New swag for Stack Overflow's 10th birthday: wear-ables or desk-ables? [closed]

Question

Stack Overflow is turning 10 soon, and we're going to be throwing some shindigs here and there to help celebrate it. While some of it will be exclusively on MSO, quite a bit of it will be asking all of our friends to join in. I don't want to spoil it, but it's mostly going to involve us giving you stuff.

What's really, really cool is, right after these festivities, we'll soon be heading into another installment of Winter Bash! So the fun days start a little sooner this year, neat! Hence, we've gotta get a better feel on what we need to stock up on in general, so I'm asking here.

We could use some inspiration.

We're good with T-shirts and stickers, but we'd like to do some special stuff for the anniversary. When's the last time you said HAPPY TENTH BIRTHDAY HERE, HAVE A CHEESY PEN! -- I know, right? And while I'll argue that an abacus could be a thought that counts, we're hoping to get a little more original.

We'd like to get a feel - would folks like wearable stuff more than, say, stuff that would look nifty on a desk or a shelf? Would you be up for consumables like, say, gourmet jelly beans (totally Vegan) or chocolates, or perhaps more utility-oriented stuff like bluetooth speakers, messenger bags, etc? (Well, I guess bags are wearable, but hopefully you get what I'm after)

We can't promise anything, but we're going to be ordering the minimum of quite a few things in preparation for having a bunch of smaller events.

I reiterate, we'll have plenty of shirts and stickers.

Don't worry about the usual stuff, we're more interested in some limited edition just to celebrate Stack Overflow turning 10, and one heck of a year in general.

Any ideas or inspiration? We're going to be sending final ideas to our printer in about a week, and ordering quantities based on demand from the events we throw, so speak up soon if there's something in particular that strikes your fancy.

Answer 1

I'm a big fan of things I can wear or use in front of other people, to get both the utility and the chance to prompt questions that can start a conversation. I make a point of wearing my various SE shirts when traveling, for example (airports are full of random people, after all). Shirts aren't the only thing in this category, though.

I'd love an SO-branded backpack, small enough to fit under the seat in front of me and large enough to hold all the usual stuff one wants to have at hand -- a tablet or two, battery packs, power cords, even a laptop. I've gotten a couple of these at conferences, but I'd much rather promote Stack Overflow than some conference that was two years ago, y'know?

Answer 2

Plush unicorns! People on meta have asked for the Stackicorn in the past, have even expressed willingness to pay for it if only you'd make them. Bonus: in the future you might be able to print different "shirts" (say, for different sites) or add other decorations.

Answer 3

A Stack Overflow-branded rubber duck would be nice, preferably a fully-functioning one (i.e. it floats on water).

(The Quack Overflow feature was presented on all sites in this calendar year.)

Answer 4

Hoodie or Jacket

I know a lot of people have asked for hoodies and jackets in the past.

If those are available again, I think they would be very popular.

Answer 5

A list of 'freebies' I have been given over the years, that were actually useful:

• A lunchbox. Makes for a great conversation starter during lunch, and helps maintain a healthy lifestyle. You want your userbase to be healthy, right?
• An insulated travel mug/bottle. Those are great on cold winter days in public transport, and you can fill them up at work with loads of coffee/tea and keep your productivity levels on par. Decals are suggested here, but I prefer the lazy way of already having them put on when they arrive.
• A laptop/tablet sleeve. If for whatever reason you're not going with the laptop bag/backpack suggested by Monica, a sleeve works well too. I use them regularly to keep my tablet/laptop safe while travelling.
• Sticky notes. I prefer to stick small to-do lists and notes on my laptop/pc, instead of entering them into a mobile phone or JIRA.
• A (3d printed) desk organizer. You know, those things that hold your pens, scissors, crochet hooks, magnets, sticky notes, safety pins, pencil sharpener, and whatever other small loose items might be found roaming a desk.
• Those little umbrellas. The ones that fold up, fit in every backpack/purse, and break during the first real winter storm. I promise I will only use an SE one for gentle spring showers!
• Beach towels. If we're talking rain and cold weather, we should also have something for sunny days too!

I do like getting food stuff (chocolate, mints, whatever) at conferences, but I feel it's a little bit too 'perishable' for a 10th birthday celebration. I'm not going to frame and hang a chocolate bar wrapper as a memento.

So, mostly, I like the idea of wearables, or stuff I can actually use, that doesn't break by looking at it. As far as I'm concerned, there's not really enough room on either my desk or shelves to put something that just 'looks neat'. It needs to be useful.

Answer 6

Playing cards.

I would love to see Stack Overflow or Stack Exchange-branded playing cards. It would be even better if we could choose a site that the cards would be branded as, but I understand that that may be asking for too much, since it is SO's birthday after all.

It would also be nice to have a nice tin to store the cards in when not playing.

Answer 7

Keychains

I'd love a keychain (not to be confused with a lanyard) - to add to my key ring or hang from a loop on my bag. Enamel keychains look especially nice, but there's a lot of options. They're small and not too expensive, and we all know someone who could use help keeping track of their keys ;)

Answer 8

How about shot glasses - with the logo of each site you have over X rep (or are a mod on). Gotta collect em all!

