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So you’ve booked some gigs and have a loyal following of fans, but what merchandise should you sell to them? Merchandise for singers promotes your image as a performers and can be a great way to raises money. If you’re ready to get started selling your own custom merch, here’s where to begin.
Merchandise is used by singers and musicians to make extra money at their tours, shows and gigs or through an online shop on the website. It’s a way of promoting yourself and spreading the word through your fans, while also making a few quick bucks. But what do you sell and how should you sell it?
If you want to get your music to a larger audience, then you have to promote yourself like a pro. Selling your own merchandise (t-shirts, key-rings, posters, etc.) is a great ways to raise some money and create a brand .
Which merchandise should you sell?
The most popular form of merchandise to sell is t-shirts! There’s something about wearing an act’s t-shirt that people love. Make sure when designing your t-shirts that you keep them engaging and interesting so they are desirable.
If you want to keep costs down consider having it with fewer colours, having it full colour will be more expensive.
Synchronise your music merchandise
Use the same display pictures, backgrounds and names. Using the same imagery as across all your social media sites strengthens your brand as an artist. It also looks more professional and official.
For those who don’t want to buy t-shirts, why not sell them CDs or vinyl, at least that way they can continue to listen to your music.
A few items that which are likely to be popular are:
- Badges
- Key-rings
- Posters
- Pens
- Stickers
These are good because they cost very little and you can sell them for a small cost.
Selling merchandise online
Merchandise is a brilliant way of maintaining engagement with your fans, especially those fans that aren’t necessarily local to you. Selling merchandise online means that even those fans that can’t make it to your shows can still have the opportunity to have a souvenir of the event without attending.
Selling merchandise online isn’t as hard as it seems, as there are website whose main purpose is provide other businesses with a platform to sell their products.
An example of this is shopify a website where you sign up and then are able to build your store.
They take credit card payments, therefore not restricting anyone wishing to buy your merchandise.
Selling merchandise after shows
The most obvious way to sell merchandise is through your shows. You’ve already got fans there that have paid to come see you perform, so make sure you take this opportunity to make some money.
Fans bring friends, so there’s more opportunity to make money after the show from people who may have not heard you before.
Have you created your own merchandise to sell to your fans? Let us know in the comments below!
Sell personalised merchandise to your fans
Personalised merchandise is used for singers to make extra money at their tours, shows and gigs. It’s also a way of promoting yourself and spreading the word through your fans. Here’s some personalised merchandise we think your fans may like. But what do you sell and how should you sell it?
Choosing personalised merchandise
What should you sell?
The most popular forms of personalised merchandise are t-shirts! There’s something about wearing an act’s t-shirt that people love. Make sure when designing the t-shirts that you keep them engaging and interesting so they are desirable. If you want to keep costs down consider having it with fewer colours, having it the full colour will be more expensive.
Synchronise your merchandise!
For the most effective personalised merchandise, it’s wise to use the same display pictures, backgrounds and names! Using the same imagery as across all your social media sites strengthens your brand as an artist. It also looks more professional and official.
For those who don’t want to buy t-shirts, why not sell them CDs, at least that way they can continue to listen to your music. A few items that are likely to be popular are badges, key rings, posters, pens and stickers. These are good because they cost very little and you can sell them for a small cost, making them one of the cheapest personalised merchandise ideas.
Selling personalised merchandise online
Personalised merchandise is a brilliant way of maintaining engagement with your fans, especially those fans that aren’t necessarily local to you. Selling personalised merchandise online means that even those fans that can’t make it to your shows can still have the opportunity to have a souvenir of the event without attending.
Selling personalised merchandise online isn’t as hard as it seems, as there are website whose main purpose is provide other businesses with a platform to sell their products. An example of this is www.shopify.co.uk , a website where you sign up and then are able to build your store. They take credit card payments, therefore not restricting anyone wishing to buy your personalised merchandise.
Selling merchandise after shows
The most obvious way to sell your personalised merchandise is through your shows. You’ve already got fans there that have paid to see you perform, so make sure you take this opportunity to make some money. Fans bring friends, so there’s more opportunity to make money after the show from people who may have not heard you before.
Promoting merchandise
You should promote your merchandise as much as you promote your music. One way you can do this is on social media. You can post about your merchandise on Facebook with a link towards the shop. This will let your fans know about it and then they can share it.
You need a Facebook business page and a Shopify store so people can buy directly within Facebook. To set a Facebook shop you need to connect to Facebook and to your page. Then, you will need to click on setting, then edit page and select the Shopping template. You can also add a shop tab to your page by going to your page clicking settings, edit page, then click add a tab to the bottom of the page.
Facebook Ads
You can reach a wider audience by creating ads usually costing around £1 or £2 a day.
Posting on Pinterest
Pinterest has over 200 million monthly active users. It is a great way to sell your merchandise and reach to a wider crowd.
Pre-roll ads
Pre-roll ads are short video ads on Youtube, which is a great way to promote your merchandise. It is important that your ads only are visible before the most similar videos.
Instagram stories
By posting Instagram stories, you can see who has watched it and identify your audience. You can also drop them a message with a discount code. Once you reach 10,000 followers or more you can also include links within your Instagram Stories, which could help people to check your online store more easily.
Instagram shoppable posts
Similar to Facebook stores, it gives the opportunity to your fans to buy your merchandise within Instagram. You can download this guide than explains how to advertise your products on Instagram.
Sending emails to your fans
Another great way to sell your items and promote your music is reaching to your fans by email. You can ask your fans to subscribe to a mailing list. This is a great way to send a message to your fans directly. Your audience will be more likely to purchase items from their favourite artist who interacts with them.
Leaflets
Leaflets are a great way to let your fans know about your merchandise when they see you perform at your gigs. Those leaflets should contain the information about your online store and possibly a discount code.
To sum up, there are a few steps to making and selling your merchandise. These include first creating the logo and design, then determining the manufacturer, the shops and ways to promote them.
Make sure that you design and sell items that are handy for your fans such as T-shirt, CDs, accessories, and mugs. Use emails, social networks and newsletter to correspond with your fans about your merchandise and any questions they may have.