Before internet and ecommerce, yard sales and newspapers were effective places to advertise items without owning an actual storefront. However, times have changed and with the various sales websites and apps available, anyone can make additional money selling anything — without leaving the house.
Whether you're an artist, musician, or a brand, selling merchandise is a great way to engage fans while making extra money . Although merch can often times be sold while on tour or at special events, the best place to sell your product is through an online store. This will allow for you to reach a wider audience in a short amount of time. It will also allow your fans and supporters to have a one stop shop where they can return and purchase more products from you in the future. Creating this type of residual profits can help fund future projects and music. Online sales have completely reshaped our approach to business. 63 percent of all purchases occur through online shopping, and the internet has become the most profitable way to sell products.
If you have designed your branded merchandise, you're probably looking for a place to sell your items. For sellers who don't want to go through the hassle of hosting their own website, there are a host of options for online marketplaces to sell your items on the internet. Different sites offer different perks. Every marketplace has its own unique requirements, marketing tools, product categories, listing fees, and audiences, so depending on your brand needs, finding the best site for you may require doing a little bit of research. Here, we'll discuss just a few of our favorite online marketplaces to help you decide which site is best to host your own online store.
An online selling platform, or a marketplace, is the e-commerce platform that will be responsible for housing and presenting your product to the masses. With some information from you, your online selling platform should include photos of your merch, a product description and a price, at minimum. Many selling platforms also handle the shipping and, if you want to avoid doing it yourself, you can find platforms that also provide printing services.
Over a hundred marketplaces exist on the web, both in the United States and overseas, but today we're going to focus on a few of our favorites.
Founded in 2006, Shopify is a multinational e-commerce company headquartered in Ottawa, Ontario. Shopify is probably the most popular of all ecommerce platforms when it coms to selling online. Through their platform, sellers can customize their own web store using a templates from the company's Website Builder. Sellers can also cut down on the hassle involved with dealing with customers directly, as Shopify takes care of everything from marketing and payments to secure transactions and shipping.
Another popular platform to sell your merch is Spring, formerly Teespring. Founded in 2011, Teespring allows customers to create and sell custom products all in one place. Independent designers, brands, and musicians have become fans of Teespring. Their products are high quality and most of all, they provide a searchable site for new fans to search for unique designs by creative individuals around the world.
Much like the online platforms above, Big Cartel is another popular place to sell merchandise. Similar to Shopify, Big Cartel allows its sellers to build a unique online store, sell their work, and run a business in the most simple way possible. Big Cartel prides itself on being a platform for "artists and makers," making it the perfect place for any creative. They also offer various pricing plans, including a free option for those who do not want to pay a monthly fee to sell their merch.
Dizzyjam is a merch platform made specifically with the music business in mind. Dizzyjam makes it easy for bands, DJs, labels, musicians and venues to create and sell merchandise without any cost at all. You provide the design and Dizzyjam handles the printing (all their shirts are ethically sourced) and shipping to customers. Also, their online store is free to you so all you have to do is set the prices and just sit back and collect your profits.
Spreadshirt is a creative platform for sellers interested in custom T-shirts and custom clothing. You can easily design your own t-shirts, apparel and gifts or browse through their massive collection of designs. According to Spreadshirt, their sellers can earn over 60% of the product price, so their potential earnings surpass the payout of global competitors like Amazon, Zazzle, and CustomInk.
Merch Direct is a boutique music & entertainment merchandise company that provides complete merchandising solutions for the music and entertainment industry. Based in Long Island, NY, bands and artists like Fetty Wap, the Deftones, and more are already using their service.
Merchline is a merchandiser and online fulfillment provider to the apparel, design and entertainment industries. They provide high-quality screen printing and merch manufacturing, touring services and are the official online storefront and fulfillment partner for a select roster of clients.
Probably one of the most popular marketplaces next to eBay itself, Etsy is an e-commerce company that prides itself on allowing customers to buy directly from someone who put their heart and soul into making something special. With Etsy, the seller is responsible for their own printing and fulfillment but the site still serves as an easy to navigate online marketplace.
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