Typically followers wish to symbolize their favourite artists with greater than a CD and a t-shirt. Listed here are a number of inventive concepts that your followers are sure to get pleasure from.
by DITTO MUSIC
Merch is such an important a part of a musician’s cash making technique. In our years within the trade, we’ve seen numerous tiny bands play a gig for much less cash than it took to fill their van with petrol. After which completely kill it on the merch desk, taking 10 instances more money than their charge.
For those who do it proper, merch can massively enhance the accessible money in your band as a enterprise and aid you make far more cash out of your music.
However earlier than we dive into our record of cool merch concepts in your band, try a few of our knowledgeable recommendations on some stuff you won’t have thought of
The best way to promote merch to your followers
Perceive your margins
Do no matter it takes to grasp how a lot cash you want to cost for every merchandise with the intention to make an affordable revenue. Obtain a revenue and loss template spreadsheet and fill it in. It’s surprisingly good enjoyable. Trustworthy.
Have you ever factored in the price of your time to organise and promote it? It’s completely nice to break-even, and even make a loss, on a product if there’s a good purpose behind it that you simply’ve thought by means of. However there’s nothing worse than not doing all of your sums and realising you’ve labored laborious for no purpose in any respect.
Take into consideration your viewers
What do they need? What merchandise greatest go well with them? We all know from our stats at Dizzyjam that goth bands promote far more black t-shirts than trance artists. We all know that American audiences order extra XXLs than Japan.
Promote your merch
If promoting merch at a gig, make sure that it seems good and other people know the place they will get it. Point out it from the stage (however don’t overdo it – folks hate being closely bought to). Think about shopping for a show board to point out off your merch behind the desk, and write your costs in clear giant lettering seen from throughout the opposite facet of the merch desk. Make it straightforward in your followers.
TIP: For those who’re fortunate sufficient to be touring internationally, educate your self on totally different nation gross sales taxes and implications.
10 Band Merch Concepts Your Followers Will Love
1. T-shirts
The grandaddy of merch. Extremely seen, straightforward to pay money for, and the factor that everybody desires to put on. You may go down two principal routes:
Bulk screenprinted: That is the place you purchase up-front, and take care of all of the gross sales and fulfilment your self. You will get respectable high quality t-shirts printed for lower than £3 every for those who you might be sensible, so there’s good cash to be made. However don’t be fooled – it may be laborious work shifting all of your inventory for those who don’t choose the scale distribution and many others appropriately.
On-demand digital printing: This can be a fully risk-free method of promoting t-shirts. You create a preview of your product on-line, after which when somebody buys it, it’s digitally printed and dispatched on to them, with you receiving a reduce of the income. There are numerous print-on-demand platforms that may aid you do that totally free, however just one that really specialises within the music trade. And yeah, it’s us – Dizzyjam.
2. Your music
The subsequent factor you want to have on sale is music. ALWAYS have your music accessible on the market. For CDs, take into consideration cardboard sleeves as a substitute of plastic instances to avoid wasting area whereas touring or posting. For those who’re promoting bodily codecs, think about including a obtain code to promote your music on-line or at the very least a hyperlink to the place they will stream it. Individuals love a memento from a fantastic gig however a obtain code works even when they don’t have a report / CD participant.
3. Mugs and miscellaneous
Maybe one thing a bit totally different that you could additionally get on a regular basis use out of?There are a great deal of firms that may print a Spotify code or SoundCloud observe code onto mugs. They’ll go down a deal with with the audiophile followers!
4. Autographed something
For those who can signal it, it is best to. It personalises your merchandise in your followers, and offers them one thing that may – hopefully – turn out to be massively collectable in years to return.
DMA’s not too long ago launched a handful of signed cassettes to have a good time the launch of their newest album, directing customers to their retailer web page to snap up one of many restricted version tapes.
5. Get artful
Crafting is all the fad as of late, so there’s nothing to cease you heading right down to your native arts and crafts retailer and stocking up. Purchase some good high quality white t-shirts, some cloth inks, some sequins, and go to city. And even only a easy adornment of the prevailing screenprinted t-shirts or hoodies that you simply’ve purchased.
6. Make merch whereas they wait
Do you’ve any particular abilities? Is your drummer a great caricaturist? Is your bassist an origami god?
Inhaler bought distinctive and location-specific merch merchandise all through their 2022 USA tour together with hand-drawn photographs on drum heads. Excellent items to mark every occasion.
7. What would your followers need?
Iron Maiden brewed beer. Wavves produced grinders. Deadmau5 manufactured cat headphones (yeah, headphones for cats). Alice Cooper bought branded eyeliner. Daft Punk launched “Get Fortunate” condoms. Take into consideration one thing that’s distinctive to you, or a observe/album of yours. Not simply good merch. Good PR, too.
8. Marshmallows
Yeah, you heard us. Marshmallows. Take a look at Boomf.com for some out-of-the-box considering. To be sincere, you will get just about something printed on as of late. Keyrings, marshmallows, plates, calendars, towels. However take into consideration your viewers initially. A seashore towel isn’t going to go well with a sun-fearing goth fan….
9. Personal performances
The large artists have been charging mega-bucks for this type of factor for years, so why shouldn’t you? J-Lo, Beyonce, and Mariah all cost effectively in extra of $1m for a one-hour personal efficiency. You’ll have to set your sights a bit of decrease than that, however your greatest followers would love the chance to get an acoustic serenade in your dressing room or, even higher, of their dwelling!https://www.youtube.com/embed/EKs0SQq8AYY
10. Suppose past the sale
Will different folks see your merch? Will it get talked about by the brand new proprietor? Will it spark dialog? Typically it’s price fascinated with promoting stuff at price, or perhaps a loss, if you recognize that it’ll assist unfold the phrase about you. So think about one thing low-cost like guitar picks or wristbands. If ordered in the appropriate portions they are often purchased for as little as 10p every. So you may undoubtedly afford to promote them for that little, and even give them away, and also you’ll little question get folks speaking about you!
Simply bear in mind – your purpose with all of those is a number of of the under (however hopefully all):
– Make your followers completely satisfied
– Earn money
– Be talked about
You may at all times contact Dizzyjam.com any time to say whats up, or to get our recommendation. Simply drop us a line on data@dizzyjam.com, or say whats up by way of our website.
