5 mistakes to avoid when designing corporate t-shirts

At some point, every company thinks of creating corporate t-shirts for some reason. The reason may vary, such as spreading the brand with employees, being visible at events, giving it out as freebies or selling the t-shirts, it can be for all types of purposes.

However, there are mistakes to avoid when designing t-shirts, especially if your brand will be on it and the t-shirt will be worn frequently by many people.

Why corporate t-shirts rock

T-shirts used for corporate purpose are great, as they turn people who wear it into moving people that can represent you in any environment. It gives a new reach to your company and even can help your word-of-mouth marketing, as the t-shirt itself can be a conversation starter.

The mistakes to avoid

In this section, we will take a look at the ways your brand could be harmed by t-shirt marketing if you are not paying attention to what you are doing. Avoid these mistakes, and your corporate image will shine like never before.

Don’t go for low-quality t-shirts. The quality of your corporate t-shirts will impact your brand, as people will associate the two for sure. Chose t-shirts with a nice fit and good-quality textile, but also pay attention to the printing quality. You should opt for screen printing, as it provides the best quality results by far.

Don’t be boring. Obviously, this tip doesn’t apply if you are in an industry where seriousness is mandatory, such as funerals companies or divorce lawyers, but for most, you will gain a lot by having an entertaining t-shirt design. An entertaining design will bring more attention, be worn more by the people who own the t-shirt, and will start more conversations.

Don’t be confusing. Obviously, the messages sent on your corporate t-shirts should be very clear and give no room for confusion. When designing the t-shirts, keep in mind that most people will only see it for a few seconds, so you shouldn’t send messages that could hurt your brand if they are read to quickly. This happens more than you can imagine.

Don’t be provocative if you can’t handle it. For some reason, t-shirt design makes a lot of designers feel like they should be provocative and design something funny. Unless you can handle the heat, don’t do this. In the era of social media, if you are too provocative, people will take photos and share it along with their angry comments. If your company motto is « There is no such thing as bad publicity », feel free to go along with the provocation, otherwise try to be careful.

Make your logo bigger ! Surprised to read this on a design blog ? You should be, as this sentence has even become a meme in the design community. However, it is very important that your brand is readable quickly if you want it to become famous. In the case of corporate t-shirts, you should favor brand legibility over aesthetics in most cases.

Conclusion

Corporate t-shirts are a must-have branding tool for any company, for all the reasons listed above. If you follow the few tips given in the article, it surely will prove very efficient to expand your brand.