Test Market Your Merchandise For Free
Merchandise is often cited as the top source of income for indie and d.i.y. bands. after touring. But how do you increase sales ? after you basic t-shirt, what sells? Hoodies, caps and long sleeve tees are all popular, bu what works for one band van be a huge failure for another. The size and placement of artwork can also effect sales.
It's usually too expensive to print a hundred or even a couple dozen shirts to test market every merchandise design and idea. But using print on demand services like Zazzle, Cafe Press. Printfection and Spreadshirt allow you to test market them at no cost. (This Sguidoo article offers some comparisons between the services.)
Upload any image or use ther online design tools, pick the product and cost and put them up for sale. You can link from your site or better yet grab the image of the product, place it in your own online store and see if sales roll in. If just a few people buy have the on demand service fullfill the orders and drop the product. If you're happy with the test order a quantity free from your usual sources and ship them out yourself at a higher profit. (This article offers some comparisons between the services.)
Another great service for on demand printing is AudioLife.com. I spoke with the founder last week and they not only print 1 off shirts, hoodies and jackets, but also 1 off CD’s complete with jewel case, shrink wrapping, etc. This could be a great way to not only test products but do short runs or limited editions.
You can also do the same at http://www.jujups.com. Big advantage is that you can let others modify the design and also put your design as a widget in your site.
The link to that Squidoo article appears to be incorrent.
Hi Derrik,
This appears to be the correct link for the Squidoo lens that provides a comparison of the options:
http://www.squidoo.com/cafepress_alternative
Best
Manisha