Discuss the fun task of marketing a t-shirt shop. Where to advertise, link building, word of mouth, press releases, search engine marketing, keyword advertising, magazines, etc.
Hello,
I have been printing and selling T Shirts for over a year now, this has been online only, mostly through Ebay, but i also have my website aswell.
The T Shirts i sell are Slogan T Shirts, and the method i use is T Shirt Vinyl (Flex). Other than "slogan T Shirts" i dont have a specific market, i print lots of funny slogans, offensive, and also custom T Shirts, i print a wide range of subjects.
I have been selling on Ebay and it is going good, however it has slowed down in recent times, and is also getting more expensive. My website gets a bit of traffic, through search engines and because of Ebay, but maybe only selling 10 a week (Ebay i sell 40-60 a week, and at its peak last winter over 100).
It has not just slowed down for me, i have read about lots of people who have said the same, and i would like to sell my T Shirts in many different marketplaces to increase profits.
I am looking for other places to sell my T Shirts, either Online or offline, and i am looking for ideas.
I have read around the forum and have done some things, but they dont seem to have the "gaurentee" of at least breaking even like Ebay does.
I have tried Google ads, and also advert in a local newspaper, but because i am only online if someone were to phone me i cannot process the credit card, i have to tell them to go to the website which is not the best situation.
Re: Places to Sell T Shirts (Ebay Alternative wanted)
Hi,
There are alternative places online where you can set up stores etc... (cafe press spreashirt and so on..).
The problem with having too many stores is that it involves that many times more of work to maintain them.
One way to increase your sales is to concentrate on what you have acomplished so far on Ebay and your site, work with that to generate more sales revenue. Try different things like "add-on" sales etc.
Re: Places to Sell T Shirts (Ebay Alternative wanted)
I know about Cafepress, but it is away from what i want to do. From what i know basically you upload your design and they print and ship it to your customer. I do not want that, i want to keep everything in house, and "do it all myself". Oh, i am also in UK and cafepress is USA, so its not the best situation.
Basically i am looking for other channels to sell my slogan T Shirts, this will go along with Ebay, i will not leave it because i do make money from it, but i want other revenue streams because at the moment it is like i am relying on Ebay and it is not a good thing.
Re: Places to Sell T Shirts (Ebay Alternative wanted)
Quote:
I have read around the forum and have done some things, but they dont seem to have the "gaurentee" of at least breaking even like Ebay does.
There are no real "guarantees" anywhere, but setting up your own website to process orders securely online in realtime can be a good way to make sales whether you are around or not.
Having a website out side of eBay gives you a separate presence that you can advertise in many different ways (online, offline, google ads, search engine optimization, magazines, etc)
It will take time and research to market your website correctly. You can "try out" google adwords, but to do it right, it does take some work to find the right keywords, the right bid amount, the right ad text, the right landing page, the right website layout to convert the shoppers, etc.
Same with an offline ad. A classified ad in the back of your local paper might not be the most effective, but that doesn't mean you should write off all newspaper advertising. Figure out who your target market is and what they are reading (blogs/newspapers/magazines) and find the most effective way to reach them there.
Re: Places to Sell T Shirts (Ebay Alternative wanted)
I know there are no gaurentee's, but i have found that if i list on Ebay i dont sell all my items, far from it, however i do sell some, far more than a google ad if you weigh up how much i spend.
I have my site out of Ebay however it is hard to get traffic to it, and out of the traffic it is really pointless unless it converts to a sale. It has been going for over a year, and i have put some work in regarding SEO, having static URLs, no sids for search engines and so on.
How is "Ebay Express" doing in the US?? It is launching here soon (UK), but i know it is available to US users now. Has anyone with an Ebay shop seen an improvement in their sales?
Re: Places to Sell T Shirts (Ebay Alternative wanted)
Quote:
I have my site out of Ebay however it is hard to get traffic to it, and out of the traffic it is really pointless unless it converts to a sale. It has been going for over a year, and i have put some work in regarding SEO, having static URLs, no sids for search engines and so on.
I think with some more work, advertising, link building, and marketing, you could get some really good sales from search engines and other sources (providing that your website is done right, your prices are right and your designs are marketable).
