You can buy a ton of items in bulk like toilet paper, cooking ingredients, and clothing. If you’re a business, however, it’s also not a bad idea to invest in wholesale promotional products.
Wholesale is the buying of a large quantity of goods with the intention of selling them at a higher price. The process works via a fully functional supply chain, discounts on bulk orders, and trust between the wholesaler and the retailer.
Let’s get into the details and benefits of wholesale shopping!
Example of Wholesaler & Retailer
Manufacturer/Wholesaler: General Mills
Retailer: Grocery Stores
Grocery stores buy a high quantity of cereal from General Mills and then sell it to customers. If the supply is high and the demand is low, customers may see discounts on boxes of General Mills products like Cheerios, Lucky Charms, and Cinnamon Toast Crunch.
Did You Know? You need a federal tax ID and possibly a state license to sell wholesale items online.
If you’re buying promotional products wholesale, you’re purchasing a high quantity of the items with the intention of giving them away or selling them. You may keep these items in a gift shop or have a table set up with all the goods on display.
You might also be buying these bulk items so you have stock of things you use every day. Some examples would be disposable cups and napkins for a restaurant or ballpoint pens and sticky notes for a corporate office.
Benefits of wholesale shopping
According to U.S. News, you should buy wholesale if it’s an item that you frequently use, or one that sells fast from your shelves. Do you have promotional products that are always popular with your customers? It’s worth purchasing them in bulk since it will save you time and money in the long run.
There are many good reasons to buy wholesale promotional products!
1. Wholesale Orders Are Cost-Effective
You save money per item when you buy wholesale. This, in turn, increases your profit margins or allows you to drop your prices on the swag you’re selling.
Once you have a supply, you can offer your swag to customers at any price you want! You can even offer them as freebies at live events.
Wholesale promotional items can be sold at double the price of what it cost to buy them (keystone pricing), offered at a discount, bundled together, or used as a loss leader (a product that entices people to come in the door, but doesn’t really make you money).
2. Products Will Arrive Fast
Wholesalers are used to working with high quantities, so they will ship the promotional items quickly and efficiently. You can also opt for rush shipping if you’re on a strict deadline.
41% of customers are willing to pay for same-day delivery (Source: DCL Corp). In this busy world, people don’t want to wait for their promotional swag, especially when they are being purchased for a specific event. Luckily, most wholesale distributors have their shipping down to a science!
3. There Are a Variety of Options
Do you need custom mugs for your coffee shop? Graphic hoodies for your band’s merch table? Thousands of candies for a community trick-or-treating on Halloween? You can get it all from a wholesale promotional product distributor.
After the COVID-19 pandemic, business owner stress is at an all-time high. In fact, Small Business Economics found that 72% of entrepreneurs are dealing with poor mental health. A wholesaler isn’t going to solve all these issues, but at the very least, they ease some of the burden by offering a lot of what you need in one location.
4. You Choose the Quantity
A minimum is a set quantity that you have to order. All promotional products have their own special number, so explore the website before settling on the right item for you.
Do you need low minimum options? You can order trade show supplies, custom shirts, drinkware, and more in small quantities (less than 100). This is a great option for non-profits, schools, and anyone else with a small marketing budget.
5. Wholesale is Eco-Friendly
According to the Environmental Protection Agency, carbon dioxide and greenhouse gases in the atmosphere have increased 90% since 1970. These emissions can lead to extreme weather, respiratory diseases, food shortages, and increased wildfires.
The less trucks on the road and planes in the skies, the less emission in the atmosphere. Wholesale orders mean you don’t have to order as often, which means less harmful toxins on the planet.
6. Drop Shipping is Often Available
Drop shipping is when one order is split up and delivered to several locations. The idea is to make it easier on the retailer so they don’t have to place multiple orders with different shipping locations.
Take Hard Rock Cafe for example. There are 180 of these restaurants in the United States, and many of these locations sell promotional items like baseball hats, t-shirts, and keychains. The marketing team at the main headquarters can place one order for these bulk marketing items, but have them drop-shipped to their respective locations, whether it’s the fun Hard Rock Café in downtown Chicago or the glitzy one in Las Vegas.
7. Guaranteed Stock for Events
Whether you’re going to a trade show, hosting a fundraiser, or setting up a pop-up shop, you’ll want to make sure you have swag for everyone in attendance.
By ordering wholesale, you’ll have promotional products any time you need them. You never know what random marketing opportunity may come up, so having swag on hand is a big win for your company.
8. Creates Consistency & Familiarity
Think about the white disposable cups with the green mermaid logo at Starbucks. Fans have used these for years, and all that exposure creates familiarity with the brand. You can spot a Starbucks coffee cup from miles away and immediately think of the restaurant.
Follow in the same footsteps. When you offer the same custom promotional items year after year, you’re creating a brand identity that sets you apart from everyone else.
Not to mention, presenting a brand consistency across all platforms can increase revenue by up to 23% (Source: Forbes). Clearly, those Starbucks cups are working some serious magic since Starbucks is one of the most popular brands in the U.S.!
9. Establishes Good Partnerships
38% of professionals have a hard time maintaining their business relationships. However, a good network is necessary in order to thrive as a company. You need to be able to rely on your suppliers and manufacturers to meet the demand.
Choose a wholesale promotional products distributor that has your best interests at heart. They should be willing to resolve issues quickly and should always be reachable over the phone.
10. More Money for Other Marketing Efforts
Businesses spend about 10% of their annual budget on marketing (Source: Vital Design). Since you’re buying promotional items in bulk, you ideally won’t have to order them again for a long time. This means you can focus your attention on other advertising.
More money in your marketing budget is never a bad thing. You can use the funds for PPC, Facebook ads, TV commercials, direct mailers, guerilla tactics, and anything else you want to try. The more eyes on your brand, the better!
The downside to buying wholesale promotional items is that you may not have enough storage space. There is also a certain amount of risk in ordering a bunch of items at once (what if they don’t look good or your customers don’t like them?)
Quality Logo Products is the place to be for wholesale promotional items! You can buy 30,000+ products in bulk, all custom printed with your design, logo, or text.
Are you ready to get started? Reach out to our team today by phone (1-866-312-5646) or email (info@qualitylogproducts.com).
Alyssa Mertes
Alyssa Mertes is an expert on branded swag. She's done it all, from uncovering the world's first custom tote bag to interviewing the designer who created AC/DC's logo. Her work has been featured on several podcasts and media websites.
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