Branded Merchandise. What to remember before you order.

I've recently been working with an ambulance service who required some branded merchandise. As part of their recruitment campaign, they needed some merch to take with them to recruitment events.

Many ideas were getting thrown around: water bottles, notebooks, etc. And it got me thinking that many businesses don't know what merchandise they should order. Most will order what they think people will like without putting much thought into it.

Here are the key things that should be considered before ordering branded merchandise.

What are your goals?

Why are you ordering the merchandise? Is it to attract people to visit your stand at an event? Is it there for educational purposes? Is it a treat for staff?

You need to get clear about why you're ordering the merchandise and who it is for beforehand.

Who is the target audience?

Who is the target audience? Put yourself in the shoes of your target audience so you can understand what would be attractive to them.

For example, a fitness brand. Their target audience may be fitness fanatics. They are likely to care about their water intake. Therefore, branded water bottles would attract them.

Is it environmentally friendly?

It's 2023; we should always consider the environment, not just for the environment itself, but for your brand's reputation. You do not want to be seen as a business contributing to climate change.

Before you order, ask yourself, is this good for the environment? Or is it something that people will throw away after a few weeks/months? This leads me to my next point.

Is this useful?

It is essential to understand your target audience for this reason. Will the products you choose be helpful to your target audience? How can we make them even more valuable?

An example: My work with the ambulance service.

Goals: Recruitment purposes. To attract potential talent to the business.

Target audience: People who would like to work for an ambulance service. People who want to help and save lives.

Branded merchandise: We decided on fridge magnets with children's choking advice and banner pens with CPR advice.

Why is this useful to our audience? Our audience is people who want to help and save lives. This means they will likely pick up merchandise that will help them do that.

Is it environmentally friendly? Yes. Because they are helpful and likely to be kept. These items can save lives, which means people will likely keep them for a very long time.

Buying branded merchandise should be a challenging task. It should not be choosing something that you think people will like/pick up and thats within budget.

If you need any advice, please don't hesitate to reach out.