By Amanda Hofman, Chief Swag Officer and Branded Merchandise Expert

One of the most common ways companies measure the success of their branded merchandise is by saying:

“People took one.”

That’s… not exactly a high bar.

It was free.

Of course people took it.

The better question isn’t whether someone accepted your promotional product.

It’s whether they actually wanted it.

Free Doesn’t Equal Valuable

At conferences, trade shows, and company events, people collect free merchandise almost automatically.

They’ll grab a tote bag they’ll never use.

A T-shirt they’ll sleep in once.

A water bottle they’ll forget in the hotel room.

None of that means your branded merchandise was successful.

It just means it was available.

If your only metric is “people took one,” you’re measuring distribution—not desire.

The Real Test of Great Branded Merchandise

When we design merchandise for our clients, we ask a very different set of questions.

Would someone wear it on a Saturday?

Would they be disappointed if they lost it?

Would they actually spend their own money to replace it?

Those questions reveal far more than any event giveaway count ever could.

Because the goal isn’t simply to put your logo into someone’s hands.

It’s to create something they genuinely want in their life.

Promotional Products Should Earn Their Place

Think about your own closet.

The pieces you wear over and over aren’t there because they were free.

They’re there because you like them.

They’re comfortable.

They fit your style.

They make you feel like yourself.

Great branded apparel should meet that same standard.

If your merchandise only gets worn because someone feels guilty throwing it away, it’s not doing your brand any favors.

Design for Demand, Not Distribution

Too many companies optimize for quantity.

How many pieces can we order?

How many can we hand out?

How many people grabbed one?

We optimize for something else.

How many people would ask where they got it?

How many would wear it outside of work?

How many would buy another one if theirs disappeared?

That’s the difference between branded merchandise that gets collected and branded merchandise that gets loved.

Raise the Bar

The best branded merchandise isn’t successful because it was free.

It’s successful because people would choose it even if it wasn’t.

If someone would wear it on the weekend, miss it if they lost it, and happily pay to replace it, you’ve created something most promotional products never become.

Something worth keeping.

And that’s a much higher bar than simply hearing, “People took one.”

By Amanda Hofman, Chief Swag Officer and Branded Merchandise Expert

Some of the smartest branded merchandise ideas aren’t the most practical.

They’re the most delightful.

Case in point: Wendy’s recently released a charm bracelet featuring a tiny Frosty, tiny fries, a tiny burger, and even a miniature spatula.

It’s ridiculously cute.

And that’s exactly why it works.

Great Branded Merchandise Doesn’t Always Have to Be Serious

There’s a misconception that if you’re a serious business, your merchandise needs to be serious too.

It doesn’t.

Being great at business and making genuinely fun products are not mutually exclusive.

In fact, the brands with the strongest fan communities often lean into playfulness because they understand something important:

People don’t form emotional connections with sensible.

They form emotional connections with memorable.

The Best Promotional Merchandise Creates Emotional Value

Will a charm bracelet convince someone to eat at Wendy’s for the first time?

Probably not.

That’s not its job.

Its job is to give existing fans another way to express their connection to the brand.

The best promotional products don’t create loyalty from scratch.

They give loyal customers something they’re excited to wear, collect, gift, or talk about.

That’s a completely different strategy than handing out another logo pen.

Brand Fans Want More Ways to Show Their Affection

Think about the brands people genuinely love.

Sports teams.

Coffee shops.

Theme parks.

Restaurants.

Lifestyle brands.

Their biggest fans are always looking for another way to represent something they already enjoy.

That’s where branded merchandise shines.

Not because it generates an immediate sale, but because it strengthens the relationship between the brand and the customer.

Every time someone wears it, someone else notices it.

Every compliment becomes another brand impression.

Stop Designing Only “Safe” Merch

Too many companies play it safe.

They make the black polo.

The standard tote bag.

The basic logo T-shirt.

There’s nothing wrong with those pieces—but they’re rarely the items people become obsessed with.

The products people remember usually have personality.

They’re a little unexpected.

A little playful.

A little weird.

Those are the pieces that end up on social media, in conversations, and on repeat.

Memorable Beats Sensible

Nobody talks about the perfectly acceptable branded notebook they received at a conference.

They absolutely talk about the tiny Frosty charm.

