Add Merch To Your Brand Strategy

“Merch” is short for merchandise. That’s what the cool kids call it.

When I first bought the Texas Inn in 2018, I asked a lot of questions. “Where are the T-shirts and the coffee mugs?” was one of the first questions. The answer was blank stares and shoulder shrugs. No one had ordered any merchandise in seven years.

I’d been a Texas Inn fan since I was a child and had bought a coffee mug and a T-shirt in my 20s. At 50, I had the opportunity to buy the old place, and I still had my branded merch. The coffee mug logo was faded and the T-shirt was thin and had several holes in it. My new customers didn’t have the option to buy merchandise; something I solved almost immediately. I ordered stuff with the Texas Inn logo and created a merchandise strategy that has added to the bottom line and created thousands of Brand Champs. Wear your Texas Inn Merch on Monday? Get a 20% discount. Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales? Check and check.

Lots of Physical Evidence* brands rely on branded merchandise as part of their brand and marketing strategies. Buc-ee’s is a Physical Evidence Brand; 120 gas pumps, big beef brisket sandwiches, and super clean restrooms. I stop at a Buc-ee’s on every trip. I’m a fan, so I bought some Buc-ee’s branded socks. It’s like the socks have magical powers…they make me spend more than I was planning. I love my Jeep, and I have several Jeep T-shirts. I’m a fan of Brew Thru, too. In fact, I blogged about it.

Using merch as a branding strategy transforms passive consumers into active advocates. By creating wearable and usable products, brands extend their physical footprint in daily life, generate continuous organic advertising, and build long-term loyalty. A coffee mug can last forever. So can a favorite T-shirt.

And if you still don’t believe me, think about the world’s #1 Brand, Coca-Cola. Coke has put its logo on literally everything over the past 100+ years. You can even buy Coke-style Adidas for the World Cup. 

But not every brand can just slap a logo on something and wait for the magic. You have to give them stuff they want to buy…and a reason to buy it…and create a brand worth following. I mean, after all, the T-shirts you made for XYZ, LLC are not gonna fly off the shelves. No offense. 

So how do you create a brand that’s so awesome that people buy your branded merch? You can start by calling Madison+Main or emailing me here if you want a paper on the “Three Kinds of Brand,” including a definition of a Physical Evidence Brand. #BoldBrandsWin

*This dapper gentleman below was recently spotted sporting his Texas Inn “Tongue Out” T-shirt at Costco.