Maximise your marketing budget with this foolproof ROI strategy

Introducing your brand’s new bestie.

We’ve got a secret to share, and no it’s not a rebrand (we did that last week). 

This week, it’s the secret to maximising your marketing budget that’s 100% foolproof. 

And we know, not a lot of things in life are 100%, but we can 100% vouch for this 100%. 

We’re willing to shout this secret from the rooftops if it means you’ll earn the biggest ROI ever. 

The secret? Merchandise. Promotional, branded merchandise.

Want to find out why promotional merchandise is THE foolproof marketing ROI strategy? 

Keep reading, but, be warned - you might wow your managers so much with your ROI numbers that you’ll be promoted, so I hope you’ve got a jet ski ready for your new private island. 

You’ve been warned, but if you’d like to find out more, get in touch with a member of our team now.

What is ROI?

ROI (Return On Investment) is how you measure the effectiveness of a campaign, an advertising technique, or a marketing decision. 

It’s calculated by collecting all the data and information you can. 

And when we say all the data, we mean All. The. Data. 

Because you need the numbers to help decide whether your campaign was successful or not. 

It’s about weighing up the profit made against the costs spent.

The more profit made compared to the costs spent, the better.

How do you measure ROI?

Measuring the ROI of marketing campaigns can be a challenge because of the very nature of marketing. 

Campaigns can continue to influence audiences long past their end dates. Because of this long-term, multiple touch-point basis of almost everything in marketing, it can be hard to gather justifiable data to analyse the worth of the campaign afterwards.

However, there are ways you can go about measuring ROI, by teaming up with sales stats - yippee! 

By using the formula below, you can work out just how profitable your campaign was (in a classic sense):

ROI = (Revenue made - Amount spent) / Amount spent.

What’s an example of ROI?

For example, the revenue made on a recent campaign was £100,000 and you spent £20,000 to make that happen. Your ROI would be: 

ROI = (100,000 - 20,000) / 20,000 = 4

This means you made 4x of what you originally spent - congrats! 

And your ROI is 4. 

As mentioned above, the challenge for working out ROI most of the time is making sure you’ve got all the right data recorded - that’s the tricky part.

What’s a good ROI?

What counts as a good ROI depends on entirely what business and industry you’re in. 

It can also depend on what you were expecting out of the campaign. 

If you were expecting an ROI of 5 but got 3, you’d be disappointed, yet another team might have just been aiming for a 2, so to get a 3 would be amazing. 

However, on average, a good ROI is considered anything above 5, aka you’ve made 5x the amount you originally put into the campaign. 

The film industry is a great example.

A film’s worth and popularity metrics are set on its opening weekend, with the amount it costs to make the film compared to the amount it brings in at the Box Office.

If it makes a substantial amount more than it costs to make the film, it is considered a hit. If it makes less, it’s a flop. But it’s all retrospective on what that original cost was. 

Read more: Want to know the secret to maximising your merchandise budget?

How to measure the ROI of promotional merchandise

When it comes to measuring the ROI of promotional merchandise, it can be even more difficult to gather all the data. 

But, it’s not impossible. 

You just have to change your perspective on what ‘data’ is. 

That’s because the ROI of promotional products is measured through impressions. 

With impressions being the number of people who’ll see your merch.

Read more: 9 merchandise trend predictions for 2025

How to measure impressions

Impressions can be measured with clever QR codes to unique landing pages, social media metrics, in-person views, as well as sales growth. 

However, even with these measurement tactics in place, it can be hard to directly pinpoint that yes, it was that exact pen/mug/cap/notebook etc. that drove an increase in traffic to your website or improved your sales.

But, never fear, because there are a few techniques we’ve got up our promotional sleeves that you can use to determine the impressions of your hardworking merchandise.

1. Create a unique CTA 
Creating a specific CTA (Call to Action) that’s unique to your promotional products campaign will help you track exactly what traffic is influenced by your merch. There are a few different options you can choose from, such as a particular hashtag, a QR code, or a unique landing page. 

2. A/B testing 
You can test the effectiveness of your promotional products through A/B testing. For example, you can study the impact of a change in product type, colour, type of packaging etc. on consumer behaviour, and whether your impressions improve or decrease according to the changes. 

Another beneficial A/B testing scenario is to measure the traffic to your website or socials after sharing your merch, to see if there’s an improved uptake or not. 

