How Custom Apparel Can Help With Building a Brand
Custom apparel for your staff is a great way to help build a brand for your business. Here's everything you need to know.
There are an estimated 8 million businesses in the United States. Some of these are outstanding examples of corporate branding. You only have to say the words Apple, Starbucks, and Tesla, and their logos and signature style immediately come to mind.
Your business may not have quite reached those dizzy heights, but you still want it to stand out from the crowd. You've developed your logo and signature branding, but now you need to communicate it to your target audience. One key tool that is effective and relatively inexpensive is custom apparel.
Read on to explore why building a brand with custom apparel makes business sense.
Build Brand Recognition
Head into any Apple store, and you can pick out their employees immediately. Their striking bright blue t-shirts are easy to pick out, which is a good thing as their stores are often teeming with customers.
The distinctive color is paired with their simple but iconic branding. This is a great example to learn from. When customers enter your business, they need to be easily able to identify who works there.
Outfitting your staff with a signature color that highlights your branding is helpful for customers. It's also a great way to build awareness of your business branding, which can help with merchandising.
Your team will appreciate being able to spot each other, and it can create a sense of camaraderie and belonging.
Offer Merchandise
As the branding for your business becomes more well-known, you can parlay that into appealing merchandise.
You can build the appeal of your merch by ensuring the design is appealing to your target audience. Take your time with this part of the process. Work with a printing company that will create samples and works with you to nail the look.
Be bold and learn lessons from other brands that have made branded merchandise desirable fashion items. John Deere is a great example of this. Everyone knows its hats and other branded merchandise, and the business continues to go from strength to strength.
Know Your Audience
Everyone who is building a brand knows that they need to start with their audience.
When creating the design for your custom apparel, think about what your audience wants. Is your brand established enough that your logo can stand alone? Or do you need to include other fun touches, such as:
- Slogans
- Running motifs
- Jokes
- Memes
Involve Your Audience
Consider involving your audience in the decision-making process. You can launch polls on TikTok, Instagram, or Facebook, giving you instant feedback on design ideas. This could include this color or that, feedback on the typeface, and even the garments they would like you to include in your range of merch.
Connect with Your Audience
Incentivize participation in the design process by making it into a competition. This will help you get more people involved, but make sure you deliver. Ask for their permission to feature them wearing the merch you've sent them and encourage them to share this with their contacts.
Take Your Brand Everywhere
Many forms of advertising are static. Think about billboards and poster advertisements. You're relying on people walking by to see them, and that will necessarily exclude most people you want to communicate with.
But custom apparel has the ability to go everywhere your customers go. They can spread your business branding far and wide simply by wearing it. Get the branding right, and others will want to copy their style.
This is why it pays to invest in quality custom apparel. Look for a screen printing or embroidery service that works with materials that will last. Always request samples before placing your order to get a feel for how durable they are.
The better the quality of the material and the comfort of the fit, the more people will enjoy wearing your branded apparel. On the flip side, poor-quality apparel will do the opposite. Instead of giving your business branding a boost, it'll send out the totally wrong message.
Event Sponsorship
Once you've crafted your business branding and translated it into stylish custom apparel, the next step is to raise awareness. Event sponsorship is a great way to achieve this.
Choose an event that will raise awareness among your target audience. Consider making custom apparel available as a uniform for event staff. Offer an alternative style for event participants or as giveaway items.
This is a great way to make a strong connection between your business and what it stands for. Plus, those people will likely wear your branded apparel again, giving you more exposure.
Social Media Advertising
Every business these days needs a strong social media presence. This is also great for showing off your custom apparel and building your brand. There are a few rules that every business must follow.
First, the pictures need to be spectacular. Invest in a professional photo shoot and gather as many Instagram-worthy pics as you can. Then you can drip-feed them to your followers over the next few months.
At the shoot, style your custom apparel to its best advantage. Yes, that means bringing an iron with you. Don't let wrinkles interfere with your business branding.
Finally, put a lot of thought into the staging of your photoshoot. A few well-chosen props and settings can communicate your brand identity more clearly than thousands of words.
Building a Brand with Dynamic Designs
When done well, custom apparel can be a crucial element in building a brand that stands the test of time.
At Dynamic Designs, we're ready to help you bring your business branding to life. Whether you need embroidery, silk screen printing, or garment printing, we're your one-stop solution.
Request a free quote for your business today!
