Promotional Pen Types: Ballpoint, Gel, Stylus and Metal
Most logo pens come down to two choices: what kind of pen it is, and how your logo goes on it. Get those two right and the rest — barrel color, ink color, quantity — falls into place. Here is a plain-English walk through both.
Ballpoint: the dependable everyday pen
A ballpoint uses a thick, quick-drying ink and a tiny rolling ball at the tip. It writes on almost any paper, rarely smudges, and keeps going a long time — which is why it is the pen on counters, clipboards and sign-in desks everywhere.
BIC’s classics are the place to start. BIC describes the Round Stic as a lightweight pen with a ventilated cap and a medium ballpoint, recognized around the world. If you want a click pen with no cap to lose, BIC calls its Clic Stic retractable the best-selling pen in promo, with a break-resistant pocket clip and hundreds of barrel and trim color combinations.
Gel: bolder, smoother lines
Gel ink sits on top of the paper in a bolder, more vivid line, and many people find it glides more smoothly than a ballpoint. It is a nice step up for a client gift or a team that writes all day.
Pentel says its EnerGel RTX combines liquid and gel inks for quick-drying, no-smear writing, and that the pen is made with 54% recycled materials. Fraud-resistant gel ink is another option some suppliers offer for signing documents.
Stylus pens: one end for paper, one for screens
A stylus pen adds a soft tip on the end for tapping phones, tablets and sign-here screens. They make sense anywhere people do both — a front desk with a check-in tablet, a sales team, a bank or a clinic. The Stylus Grip Pen pairs a stylus with chrome accents and a dimpled grip, and Hub’s Vienna Stylus Pen is a classic push-action retractable with a stylus tip.
Metal and executive pens: a gift that feels like one
A metal or executive pen has more weight in the hand and a more finished look. It is the pen for a closing, an anniversary, an award or a thank-you to your best customers — the kind people keep on their desk rather than toss in a drawer.
The Souvenir Suite Chic Pen, for example, has a matte metal finish and fraud-resistant gel ink and comes with a velour sleeve, according to its supplier. Hub describes its Kashmiro Comfort Pen as having a soft-touch finish with gunmetal trim and a generous laser-engraved imprint.
Printed logo or laser engraving?
Most plastic pens are printed: your logo is applied in ink, so you choose the ink color to match your brand, and some pens offer more than one color or full color. A bright barrel with a contrasting imprint reads clearly from across a room.
Laser engraving uses a laser to etch your logo into the pen’s surface. It is not ink, so it cannot wear off the way a print can, and it gives a clean, polished look that suits metal and executive pens. The trade-off is that you do not choose the color — it comes from the material under the finish. On many painted metal pens the logo shows in silver; Hub, for example, describes the engraved imprint on its Vienna Stylus Pen as silver. Engraving also suits simple logos and short lines of text best; Hub, for example, limits straight-line text on its Textari Stylus Pen to 30 letters.
Not sure which your pen uses? Many product descriptions mention it, and our team can tell you. Either way, your free e-proof shows exactly how your logo will look before anything is made.
Not sure which to pick?
Tell Dorothy, our product finder, something like “metal pens with our logo engraved for client gifts” and she will pull matching pens from our catalog. Or call our team at 954-559-7124. Nothing goes to press until you approve your proof.