That’s the difference between functional merchandise and memorable branded merchandise.

One gets used.

The other gets remembered.

And if your brand can make people smile before they ever become customers, you’re already doing something right.

Tiny Frosty charm?

10 out of 10.

No notes.

By Amanda Hofman, Chief Swag Officer and Branded Merchandise Expert

Someone tried to buy a hat directly off our client Ashley Carlson’s head at a conference.

Honestly? It’s not even the first time we’ve heard a story like that.

When people think about branded merchandise, they usually think about giveaways, logo placement, and promotional products. We think about something different:

What would someone actually stop you to ask about?

Because the best branded merchandise doesn’t just advertise your business. It creates demand for it.

The Best Branded Merchandise Reverses the Marketing Funnel

Most marketing works like this:

Your brand tries to get someone’s attention.

Great branded merchandise does the opposite.

People notice what you’re wearing, walk over to you, and start the conversation themselves.

That’s exactly what happened with Ashley.

Instead of introducing herself with a polished elevator pitch, people approached her because they wanted the hat. The merchandise became the icebreaker before the business conversation even started.

That’s a much better place to begin.

Promotional Products Should Create Curiosity

Imagine walking around a conference and hearing things like:

• “Excuse me… this is going to sound weird, but can I buy your hat?”
• “Where did you get that?”
• “I don’t even know what your company does yet, but I already want the merch.”

Those conversations are worth more than another stress ball sitting in a conference tote bag.

The best promotional merchandise creates curiosity before it communicates information.

People remember how your brand made them feel long before they remember your tagline.

Conference Swag Doesn’t Have to Feel Like Conference Swag

Most conference giveaways are designed to be distributed.

The best branded merchandise is designed to be discovered.

There’s a huge difference.

One ends up forgotten in a hotel room.

The other gets worn, photographed, complimented, and talked about long after the event is over.

That’s why we spend far more time thinking about design than logo size.

A great piece of branded apparel should be something someone would happily buy even if they had never heard of your company.

Your Merchandise Is Part of Your Marketing Strategy

Branded merchandise shouldn’t be an afterthought or something you order because everyone else has a booth.

When it’s done well, it becomes one of the strongest conversation starters your brand owns.

Every compliment creates an introduction.

Every question creates an opportunity.

Every “Where did you get that?” becomes a chance to tell your story naturally.

That’s marketing people actually enjoy participating in.

Our Goal Isn’t to Make Free Merch

Our goal is to create branded merchandise people genuinely want.

The kind people ask about.

The kind they wear again and again.

The kind someone is bold enough to try to buy right off your head.

Because we’d much rather have your merch start the conversation than another perfectly rehearsed elevator pitch.

By Amanda Hofman, Chief Swag Officer and Branded Merchandise Expert

That’s officially one of the most brutally honest pieces of merch feedback I’ve ever received.

Someone commented on one of my posts that they were given a branded webcam cover. They liked the webcam cover itself—but not the branding. So they grabbed a bottle of acetone, dissolved the company logo, and kept using it.

Honestly? I couldn’t stop laughing.

It’s also the perfect example of what’s wrong with so much branded merchandise.

One of the biggest defenses I hear for generic company swag is:

“But it’s useful.”

And yes, webcam covers are useful. In a poll I ran recently, about 25% of respondents said they actively use them and love having one.

But here’s the problem:

Useful and meaningful are not the same thing.

Anyone can slap a logo onto a functional item and call it promotional merchandise. But if your audience immediately wants to remove your logo, you’ve missed the entire point of investing in branded swag.

The goal of great custom merch isn’t simply to get your logo onto someone’s laptop, water bottle, or desk.

The goal is to create something people are genuinely excited to own—with your logo still on it.

That’s where your company’s personality, values, and identity matter.

The best corporate gifts and employee swag feel like extensions of the brand itself. They’re thoughtful. They’re well-designed. They’re products people would happily choose for themselves.

There’s a huge difference between generic logo merchandise and meaningful branded merch.

One becomes part of someone’s identity.

The other becomes the thing they scrub off with nail polish remover.

If your audience is willing to erase your logo but keep the product, you’ve created something useful—but not memorable.

The best promotional products don’t just survive because they’re functional.

They survive because people actually like the brand behind them.

