Happy Friday! Think about the difference between the sweatshirt everyone gets at registration and the jacket someone receives after completing a six-month program. They may cost about the same. They do not mean the same thing. One is something the company handed out. The other represents something the person did. That distinction matters. When merch marks an achievement, milestone, level, contribution, or completion, the value is no longer just in the product. The meaning comes from what had to happen before someone received it. That is why I think businesses often start with the wrong question. They ask: What can we give people? I start with: What has someone done that is worth recognizing physically? Maybe they completed your program or reached a member milestone. Perhaps they finished a challenge or became a long-term client. Whatever the achievement, now the merch has a job. It is not there simply because you wanted to send something. It marks the moment. And more importantly, it creates a moment. Because sometimes the reason someone keeps the merch has very little to do with the product itself. It is how the product speaks to them. It says: I did this. I earned this. I’m part of this. How do you reward your members?

A consulting company has 75 clients coming to a one-day event. They want attendees to meet people outside their existing circles, so they order a nice notebook and water bottle for everyone. Good products. Wrong problem. What would you change if the actual goal is to get people talking to one another? You can change the product, or change how it is used. What you would do and why?

A lot of businesses have valuable ideas trapped inside presentations, PDFs, courses and calls. Framework Decks are one way to change that. Instead of asking what should go on 54 cards, start with the part of your expertise people need to DO something with. Maybe you have a decision process clients repeatedly use, a set of questions that changes the conversation, or a sequence you teach every time you work with someone. The deck only makes sense if putting that thinking into someone’s hands makes it easier to use. Tell me one method, process or set of questions you already use in your business, and what you want someone to be able to DO with it when you are not in the room. I’ll help you see whether there is a physical application hiding inside it. If you’re wondering whether there is a Framework Deck already inside your business, take my 5-minute Framework Deck Discovery Test. It helps you uncover what you already have and what a deck could help people do. → https://barbarahobart.kit.com/framework

Here is the scenario: You run a paid membership and 150 people are coming to your annual event. You want members to feel more connected to one another, not just sit through presentations and leave. What role would you give the members during the event? Tell me what you want them to DO before you tell me what you would make for them. I’ll jump into the comments and help turn the strongest behaviors into possible physical touchpoints.

Think about your customers, clients or members. Is there one group you would treat differently if you were creating merch for them? Maybe they are long-term clients, top referrers, new members or people who reached an important milestone. Pick one group and tell me: Who are they, and what do you want the merch to say or do for them? Put it in the comments and let's think through what kind of merch would make sense.