You're living the dream, making YouTube videos for a living.
Maybe you're even doing it part-time, in which case you may also have a job.
In either case, your time is at a premium.
This is why many creators sell merchandise, or merch
to earn supplementary, or even primary, revenue.
Today, I'll show you how to do it without putting a hurting on your schedule.
I'm Seth from the channel Seth's Bike Hacks, where I take my audience with me
on mountain-biking adventures.
Whether you're selling t-shirts, hats or anything else with your logo on it
branded merch is a huge win for both you and you fans.
Some creators use merch to supplement their income
while others have made it their main revenue stream.
There's no right or wrong time to start selling merch
but clues in your comment section should be your first indicator.
Are you seeing familiar names? Are people quoting you?
If so, they might wanna show their support in a more tangible way.
Throughout my mountain-biking adventures, my audience has become familiar
with certain catchphrases and sayings.
This 'Smeash' t-shirt I'm wearing has an inside joke on it
which any of my subscribers would instantly recognise.
That makes it the perfect way for them to show their support
and signal to other subscribers that they watch my channel.
Surely you've seen other examples like that shirt
and maybe you even own a few bits of branded merchandise.
But someone needs to design this stuff, warehouse it, ship it out
and handle complaints when something goes wrong.
Where would you, a busy creator, find the time to do that?
When I first started selling merch
this t-shirt was the first item I had for sale.
I had a friend design it and I had a local t-shirt supplier print them up.
I kept all the inventory in my closet
and I shipped them all out right from the same room I edit from.
I had to buy shipping supplies, I had to buy inventory
and when a size got low in stock, I had to make another minimum order
which could be thousands of dollars.
As my audience grew, so did the workload.
I'd be up late shipping out t-shirts
and I realised that before long, this wouldn't be a very viable business model.
I'd need to hire help, get warehouse space
and do all sorts of things that would cut into my profit.
That's when I discovered Teespring.
Services like Teespring allow you to sell a range of over 35 different products
including shirts, mugs, phone cases and even pillows
without ever handling physical products.
Just decide what you want to sell
list it on their site and sit back while they handle the logistics.
The seller, in this case Teespring, takes a cut of the sale to cover their costs
and you get the remaining profit.
Using a t-shirt as an example
you may be left with 8 to 10 dollars of each sale
depending on the purchase price.
While this may not be as profitable as an in-house operation
consider the cost of your time.
You can use that time to promote your merchandise
come up with new designs
and create the very content that drives traffic to your channel.
Another great thing about Teespring
is the frictionless experience it gives your users.
Since many creators are already using the platform
many of your users will already be familiar with it.
The ubiquity of Teespring is the main reason I use it.
But there are plenty of alternative services that work in a similar way.
The main idea is to let the professionals handle your fulfilment
while you focus on what you do best.
A key point to consider is timing.
Leveraging an event or exciting change in your channel
is a great way to spur sales and even impulse buys.
Let's say you're redesigning your channel logo.
Before you reveal this new logo to your audience
get your merch in order.
Consider who your buyers are, your most dedicated fans
many of whom watch your content the instant it goes live.
To capitalise on this excitement
you need to prepare your product pages and links ahead of time.
Now let's talk about choosing your products.
It's up to you to decide what your audience would find most valuable.
Maybe it's a t-shirt or perhaps it's a pint glass.
Using the Polls feature, which can be found in the Cards or Community tab
is a great way to find out.
Ask your audience what they wanna see
and then read the comments for additional suggestions.
Going back to the example of a t-shirt
a simple logo is often the best place to start.
Inside jokes, catchphrases or designs relating to your channel
are also great to incorporate into merchandise.
This rendering is of me riding behind my dog Drama
as he wears an action camera.
To my viewers, this is a fond memory of a well-loved video.
So how do you prepare branded merchandise?
If you're just making a logo tee or coffee mug
it could be as simple as uploading your original logo design file.
But many of us want to create new artwork, and that's a job for a graphic designer.
Maybe you can use the designer who made your logo
or perhaps you can find a designer in your audience.
If you know other creators, asking who they use
would be a great place to start as well.
There are also sites like 99designs and Fiverr
where you can put your project out to bid and let designers come to you.
Based on my personal experience, a lot of full-time graphic designers
will want a minimum of around $150 to make a simple original design.
This number can fluctuate wildly based on your demands
as well as how in-demand the artist is.
Quality design work can be a great investment that pays you back in full
but it all starts with the guidelines that you put in place.
Using bullet points about your channel and audience
is a good way to give the designer some inspiration.
Be concise in your instructions and provide real-world examples whenever possible.
At the onset of the design process
the artist will usually give you some rough drafts.
>From there, you can provide further instructions on what you want to see.
Also, consider taking the artist's suggestions.
After all, you did hire a professional.
Once you have a design you're happy with
you'll need to apply it to a product and list it for sale.
Let's go over some guidelines to help you achieve the best results.
Mind the specifications.
Services like Teespring will provide you with the minimum size and resolution
for uploaded artwork.
But when in doubt, go bigger.
You can always shrink your design to fit your product
but stretching it out can lead to quality loss.
Building on specifications, make sure you're using the proper file type.
I've found that .PNG files can be used universally across platforms like Teespring.
A .PNG can be easily overlaid against any background color.
Double-check your proofs.
Most interfaces will give you a proof or preview
of what the final product will look like.
But spending a few bucks on a sample eliminates all the guesswork.
This can save you a ton of grief.
Write a great description.
No matter where you sell your product
it's gonna end up on a product page with a 'Buy Now' button.
Make sure to include notes about the materials your merch is made out of
and how it relates to your channel.
Take your pricing into consideration.
Don't dissuade sales with an outrageous price.
But at the same time
make sure you can cover the costs of your designer
and make the whole process worthwhile.
When in doubt, check to see
what other creators are selling their merchandise for
and use that information to stay competitive.
Now that you've gone through the process of designing and listing merch
it's time to tell the world about it.
If you have a website, make sure your product links are up to date.
If you're selling apparel, be sure to wear it in your videos
to build excitement.
Pinning a top comment with a link to your merch
is also a great way to get the word out
but make sure to do it as soon as your video goes live
so your most dedicated fans will see.
Available in certain countries
YouTube allows you to promote your merch on video end screens
as well as in a merch shelf below the description.
If you're sure your fans are interested in branded merchandise
then why not do a dedicated video about it?
Many of your audience members want to know about new merch
so take the time in your video to tell them directly.
Tell them that you hope they like it and ask for feedback in the comment section.
Getting your viewers to talk about merch not only helps get the word out
but also provides you with valuable feedback.
If you've never sold merch before
I hope this video has inspired you to give it a shot.
If you have
make sure to share some of your own tips in the comments below
to help fellow creators.
Subscribe for more great tips and tricks here on the official YouTube Creators channel.
And make sure you come visit me over at Seth's Bike Hacks.