I’m curious: Have you ever removed a logo from something? Or wanted to? Would you take the logo off a webcam cover—or would you leave it on?

By Amanda Hofman, Chief Swag Officer and Branded Merchandise Expert

Nostalgia has absolutely no standards for taste.

How else do you explain people collecting Viagra ties?

If you think branded merchandise only matters while a campaign is active, consider this: people are currently spending real money collecting vintage pharmaceutical swag from the 1990s.

The New York Times recently covered the phenomenon in a fascinating article by Chantel Tattoli, exploring the strange afterlife of pharmaceutical promotional products.

Among today’s hottest collectibles:

• A Lexapro wall clock
• An OxyContin mug
• A Zithromax zebra plush

No, those aren’t punchlines.

They’re sought-after pieces of merch history.

The Golden Age of Pharmaceutical Swag

For decades, pharmaceutical companies handed out branded “reminder gifts” to doctors as part of their marketing efforts.

Pens, mugs, clocks, stuffed animals, apparel, office accessories—you name it, they branded it.

The goal was simple: keep the product top of mind.

Then regulations changed. The giveaways disappeared. The branded merchandise stopped flowing.

And something unexpected happened.

People started collecting it.

Today, vintage pharmaceutical swag regularly shows up on eBay, in private collections, and even in museum exhibits examining the intersection of healthcare, marketing, and American culture.

Why Do People Want This Stuff?

The obvious question is: why?

Why would anyone want a coffee mug promoting a prescription drug?

The answers are surprisingly varied.

Some collectors view these items as artifacts from a uniquely strange chapter of American capitalism.

Others appreciate them as examples of niche advertising history.

And some people wear or display pharmaceutical merchandise as a tongue-in-cheek badge of the medications they take themselves. In an era when people are increasingly open about mental health, ADHD, and chronic illness, the old secrecy around prescriptions doesn’t carry quite the same weight.

What was once corporate marketing material has become cultural memorabilia.

None of This Is Good Merch

Here’s the funny part.

Most of this merchandise isn’t what we’d consider great branded merch today.

A drug-branded necktie isn’t exactly a masterclass in modern promotional product strategy.

An antidepressant wall clock probably wouldn’t make anyone’s “must-have swag” list.

Yet people want these items anyway.

Not because they’re beautifully designed.

Not because they’re useful.

Not because they’re premium.

They want them because they represent something.

A moment in time. A cultural story. A shared experience.

The Real Power of Branded Merchandise

This is what marketers often miss about merchandise.

The best merch isn’t valuable because of the product itself.

It’s valuable because of the meaning attached to it.

Merchandise becomes a physical marker of identity, belonging, memory, and culture.

Years after a campaign ends, decades after a company changes direction, and long after the original marketing budget has been forgotten, the merchandise can still survive.

Sometimes it even becomes more valuable.

Not financially.

Emotionally.

Culturally.

Historically.

That’s a remarkable outcome for something that may have started life as a free giveaway.

Merch Creates Memories

Every brand hopes people will remember them.

Most marketing disappears the moment the campaign ends.

Merchandise is different.

It stays in drawers, closets, offices, garages, and collections. It gets rediscovered years later. It sparks stories and conversations. It becomes part of someone’s personal history.

Apparently, sometimes it even becomes a collectible Viagra tie.

Merch is powerful like that.

By Amanda Hofman, Chief Swag Officer and Branded Merchandise Expert

When companies think about branded merchandise, they often focus on one thing: whether they’ll make money selling it.

But the truth is, the profit margin on your hoodie is probably the least interesting thing about it.

The real value of branded merch isn’t what happens at checkout. It’s what happens after someone puts it on.

That branded hoodie, t-shirt, hat, or tote bag becomes a walking advertisement for your company. It’s out in the world representing your brand in places your digital marketing budget could never reach.

Think about where your branded merchandise travels.

It shows up at industry conferences and networking events. It appears in social media posts and vacation photos. It sits in airport lounges, coffee shops, coworking spaces, gyms, and school pickup lines.

Your hoodie is working overtime.

Frankly, your hoodie deserves a performance bonus.

The ROI of Branded Merchandise Goes Beyond Sales

Too many brands evaluate merchandise programs based solely on product sales. That’s a mistake.

