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Sell More Merch in 2023: 5 Key Tips

Selling merch in 2023 is all about knowing your audience and leveraging your passion. Your merch line shouldn’t try to appeal to everybody. The more specific – the better.

By following these 5 tips, you’ll be able to build a profitable merch line!

1. Find Your Niche

Having a niche allows you to focus on connecting with your target audience. You don’t have to create a bunch of designs and hope they resonate with someone out there. When you have a niche, you can focus on creating merch specifically for that demographic.

You’ll sell more merch when you have your own niche. You can be more obscure with your references in designs and get creative with your marketing. It’s the best way to turn your merch line into a full-blown brand.

And your niche can be about anything! We’ve seen so many shops with interesting niches succeed: magnet fishing, pride-based art, funny cats, you name it. Whatever your passion or hobby, there’s an audience out there ready to buy your merch.

2. Create Quality Designs

You don’t need to be a professional designer to make quality merch. Once you know your niche, you can determine what kind of designs would best sell. And you know what you can do within your skillset.

Here are some ways you can use your skills (and others) to create quality merch designs that sell:

Use a FREE Design Tool

You don’t need fancy design software to make standout merch designs. We personally think tools like Canva can fulfill all your design needs.

Canva has hundreds of FREE premade graphics and text options you can use to create unique designs. Find designs that suit your niche by using keywords.

Phone a Friend

It doesn’t hurt to ask family and friends if they know someone with design experience, especially if you don’t feel like playing around with these tools.

A young designer or college student would be the perfect person to help you satisfy your vision. And they’re eager to get experience.

Hire a Professional

If you need a designer with a stacked portfolio, look into a service like Fiverr. They have thousands of designers ready to fulfill your requests.

Search “t-shirt design” or “merch design”, and you’ll find plenty of designers with different specialties. You can narrow it down from there.

Try to be specific with what you want. Are you looking for a bundle of similar graphics? A logo for your shop? This will make it easier to find a designer that suits your needs.

3. Make Merch Drops Special

You’ll sell more merch when you make it exciting for your followers. And there’s an art to the perfect drop.

Tease our your merch drops with little sneak peeks. Utilize the countdown feature on your Instagram stories. Post about it on your most relevant channels.

If you make videos or livestream on platforms like Twitch, wear your merch. This will get people interested and excited about what you have to offer.

You can also do a giveaway leading up to your merch drop. This will help generate interest and get people talking about your brand.

4. Develop a Social Strategy

Your merch isn’t going to sell itself. You’ve got to create a promotional strategy that works for you and your audience. This is key to selling more merch in 2023.

You don’t have to be on every platform. Be active on the channels where the majority of your audience is. Gamers are mainly be on Twitch, while artists and creatives dominate Instagram. When you find the right channels and use them effectively, you’ll generate more sales and avoid burnout.

Don’t spam your followers with too many merch-centric posts; it’s going to turn people off. Trickle in posts promoting your merch line amongst your normal content. And even if a post isn’t necessarily about merch, you can slyly post your shop link somewhere in the caption.

Be yourself. Create content that is authentic to you. Don’t turn into a different person just because you’re promoting a product.

5. Ask Your Audience

When in doubt, ask your followers what they think. It’s the best way to get honest, direct feedback that will benefit your merch line and allow you to sell more merch.

Show your followers that their opinion matters by reaching out on socials and asking what kind of merch they’d be interested in buying. If you already have some designs, run a poll or do a Q&A to see which designs resonate the most.

Not only will this help you create merch tailored specifically to your followers, but it’ll also build trust and deepen your connection. This could easily lead to more merch sales in the future.

Ready to start selling your own custom merch?

Build you own merch line with Spreadshop for FREE!

Sell Custom Merch This Spring

Spring has officially sprung and it’s time to sell some custom merch. We have seasonal apparel and accessories that are perfect for these warm days (finally!).

Pastel colored tie dye, trendy hats, and personalized favorites are going to be staples in your wardrobe this spring. Add these to your Spreadshop and customize them with your own unique merch designs.

Our favorite shops are already selling custom spring apparel in their shop. Check out how they’re making these items their own below!

It’s Not Just For Hippies

We’re long past the days when tie dye was just for hippies and vagabonds. And thanks to a wide range of color ways, we have something for everyone! Sell more custom merch with tie dye tees in your shop that come in soft, pastel colors and classic tie dye patterns.

These tees are great on their own, but they really pop when you customize them with your merch designs. Take Buffalo Roamer Outdoors, for example. Their sleek logo works well against the different tie dye backgrounds.

