You are handing your client or potential customer an item that weighs about a pound. Right off, they heft it and feel that they've received something of value. The two basic types of coffee mugs are ceramic and porcelain.
Porcelain is a white, translucent ceramic product.
It is generally less expensive than a ceramic mug, but is only available in white and has a slightly less perceived value. Ceramic mugs are a colored clay mixture that is molded and then fired in ovens at extremely high temperatures. Most advertising specialty mugs are imprinted by the direct screen-printing process. Both mugs will take almost any color imprint, but some of the maroon and purple inks tend to change color slightly during the ink curing process. Sometimes when an extremely detailed design or photo is needed, the manufacturer will first print a ceramic decal, which is then fired onto the mug.