The real return on investment comes from the visibility, awareness, and conversations your branded merch creates.

Every time someone wears your logo in public, they’re introducing your company to new audiences. They’re creating impressions that feel authentic rather than promotional.

One referral generated by a branded hoodie can be worth far more than an entire month’s worth of hoodie sales.

One new customer who discovers your company through a conversation sparked by your merchandise can deliver exponentially greater value than the revenue from the item itself.

One partnership, collaboration, or hiring opportunity that starts because someone recognizes your brand can pay for an entire merch program.

Why the Best Promotional Products Become Part of Everyday Life

The most effective branded merchandise isn’t treated like advertising.

It’s treated like a favorite item.

When people genuinely love your swag, they bring it into their daily routines. They wear it on weekends. They travel with it. They use it at work. They post photos with it.

That’s when branded merchandise becomes a powerful marketing channel.

The goal isn’t simply to put your logo on a product.

The goal is to create something people actually want to use.

When your branded merch earns a permanent spot in someone’s wardrobe or daily life, your brand gains ongoing exposure without paying for every impression.

Your Hoodie Is an Influencer

Marketers spend thousands of dollars every month trying to get their brand in front of the right audience.

Meanwhile, a great branded hoodie is doing exactly that—often for years.

Unlike a Facebook ad, a piece of high-quality merchandise doesn’t disappear when the budget runs out.

It continues creating brand awareness, generating conversations, and building trust long after it’s been distributed.

A Facebook ad could never.

The Future of Branded Merch Is Brand Advocacy

The best branded merchandise programs aren’t built around selling products.

They’re built around creating brand advocates.

When employees, customers, partners, and community members choose to wear your merch, they’re making a statement about their connection to your brand.

That’s where the real value lives.

Not in the margin.

Not in the sales report.

But in the thousands of moments where your brand shows up in the real world through people who genuinely want to represent it.

And that’s worth a lot more than a hoodie sale.

By Amanda Hofman, Chief Swag Officer and Branded Merchandise Expert

Some company merch still has serious “my cousin was my first customer” energy.

You know the look.

The logo hasn’t been updated in years. The design feels disconnected from the current brand. The apparel looks like it came from a trade show booth in 2014 and somehow never left.

So why are companies still handing it out?

Old Merch Makes Brands Feel Old

One of the fastest ways to make a modern company feel outdated is through outdated branded merchandise.

Your customers, employees, and prospects may never see your website’s backend. They may never see your internal systems.

But they will see your swag.

And if your promotional products look old, people subconsciously assume the brand is old too.

That’s a problem.

Because whether you realize it or not, branded merchandise is often one of the most visible expressions of your company.

Your Brand Has Evolved. Has Your Merch?

Most businesses spend time updating their:

• Website
• Messaging
• Product offerings
• Marketing campaigns
• Visual identity

Then they keep ordering the same branded apparel they’ve been distributing for the last five years.

The result is a disconnect between who the company is today and what its merchandise communicates.

Your swag should reflect your current brand—not a previous version of it.

Branded Merchandise Is a Brand Touchpoint

Many organizations treat company merch as an operational task:

“Just reorder what we bought last year.”

But branded merchandise is actually a customer and employee experience tool.

Every hoodie, T-shirt, notebook, water bottle, or promotional giveaway sends a message about your organization.

The question is:

What message is yours sending?

If your merchandise feels dated, generic, or disconnected from your current identity, that’s the message people receive about the brand itself.

Signs Your Company Swag Needs a Refresh

Not sure whether your merchandise is helping or hurting your brand?

A few warning signs:

You’re still using old logos

If your branded products feature outdated logos, colors, or taglines, it’s time for an update.

Nobody is excited to receive it

Great promotional merchandise creates enthusiasm.

If employees leave swag behind at events or customers never use it, the problem may not be the product category—it may be the design.

It doesn’t reflect your current audience

The audience you served five years ago may not be the audience you’re serving today.

Your merchandise strategy should evolve alongside your customers.

It feels generic

If your company swag could belong to virtually any business, it’s not strengthening your brand.

The best branded merchandise feels specific, intentional, and connected to the organization behind it.

Modern Merch Builds Modern Brands

Refreshing your merchandise doesn’t always require a complete overhaul.

