For decades, we’ve partnered with hundreds of customers to do what we love most – bring mascot ideas to life. Creating a mascot is a true labor of love that requires time, attention to detail, investment, and teamwork. It’s not something most people are familiar with. After all, how often have you bought a custom made mascot?
If the answer is never, you’re in the same boat with the majority of the world. Don’t worry though, we’ll help you out… or really this time, our customers are going to help you out! We asked past clients what advice they wish they had known before starting their mascot journey, and we’ve rounded up the top 10 most popular tips. Their insights will help you feel prepared, avoid surprises, and make the mascot-buying process an exciting experience from start to finish.
It’s exciting to get the opportunity to design your very own custom mascot. There are limitless ideas on what you can add to make your mascot stand out. We’ve created mascots that vary from a pirate monkey to racing home appliances. With so many creative possibilities, though, it’s easy to get carried away with design and forget about one key factor: functionality. Our customers suggest making functionality a priority and, from there, building unique design features. For instance, if you want your mascot to be able to run, jump, and maybe even flip, you can’t create a super wide or super tall mascot, or else they’ll fall over!
For more information on how to balance functionality and design, check out this blog here!
With all big projects, it’s crucial to have a plan in place, and mascots are no exception. Creating a custom mascot can’t be done within a week. In fact, it takes multiple weeks of designing, approvals, production, and shipping. To help be prepared (and to make sure your mascot doesn’t show up fashionably late), customers say to do as much planning as possible beforehand. Some things you want to think about are the purpose of your mascot, what events your mascot will attend, when you want your mascot delivered, and how your mascot will look. Our team at Olympus can definitely help you answer these questions, but the more prepared you are, the more efficient we can move through the mascot design process.
The mascot you choose should be a strong representation of your brand and its values. A great way to accomplish this is by giving your mascot an identity and a backstory. Be creative with it, utilize your organization’s history or logo to create some magic for your mascot. A great example of this is the mascot, Lucky the Leprechaun. Lucky was born to be only half human and half leprechaun, which made it hard for him to find his inner magic. What helps bring his magic to life is the lucky charms found in the cereal. Each charm brings out a unique ability for Lucky.
Lucky’s backstory gives the mascot a human and emotional connection to the audience. It’s also another opportunity for General Mills to extend their marketing by creating commercials and children’s books based on his story. Connecting your mascot to your company with a fun story makes your mascot much more valuable…and our customers agree!
The next step after creating your mascot’s story is to create their personality. The number one rule with a mascot is that they can’t talk. So to give your mascot a personality, you need to utilize movement, design, and outfits. To help come up with a personality, think about who your audience is. If your organization is family-based, then give your mascot a friendly and welcoming personality to engage kids. If your mascot’s purpose is connecting with college students, then create a mascot that’s fierce and exciting. Many customers recommend that you do this before you create your mascot because it will help make the design process easier. Make sure to consider your audience in the university mascot creation process. Your custom mascot should be a good representation of those whom you serve
Adding accessories is a fantastic way to dress up your mascot. From adding a costume to a physical prop, accessories make your mascot more engaging. Many schools like to order custom jerseys with their school colors and logo, allowing their mascot to be tailored to each sports team it goes to cheer for. In addition to a costume change, you can also create accessories that are more interactive. Adding a sword and shield to a warrior or knight mascot can encourage friendly jousting and create cool photo ops. The little details added are what can make your mascot memorable.
After putting in the time and money to create a one-of-a-kind mascot, you need to show it off. Our customers recommend attending every event possible, even if it’s outside the realm of your organization. Take your mascot to community events that engage with the public. Go on a mascot tour by creating surprise visits. Get your mascots’ hands dirty with some volunteering events and even jump onto a float in a parade once in a while. Of course, your mascot should be attending company events like tradeshows and booths at fairs, but the more you expose your mascot, the more you expose your brand. Try to get your mascot out there connecting with fans as much as possible.
Attending events is an effective way to market your mascot, but it’s not feasible to have your mascot attend multiple events every week. To keep your mascot visible even when not at events, create a social media presence. Lots of companies create a separate social media account solely for their mascot. You can post about all the events your mascot attends, but also continue building your mascot’s story by posting about what your mascot does in its “off time”. Maybe your mascot likes to make trips to the beach or attend a class or two on campus. Get creative and have fun with it, our customers say the same! For more information on social media with your mascot, read this blog!
Marketing also takes lots of planning and reaching out. If you know you want your mascot to attend lots of events and be extremely active on social media, it’s a good idea to have a few people dedicated to planning and upkeeping your mascot so it’s always picture perfect.
Mascot costumes get hot inside, regardless of the temperature outside. Think about the climate you live in and where your mascot will be performing. If your mascot will be inside most of the time with air conditioning, you might want to consider just adding a fan and taking regular breaks. On the other hand, if your mascot will be in the hot sun most of the time, you will want to add additional cooling options like a cooling vest and use more breathable fabrics and materials. Even with cooling options, though, be sure you are giving your performer a break about every 30 minutes so they can keep their energy levels up. Think about the climate in your area when picking fabrics for the costume.
It’s very common that people come to us without thinking about a performer. I mean, you can’t have a performer without a costume, so why think about it now? Our customers say otherwise; it’s actually easier to think about a performer before you even start! Mascot costumes have a specified height range. So, if the mascot is created for performers with a height of 5’8” to 6’0 then someone who is 5’5” can’t wear that costume. You also want to think about how you can make your performer more comfortable in a costume. Thinking about what fabrics and materials you use can vary how your performer moves in the costume.
Your performer also needs to have a strong understanding of your company, its values, and your mascot personality. Make sure you take the time to communicate these things to your performer and train them well so they create the vision you want for your mascot. The performer makes the mascot…take the time and train a good one!
After going through the process of making a mascot, the majority of our customers recommend taking the time to conduct research and understand the investment you are making. A custom mascot takes time and costs money, so you want to make sure you are getting what you want, and that’s going to last you a long time. There are many different companies out there, and some will offer you a cheaper price but will sacrifice looks and quality. Make sure you understand what you are paying for because this mascot is a representation of your brand, so you want it to look and act its very best.
As cute and popular mascots are they are actually complex creatures that can’t be made overnight. You are also very involved in the process to ensure that you get the result you want. By the end, you’ll be an expert but starting can be a little overwhelming. Just know we are here to help and that you aren’t alone. All of our customer went through similar feelings as you. For more information, check out all of our blogs and customer stories to get more insights. Otherwise, we are ready to start making your custom mascot!
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