You might have made a hand crafted lanyard as a child. Maybe you attached a whistle to it or if you were a clever camper you figured out how to put your compass on a lanyard. Wearing a whistle around your neck back then was handy way to have items close at hand. A lanyard, which is basically a cord or a rope, springs memories of all sorts of creative solutions to camping problems. Today the use of lanyards has evolved quite a bit, lanyards are used to keep many useful items within an arm’s reach. They are also a great and inexpensive tool for promotional use by businesses.

Promotional Lanyards

Considered an inexpensive marketing item, lanyards can increase a company’s visibility for a minimal investment. Plain lanyards can be given away as freebies to potential customers; or a company can invest a bit more and attach another promotional item, such as a USB drive to the end of the lanyard and give them away as premium gifts to prospective customers. Promotional lanyards are designed in just about every size, material and color imaginable and can be personalized to display a company names or logo. You will notice them everywhere at trade shows, marketing events and conventions.

Military Lanyards

One of the original uses for lanyards was for military use. They are still used today and are sometimes attached to the shoulder of a military uniform. The type, color and style of the lanyard denote the military person’s affiliation with a particular regiment. You can also find lanyards connected to a pistol or whistle on some uniforms. These prevent the chances of loosing the object.

Other Uses of Lanyards

Lanyards are not just hung around the neck. They can be attached to the arm or to a piece of clothing or even to a shoe. They can hold many different devices, for example:

• Compass’ and stop watches
• digital gadgets such as camera and phones
• water bottle holders
• utility knifes
• College campuses use lanyards regularly

Clearly, lanyards have shifted from just camping tools to incorporate so many more uses. In the future they may be used in even more ways.