Sometimes it’s as simple as:

• Updating design standards
• Improving product quality
• Simplifying branding
• Introducing more wearable apparel
• Aligning merchandise with current campaigns and messaging

Small changes can dramatically improve how people perceive your brand.

Your Merch Should Reflect the Business You Are Today

The best branded merchandise acts as a snapshot of your company in the present moment.

It should represent your current identity, your current audience, and your current standards.

Your merch shouldn’t feel like a time capsule.

It should feel like your brand.

Because every piece of company swag tells a story.

Make sure it’s telling the right one.

By Amanda Hofman, Chief Swag Officer and Branded Merchandise Expert

NJ Transit recently had what probably felt like a great branded merchandise idea:

“What if we sold soccer-themed hoodies?”

The internet responded with:

“What if you sold us a functioning train?”

And just like that, a merch launch became an emergency public feedback session.

The comments quickly shifted away from the branded apparel itself and turned into a running list of customer frustrations:

• “NJ Transit dropping everything but those train ticket prices.”
• “WHO is buying this.”
• “Just stop with the merch. Nobody wants this.”

The problem wasn’t that NJ Transit launched branded merchandise.

The problem was that they launched branded merchandise while their audience was thinking about something else entirely.

The First Rule of Great Branded Merch: Know What Your Audience Wants

Successful company merch isn’t just about putting a logo on a hoodie and hoping people buy it.

The best promotional products connect with an audience’s identity, interests, and current experience with a brand.

When customers are excited about a brand, branded apparel can become a powerful marketing tool. People wear it because they’re proud to be associated with the organization.

When customers are frustrated, however, every piece of merch becomes an invitation for feedback.

And not the kind you want.

When Merchandise Becomes a Customer Service Channel

One of the biggest mistakes brands make with promotional merchandise is assuming that merchandise exists in a vacuum.

It doesn’t.

Every branded hoodie, T-shirt, hat, or giveaway item carries all of the feelings customers already have about your company.

If your audience loves you, merch can strengthen loyalty.

If your audience is angry, merch can become a lightning rod.

That’s exactly what happened here. The conversation wasn’t about the hoodie. The conversation was about delayed trains, rising costs, and customer frustration.

The hoodie just happened to be standing in the middle of it.

The Design Didn’t Help

The comments may have been less brutal if the merchandise itself had generated excitement.

Instead, the apparel looked disconnected from what fans actually wanted.

The collection felt less like authentic soccer merchandise and more like it had been designed by someone who had only heard soccer described over the phone.

That’s a harsh assessment, but it highlights an important point for anyone creating branded merchandise:

Good design matters.

People don’t buy company swag because it exists. They buy it because it feels relevant, desirable, and connected to something they care about.

What Smart Brands Can Learn from This Merch Launch

Whether you’re creating employee swag, promotional products, event merchandise, or retail branded apparel, there are a few takeaways:

1. Fix the experience before selling the merch

Merchandise can’t solve a brand perception problem.

If customers are frustrated with your core product or service, branded merchandise won’t distract them from it.

2. Design for the audience, not the organization

The best branded merchandise starts with the customer.

Ask what people would actually want to wear—not what your marketing team wants to sell.

3. Timing matters

A great merch launch at the wrong moment can fail.

Pay attention to how your audience currently feels about your brand before introducing new promotional products.

4. Merchandise should reinforce goodwill

The strongest branded apparel programs build on positive customer sentiment.

Merch works best when people already want a deeper connection with your brand.

The Real Takeaway

The funniest part of the whole situation is that the merchandise wasn’t actually the star of the show.

The comments were.

People didn’t remember the hoodie.

They remembered the reactions.

And that’s the ultimate reminder that branded merchandise doesn’t create brand perception—it reveals it.

Before launching your next company merch collection, make sure your audience is excited to hear from you.

Otherwise, the comments might become the merchandise too.

By Amanda Hofman, Chief Swag Officer and Branded Merchandise Expert

Lately, Crocs collaborations have quietly become one of the smartest moves in branded merch.

And honestly? Microsoft just proved why.

The company originally created custom Microsoft Crocs for employees only — a nostalgia-loaded internal merch drop that immediately made everyone outside the company want them.

Which, ironically, made the merch even more powerful.