We would wear these tees for a day on the town or on a beach getaway. They’re one of our favorites for spring. Make sure you’re selling these merch tees in your shop.

Say It With a Sticker

Stickers are a great small ticket merch item for people who don’t want to buy T-shirts or hoodies. And they’re a fun way to accessorize your everyday items. Update your reusable water bottle, laptop, or even phone case with stickers that showcase your personality.

We particularly love this one from Windy’s World. The pixel art-based custom merch shop creates whimsical designs. They have a wide array of sticker options that are perfect for spring.

Tap into your niche by making stickers that resonate with your audience. Don’t be afraid to be specific with your references while using spring colors and graphics. Sell more merch and have a big impact when you have stickers available in your shop.

PRO TIP: Canva has a ton of fun, free graphic elements you can use in all your merch designs, not just stickers!

We’re Bringing ‘Em Back

The bucket hat is back – whether you like them or not. They’re a trendy accessory worth adding to your custom merch shop AND spring wardrobe.

We have them in a variety of fresh color options. The cream and black options are fresh and would work with whatever you have in your wardrobe. We like how alt rock band Talkalots kept things classic by customizing it with their simple logo.

You don’t have to be incredibly busy with your merch designs. It’s better when you stick to simple, clean graphics and fonts. It will be more wearable for your audience.

A Multipurpose Accessory

Bandanas might be another unexpected accessory for this season, but they’re sure to be a standout in your merch shop. They’re a great multipurpose merch item, especially now that the weather’s starting to become tolerable again.

Wear them around your neck in a traditional style, or wrap them in your hair. Bandanas are an unlikely must-have for hikers. Wipe your brow when you get sweaty, even dress a wound if needed.

We like how this shop expresses their love for hiking with this merch design, but your designs don’t have to be outdoor specific. They can be anything you want. You might draw more attention to bandanas in your shop when you promote them with an exclusive design.

Retro Revival

Here’s another throwback for ya! Fanny packs have been trending for awhile now. You can easily purchase them from fast fashion retailers like Forever 21 or H&M, but they’re better when personalized.

You can really express your personality when you sell custom merch, like fanny packs. Embrace the element of nostalgia and create funky designs that will appeal to your audience. A fanny pack is a fun, unexpected merch item that can help drive traffic to your shop.

Cartoonist Kayfabe is selling fanny packs in their shop customized with one of their unique logos. They found a way to tap into their niche while building a unique aesthetic. They’ve created an experience with their shop by offering products like fanny packs.

We’re so inspired by all of these amazing shops and we hope you are, too. Start selling these spring merch favorites in your own shop.

Open a Spreadshop at no cost. It’s fully customizable and completely FREE!

You Don’t Have to Be a Designer to Make Merch

It doesn’t take a four-year degree to make a merch line that’s true to you and your passions. You can create awesome merch with zero design experience!

There are plenty of easy-to-use design tools out there to help you create custom merch designs. They allow you to stick within your niche and brainstorm ideas that `best suit your brand.

If you don’t have the brain power to come up with merch designs, it might be worth it to hire someone! Ask your family and friends if they know anyone with design experience. Or go it alone and find a designer with a portfolio that suits your needs.

Learn more about why you don’t need to be a professional designer to create quality, custom merch.

Use Free Design Software

Design tools like Adobe can be such a pain to figure out; even the pros have problems. It goes to show you don’t need fancy design software to make standout merch designs. We personally think tools like Canva can fulfill all your design needs.

Canva has hundreds of free premade graphics and text options you can use to create unique designs. Find designs that suit your niche simply by typing keywords into the search bar. These designs will look great on all kinds of merch: stickers, water bottles, totes.

And it’s easy to upload them into your Spreadshop. Download them with a transparent or solid background and in whatever dimensions you please.

If you want to make these designs more true to your brand, Canva allows you to upload colors specific to our brand using their brand kit tool. This makes it easy to tweak designs that appeal to your aesthetic.

When using text in your designs, it’s important to show movement. You can easily curve your text or arrange it in different shapes. These simple tweaks will heighten your merch designs.

Phone a Friend

It doesn’t hurt to ask family and friends if they know someone with design experience, especially if you don’t feel like playing around with these tools. A young designer or college student would be the perfect person to help you satisfy your vision.

“Merch designer” is a title that looks great on a resume. You can make it known you’re looking for someone by posting on relevant Facebook groups. Or do it the old fashioned way: put posters on bulletin boards around your local campus.

