Low hanging ways to get bulk sales

Every now and then you may get customers who purchase a wholesale amount of products from you, which is obviously great for business.

I’ve had this happen a few times for masks, mugs, and even shirts. Maybe you have too.

But if you haven’t or if you’d like to learn how you can get even more bulk sales, in this post, I want to talk about some “low hanging” strategies for creating designs and products that customers will be more likely to purchase in bulk.

You can still sell these items individually. But you can let shoppers know they are available to purchase in bulk quantities as well. You may also want to mention offering a discounted rate for bulk orders. For example, if you typically sell 11 oz coffee mugs for $14.95 and a customer wants to purchase 20 mugs, you might offer them 10-15% off their order total.

That said, let’s take a look at these bulk sales design ideas…

Designs focused on clubs 

In this context, when I say clubs, I mean social clubs, like book clubs, astronomy clubs, fantasy football leagues, et cetera.

Being part of a club comes with a certain sense of comradery, and members may want to buy gifts for each other, or they may all want to have matching gear, such as a coffee mug or t-shirt that says something about the club.

Some of the most popular types of clubs people belong to include…

• Book clubs
• Political affiliation clubs
• Chess clubs
• Video games clubs
• Community service and social justice clubs
• Theater and arts clubs (e.g. photography, sculpture, film)
• Speech and debate clubs
• Language clubs
• Astronomy clubs
• Religious and spiritual clubs
• Outdoor activity clubs (e.g. hiking, swimming, skiing, kayaking)
• Sports and athletics clubs (e.g. volleyball, soccer, kickball, fantasy football)
• Writing clubs
• Investment clubs
• Motorcycle clubs

Since there are so many different types of clubs people can join, I’d suggest creating design templates that can work for any club type so all you have to do is swap out a few keywords. For example…

What happens at _____ club stays at _____ club (e.g. What happens at chess club stays at chess club)

_____ club baddass (e.g. Book club badass)

Don’t mess with me. I’m in a _____ club (e.g. Don’t mess with me. I’m in a video game club)

Eat. Sleep. _____ Club. (Eat. Sleep. Astronomy Club.

You can also make designs that are club-specific. Here are a few examples…

Book club

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Chess club

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Debate club

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Plus, you can offer personalization options with your club designs. Customers can add their club’s name or an inside joke shared among club members.

Another thing you can do with your club designs is search Facebook for related groups whose members might be interested in your products. For example, if you create a design about astronomy, you could search Facebook for astronomy groups…

Then, you can reach out to people in those groups letting them know about your products and where they can be purchased. This type of promotion may not fly with all groups, however. So be sure to read their rules and regulations first.

Designs aimed at teams

Similar to being part of a club, people who are on any kind of team, especially an athletic team, may want to purchase items for all of the team’s members.

For this type of design, you can make a list of all of the most popular sports, such as…

• Softball
• Baseball
• Basketball
• Football
• Soccer
• Swimming
• Track
• Rugby
• Golf
• Dance
• Cheerleading
• Lacrosse
• Field hockey
• Volleyball
• Hockey
• Water polo
• Wrestling

Then, you can come up with a few template design ideas that you can use with all of the types of teams you can think of. For example…

I might look like I’m paying attention, but in my head I’m playing _____ (e.g. I might look like I’m paying attention, but in my head I’m playing softball  

Life is better when you’re playing _____ (e.g. Life is better when you’re playing rugby)

Playing _____ is in my DNA (e.g. Playing volleyball is in my DNA)

You can create sports-specific designs as well. Here are some examples:

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Or, you can create designs that let customers customize the design by adding their team name or maybe even all of the different players’ positions or team numbers.

Designs for employees or clients 

Sometimes, companies like to give merchandise out to their employees, clients, or customers as a way to say thanks for your business or a job well done. Depending on the size of the company, this could yield a sizable bulk order.

These designs can be very simple. For employee gifts, you might say…

Proud to work for [company name]

…Or to thank customers, you could say…

Thanks for your business!
– [Your company’s name]

And for clients, you might say…

Best. Client. Ever.

Don’t overthink it. But do offer the option to personalize these products, as companies will also likely want them to raise brand awareness.

Designs for family reunions

Family reunions are a function that numerous people typically attend. A lot of times, family members will create gear, especially t-shirts, for all of the guests to wear and to commemorate the event.

The designs are often very simple and just include information about the event, such as the date and location. For example…

Smith Family Reunion
August 10, 2021
Virginia Beach, Virginia

Here’s a similar family reunion shirt found on Etsy:

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In addition to family reunions, you might want to create family vacation designs as well. These would be similar in concept and include customizable information like the family’s name, the vacation location, and its date.

For example…

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Designs geared toward bridal parties 

A lot of times, couples getting married hand out gifts to their bridal party as a way to say thank you for being part of their special day.

The gifts might be given at the bachelor or bachelorette party, the bridal shower, or at the wedding. So you can create designs for all four of these events, letting customers personalize the items with the names of each bridal party member along with the event’s location and date. For example…

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You can create general, non-customizable designs as well. They might say something like…

Team bride
Team groom
Best. Maid Of Honor/Bridesmaid/Best Man/Groomsman. Ever.
Our wedding would have sucked without you
Thanks for helping us tie the knot
You made our special day extra special 

Designs for graduations

Since graduations don’t typically happen year-round (they mostly occur in May and June), I wouldn’t focus on this type of design for your bulk orders. But lately, I’ve been getting sales for graduation-related products so I think it’s still worthwhile to add some of these designs to your inventory.

My assistant has also been getting sales with her graduation-related products. She recently got an order from a school that wanted to purchase her items in bulk to give away to students to say congratulations.

You can make super simple, general designs congratulating new graduates. Or, you can drill down to create more specific designs for people graduating from specific types of schools, such as…

• preschool
• kindergarten
• elementary school
• middle school
• high school
• college
• graduate school
• law school
• or a Ph.D. program

Another idea is to make designs for specific college majors. You might also consider adding the year (2021) to your designs, as my assistant says doing so has helped increase her sales. I just would make sure to have designs that aren’t year-specific as well, so you can continue to sell the products in the future.

Designs to thank guests for their attendance 

For certain big events or parties, it’s customary to give guests a ‘thank you’ gift or favor for their attendance. You see this a lot at weddings. Some kind of keepsake, trinket, or goody is left by each guest’s table setting.

Weddings often include hundreds of guests so offering this type of product can be a great way to drive bulk sales.

But it’s not just weddings. You see these types of thank you gifts at any event where it’s customary for guests to give gifts or make donations.

What do you think of these ideas to get more bulk orders for your stores? If you have any other strategies to share, leave a comment below. And if you enjoyed this post, please consider sharing it with your friends and followers.