Are name brands important when purchasing promotional apparel?
The panel of buyers unanimously agreed name brands are important because people recognize brands and attach a certain intrinsic value to the product because of a name. However, the degree of importance depends on the target audience and the nature of the promotion or event. For in-house promotions, such as incentive or reward programs, this group of buyers tends to gravitate toward “brands that give the best quality at a reasonable cost and very few of these brands are considered ‘retail.’” Additionally, they find these house brands seem to be better in sizing. “When we order many of the name-brand shirts and jackets, they seem to run small,” indicates a buyer for one of America’s largest packaged food companies. Conversely, name brands become more important in external promotions. “If we are purchasing for customer entertainment, we would consider name-brand promotion apparel,” she says. “In a few cases, the brand is important to the customer. In other cases, the brand is important to
