When a company has multiple locations, departments and numerous employees, it is typical that everyone in the organization is just out on their own doing their own thing, and ordering all sorts of merchandise from all sorts of vendors. This almost always leads to brand abuse.
Unapproved products, poor-quality embroidery, misuse of logo files, and unauthorized graphics are just a few ways a brand might be abused.
Your organization has likely invested substantial amounts—possibly tens of thousands, if not millions of dollars—building and establishing its brand. Yet, your current brand merchandise processes could be undermining these efforts.
To combat brand abuse, many organizations resort to requiring all orders to be pre-approved by a designated brand protector. However, depending on the volume of orders and the company’s size, this can quickly become a full-time job. This approval process slows down ordering and is not an efficient use of your employee’s time. So, how can you efficiently protect your brand?
An online company store allows you to pre-approve items and make them available to the entire organization.
An online company store offers a solution by allowing pre-approved items to be made available to the entire organization. This centralized system ensures consistency and quality control. With a single vendor responsible for product quality, managing quality among dozens of vendors becomes unnecessary.
Read More: Online Company Store Platform
Some might worry that e-commerce, payment processing, and reporting could be overly complicated. However, choosing an experienced vendor with automated and flexible systems makes launching and managing an online company store much simpler than anticipated. The right platform can streamline operations, safeguard your brand, and ultimately save time and resources.
By implementing an online company store, organizations can maintain brand integrity, enhance operational efficiency, and ensure that all merchandise aligns with the established brand standards. This not only preserves the brand’s value but also reinforces a unified corporate identity across all locations and departments. Here’s how:
Centralized Control and Consistency
- Pre-approved Items: An Online Company Store allows for a curated selection of pre-approved products, ensuring that all items meet brand standards before they are made available to employees. This prevents unauthorized use of logos and designs on unapproved merchandise.
- Vendor Management: By only using vendors vetted by Coggins, you ensures consistent quality and adherence to brand guidelines across all products. This eliminates the risks associated with dealing with multiple product sources, each with varying levels of quality control.
Quality Assurance
- Quality Control: Every item, from apparel to office supplies, was previously vetted to meet your company’s brand standards before it reaches the employees.
- Consistent Branding: All items in the online store adhere to the company’s branding guidelines, ensuring that logos, colors, and designs are used correctly and uniformly across all products.
Efficient and Streamlined Processes
- Ease of Access: Employees can easily access the store and order approved items without needing to seek individual approvals for each purchase. This reduces the time and effort spent on the ordering process and minimizes the potential for ordering incorrect or unapproved items.
- Automated Systems: The online store’s automated systems handle e-commerce processes, payment processing, and reporting, simplifying the management of branded merchandise and reducing administrative burdens.
Data and Reporting
- Real-time Reporting: The store provides real-time data and reporting features that give visibility into inventory levels, order history, and purchasing trends. This helps in tracking brand usage and identifying any discrepancies quickly.
- Usage Monitoring: Administrators can monitor who is ordering what, ensuring that branded merchandise is being used appropriately and in line with company policies.
Simplified Approval Processes
- Controlled Access: Access to branded items can be restricted based on roles or departments, ensuring that only authorized personnel can order specific items. This control helps maintain brand integrity.
- Approval Workflows: For items that require special approval, the online store can incorporate approval workflows, ensuring that any exceptions are reviewed and approved by designated brand guardians.
