Selling band merch online has become a real revenue stream for many musicians, even for independent musicians. It’s a sustainable way to keep your fans interested in your art, while also giving you diverse opportunities to promote your music.
If you’re not selling merch online as part of your music marketing strategy, give it a try. In addition to making you money, selling merch provides a proven way to connect with your fans in an authentic way.
Why should an artist sell merch
As an independent artist, you might still be growing your dedicated fanbase. Making and selling merch can seem expensive and time-consuming, but it’s one of the best ways you can create connections with people who will be supporters of your evolution in music.
Just like you want to put out good music that reflects who you are, your merch can be an expression of your sound and your artist brand. Capitalize on that by creating merch that is near and dear to who you are, and that marks significant moments in your development.
The top reason to sell merch is to make some extra money. But as an artist, you don’t want to just create and sell anything; you want to use merch as a way to build upon the music you are making.
Opportunities to sell merch
If you are just starting out as an artist, you may believe that no one will want to buy your merch. However, you might be surprised at the number of people who will want to support an artist directly instead of a corporation. If you have new music coming out, you should create merch to go along with it.
The beauty of selling band merch online is that you can have it shipped anywhere in the world. So you can cultivate new fans from a Spotify campaign, or social media, and direct them to your merch store. Add in your friends and family who will likely be more than happy to purchase a T-shirt or hoodie, and your merch store will be off to a great start.
Now that you know a bit more about why you should try selling merch, these are the best ways to go about it.
1. Use your own dedicated website
Your music website is a place online where your fans can reliably find you. You can drive fans from your social platforms back to your own branded website. This is the best place to sell your artist merch online. Not only is it commission-free if you use Bandzoogle, but you can also fully control the experience and collect email addresses along the way.
If you set up a merch shop on your own website, you can customize the design to be sure it looks professional and reflects your style. You’ll want to be sure that your website includes a mobile-ready shopping cart for your visitors to use with ease.
Setting up a website is quick and easy, and it’s the best way for an indie artist to make true connections with new fans. You can box and ship the merch yourself, and include a handwritten note thanking your buyer for their support. A personal touch will let them know you appreciate their support (and make them more likely to support you in other ways in the future). You can also integrate your website with a print-in-demand service, which will free you up to work on promotion.
Making merch sales, even incrementally, will allow you to build up a database of emails that you can use to reach your fans for future music releases, show dates, or new merch drops. Just make sure that you stay on top of your store and your website sales. Treat each purchaser as if they will become your biggest supporter – and they very well might!
2. Find your angle
If you are an independent artist who doesn’t have many fans yet, you’ll need to figure out why people should buy your merch. You may want to create a concept around your music release, which will draw interest, and you’ll also feel passionate about promoting. Or perhaps you’ve already had a somewhat successful digital music release, and want to press vinyl now. That could be your angle.
Think about what sets you apart: Do you have graphic design skills? Are you a trendsetter who can create stylish merch products? Do you want to take advantage of the holidays approaching to create some themed merch, or set deadlines to order?
Keeping in mind that you want to stick with your sound and genre, brainstorm some ideas that will reinforce your brand and set you apart. That’s your angle, which you can translate into products that will appeal to the fanbase that you envision.
Once you’ve settled in your angle, all of your marketing efforts to promote your merch should support this aim. You can make fans aware of your merch by wearing it yourself, by sharing photos on your social media, by sending out emails, and so on. Encourage fans to share photos and videos as well, and be sure to comment and reshare their posts to show your gratitude.
3. Involve your fans
One of the best reasons to sell merch online as a musician is to create enthusiasm around your new releases and grow your fanbase. Be sure to involve your fans right from the beginning of your new projects. As part of your strategy to sell merch you need to determine what to sell – that generally should be whatever your fans would be most excited to buy.
Ask your fans what they would buy and wear. This could be an open ended question in a newsletter, or a poll on your socials – either should give you some ideas of what your followers would enjoy. If you’ve already decided to sell wearables such as T-shirts, hats, or hoodies, ask your fans which they would be more likely to purchase, or what colors they would like to see.
Another idea to get your fans invested in your merch is to have them vote between new logo ideas, or album artwork. Be sure to announce the winning designs far and wide to reinforce interest.
