How to Promote a Local Business with Custom Products

Last Updated: 9 February 2025

Key Points:

  • Branded merchandise help local businesses increase visibility, stand out from competitors, and build customer loyalty.
  • Popular items like t-shirts, water bottles, tote bags, phone cases, and stickers deliver repeated exposure in everyday use.
  • Strategic distribution, strong design, and social media sharing boost ROI and expand the reach of promotional campaigns

Whether it’s branded mugs or t-shirts, personalised items can help your brand stand out from competitors and increase customer loyalty. But that’s not all! Read on for more creative ideas and tips on how these marketing tools can benefit your small business.

Why They are a Must-Have

Promotional products are not just pieces of merchandise; they’re also powerful branding tools. They help create positive connections with customers while increasing awareness around your business. By giving away freebies with your logo printed on them, recipients feel appreciated while doing free advertising for you each time they use them in public.

Creative Ideas for Custom Giveaways

When it comes to creating custom products for your small business, creativity is key! Here are some unique ideas that could work well:

  1. T-Shirts: Customise trendy shirts with catchy slogans or logos representing your brand style.
  2. Water Bottles: Put your brand name onto branded reusable water bottles – an environmentally-friendly product everyone can use.
  3. Stickers: Affordable yet impactful marketing resources- passionate remote workers tend put stickers around their workspace/equipment which further expose the Brand
  4. Phone Cases: A customised phone case offers excellent ongoing exposure as people carry smartphones everywhere they go
  5. Tote Bags: Personalised tote bags are an eco-friendly alternatives among shoppers than plastic bags, thus promoting sustainability whilst expanding Brand awareness

Tips for Getting the Most Out of Your Marketing Efforts

Getting optimal results using promotional merch requires strategic planning; here are some additional tips:

  1. Be Strategic In Distribution – Think about where potential clients hang out & make sure promotional materials get distributed accordingly (i.e., events like trade fairs, outdoor festivals).
  2. Create Beautiful Designs – ensure the overall design catches an individual’s attention so that recipients are more likely to use it and attract others’ attention.
  3. Help Customers Learn More About Your Business – Adding contact details such as social media links or a website address offers customers an easy way to learn more!
  4. Use social media for Extra Reach – Share photos featuring happy customers using their new branded gear across all of your social media pages- this amplifies word-of-mouth advertising!

Final Thoughts

Customising giveaways provides small business owners with impressive ROI when done strategically. By creating high-quality products that align with your brand style and utilising our tips like being strategic in how you distribute them, designing eye-catching items, making it easy for clients to learn about your company & promoting via social media; the number of people talking about your business will only increase!

Wendy Li

About the Author

Wendy Li

General Manager

General Manager at Cubic Promote

LinkedIn: Wendy Li on LinkedIn
Email: [email protected]

About Wendy

Wendy Li is the General Manager at Cubic Promote and has worked with the business since 2010, giving her more than 16 years of experience in the promotional products industry. She joined as a Production Manager, later moved through Account Management roles, and became General Manager in 2018. Wendy oversees day-to-day operations, supports staff, manages client and production issues, and coordinates suppliers and logistics. She has worked closely with organisations including Westpac and Rio Tinto. Her strongest areas of knowledge are production management, merchandise logistics, fulfilment and quality assurance.

Professional Experience

Wendy joined Cubic Promote in March 2010 as a Production Manager, giving her firsthand experience of how branded merchandise moves from approved artwork through production to final delivery. Her role involved coordinating with suppliers, managing production timelines, checking order requirements and helping resolve issues that could affect quality or delivery.

She later moved into Account Management, where her experience expanded from production into client-facing work. She worked directly with customers on product selection, branding requirements, order coordination and delivery planning, including projects for organisations such as Westpac and Rio Tinto.

In 2018, Wendy became General Manager. She now oversees day-to-day operations while remaining closely involved in production, supplier coordination, staff support and complex client orders.

Areas of Expertise

  • Promotional product selection and sourcing
  • Production management
  • Merchandise logistics and fulfilment
  • Quality assurance
  • Supplier and production coordination
  • Rush-order production
  • Corporate merchandise
  • Client and operational management

First-Hand Industry Experience

Wendy has worked across production, account management and business operations. Her experience includes coordinating suppliers, assessing production capacity, supporting urgent production requirements, managing quality expectations, and resolving delivery and fulfilment issues.

She has worked with a broad range of promotional merchandise and corporate clients, including larger organisations with complex product selection, branding and logistics requirements. Wendy also attends annual trade shows hosted by the Australasian Promotional Products Association (APPA). Cubic Promote is an APPA member, and these events provide her with ongoing exposure to new promotional products, suppliers, decoration methods and industry developments.

Selected Projects and Client Stories

  • University of Western Australia (UWA): Managed an order of 420 branded power banks for student events and orientations. View case study
  • Raine & Horne Commercial: Coordinated branded pens and tape measures for an event, including a rush delivery completed ahead of schedule. View case study
  • Jaybro: Helped deliver branded neoprene stubby holders with consistent print quality across the order. View case study

Qualifications, Recognition and Industry Involvement

Australian Women’s Small Business Champion Awards

Wendy was named a 2026 Australian Women’s Small Business Champion Awards Finalist, recognising her contribution to the business and her leadership at Cubic Promote.

The Promo Playbook by Cubic Promote

Wendy has contributed to The Promo Playbook podcast by Cubic Promote, sharing practical insights from her experience in promotional merchandise, production, client management and business operations.

What Wendy Writes About

Wendy writes and reviews content about promotional products, product selection, production management, merchandise logistics, quality assurance, fulfilment, corporate merchandise and branded apparel.

Her articles draw on practical experience managing production and client orders, coordinating suppliers, resolving delivery requirements and overseeing promotional merchandise projects from product selection through to final delivery.

Personal Perspective

For Wendy, managing merchandise is not only about placing an order with a supplier. It means understanding what is happening throughout production, anticipating where problems may occur and finding a practical way to keep the client’s project moving when something unexpected happens.

Profile last updated: August 2026