Custom Merch Box Campaign for Influencers

Taking advantage of the NIL rule change from the NCAA, Arby’s quick service franchise has leveraged social media, clever pun-work and awesome custom merch box campaigns to make a mark with college influencers. We would like to applaud Arby’s for using promotional products in such a clever and unique way and, most of all, for not being so corporate and stuffy and leveraging a sense of humor.

Arby’s has been on a creative tear lately with custom merch like their French fry-flavored vodka and Smoked Meat Sweatsuits. Getting creative with their marketing has been in their playbook for quite some time.

To celebrate the debut of its Real Country Style Rib Sandwich, it announced the limited launch of Smoked Sweats, which is a burgundy sweatsuit made in collaboration with an apparel company that smells like smoked meat.

“When you’re sitting in a smokehouse, smoking the meat for Arby’s Real Country Style Rib Sandwich for hours and hours over real hickory wood, your brain starts to wander,” Arby’s said on its website. “You begin to wonder what a pair of premium sweats might smell like if they, too, were smoked over hickory wood for hours. Well, Arby’s found out.”

Arby’s kicked off this campaign by recruiting the first 200 Division 1 collegiate running backs who would post the tagline “Tonight, I’m getting Arby’s” on Instagram or Twitter. The first 200 received a cash payment of $500 and a custom box filled with RB’s for Arby’s swag. Kudos to Arby’s for leveraging the Name, Image, Likeness (NIL) ruling, which was legalized by the NCAA when they allowed athletes to be paid to make a profit or accept sponsorship benefits.

Georgia State running back Tucker Gregg posted a picture of his branded gift, which includes a water bottle, a pair of socks, a shirt with “RBs” over the Arby’s hat logo, and a printed card proclaiming that he’s “an officially sponsored Arby’s RB.” It’s all packaged in a nice custom kitting merch box, too.

Talk about a touchdown of a promotion! We can’t wait to see what they do next!