By Amanda Hofman, Chief Swag Officer and Branded Merchandise Expert Key Takeaways In Swag Court, the plastic drawstring backpack is found guilty: crinkly, creaky, covered in giant logos and abandoned in hotel closets. Swag chosen on cost and volume becomes the punchline, while functional, on-brand and delightful swag carries your brand story. 👩🏻‍⚖️ Swag Court […]

By Amanda Hofman, Chief Swag Officer and Branded Merchandise Expert Key Takeaways We’ve all seen it and maybe even done it. The bulk keychains. The stress balls. The pens that never write. This is the world of spray-and-pray swag: handing out a bunch of random branded merch and hoping something, anything, resonates. Spoiler alert: clutter […]

By Amanda Hofman, Chief Swag Officer and Branded Merchandise Expert Key Takeaways Bulk-ordering branded merch “just in case” leaves you with 200 unworn tees in a dusty box: the wrong sizes disappear first, the wrong colors stick around forever, and the marketing budget is gone. Print-on-demand means no wasted inventory, no risky bulk orders and […]

By Amanda Hofman, Chief Swag Officer and Branded Merchandise Expert Key Takeaways Confusing branded merch doesn’t just fall flat, it works against your brand, and when swag sparks more confusion than joy it builds clutter instead of recognition. Great swag is instantly clear, with clear messaging, purposeful design, emotional connection and longevity, so your brand […]

By Amanda Hofman, Chief Swag Officer and Branded Merchandise Expert Key Takeaways When you call it merch but it’s really just an excuse to make yourself cool athleisure wear, that’s the best kind of branded merchandise: the kind you love enough to wear on repeat. If you wouldn’t wear it, no one else will, and […]

By Amanda Hofman, Chief Swag Officer and Branded Merchandise Expert Key Takeaways Great swag doesn’t just promote your brand. It reminds people why they loved it in the first place.That’s the power of nostalgia marketing done right.When your custom company apparel tells a story—one people already feel in their bones—it doesn’t need to shout. It […]

By Amanda Hofman, Chief Swag Officer and Branded Merchandise Expert I will not print 150 tees that say “Suck it, Steve from Ops.”I will not print 150 tees that say “Suck it, Steve from Ops.”I will not print 150 tees that say… (Okay, I might make three—for my BFFs. On-demand, sustainably, and without Principal Skinner-level […]

By Amanda Hofman, Chief Swag Officer and Branded Merchandise Expert What Could Be Your Brand’s Air Dancer Moment? When your 𝘸𝘩𝘰𝘭𝘦 𝘤𝘳𝘦𝘸 shows up in branded gear that actually looks cool, people stop and notice. Picture this: six teammates in matching crewnecks, gliding through the convention floor like a wave of good taste. Not a […]

By Amanda Hofman, Chief Swag Officer and Branded Merchandise Expert I finally put words to something I’ve felt for years about tourist merch. On my trip to Sicily last week, it clicked: Tourist merch follows the opposite rules of everything I teach brands about corporate swag. When I work with companies on branded merch, I […]

By Amanda Hofman, Chief Swag Officer and Branded Merchandise Expert Tourist merch breaks every merch rule I give brands and it works. When we design corporate swag, I preach: 📣 Subtle logo📣 Lead with values📣 Create something people want to wear, not something they feel obligated to But travel merch?Big. Bold. Zero chill. City names […]