I’ve done a lot of trade shows over the last 12 years. My children have what just might be the finest collection of trade show swag in the business: logo t-shirts, flashing bouncy balls and even binoculars from companies that probably don’t exist anymore. There was so much that I had to cut back to only the “premium” swag in order to keep them happy.

Swag is that stuff we get from the booths of the vendors at trade shows. The logo-encrusted, brand enhanced pens, cups, mouse pads and the granddaddy of all swag, the Squooshie Ball.

The science of swag is important. Do you really think people will come to your booth and take interest in your product if you don’t have the latest in marketing chic, like a ballpoint pen with highlighter attachment on top? The reality is that a great giveaway really does generate traffic at trade shows and, like it or not, you need something cool to capture the attention of potential prospects.

We are West Coast. It rains a lot here and we’re a SaaS product, so we are “green” by definition. The rain makes the forests green and there’s no waste involved in SaaS product architecture. No packaging to throw out when software is hosted in the cloud.

In preparing for Sage Summit 2009 in Atlanta, we wondered about how to keep that image and still ensure that people show up at our booth. The Indicee ‘green’ shopping bag is our answer.

• Everyone needs a bag to haul their goodies and trinkets around the show floor.
• Everyone needs a bag to transport the best of the loot home with them.
• Everyone ends up with a reusable grocery bag, keeping a little more plastic from our landfills.

And yes, the fact that our logo will be proudly displayed throughout is not lost on us.  If you’re in Atlanta next week, stop by booth #923 at the show. Enjoy the bag. We think they’re cool. We think they’re green.