The quality of a product, even a promotional or free product, speaks greatly to the image and message of a company. Many organizations give away free USB flash drives with a company logo or message in the hopes that these items will promote the popularity of the company itself. This marketing tactic works well when the product is quality but if, for example, a potential customer is given promo USB drives that malfunction or are of general low value, this sends a very negative message about the company and may drive away a large amount of future business. The last thing a company needs is to spend money on a product that adversely affects the number of potential clients. There is nothing worse for a company's image than a product, even a free product, associated with that company to fail or be construed as "cheap". In order to maintain a proper reputation, every item linked to an organisation needs to be excellent and represent a positive message in the mind of the consumer.

Not all USB drives are created equally and the lower-end and less expensive flash drives are often not what they are advertised to be. Many inexpensive USB drives do not have the amount of storage space advertised and have very short life spans, meaning that the drive can only be used a few times before it fails. This creates a dilemma because most organisations do not want to spend a large amount for a product that is promotional or free simply because that is not always good business sense. If a potential client is given a failing piece of technology affiliated with a certain company, it is unlikely for that individual to do business with that company in the future. In order for a promo USB drive to fulfil its original intention, it can never be viewed as inexpensive or rubbish.

Colours are often a strong signification of a certain brand or company, so it is important for promo items to correctly represent the proper colour scheme. Not only can a number of potential USB flash drives be of mediocre quality, but also poor aesthetics and visual representation. It is quite easy to incorrectly match a colour especially when trying to do so on plastic because almost all materials represent the same colour much differently to the eye. If a company is sent promo drives that do not match the intended colour, those items will not be associated with the desired business and thus the entire marketing campaign will have failed.

A cheap drive can lead to a failed advertising message and negatively affect an organisation's potential client base and overall profits. Businesses need to be aware of cheap promo USB drives because there is nothing worse than a bad product, even one as small as a free drive, being associated with a company.