In today's world, personalisation and the availability of many different options has resulted us in questioning if our traditional thinking that drinking with a ceramic mug is still the best option for tea and coffee drinkers. In this competitive environment we do not want to miss out on the latest trend amongst our friends or even our competitors. Therefore, ceramic mugs and coffee mugs have become popular corporate gifts and corproate souvenirs. Glass mugs offer us a new experience however, the taste between ceramic mugs is minimal. This article will be discuss the similarities, differences, advantages and disadvantages of both glass and ceramic mugs before you decide to order which mug type to order for your business as a corporate gift.
1. Material
Glass mugs are made of tempered or borosilicate glass which helps the mug to withstand higher temperatures and be more durable. Borosilicate glass contains 15% boron trioxide (B2O3) making it resistant to thermal stress. Double glassed mugs also further provides the mug with more resilience. Unlike, ceramic mugs glass mugs are transparent. Ceramic mugs on the other hand are more resilient to shattering and are coated with an inner layer of ceramic to retain heat. The appearances of ceramic mugs vary massively, ceramic mugs come in all shapes, colours, patterns and designs. Both materials are also microwave safe, making it suitable to reheat drinks in a short space of time.
2. Durability
Although, both glass and ceramic mugs are made of materials to reduce heat loss and probability of shattering. They are still prone to breaking. However, glass is the most fragile material and needs extra precaution particularly when suddenly putting the glass under thermal stress when adding cold or hot liquids. For example, finishing your favourite hot drink and immediately washing your glass mug in cold water will result in the glass mug shattering. In contrast, ceramic mugs will not shatter under different temperature stresses. Ceramic mugs are also susceptible to chipping but like glass mugs, they'll easily shatter if accidentally dropped from a height. Therefore, in terms of fragility ceramic mugs are a better choice as a corporate gift.
3. Appearance
Ceramic mugs offer a large variety of customisation whereas glass mugs have little to no variety. Ceramic mugs can be personalised and designed with your favourite pattern, design, logo or quote. Having more access to customisation creates more attachment to your own mug and can be enjoyed by everyone. Mugs can be a great special gift to friends and family. In addition, companies can design ceramic mugs as a corporate gift for their employees, customers and perspective clients. In contrast, glass mugs do not have any opportunity for design therefore, companies cannot use glass mugs to advertise their company logo onto a glass mug.
4. Standing Out From The Crowd
One notable and large advantage of glass mugs is that everybody can see what you are drinking. This is quite a great advantage as you can attract the gaze of those around you at home, in the work place, or in a restaurant. The uniqueness of the glass design can make it a good corporate souvenir for employees or clients. Drinks that are designed for glass mugs are generally special in appearance which can gives your glass transparent mug a superior appearance edge. For example, try ordering an Irish coffee in a cafe or restaurant and see all those around you quickly ask the waiter to order what you're having. See the image below for an example of an Irish Coffee.
Unlike glass mugs, unique drinks in ceramic mugs aren't visible to other people in your surroundings. Therefore, unless you have a unique funny slogan on the face of your ceramic cup, you wont be standing out from the crowd.
5. Overall: What's the best choice?
Choosing between a glass mug or ceramic mug is down to your own personal choice. If you're looking for a simple durable mug then ceramic mugs are your best choice. However, if you one to expose yourself to new drinks and new things, it would be useful to have a glass mug or two sitting in the cupboard for special occasions. Generally, some each mug has their own purpose so whenever you go out to a restaurant or cafe it really depends on the type of drink you order which affects whether you get a ceramic or glass mug. However, if you're a business or just looking for some mug customisation as a gift or as a corporate souvenir, ceramic mugs are far superior. Ceramic mugs offer unlimited customisation options which makes it an obvious choice as a corporate gift over glass mugs.
FAQ
Glass mugs are unique in appearance which helps you stand out from the crowd when drinking your favourite beverage.
Ceramic is more superior due to its durability and larger range of customisation.
Graduated with a Masters degree from Ireland with a Masters degree in Business Information system. English native speaker specialising in business and data analyst. Currently enrolled in Tunghai University's language centre for studying Mandarin Chinese and undertaking a student marketing internship at SourceEC. My role involves content writing, SEO analysis and web page optimisation After my studies and completion of this internship, I am hoping to pursue a career in data analytics in the digital marketing field in Asia.
