: This item is all about being kind to the environment, so be sure you choose items that are sourced as local to you as possible and avoid canceling out any benefits with carbon-heavy long-distance shipping.
Price range: Starting at $5 per item
Summer Swag Idea #14: Hammock
Picture the scene – white sand, blue ocean, pink paper umbrellas in drinks; what are you sitting in? If the answer is a hammock, then you’re on to a winning idea.
Encourage your prize winners to thoroughly relax by giving them a branded hammock for their travels.
Even with no exotic location to go to like our little thought experiment, they can help your prize winners relax in their garden or get a great night’s sleep when camping in the wilderness.
Hammocks come in all kinds of colors and styles, from traditional woven ropes to the modern fabric our pictured item is made from.
Know your audience and choose the right hammock for their needs – parents might want the studier full-fabric style whilst selfie queens might want the aesthetic of an old-style hammock as their prize or gift.
Author’s Tip: Provide the carabiner and rope kit along with the hammock to make it a complete gift that can be used straight away.
Price range: Starting at $50 per item
Summer Swag Idea #15: Hand Fan
Three quarters down our list and we come to the ever-popular hand fan.
Whether you choose to offer your giveaway winners a mini fan for their car or desk, or a hand-held version, you’ll win some brownie points in the depths of summer.
Choose a rechargeable mini-fan so it can be charged using power banks or any phone charger, making it much more accessible for the user and also better for the planet since it won’t need new batteries all summer long.
Price range: Starting at $11 per item
Summer Swag Idea #16: Picnic Set
When you’re looking for higher-value summer promotional gifts, consider giving away a picnic set.
Start the tradition of company picnics if you’ve not got one already, and give away a great-looking bag to everyone at the end of it to make it extra special.
Your team, or anyone else you want to offer a picnic set to, will appreciate the whole package that can include kit like ice packs, BBQ tools, drinkware, or cutlery.
Choose quality items that will last your team and their families for years.
Price range: N/A
Summer Swag Idea #17: Cooling Towel
Coming towards the end of our list, we have a relatively new concept that you should consider offering as a summer promo or giveaway prize: the cooling towel.
Working on the principle of evaporation cooling, the cooling towel gets soaked in water, wrung out, and will keep the user cool for around two hours – perfect for hikers, campers, and people looking to cool down next to the pool.
Consider handing these out at a trade show giveaway so your attendees can keep cool when they explore outside your venue.
Price range: Starting at $19 per item
Summer Swag Idea #18: Tumbler
A classic for any company swag or giveaway idea, and even more perfect for summer, is the tumbler.
A double-wall tumbler will keep drinks cool – or hot – for hours and is the ideal stadium cup for the sporting fans in your audience.
Similar to a stainless steel water bottle, the tumbler can be taken anywhere and filled with just about anything, but is for more sedate settings like the beach or the park.
Drinkware that keeps liquids cool is always going to come in handy, meaning the recipients will be super thankful for this prize.
Price range: Starting at $5 per item
Summer Swag Idea #19: Action Camera
When your customers like to shoot life in full color, consider offering an action camera as a giveaway prize for your summer competitions.
This piece of tech swag is designed to be fully immersed in the action, so an action camera will really appeal to everyone from festival-goers to snorkelers; hikers to mountain bikers, and everyone in between!
We all love capturing our lives on camera, and similar to the waterproof camera case we looked at a little earlier, giving away this type of prize can also encourage user-generated content.
Author’s Tip: Consider including a silicone cover to go with the action camera to make it waterproof and extend its use cases even further.
Price range: Starting at $30 per item
Summer Swag Idea #20: Beach Ball
Last on our list is the perennial summer favorite and something you can’t hit the shores without – a beach ball with your logo printed on it.
An inflatable beach ball is perfect for the lake or beach and is a fun addition to pool parties, too.
Making a beach ball part of your summer promotional merchandise collection adds a fun and vibrant touch to your swag ideas.
There’s also plenty of space for you to add your logo or other designs that should get your competition winners taking plenty of photos and posting your item all over social media.
Author’s Tip: Team the beach ball with other inflatables or frisbees to create a package of fun beach or pool party games as a prize package.
Price range: Starting at $2 per item
Now Over to You
You’ve made it!
We’re at the end of our list of the 20 best promotional items you can use for giveaways over the summer months.
Whilst standard favorites like t-shirts, custom water bottles, tote bags, and lanyards haven’t made it on the list, we’re sure you already know the great benefits these can offer, so we’ve given you some different options.
Putting together a summer prize list for your giveaway or competition should be super easy with our list of ideas that will bring fun and practicality to your customers.
Want to start building your list of branded promo items?
Here at PRG, we’ve been in the swag and merchandise industry for a few decades now and can help you pick out exactly the right items for your style, audience, and budget.
Drop your details in the contact form and we’ll get right back to you!