I'd love a set of glasses matching my flair

Answer 9

Hats

I think hats would be a great addition to an (eventual) totally SO-branded outfit - we already have a t-shirt after all :).

The designs for those you can (probably) steal from a previous question (but with updated logos of course): Hats are too awesome for Stack Exchange not to have!

Answer 10

I propose

Stack Exchange lanyards / keycords

so that one never loses their keys anymore. Pros: they're visible (i.e. good for marketing), hard to break and easy to ship.

Answer 11

Useful things are always better.
You can never have enough USB flash drives.

Answer 12

Lanyards

I don't know if it's something that's been created before for SO/SE, but I'm a big fan of collecting lanyards. They're cheap, easy, and with a badge at work I find myself always needing one.

Answer 13

Mousemat

Yes, I know.... a good developer's hands never leave the keyboard, and hence there's technically no need for a mouse/mousemat, but we still all have one anyway :)

As well as being highly practical, mousemats are lightweight (easy to ship) and easily brandable (making your marketing department happy). Sounds perfect for swag!

Answer 14

Site patches or pins. There's already a SE patch and it's simple to ship, you guys already have a supplier and you can use it to customize anything.

Pins have many of the same advantages but are also shiny.

Answer 15

Fridge Magnets

Yeah bi...big magnets (if you got the reference ;-P) which we can stick on our fridges and almirahs with Stack Overflow and Unicorns on them. They are also decorative materials in your household. [Idea by Ankit Sharma and Memor-X].

Answer 16

I might be really, really late, but I'd love to see a wiping cloth for phones and laptops. I've done my very best with this photoshopping stuff, I hope it works out!

Preferably do some with different Jon Skeet facts on them ;)

Answer 17

I would really, really, like Stack Exchange branded chocolate bars!

Yummy. :)

Answer 18

A Jon Skeet Bobblehead figure.

Much like this kind of thing but with more rep, SE logos and more unicorns:

This would definitely start conversations at my desk.

Answer 19

Branded webcam covers, for the security-minded.

Answer 20

I love my SE Sharpie: I would really like a set of different colours for the different sites I participate on!

How about an orange one for Ask Ubuntu, a yellow one for Stack Overflow, a red one for Electrical Engineering, a green one for Puzzling or Raspberry Pi SE, another blue one for Meta...

Please!!

Answer 21

Way late, but... Another fun stress toy would be the polyurethane brick.

(Add a logo and all, of course)

Pros:

• It can be safely thrown at your computer monitor or coworkers in times of stress.

• Crush a brick with bare hands.

• Can be used in place of a rubber duck, when you're a little too frustrated and need to use language unsuitable for rubber duckies.

• Satisfying bricky goodness.

• Is just a brick.

Cons:

• Is just a brick.

• You may face workplace consequences for throwing it at coworkers.

Answer 22

Cellphone ID card holder

The one which you stick behind the phone case and add in your cards (like credit card, ID card, etc). It looks like this. (Taken from here)

(Personal Opinion: I'd prefer the entire name "Stack Exchange" or "Stack Overflow" on the card holder. Many people know the name Stack Overflow rather than the logo)

Answer 23

I am sure many of us are Otakus. So in that case, it would be nice to have an SE branded Ninja Band. Something like this:

Sorry for the bad editing; I am not a good editor. ^^

Answer 24

I'm late, I know.

Please consider adding some Espresso cups. Not everybody likes to have their coffee with half a liter of milk added to it. I have soo many "large mugs" that get misused as pen holders or coin collectors or just collect dust in the cabinet, but I don't have a single cool espresso cup.

Wouldn't mind a bit of humor either (although preferably by a better artist):

Not everybody thinks their coffee needs watering down :)

Answer 25

As several users already proposed utility based swag, I am proposing

Wind Chimes

I really like if some gift or a token I get is a decorative material and adds beauty to my place. Wind Chimes can be used at many places (house, garden, office etc.,) in interior designing. It will be utility based too. They have a history and importance in different fields from music to Mathematics. So, it will also symbolize a network of diversified sites :). If you are looking for some Techie touch in this, you may use some electronic waste and make them too.

Answer 26

Clothing related:

Socks, ties, hats and scarves would all be good, especially on the run up to winter.

Answer 27

Socks can be good too! Npm have some cool ones.

Beyond that, I'd also vote for a hoodie, but a pull over one without a zip... I have a personal vendetta against hoodies with zips, but that's a story for another day.

Answer 28

I would literally love anything with the SO logo on it:

• t-shirts
• coasters
• hoodies
• rubber duck
• sash and crown..ok only joking on that last one (or am I ??)

But what I think would be a great idea would be a desktop calendar. Perhaps with a question of the month for each month. 'Famous' questions or indeed answers with high upvotes or views, it would be a nice memento to have of some of the great Q&A's we have in the past from the SO repository .

How to pick only 12 though ..hmmm now that would be hard!

Answer 29

Planning poker cards

The sort typically used for planning poker (with the Fibbonaci sequence on them)

Answer 30

I posted this in the original post too.

I would love one of these before winter