3. Sales growth 
You can also measure the number of impressions caused by your merch through a growth in sales. You can compare the amount of sales before and after your promotional product activation to see if there’s any improvement. 

4. Brand awareness 
A great rule of thumb for measuring brand awareness is to see how your audience interacts with your brand on social media. More comments, likes and shares are all great metrics for determining how aware people are of your brand. 

Brand awareness might not lead to instant sales, but it is an equally important factor in establishing how successful your marketing efforts are. 

5. Customer loyalty
Having customers who choose to work with you time and time again is the absolute pinnacle of a job well done, whatever industry you’re in. So a great way to measure the impressions of an exclusive campaign (perhaps a keeping-in-touch one?) could be the number of returning loyal customers who place orders.

Read more: Build brand loyalty FAST using this one simple trick

Why are merchandise impressions important?

When it comes to promotional merchandise, impressions outweigh hard metrics when calculating ROI because impressions are (excuse the pun) fluid. 

Overall impressions, whether positive or negative (we’re here for the positive ones) can be shared at lightning speed through WOM (Word-of-Mouth) and can last a brand’s entire lifetime.

And the best way of increasing positive impressions? Merch!

90% of people can remember a brand that’s given them a promotional gift. 

And, on average, over their lifetime branded outerwear will bring in 7,856 impressions, pens and pencils 2,436 and drinkwear an insane 3,162 - that’s a lot of eyes on your logo. 

Impressive, right? 

Impressions get your branding seen.

And that’s just one of the many reasons why impressions are an important metric to measure; here are a few more.

1. Impressions build relationships 
Studies have shown that an impressive 82% of people perceive a brand more positively after receiving promotional merchandise.

• 40% of consumers who receive a powerbank are more likely to do business with a brand that gifted it to them.
• 36% of people would work with someone who gave them an umbrella.
• 30% are more likely to work with a brand that gave them drinkware.

Gifting merch is one of the best ways to increase impressions and, in turn, build relationships with prospects and clients.  

Online ads can be ignored. 

Website tabs can be closed. 

But your new water bottle, that’s for life.

Read more: How does company merch affect morale?

2. Impressions build brand awareness and recognition 
Having your brand in the direct line of sight of a prospective customer is said to increase brand awareness and purchase intent by 38.7%. 

Branded merch creates constant subconscious touchpoints for impressions that build brand awareness and recognition by becoming a seamless addition to your prospects’ lives. 

That’s not just any pen, that’s a subconscious impressions pen.

Read more: 10 easy hacks for building brand awareness

3. Impressions can be super cost-effective 
Impressions created through merch have been proven to be extremely cost-effective. 

50% of the public will take some sort of action (whether that be a peek at a website or making a purchase) after receiving a promotional product. When comparing this to other marketing avenues like TV ads (19%), online ads (11%) or even direct mail (9%), merchandise impressions come out on top for getting you more bang for your buck.

Read more: Save money with merch that goes that extra mile

4. Impressions excel at lead generation 
If our maths is correct, the more impressions you make, the more leads you’ll generate. Because the impressions made through merchandise are so high, an impressive 73% of people are more likely to work with a brand that gave them a promotional product. And that’s a big thanks to something called reciprocity.

Why promotional merchandise is a foolproof ROI strategy

Promotional merchandise is one of the only things you can rely on for an excellent ROI in marketing. From increasing impressions, creative CTAs and the very nature of promotional products, they are an excellent investment of your marketing budget.

Think it’s too good to be true? Here are 8 reasons why it’s not:

The longevity of promotional merchandise is insane
Studies have shown that 48.7% of consumers kept a promotional product for five years or more. 

That’s five years of your branding doing its job. Creating impressions again, and again, and again. 

63% of people will keep a promotional mug or bottle for a year or more, and 61% of people have said they are still wearing promotional jackets, hoodies and coats that are over two years old. 

If you brand good-quality, useful products, then your merch will be kept for months and even years to come.

2. You’ll have 24/7 visibility 
Promotional merchandise is exclusive. It’s something to show off about. So more often than not, it’s visible 24/7 to not only the receiver but colleagues, family and friends, too - even strangers on the street (branded tote bags never stop working)! 

These all count as impressions, calling out to your audience, and getting them to act. 

Without you having to lift a finger. 

Merch doesn’t just work 9-5. It doesn’t just work during the ad breaks. It works 24/7. 