If you’re an indie artist, it’s very likely you don’t have a solid fanbase who will snap up your merch right away. In addition to your website, you may want to consider setting up shops where your followers already exist. You could explore adding a TikTok shop, or selling on Facebook or Instagram. If your organic reach appears to be low, you can always look at promoting your merch to your fans with ads on these social platforms.
4. Create excitement with pre-orders
Once you have your band merch ideas ready for offer, set up your music website so that your merch store is prominently featured. Then add your products as pre-orders. This can help you sell merchandise successfully in a few ways: it will give you an idea of quantities to purchase if you are planning to ship and sell directly to your fans, and it can also give you something to promote to your fans, especially if you are making merch that accompanies a new music release.
To create momentum for your merch sales, have a few products ready in advance and post content with yourself, your band members, or a few selected fans wearing the new designs. Visuals will help your fans visualize wearing the merch themselves, and encourage them to pre-order.
You can also offer a pre-order discount to create urgency in shopping with your first run of merch. You’ll want to be sure to promote any pre-order campaigns where your fans are – so be aware of your social following here, and reach out with authentic photos or video regularly to promote your merch.
5. See what sells and rotate merch
If you’ve decided to sell merch online as part of your music promotion strategy, treat it as a long game. You’ll start to notice trends like seasonality for certain products. Take advantage of trends by offering merch that you suspect will sell well at different times of the year.
You might be consistently selling T-shirts, for example. In that case, consider adding another design or base color. If a certain logo or design is popular, try putting that on a mug or hoodie and see if it continues to sell.
Keep in mind that you may have some true fans who simply can’t afford your merch but would love to support you. Offer pins, badges, mugs, or stickers at lower price points to provide purchasing options for all of your fans.
You’ll want to be sure you’re putting effort into merch that people will actually want to buy. Coming up with a concept will not only help you promote it with genuine excitement, but will get your followers interested as well. For example, if you’re an avid cook, consider selling aprons plus a CD with a handwritten recipe. If you’re outdoorsy, try selling warm hats or caps with your band logo on the front.
If you have products left over that aren’t moving as well as others, consider running a contest or rewarding your best fans with some free swag to clear out stock. This will give you a reason to promote your artist merch even more, and should make your fans happy in the process too.
6. Set up product bundles
One of the best ways to sell more merch online as a musician is by creating bundles. It can take some effort to consistently make and sell bundles that appeal to your fans, but this is a great way to pair together items of interest.
Bundles are especially useful when it comes time for a new music release. You can start simple by pairing a digital single download with a T-shirt, for example.
You can also get really creative with bundles. Pair handwritten song lyrics with a single, for example, or offer alternate album artwork with older items. Create a custom puzzle with your album cover and bundle that with your album, so your fans can listen while putting it together. Check out these other band merch ideas to get inspired: 25 creative band merch ideas.
This is a nice way to offer variety in your artist merch, and you can keep things fresh for your fans by swapping your products at any time. Everyone likes a deal, and a bundle is a great way to offer value to your fans while moving more merch on your end.
7. Try print-on-demand
Selling merch as an artist can be tiring; you’re not really a business, and you have music to make after all! If this sounds familiar, try setting up your merch store online using a print-on-demand service. This way, you can set up the products and prices and let the service create and ship out the merch whenever someone makes a purchase.
Especially if you’re just starting out with selling merch, integrating a print-on-demand service such as Printful into your artist website will give you a bit more time to focus on marketing your music, freeing you from any hassles of ordering and shipping merch yourself.
Print-on-demand services are especially beneficial for an indie artist looking to make new fans. Forging a connection using on-point merch is a bit easier to do when you don’t have the up-front production costs. You can offer many different options this way and ship anywhere with ease.
Final thoughts
It’s quick and easy to set up an online merch shop as a musician. The best place to do this is on your own artist website. Remaining consistent with your merch sales is what will set you apart, ultimately helping you to connect with your fans and generate more income as a musician.
You don’t have to use each of the six suggestions above to create a thriving online merch store. Rather, see what works best for you, and what is sustainable along with your music. But if you haven’t yet tried selling some merch, you should. You might just be surprised by how your fans show up to support you, and you could open up new opportunities for supporting your career.
🎁 Get 15% off your first year of any Bandzoogle subscription
—
