T-shirts are perhaps the most popular casual wear. Now marketers use this type of clothing to promote businesses as well. This has given rise to the online T-shirt design business. Anyone with some interest in designing apparel can turn it into a profitable enterprise.
T-shirts are now an essential part of people’s wardrobes. Though these are in the casual clothing category, people wear these with great confidence as office wear too. Many entrepreneurs have turned the rising popularity of T-shirts into a successful business. They run profitable businesses of designing and printing funny t-shirts.
If you too are planning to start an online T-shirt design business, consider a few basic things. You need to pay heed to some crucial business aspects of running the business on the web.
Online Business – It’s A Different Ball Game
Remember that opening a physical store is different from an eCommerce store. In a brick and mortar store, you can just sell your designed shirts to whoever enters the shop. The customer is visible and you can please and compel him or her in so many ways to buy.
But that is not the case with online selling. The customer is not visible. Therefore, you use some online marketing techniques. You use these techniques to attract visitors so that they buy t-shirts online from you.
Basics To Follow For Starting An Online Tshirt Design Business
To keep you on the right track when setting up an online T-shirt design business, here are some key basics to follow:
01. Find Your Niche
First, you should precisely know your niche market. Online Tshirt design is a vast field. If you randomly design the shirts for everyone, you are in a highly competitive market. However, if you pick a few niche markets such as lyocell t-shirts, you have only fewer competitors to face. Your time, energy, and money do not go waste. So, you should know how to find out your niche. It includes knowing your competition and testing of your idea.
For example, if designing and selling printed T-shirts to people in the field of nursing, find one or two sub-niches. These can be emergency nurses, nursing students, ICU nurses, pediatric nurses, registered nurses, etc. Similarly, if you intend to create the designs for the engineering field, you can target the customers from civil engineering, construction, mechanical, design, computer, etc.
02. Create Your Own T-Shirt Designs
Instead of hiring an expensive designer, put your design skills to create your own T-shirt. This way, you can save money at the starting business phase. But your online t-shirt design must be unique and attractive. So, start the online business only if you have the required design skills. Later on, when the business expands, think of hiring professional designers for additional work.
If you’re not looking to create your own designs, you can always download ready made designs, made by talented designers and marketers who know what’s trending with T-Shirt businesses. Simply download and add to your new online shop to stay one step ahead of competitors when entering the Merch world.
In the beginning, even online T-shirt design templates can help you. Next, all you need to do is to make the right choices of colors, typefaces, images and drop them in place. That is good enough to design the shirt. Try out various design ideas so that people have different choices when they buy your printed T-shirts online.
03. Have A Website
In this digital age, customers or clients first want to visit the website of a company or individual to get precise information. A website is essential to increase the visibility of your business. It is a low-cost means of promoting what you sell online. Most importantly, you create a brand and let people have quick access to your business.
If you are a T-shirt designer, put your skills and business on a website. Get a nice website for your design business. The site should have adequate details about your online T-shirt design skills, prices, your past works, contact information, etc.
The site should also have testimonials from your satisfied clients. However, the website will work for the growth of your design business in many ways. However, make sure that the site is easily loadable and navigable to make it user-friendly.
04. Have A Design Portfolio
If you have a good body of online Tshirt design work, then display it prominently on a separate site. Such a portfolio site should have your selective custom T-shirt design works.
This portfolio site is important for your potential clients. They can have a closer look at your past works and design skills. The clients can judge what to expect from your design abilities.
05. Market Your Skills Using Social Media
Social media is a powerful medium to market products or services. You can use Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and other social platforms to promote your eCommerce store. While you create your own online T-shirt design, talk about it regularly on different social platforms.
In addition, make videos that speak about your experience of working with clients. However, you should post blogs and tweets frequently to engage your target audience with your business.
As you use social media, more and more people come to know about your design business. In addition, it helps in creating a brand identity, which finally establishes you as a trustworthy designer and supplier of T-shirts.
06. Create A Logo For Your Business
A serious business has a logo as its face for target customers and markets. Your online Tshirt design business too needs recognition from clients. They will verify and authenticate your design services by first seeing your logo. Therefore, have a logo design for your online business.
You will put this logo on your website, design portfolio, and all of your marketing campaigns on social media. People will be buying t-shirts online with confidence after first seeing your company’s logo.
To create the logo, you should hire graphic design services of a logo designer. The designer knows how to design a logo that conveys your shirt design business message.
07. Ensure High-Quality Printing
When selling your online Tshirt design in a print on T-shirts to earn profit, then ensure high-quality printing. The customers should find your designs durable. If the design fades or gets cracks after only a few washes, you will lose your clients.
There are various custom T-shirt printing options to explore. Choose from screen printing, heat transfer printing, and direct to garment printing. In addition, you can contact a local printing business to check of your print quality is perfect. After that you should think of shipping your shirt design to the customers.
08. Choose A Quality Dropship Supplier
When starting an online Tshirt design business, choose a dropshipping platform carefully. For instance, many such platforms allow for printing your designs directly on their own T-shirts. After that the droppshopper ship the product directly to your customers.
An advantage of dropshipping your printed T-shirts is that you do not have to carry any inventory. In other words, you will not investing on renting a storage for the shirts. Instead, you will supply the shirts from the dropshipping supplier warehouse to the customers. This is how they will buy printed T-shirt online from you.
So, these are some of the basic but important tips to follow when starting an online T-shirt design business. Pay utmost attention to every step and plan well to succeed in this field.
Wrapping Up…
There is an increasing demand for t-shirts. Therefore, your online Tshirt design business can quickly pick up and grow. According to reports, in the US, the online original design T-shirt sales industry was of $441m in 2017, which reflected a 9.5% growth. This shows the potential and scope of growth your business has in this industry.
To set up an online Tshirt design business, consider your niche audience and market. Then, create your own T-shirt designs, have them uploaded on your design portfolio to attract potential clients. To sell printed T-shirts, contact a dropshipping supplier. Promote your business on social media and have a logo as an identity of your online business.
