If you are looking to make money easy and fast, look somewhere else. It takes a lot of hard work and dedication to be successful in this or any business. You have to develop your custom apparel, get it made, and then convince people to buy it. Then do it again every single time you release new merchandise. If you are willing to put in the hours, money, and effort it can be rewarding financially and emotionally.
So… where do you start? Well, with research dummy, and if you are reading this article right now you are already on the right track. The more informed you are about every aspect of your planned business the better. Therein lies the key, you need a business plan! Don’t get me wrong you will need to get out there and make mistakes in the real world to learn, but it doesn’t hurt to start with a plan. In this plan you will outline: Your target audience; why they need and/or want your product; how you will produce your product; and how you will market/sell your product.
In my opinion the first bit of research you need to do is to know your audience. Who are the people that will be wearing your clothing? If you don’t have the answer to that, do nothing else until you figure it out. Having an audience is the most important piece of the puzzle. There is nothing harder than marketing and selling a product to the public at large. All of your future decisions should be catering to this targeted group of people.
Don’t get in the trap of asking yourself who will buy this such and such a thing? Or will this thingamajig sell? You are putting too much emphasis on the product, and not enough on the purchaser. Instead ask yourself what does this group of people needs or wants. These types of questions will lead to more success because are thinking about you are keeping the end user in mind. It can be very easy to get tunnel vision and forget why you are working on this product in the first place.
So you think you have your target audience? Wonderful, but take the time to ask the following questions before you dive in headfirst.
Are the custom apparel needs of this group already being met?
Do they need custom apparel?
And
Do they want custom apparel?
Let’s break it down. If your potential audience is already getting custom apparel elsewhere really take the time to think about what you would be adding to the market. If there is enough market share to go around there is no reason you can’t still provide for this group. But If there is already a lot of other players in the game you better be the Michael Jordan of apparel or you won’t even make it to the court.
Remember you have to cater to their wants and needs, and if they don’t want or need custom apparel, don’t make it. There are plenty of groups out there that just don’t need what you have to offer, so please don’t waste your time trying to make something for them. Also always be weary of the collective culture of the group you are trying to sell too. Some sub cultures may be self-producers, meaning they make their own stuff and will reject anything that’s catered to them, even if it is perfect for them.
If you have done the work and believe your audience is capable of supporting your business, then it is time to research how you are going to get your product made.
There are a multitude of different production practices out there. Here at Twin City Tees we specialize in screen printing and embroidery. But some other techniques out there include dye sublimation, heat transfer, and direct to garment printing. Each one of these styles has advantages and disadvantages for specific uses, and each one of these techniques can have different approaches within one style. For example we have three different ink bases for screen printing that all have their subset of uses and limitations.
You don’t need to how exactly how everything is made, but when you approach a custom apparel shop lean on their knowledge of production processes. There will be limitations that you have not thought of depending on the garment style, material, and what you want to put on it. Try not to have unrealistic expectations, and take print shop recommendations seriously. Our shop and many others are truly trying to give our clients the best quality product we can. We want you and your customers to be happy!
The final and hardest part of being successful selling custom apparel is how you are going to market and sell your apparel. All of the work you will have done up to this point counts for nothing if you can’t get it in front of someone’s face, and then your that person to want it badly enough to give you their hard earned cash.
With today’s strong cyber culture you are going to have to be savvy in social media marketing. Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and all of the others can be useful tools in helping your business grow. Make sure to take some time to learn the ins and outs, but always stay true to your brand and message. It can get easy to get caught up in the social network web and lose focus on what you are trying to do. Don’t chase after likes and follows. Be sure to put out quality insightful content focused on your target audience and let your work do the talking. It can often be better to get to know one platform very well and utilize it to its fullest capabilities rather than scattering your time and effort across sea of social media outlets.
It is also crucial that you stake a claim outside of the internet. This is where you really need to hustle. Unless you get incredible lucky and win the lottery of internet fame this is where you will make your money. Try to find avenues to sell your merchandise in physical locations. Seek out retail stores that align with your target audience. If you manage to get your custom apparel into such a location your job is not over, especially the first few locations. If you want to keep supplying these shops, you need to market them hard to be sure to get sales. If your goods don’t sell, it will be hard to convince them to buy again, even if your brand is taking off elsewhere. So in the beginning you have to exhaust every bit of energy you have to spreading the word and making your apparel desirable.
To reiterate, to be successful selling custom apparel will take a lot of hard work and a great deal of planning to be successful. Boil it down to its simplest terms you need to write a business plan. In this plan you will outline: Your target audience; why they need and/or want your product; how you will produce your product; and how you will market/sell your product. By putting the time and effort to research these criteria and put it into a plan will help you with your direction and execution as you venture forth into your custom apparel business. Good Luck, and if you are looking for more helpful info maybe check out our articles; “The Benefits of Buying in Bulk” and “The Higher Gains of Higher Quality”