Very: “Now that you’re unavailable, I’m interested” energy.

The Best Employee Merch Creates Outside Demand

Microsoft initially tried to keep the Crocs internal.

But people wanted them badly enough that the company eventually released them publicly.

That’s the dream scenario for any brand.

Not just:
“Employees will wear this because they work here.”

But:
“People who don’t work here are jealous of it.”

That’s the difference between ordinary corporate swag and culturally relevant branded merchandise.

The best employee merch becomes aspirational.

Most Corporate Swag Is Too Safe

A lot of companies still approach promotional merchandise like compliance paperwork.

Minimal logo.
Neutral colors.
Zero personality.
No emotional reaction whatsoever.

But safe merch rarely creates obsession.

And obsession is what turns branded merch into free marketing.

If nobody outside your company wants your swag, there’s a good chance you played it too safe.

The strongest branded merchandise strategies make people feel like they’re gaining access to a club, a personality, or a cultural moment.

That’s exactly what these Crocs collabs do.

Nostalgia Is Doing Heavy Lifting Right Now

And honestly? The charms are perfect.

Exactly the right amount of terminally-online nostalgia.

That’s another reason these collaborations work so well: they understand the emotional language of the internet.

The best custom merch doesn’t just slap a logo onto a product.

It taps into identity, memory, humor, and shared cultural references.

Especially for millennials and older Gen Z audiences, early-2000s tech nostalgia is basically its own branding category now.

Which is why people instantly connected with this drop.

Great Merch Feels Like an Inside Joke

The strongest promotional products often feel a little bit exclusive.

A little self-aware.
A little internet-brained.
A little “if you know, you know.”

That’s what makes people talk about them.

And more importantly, that’s what makes people wear them.

Because nobody is emotionally attached to a generic polo shirt with a corporate logo embroidered on the chest.

But nostalgic Microsoft Crocs covered in charms referencing old-school internet culture?

That’s a personality.

By Amanda Hofman, Chief Swag Officer and Branded Merchandise Expert

Think of branded merch as your company’s dating profile.

The best swag works like instant chemistry.

You see it and immediately think: “Okay, these people get it.”

That’s the magic of great promotional merchandise. It communicates personality before anyone says a word.

Unfortunately, most companies are out here giving the corporate equivalent of:

• a guy holding a fish on a boat
• “love to travel” in the bio
• six identical group photos
• “Just ask 😉”

And honestly? Most merch tables feel exactly the same.

Most Branded Merch Is Giving “Corporate Beige”

Walk through any conference expo hall and you’ll see it:

• Pens
• Plastic water bottles
• Stress balls
• Sad logo stickers
• A tote bag nobody asked for

It’s safe.

But safe doesn’t make people lean in.

Safe makes people keep scrolling.

That’s the problem with so much corporate swag and promotional merchandise: brands are designing for neutrality instead of memorability.

And neutrality is invisible.

Great Swag Signals Identity

The best branded merch tells people who you are immediately.

Not just:
“We have a logo.”

But:
“We have taste.”
“We understand culture.”
“We know our audience.”
“We’re fun to be around.”

That’s why the strongest merch strategies feel less like advertising and more like belonging.

People don’t wear custom branded merch because they’re doing a favor for your marketing team.

They wear it because it says something about them.

Your Merch Table Should Have a Point of View

The companies winning with branded merchandise right now are the ones willing to have an actual personality.

Not every item needs to appeal to everyone.

In fact, the best swag often works because it doesn’t.

It creates instant alignment with the right people.

That’s what good branding does.
That’s what good dating profiles do too.

You’re not trying to attract every person on earth.

You’re trying to make the right people say:
“Oh, I’m into this.”

The LinkedIn Version of a Cringe Dating Bio

We all know the phrases.

The corporate clichés that instantly flatten any personality:

• “Thought Leader | Visionary | Disruptor”
• “Open to networking!”
• “Work hard, play hard”
• “Fueled by coffee and ambition”

That same energy shows up in bad swag all the time.

Generic merch happens when brands are too afraid to be specific.

But specificity is what creates connection.

The best promotional products feel intentional, self-aware, and culturally fluent.

That’s what makes people stop.
That’s what makes people remember you.
And honestly? That’s what makes people wear the merch long after the event is over.