Competition for customer loyalty and brand awareness is fierce and marketers understand the importance of building a long lasting rapport with clients. But marketers are also hammered with solutions that are supposed to build this rapport primarily through digital means. Serving up the last item they had in their cart, reminder emails, popups, and building their customer persona. All of these methods are certainly valid in an ecommerce, digital world but some marketing that may seem “old hat” has made an epic resurgence.
Everywhere you go you hear about famous people designing t-shirts, t-shirts for a cause, t-shirts for fundraising and t-shirt giveaways. Do you wonder why this trend is so prevalent? People love t-shirts! It’s practically impossible to have too many since it’s such a versatile garment. What your competitors know about t-shirts is that if they are well designed with quality printing on a quality t-shirt product, they can do the talking for your service or product.
Some t-shirts are even considered highly coveted merchandise even if you’re marketing a service such as auto repair or landscaping. Here’s what your competitors know about t-shirts as a marketing and brand loyalty building tool.
- It’s all in the design or motto
Have a professional graphic artist design your t-shirt. Come up with mottos or slogans that will appeal to your target demographic. Customers are much more likely to value and wear a t-shirt that resonates emotionally or professionally with their identity.
- Choose a t-shirt product you would want to wear
How do you feel about a cheaply made product? Cheap gifts rarely illicit positive feelings. If you’re going to give something away, consider if you want your brand associated with a flimsy, off brand and poorly printed t-shirt. Go with the quality, it is surprisingly less than what you might think.
- Keep the t-shirt color unisex unless you have both masculine and feminine versions
Green, blue, red, grey, black, and white are all fine choices for unisex. Moving towards teals, peaches, and pinks may leave your male customers feeling a little left out unless you have a gauge on your male customer’s receptivity. - Order in bulk to get the best discount
Screen printing t-shirts in bulk can bring the price per t-shirt down dramatically. Always consider how many t-shirts you’re planning to order when researching pricing. If you get a quote on just one, you’re true price for a bulk order will not be reflected and may seem quite expensive. Our most significant price breaks are at 12, 36, 72, 144, and 300. You’ll see price breaks at all ascending increments; those are simply the biggest jumps. - Design with few colors to keep the print cost down
Fewer colors mean less time printing and require fewer screens to be burned. If your designs simply must feature many colors, be prepared to pay more. Some great designs simply cannot be simplified for the sake of saving money.
- Don’t just use your logo unless your Google or Apple – make it about the customer
This is a tough one for many marketers to understand, especially when you’re also trying to explain this to your CEO. People typically don’t proudly wear logos unless your company is somewhat of a “rock star” in its industry. Try to consider the end user and what about your company mirrors their ideals.
- Hype up the giveaway
Make your branded t-shirt a coveted item by rewarding consumers with a gift of it. You can hold a contest, offer it as perk for referrals, give it away to the first 50 customer to purchase a specific product or service, or as a loyalty gift for your most valuable customers.
