Merch

‘Merchandise’ (or merch as it’s more recently become known) is also a really powerful way to connect someone to your company.  If a person wears your brand then they are truly part of your tribe.  Corporate merchandise used to be given out free.  T-shirts, branded mugs and pens were given out at events as freebies.  Now, if someone likes your brand they will pay for items with your brand on it.  This has been led by YouTubers and social media influencers selling their own t-shirts and hoodies to their followers, with people now willing to pay for merchandise to show they align to a company or movement.  You also don’t need to place huge orders to get merchandise created.  Printed mugs now have minimum orders under 100 units, and you can even use print on demand that you integrate with your website.  With these services, someone places an order for a t-shirt through your portal and the company prints a single item using their digital printer and sends it direct to your customer without you being involved.  No need to buy in bulk, no need to have boxes full of t-shirts of all different sizes cluttering up your home or office.

Obviously the margins are not great if you’re trying to make money this way (the majority of the profit goes to the printing company), but it’s a quick and easy way to allow fans to walk around promoting your company on your behalf.  Make your merch something that vegans would want to wear but that also ties in with your unique brand message.  People love stickers, and clothing brand Viva La Vegan are a great example of a brand that has done this well.  They sell a range of stickers for token amounts from their online store that people will likely pick up alongside ordering other items.  All have a strong campaigning message but also carry the Viva La Vegan logo.  If someone is constantly being reminded of your brand because they have your sticker on their phone case, they have your poster on their wall, they drink their morning coffee from your mug or wear your t-shirt to their local vegan fair, the stronger your connection with them will be.  And, again, we come back to remarkability.  No-one wants to t-shirt for a dull, unremarkable company.  Make your merchandise’s message strong, fun, or just downright cool.