The start of the new year is a great time to take stock of your marketing campaigns and merchandise. What were some of your most successful campaigns for the last year? What new products or strategies would you like to try in 2019? In this post, we divulge the top-five must-have merchandise items for the new year. Whether you plan to give these items away, sell them for additional revenue or gift them to clients and staff, here’s the merchandise items we think you should consider in 2019.
1) Enamel Pin Badges
We start with one of our most popular products – enamel pin badges. If you haven’t created badges yet, 2019 is the time to do it! Pin badges have been popular for some time, which means they have great staying power for many years to come. In fact, Pinterest searches for “flair” like badges increased 800 percent in 2017!
Whether your pin badges are timeless or provocative, one thing is sure: they’ll get noticed! People of all ages collect and wear these, making them walking advertisements for your brand or service. Pin badges are so popular that you can find tips and trends for how to wear them. A Business Insider article, for example, suggests rocking pin badges on hats, lapels, collars, belt holes, bags and to add interest to vintage denim or leather jackets.
Another reason pin badges are a must-have merchandise item is because they’re cost effective and versatile. Pin badges can have a low price point and thus they make the perfect giveaway item or thank you gift. At the same time, you can also create badges with a high perceived value and sell them online or at events and point of sale retail locations. Try experimenting with various high-quality finishes and embellishments and package your pin badges on backing or greeting cards to add polish and prestige.
2) Tote Bags
Another must-have item in 2019 will be an eco-conscious cloth tote bag. As people try to limit single-use plastics like disposable shopping bags, tote bags are fast becoming an attractive, go-to replacement. Tap into this trend and create a custom, eco-conscious tote bag that you can gift or sell this year.
Not only are tote bags highly functional, but they’re also cost effective. If you’re planning to attend or host an event this year, consider giving a special “goodie bag” branded tote bag to all participants, or fill a tote bag with other business items, like marketing materials, business cards and giveaway items like button badges.
There’s a perfect tote bag for you, no matter your audience or budget. At Rocket Badge, for example, we offer customisable tote bags in a wide range of options, from woven shopper totes to jersey materials in a wide range of colours. You’re bound to find one that’s perfect for your campaign, like this Cranbrook’ Cotton Canvas Tote Shopper, which is ideal for shows and exhibitions. It’s made from all-natural environmentally friendly cotton canvas. Just look at all that space for your logo and message!
3) Phone Cases
In 2019, why not get techy? Technology-related merchandise items will be a popular choice in 2019, especially custom phone cases. Did you know that the majority of people use a phone case? Research suggests that 75 percent of smartphone owners have a case. Leverage this ubiquity with a personalised phone case to get your brand noticed about town while providing something of value to your customers.
Here’s one example of a customisable iPhone case with a durable transparent cover to ensure protection and seamless integration with the existing colour of a phone. Like tote bags, phone cases offer a great surface area for your branding. Every time someone talks on the phone, they’ll be broadcasting your logo to everyone in the area.
Depending on how you’re using the phone cases, you might want to create two versions (one for popular Apple smartphones and one for popular Android smartphones) to ensure it will work for most people.
And, if that’s not enough reason to consider phone cases, here’s one more: they’re also high fashion! The Guardian shared this special moment from the Louis Vuitton summer runway – an intricate (and pricey) high-end iPhone case.
4) Travel Mugs
We mentioned that tote bags will be a top item in 2019 because they replace disposable plastic bags. Similarly, travel mugs will be a must-have merchandise item as more and more cafes do away with paper coffee cups. Brand a durable and striking travel mug; you may just be surprised by how much exposure you gain from it! Here’s one popular example of a plastic, double-walled Marco Travel Mug with screw-on lid. These mugs make great giveaway items for your next trade show or event.
Or, splurge a bit and create a high-end travel mug that you can sell online or in stores. One fun example is the Mighty Mug to prevent spills. It uses special SmartGrip technology to keep a grip on your desk when it’s bumped into. The Mighty Mug grips to any flat solid surface but lifts naturally like any normal mug. Which means, no more spills for your customers! We even ship your custom Mighty Mug in gift box packaging.
5) Reusable Water Bottles
Last but not least are reusable water bottles, a functional favourite! As with tote bags and travel mugs, customised water bottles are an eco-friendly option as a replacement for disposable, plastic water bottles. A 2017 article in the Guardian reports that people will consume half a trillion plastic bottles by 2021, damaging our waterways and other environments. Help your customers make a positive difference this year with a customised and handsome reusable water bottle.
At Rocket Badge, we offer a tremendous array of options and embellishments to make your bottle stand out from all the others. This might be a different type of eye-catching material or design or perhaps creating a matching set with a tote bag, travel mug and water bottle.
One popular choice is our Oregon Drinking Bottle, complete with carabiner. While these re-usable metal water bottles have become synonymous with athletes and exercise, today they’re really for anyone who needs to stay hydrated and wants to do their part to protect our environment. This one has a classic shape, is durable and cost-effective and can be produced fairly quickly for any last-minute merchandise emergencies!
We hope this list of the five must-have merchandise items helps you plan for a successful 2019, but there are plenty of other types of branded merchandise we could have added, for example our range of custom keyrings which can be a very memorable way to get your brands consistently in front of your customers. What other items do you think your customers might like? Chances are, we can help you create any products that you think will be popular with your people. Please get in touch with us today, and here’s to a great new year!