Re: Places to Sell T Shirts (Ebay Alternative wanted)
Is it me or does everyone think ebay is the holy grail of selling ok it has its good points.Fast sales ,easy use what i can recommend that i am doing
is looking at small clothing stores.Unlike you i do heatpress sublimation and now i`m trying screen print.So i`m trying all styles to make a bigger market for me to sell.
As you know loads of small shops sell 60`s `70`s and 80`s design tees they are all over now .I supply 2 with sale and return its worth ago for the sake of say 10 tees in each shop.
Re: Places to Sell T Shirts (Ebay Alternative wanted)
I dont think it is the holy grail, but you can advertise your T-Shirts to a massive audiance for relativly low cost (however it costs alot more these days, i mean in comparison to other marketing).
I would love to get my T-Shirts out offline, but most stores here are big chains that wouldnt buy. I have no experience in selling to stores but i would love to do it.
Still would like to know how Ebay Express is doing over in the U.S if there are any sellers here who use it; Have you sold more/less/the same before it opened
Re: Places to Sell T Shirts (Ebay Alternative wanted)
Quote:
Originally Posted by The T Shirt Man
I am looking for other places to sell my T Shirts, either Online or offline, and i am looking for ideas.
I have read around the forum and have done some things, but they dont seem to have the "gaurentee" of at least breaking even like Ebay does.
I have tried Google ads, and also advert in a local newspaper, but because i am only online if someone were to phone me i cannot process the credit card, i have to tell them to go to the website which is not the best situation.
Have you tried online classifieds like craigslist and kijiji? I don't think you are going to get anywhere near the same volume of Ebay but it might be a good way to get the word out. If you do place ads in the classifieds (online or off) you can just point them to your website.
Probably the best idea is to re-invest in your website. Have it updated by a professional if you can afford it. Do a *lot* more marketing. If you want, you can post it in the site review section and we can take a look.
Re: Places to Sell T Shirts (Ebay Alternative wanted)
Try setting up shop at a swap meet or indoor strip mall type setting. Logo and slogan shirts seem to do very well here in So Cal. Also like someone else suggested really concentrate on stronge points with ebay and you will be surprised how much business you can generate. Try advertising on your vehicle has well. A simple web site on your car goes a long way. Just somemore ideas. By the way I also sell on ebay.
Re: Places to Sell T Shirts (Ebay Alternative wanted)
Quote:
Originally Posted by flwise1
i have possibly offensive designs, will e-bay cut me off?
It depends what Ebay decide is too offensive. You cant write swear words, racism or hateful things...I got a t-shirt taken off for a slogan which said "i hate germany" which isnt very offensive at all and was just fun, i have had worse t-shirts stay on before and seen other people with worse including swear words.
Ebay UK has now gotten worse. There is no "T-Shirt" category anymore, there is only "mens clothing" Ebay UK say that it is better for people because there is now a finder so the buyer can goto mens category and search for exactly what they want. This has taken away browsing for people, it has effected sales by a large amount, i am now concentrating on building my website.
I do not understand why they have done this, all other Ebay sites such as Ebay.com Ebay.de Ebay.it Ebay.es and so on have a shirts or t-shirts category and a finder so a buyer can use both.
The worst part is Ebay claim that "sales havent dropped across the board for mens clothing" so they wont change it back. This is clearly a lie, i have felt the effects and i know other sellers have too.
Re: Places to Sell T Shirts (Ebay Alternative wanted)
I would like to re-iterate that ETSY is fantastic! I sell almost exclusively on ETSY and have been making pretty good sales.
The interface for setting up your 'shop' is easy and very professional looking. The listings only cost twenty cents US and stay active until your item has sold or 6 months have past. You can upload as many as 6 images of your product at no additional cost and most customers pay with paypal so no more waiting for your payments to arrive in the mail.....
they also offer an HTML coding called Etsy Mini which you can then imbed on your website or myspace pages, which is also pretty stylish and super easy to use.
I have had nothing but great experiences both buying and selling on ETSY, so check it out
Places to Sell T Shirts (Ebay Alternative wanted) 
Re: Places to Sell T Shirts (Ebay Alternative wanted) 
