Custom logo shirts are necessities when it comes to a company’s corporate identity attire. From a small business operating out of a garage to a Fortune 500 company, almost all businesses at one point or another have gotten logo shirts for their owners, staff or both. Personally, I believe custom logo shirts show the legitimacy of a company, and are essential as part of a sound marketing strategy. And they could be very inexpensively done.

Let’s face it, for a one-man company operating out of a garage, it could be difficult to convince a customer you can compete as well as the company that occupies an office in a fancy building. But appearance is everything, and I for one believe that one can turn a disadvantageous situation to his or her favor. For this article’s purpose, let’s focus on how to make you look the part!

Imagine going into a sales meeting, one man (or woman) is dressed in a fancy suit, with Italian shoes and tie to boost. One man is dressed in a neatly pressed button down with a company logo expertly embroidered on the left chest, and a pair of semi-casual dress pants. Both men look groomed, professional, and well put-together. Now imagine you are on the other side of the table, the potential customer. How would you perceive the two men, under normal circumstances, if you are not interviewing with Donald Trump! The well-suited person will look smart, professional, and perhaps a bit formal. The guy in the neat button-down shirt and khaki, on the other hand, will look equally smart, professional, but more approachable and perhaps less expensive!

In fact, a high-maintenance outfit these days could just seem, well, high-maintenance. I read somewhere that a girl next door in jeans and tee shirt is far more likely to get dates than a beauty queen in a designer gown. Few can afford her I suppose. That said, it is important to look perfectly groomed, even in a logo shirt and khakis. A two thousand dollar suit will do nothing for the image of a foul-smelling man.

Of course, depending on the industry you are in, my advice is to choose the proper logo shirt in order to enhance your image. If you are selling multi-million dollar hi-tech equipment, wearing an economy brand of polo shirt with a curled up collar and color that is fading would only hurt your company’s image. On the other hand, if you are selling pool-cleaning service, wearing an 80-single button-down dress shirt and dress pants would be a tad overkill. You get the idea.

So it is not the amount of money you spend on logo shirts, but rather choosing the appropriate shirt that matters. Your logo apparel should tell a story about your company. And what story are you trying to tell your customers? Are you a company that provides the cheapest price in the market? If so, you should really consider buying the most cost-effective logo shirts. Are you a company that provides the best value, instead of the cheapest price? If so, a good, solid logo shirt will better reflect that image. For the same $300, you can buy a bunch of cheap logo shirts, or you can buy just a handful of high quality logo shirts for a few key people. But the stories they tell are entirely different.