This can also be a great learning experience for you when it comes to your merch line. You’ll be able to collaborate with someone who knows how to design. And they can help you decipher what does/doesn’t work for your merch designs.

Hire a Professional

If you need a designer with more experience, look into a service like Fiverr. They have thousands of designers ready to fulfill your requests. Type in “t-shirt design” or “merch design” into the search bar and you’ll find plenty of designers with different specialties. You can narrow it down from there.

Try to be specific with what you want. Maybe you just need a logo for your business. Are you looking for a bundle of similar graphics? This will make it easier to find a designer that meets your needs.

It’s also helpful to see what work they’ve already previously created. You’ll know immediately whether their style resonates with you or not. And cost shouldn’t be an issue.

A lot of designers have affordable rates. It’s worth paying $20 for a quality merch design that you know will sell.

Stick to Your Niche

Your merch line is nothing without a niche, which could really be anything: women’s sports, camping, stargazing, etc. Your niche provides you with focus and allows you to fully engage with your target audience. This way, you won’t have to worry about making merch designs that appeal to everybody.

We’ve seen plenty of shop owners showcase their niche with simple merch designs. Mila the Chi is a great example. Mila is a chihuahua with a voice and flair all her own. Her merch is cute and captures the persona that people get from her content.

Use insider phrases or terms in your merch designs, it’s a great way to capitalize on your niche. Your audience will appreciate the specificity of your merch and be proud to wear it. You’ll be creating custom apparel and accessories that people in your niche can’t find anywhere else. And you don’t have to be a professional designer to achieve that.

Now it’s time to start designing your merch! Open your own Spreadshop for FREE today.

Merch as a Fundraiser For School Sports

Looking for a fundraiser for your school sports teams? Merch is a school fundraiser that everyone will love. Selling custom merch is a fun and easy way to raise funds for all the sports teams at your school.

Spreadshop is a print on demand (more on that later…) merch site that allows you to start selling merch in mere minutes. Put your team logo and any kind of team design on hundreds of customizable products.

Merch allows you to be true to your school and raise money for your sports teams. It makes for a more interactive school fundraiser and helps students show their school spirit. Here are 3 reasons to sell sports themed merch for your school fundraiser!

1. It’s Completely Free

Yep. It’s true. You can set up your very own merch shop with Spreadshop at absolutely no cost. And merch is more than just T-shirts these days! We have hundreds of customizable products.

Spreadshop gives you the power to build your brand and promote your sports team at no charge to you. You don’t have to be a software wiz to use our platform. We make it easy with customizable templates so you can find the best way to showcase your merch.

If you want to set up shops for multiple sports teams in your school district, that’s no problem! You can host up to 10 shops with one Spreadshop account. This way, you won’t be juggling multiple emails and misplacing passwords.

We make the payment process easy, too. You can link to your checking account or PayPal for seamless payouts. Use that money however you please! Put it towards new equipment, a team trip, etc.

2. Fundraising is Easier Than Ever

School fundraisers are notoriously painful. Parents loathe the yearly tradition of bugging their friends and family to buy peanuts or subpar chocolate. Merch makes the fundraising process painless.

You can sell hundreds of products through Spreadshop without the headache of fulfilling orders. We cover production and shipping for all your merch. We print when there’s demand, hence print on demand merch. T-shirts and other merch only gets made after someone places an order.

You won’t have to worry about excess inventory. And you can set the prices for all of your products. Anything you set beyond our base price goes directly into your pocket to help your sports team.

3. Team Spirit For the Win

Merch is not only a great school fundraiser but a great team builder. You can instill school spirit among your team and your student body with custom apparel. We see this all the time with other fans and groups.

Think about people who rep a tee from their favorite band or local sports team. It’s a way to express what they’re passionate about and connect with other fans. Merch will do just that for your school sports team, no matter what sport it is.

Wear your merch before games or for team events. Take your school spirit on the road with you. Rep reusable water bottles when you’re on the go, put a sticker on your car. The options are endless when it comes to merch.

Start fundraising for your school sports team with custom merch today. Open your own Spreadshop at absolutely no cost!

12 FAQs about advertising on TikTok

1. Why should I place ads on TikTok?

TikTok is controversial in the US as a Chinese product, but cracked the billion-user mark in 2021. Want to become famous? This is your platform.

TikTok is also different, forcing you to reinvent your brand and rethink your content.

Thanks to real-time monitoring, you’ll always have an eye on your campaign and can adjust it if necessary. Because TikTok advertising is not yet available to everyone, you’ll have enough advertising space on your site to beat out the competition. Read more