What mistakes should I avoid when ordering custom swag?

1. Comparing quotes on the per-shirt number alone

A lower per-shirt figure often hides fees that are not in it: art charges, setup, packaging, shipping, or a cheaper blank quoted against a premium one. Before you compare two quotes, make sure both name the exact garment brand and style, list setup as its own line, and state what shipping costs. Two quotes that do that are comparable; two that do not are a guess.

The other half of the same mistake is assuming the quotes describe the same print. Ink coverage, cure control and whether a proof is included are real differences in what arrives, and none of them are visible on a price sheet.

2. Sending artwork that cannot be printed

A logo copied from a website is typically 72 DPI and will look soft or pixelated at print size. Screen printing and embroidery want vector files (AI, EPS, SVG); failing that, a PNG or PSD at 300 DPI at the finished print size. Embroidery goes one step further, because the artwork is converted into a stitch file and fine detail and small text do not survive the conversion the way they survive ink.

Raise it at quote time. Redrawing art is routine and it is far cheaper to schedule than to discover on proof day.

3. Guessing the size run

Estimated size breakdowns are almost always wrong in the same direction: too many smalls, not enough extended sizes. Poll the actual people, by name, and let them choose from the real size range of the garment. Sizes from 2XL up carry a size upcharge on the blank, which is a catalog fact rather than a surprise fee, and the calculator shows it before you order.

4. Leaving no room for a proof

Free digital proof on every order; production starts only after your written approval. It is the last free chance to catch a typo, a placement or a color that will not read on the garment you chose. Orders that go wrong usually compressed this stage, or ran three separate rounds of one-person-at-a-time revisions. Collect every opinion first, send the changes in one pass, approve once.

And remember where the clock starts: production begins at approval, not at order placement, so time spent circulating a proof comes out of the 7-10 business days production window, not out of ours.

5. Picking the wrong blank

On a large run the garment moves the total more than any other decision, and on every run it decides whether the swag gets worn. A heavyweight cotton tee, a retail-fit ring-spun tee and a garment-dyed heavyweight are three different products at three different prices, and the cheapest one is only the right answer when the shirt is genuinely disposable. If the goal is people wearing your logo in public, buy the shirt they would have bought.

Fit matters as much as fabric. Offer a unisex and a women's cut where the style has one, and make sure the range actually covers your group.

6. Not asking what the reorder costs

Screens and stitch files are kept on file, so reorders skip setup. That means the second run of the same design is cheaper than the first, and it is worth knowing before you over-order "just in case". Ordering a sensible quantity now and reordering later is often better than buying a year of stock you have to store, especially if headcount or branding might move.