Demand in the promotional products industry in the U.S. has undergone a dramatic shift this year in response to the COVID19 pandemic.

In looking at the terms searched across the industry’s #1 search platform, we see that personal protective equipment (PPE) and health-related products—including various terms for face coverings, hand sanitizer and no-touch tools for doing things like opening doors—maintain six of the top 10 search rankings for year to date. The other four spots were secured by more traditional promotional industry items like pens, water bottles, mugs and Koozies.

“PPE products are still dominant forces in the industry, but June saw a return of traditional promo product leaders to the mix, a sign that things were improving and moving to whatever our next normal is,” said Nathaniel Kucsma, ASI’s executive director of research and corporate marketing.

As promotional products distributors, we’re accustomed to following market trends, testing out new products, and making recommendations to help our clients choose the best products to help them achieve their goals.

We believe that “next normal” Kucsma references will include PPE-related products such as masks for the foreseeable future. And, really, this should be no surprise.

Why? For one, because retail brands and outlets all over the country—from Old Navy and American Eagle to Lucky Brand and Kenneth Cole—have already embraced the trend, launching face masks perfectly matched for every occasion.

And the promo industry always, always, always follows retail.

When something is hot, the promo industry steps up to put it into production so clients like you can get your brand into your customers’ hands with the latest and greatest.

While wearing a face mask in public might still seem new and a bit uncomfortable in the States, it was only a matter of time before the trend got some legs in America.

Many cultures around the world have long embraced facial coverings as preventative measures during regular flu season or when anyone is feeling under the weather. Now that everyone in the US is (or soon will be) equipped with masks, we would be surprised if the trend didn’t see some staying power in the U.S., both on the personal level and for the advertising world.

After all, once businesses and advertisers have a taste of the sweetest marketing real estate there is (the face, of course!), do you really think there will be any going back?

We’ve said it before, and we’ll say it again: If you’re not taking advantage of that new advertising space, your competition certainly is…or will be soon.

Now’s your chance to decide whether you’ll offer your employees and customers this important and highly-sought after protective gear or you’ll let your competitors do it for you.