3. Your ROE will skyrocket 
We’ve spoken about this a little bit before, but not only is promotional merchandise a foolproof strategy for ROI, but it also provides excellent ROE - Return on Emotion. 

Return on Emotion is all about turning every activation into an unforgettable, brand-defining moment fueled by powerful, emotional connections. 

With 95% of purchase decisions driven by emotion, merchandise harnesses this insight to build meaningful connections that inspire loyalty and engagement, for an ROI you can be proud of.

4. Share your bigger brand mission for free
Branded merchandise not only shares your logo but also highlights other key features of your brand to resonate with your audience. 

If you’re big on sustainability (who isn’t?), then opt for sustainable merchandise. 

If you’re super techy and know your audience would appreciate a gadget, brand the latest tech.

Need something more personal? Put their name on it. 

Whatever your overall brand mission, merch can help you tell your story without a single word.

Read more: 9 merchandise money-saving tips

5. Everyone loves a gift 
27% of businesses believe that giving promotional gifts increases referrals, and helps build and strengthen your customer base. 

Your gift doesn’t have to be big or expensive; it’s the very act of giving a gift that makes that lasting impression (the phrase “it’s the thought that counts” rings true for corporate gifting, too).

Read more: Here’s how giving gifts could save your brand

6. Freebies are more powerful than you might think
Dan Ariely in his book “Predictably Irrational’ states that people change their behavioural patterns and are more willing to comply when something free comes along. 

This is because it’s a powerful emotional trigger when there’s no risk attached to a decision, meaning your free merch is more than likely to draw people to your brand (with no extra effort on your part).

Read more: 14 sustainable giveaways to get REALLY excited about

7. There’s merch for every audience
When it comes to promotional products, there’s the perfect piece for every audience.

From the classic notebooks, pens and caps, to umbrellas, jackets, drones and fitness trackers, there’s an idea for every audience, every demographic, every campaign.

If you have an idea for merch that you think fits with your brand and that your customers will love, we’ll be able to help.

8. Helps with employee retention 
Merchandise is personal, it’s special, and if an employee receives it, they feel valued. 

A new starter that has a successful onboarding experience with a branded onboarding pack is 58% more likely to still be at the same company 3 years later.

Studies have also found that 79% of employees will leave a role if they feel underappreciated, but 62% of employees will feel appreciated if they are given branded merch.

Isn’t that perfect?

Appreciating your team is crucial at every stage of their career journey. From the very start to the end to all of life’s milestones - there’s always a branded product to help your team feel appreciated, increasing your employee retention.

And now with it costing approximately $10,000 to replace a member of staff, spending some budget on merch to retain the team you’ve got is your best option.

Read more: 8 ways to engage remote workers

How to maximise ROI for your business with promotional merchandise

Now that we’ve hopefully convinced you that merchandise is the solution to all your ROI needs, here are some ideas for maximising your ROI even further. 

1. Set a goal
You can’t measure the success of anything without a goal. Make sure you’ve got one that makes sense for your merchandise campaign. Do you want more conversions? More social media followers? More reviews? Decide what you’re trying to achieve before anything else. 

2. Decide how you’ll measure ROI with a CTA
Whether through a QR code, CTA button or a landing page, decide before branding your merchandise how you’ll measure your merchandise’s impressions.  

3. Choose the right product for your audience 
You might love the idea of a promotional mug, but your audience might have 10 already. You might love a weekend footie game with a branded football, but does your audience? 

The success of your merchandise campaign is determined by the products you choose. Think about their reusability, their usefulness and their quality, as well as the specific audience demographic you’re tailoring your campaign to. 

4. Have a budget 
And stick to it! There’s not only merch for every audience in every industry, but there’s also merch for every budget that’ll still make a big impact.

Read more: Last-minute event giveaways for any budget

5. Think strategically about your branding 
You could have the most luxurious high-end product for your budget, but if your branding just doesn’t look right on it, it’ll ruin any potential your merch had for making an impact. 

If you’re not confident that you know what works best for your brand, don’t worry, we’ve got a whole House of Experts to help you out.

Where to start with promotional merchandise

Love the sound of promotional merchandise but don’t know where to start? We’re here to help! 

We’re here to help you dream big. To do more, and to be more. Whether that’s through solving problems, giving gifts, or building connections, it’s always been more than just merchandise to us. It’s time to give back. Back to your friends, your family, your planet, your home.

Get in touch with a member of our team now if you’re looking to make a lasting, meaningful impression of your brand on your customers.