Discuss the fun task of marketing a t-shirt shop. Where to advertise, local marketing tips, word of mouth, press releases, search engine marketing, keyword advertising, magazines, etc.
Hi guys, im fairly new to the forum but have spent a while now reading through some of the cool tips and tricks on here and I have learnt alot.
Well its not time I gave some tips myself!
Although I have a fairly new t-shirt business, I have learnt alot on one specific issue and that is the brand!
Initially when we started we got over excited made amazing colourful designs and thought that nothing could go wrong, we had loads of them and we were confident this was it, but when put up for review and given to my close personal friend who is also my manufacturer he totally dismissed them. Why? Because they were just a bunch of random graphics with no thought or meaning behind them. Now dont get me wrong, I know this is not important for all t-shirt companies, for example, funny tees, they are all different but with an actual clothing label that is trying to group a specific message across it is very important to link them in some way or another. What I mean by this is hen someone looks at your tshirt they can say oh that is an "X" tshirt.
Without this, you will fail in the long run, take it from me, iv been there. You may sell like hot cakes at the start but when the hype dies down, it will rapidly.
The key to success is having a constant hook, a background story, a meaning to entise the customer to want to be part of this brand and attatch themselves to it.
I know this all may sound very deep but psychology is an important matter and it is amzing how a strong historical brand background can help you succeed in the long run.
So to summarise my advice:
1. When you bring out a range, try to look at them as an outsider and think, do these look like they all came from the same label? Could I tell they are the same family without looking at the label?
2. Publish a story, an about us page on your website, or right a little story on the tags if you use them to describe the t-shirt.
3. Stay true to your brand, dont go off-track, obviously you will always go down slightly different roads but try and keep your brand identity.
I guarantee if you follow just some of these steps you will be more succesful with your t-shirt business!
We are trying to do that now, all our designs are different, they may not be the most amazing design to look at, but they are unique, they link, they have a great story, people can relate and they are of great quality.
We may be seen as stubborn but we dont want to become a slave of the ever growing major retail junkie industry, we are being true to ourselves, this way we know things may take off slowly, but once people get interest, they will be interested for life, as they are wearing something that they know all about and that relates to them!
I even studied colour psychology within my degree of depth perception and 3D vision and the effect it has on the brain and emotions, sad but very useful.
Take from this what you will but I just thought id give you my opinion!
Another thing to consider, is the "consumer perception" of your brand. At the end of the day, your brand is not how YOU see it, but how THEY see it. So it's great to develop your brand's identity, and manage it properly, but it's also important to aggressively position your brand in the market. I find in this economy, the consumer "shopping experience" is a huge asset for a brand. Hollister, Gilly Hicks and Johnny Cupcakes are a few that are really excelling at this right now.
We all know there is a certain amount of luck within the marketing world, but the main point I was trying to make is that it is always a positive to have a strong product, strong brand behind a strong marketing program!
I lack the marketing program right now! But we are working on it!
I really liked the way you have written and i think your way of expressing it all and that to making it so concise is simply brilliant.
Thanks for sharing the information.
Brand Image 
Re: Brand Image 
