We’re going to shoot straight with you. To give your brand an edge—and realize your ROI potential—you need a solid branded merchandise strategy in place. You might get away with flying by the seat of your pants for a while, but it’s not scalable—and sooner or later, it will show.
What happens when you ask consumers to rate which advertising channel prompts them to take action? They vote unanimously in favor of one channel as being the most effective, regardless if they’re Gen X, Y, or Z.
The undisputed winner is...promotional products. The power to reach your target audience, while reinforcing branding and messaging all play a part in that effectiveness. But the real question is: Are you reaching your full potential with branded merchandise?
Integrating technology with your current efforts might just be the missing link to your overall success. Here’s how you can see more ROI and greater success with an improved strategy for your branded merchandise.
Managing Custom Promotional Products Can Drive You Mad
Okay, you know custom promotional products are highly effective when it comes to deepening the connection with existing customers and inspiring action from prospective customers. But there are a TON of moving parts involved with every piece of merchandise you stamp with your brand’s logo.
Here’s a quick and dirty laundry list to consider with your promo products. You have to:
- Research
- Approve
- Order
- Manage
- Distribute
- Pay
And, cue headache.
The thing is, if you leverage technology, you can ditch unnecessary friction during the process and have a WAY better experience. Translation: A more efficient method that saves you time, while producing higher ROI.
“A brand for a company is like a reputation for a person. You earn reputation by trying to do hard things well.”
- Jeff Bezos
There are many brand merchandise solutions out there to choose from, and it’s always smart to do plenty of research and take a test drive or two. As with any new technology, it’s absolutely critical to find a platform that provides a range of solutions to fit various situations and purchasing needs specific to your company. Depending on your needs, integrations with your existing applications are yet another important consideration to keep in mind.
Naturally, at Inspired Results, we’re partial to our own solution...The Brand Catalyst. Because we know it literally takes an arsenal of tools to help our clients see the level of brand success they’re aiming to achieve.
True Story...A Branded Merchandise Platform Keeps You Sane
The Brand Catalyst is a flexible branded merchandise platform that combines ordering needs, like print on demand, inventory release, promotions and apparel. It’s a customizable experience that adjusts depending on the requirements and goals at your company.
You might choose a simple platform to centralize your branded merchandise in an easily accessible space. Storefront solutions are where it's at, since you can tailor approved print and promotional items to your brand identity standards.
Often these online stores house: brochures that are used across a company, approved swag to purchase for company events, or even employee stores. The bonus with The Brand Catalyst is that you can use these storefronts across multiple vendors.
You don’t have to worry about managing the execution with each and every vendor. You can approve items before they go live on the site, then your friends at Inspired Results make sure everything is executed properly for you.
“Every advertisement should be thought of as a contribution to the complex symbol which is the brand image.”
- David Ogilvy
Another company might need more horsepower—say, a complex platform that syncs directly with marketing automation programs.
If you’re in the latter category, triggers are set up in your CRM to recommend print or promotional items fit for a particular customer based on predefined behaviors (email open, click, website visit, etc.). After the trigger, merchandise is produced and/or shipped off to your customer.
Imagine pulling this svelte, highly personalized process off manually. Yeah...it wouldn’t be pretty. Scratch that—it wouldn’t be possible.
A branded merchandise platform like
The Brand Catalyst keeps you sane
...but it also helps you take your efforts to the next level.
See ROI and Great Success with Brand Management Solutions
At the end of the day, measuring success comes down to greater visibility into a more efficient process. A world without brand management solutions is a world without results that inspire your business to be better than before.
Reporting is an integral part of managing promotional products, and whichever solution you go with should definitely include insights. Seeing ROI is much easier with brand management when you have tools that help you understand your team’s usage and keep track of your inventory and budget.
We encourage all of our clients to use The Brand Catalyst platform as a mechanism to track usage across multiple departments or offices, as well as to maintain brand integrity and consistency in any marketing or sales tools. Not only does this make the process more efficient for their entire team, it also provides scalability and insights that empower them to make better business decisions.
Without technology, you are limited with what you can see and what you can achieve in every aspect of your business. With the right technology, no matter the size of your company, your capabilities become limitless. The same holds true for your promotional products.
A branded merchandise platform allows you to fine tune your efforts with a smarter approach. Even better, it gives you the power to do more with less so you can truly connect with customers and prospects.
Ready to step up your branded merchandise game? Sweet. Contact us ASAP to see a demo of The Brand Catalyst.
