Did you have uniforms of famous football players or stickers of your favorite TV show in childhood?
And do you still buy products advertised or created by your favorite artists?
Many would answer Yes to these questions, and it’s not surprising. Trust us, it’s a common monetization strategy to make a merch on what people love, earning a sufficient income on that.
So, if you managed to create a podcast that people love and succeeded in creating a community of loyal listeners, nothing holds you back from creating podcast merch and having an additional source of income.
What is merch?
A Merch stands short for merchandise. It refers to products that can be bought or sold on any online or offline platform.
To make a podcast merch means to produce and sell products related to your show.
For example, you can print your podcast logo on a T-shirt or put the podcast host’s portrait on a teacup.
Source: PodcastMerch.com
Those types of products should be targeted to your listeners. They usually help them to feel more connected to your show. So, if you want to turn your podcast popularity into an additional income source, podcast merch is the right way to go.
Often, you will not even need large investments for that. You just need to put a little time and creativity into it! Here are some of the ways to start your podcast merch:
Print-on-demand
Yes, that simple.
Do not invest in buying a bunch of products and printing your brand logo on them in advance.
Instead, make a visual illustration of your merch products, and promote them to your audience digitally. Only once you get an actual order, you can proceed with printing or production.
Pros:
- Time and cost-savvy option, especially for newbie podcasters with a limited budget
- No risk of investing in a project which might not pay off later
Cons:
- Less convenience for customers, who might want to touch or try the products before ordering
- Longer waiting time for the order to arrive
Handmade podcast merch
Another cost-effective method of monetizing your podcast is to make the products yourself. The truth is that for your true fans handmade products from their favorite host are a r
There are numerous ways to create merch products yourself.
For example, buy simple T-shirts and water-resistant ink to paint your podcast logo on the clothes. Or, why not knit a scarf with your podcast brand colors?
Also, remember that you are not required to make products that your buyers will use in their everyday life. You can make some souvenirs or home decor pieces. The key thing here is that it should be created by you and form positive associations with your podcast.
Pros:
- It feels authentic and rare, creating an additional motivation to buy the product
- It’s also an additional way to create a relationship with your customers and increase loyalty.
Cons:
- More time spent on making products yourself compared to ordering it from external sources
- The higher risk of quality problems
How to make podcast merch?
Merging your podcast’s brand elements with any tangible product is material for your podcast merch. However, this broad definition might leave you uncertain about what you should produce.
Here are some tips that can help you make a successful and profitable merch.
Choose products that sell good
Source: PodSwag.com
You might think you shouldn’t focus on T-shirts, cups, stickers, or similar popular products, as millions of artists have already created such kinds of branded products. However, there’s a reason why these products are best-sellers: they are pretty popular among the fans.
The top 10 podcast merch products are:
- T-shirt
- Hoodie
- Socks
- Sticker
- Sneakers
- Bottle
- Cup
- Bag
- Phone Case
- Hat
Don’t be afraid of the big competition you might confront at these niches. The unique emotional connection between your podcast brand and your listeners is a competitive advantage that will help you stand out in the market.
Have a cool design
Design plays a crucial role in merch products, as that’s one of the key elements that influence your potential buyers’ decisions.
Source: Etsy.com
Therefore, you should dedicate enough time to deciding what to print on your merch products so that it is creative, beautiful, and create strong associations with your show.
Some tips for the design
- Do not limit your imagination only to your podcast logo. You can choose any other element that reminds your audience about you. For example, you can print a famous quote from your podcast using a beautiful font.
- Feel free to experiment with your branding elements. For example, if your podcast cover art palette is in orange shades, but you feel the color does not look good on your branded T-shirts, don’t be afraid to change it. Associations with your podcast can be created in a number of different ways: you don’t always have to copy the exact color or element.
- Having the same graphics on all your merch products might be boring. Therefore, try to develop multiple designs for your different products. It’s a good idea to have different graphics for each of your products. For instance, smaller items like cups or hats might look good with a small logo printed on them, while oversized hoodies give you larger space to print massive podcast graphics.
Never stop promoting
Of course, you shouldn’t talk about your podcast merch all the time, as it might annoy your listeners, but mentioning it from time to time is a good idea. It will remind your listeners about the existing merch, and help you get more purchases.
Don’t hesitate to use all the communication channels out there, including podcast directories, podcast shows, social media accounts, etc.
Many podcasters even create a separate website for their merch collection, which adds convenience for the users when making orders.
You can also use other platforms, like Merch by Amazon which allows you to upload your designs.
Later, when customers order the products, Amazon creates the merch and delivers it instead of you.
If you like this concept and want to outsource the technical part of your merch production to third parties, check other similar websites you can use.
Many would answer Yes to these questions, and it’s not surprising. Trust us, it’s a common monetization strategy to make a merch on what people love, earning a sufficient income on selling it via online store.
As you can see, the most challenging part of creating podcast merch is building a solid brand image for your show. Once you make a base of a loyal audience who have an emotional connection with you and are ready to pay for your products, the rest is quite easy to organize.
