h Your Music Online
time thinking about the best visuals you
have at your disposal.
Alternatively, there’s the option of seeking
ongoing support via sites that allow fans to
pay a monthly subscription to an artist in
return for exclusive content. For example,
Kimbra uses her Patreon page to give
subscribers access to unreleased songs or
videos of performances that aren’t widely
available. This creates an even more direct
link between artist and fan that can be
rewarding for both.
The latest development in this area has
been the Spotify announcement that they
are adding a ‘tipping’ button which artists
can add onto their page if they wish. For
those with the feature enabled, there will
be a button on their page which sets up
a donation to the artist via PayPal. There
is also the option for artists to have their
donations go to a charity of their choice.
Spotify have said that this is a new feature
which may evolve over time, so check back
regularly on your Spotify Artist page for
updates. end up with a lot of stock on hand while
you sell through them, so it can take a
while to break even. It is worthwhile seeing
what online stores/music shops might stock
your T-shirts so you have as many avenues
as possible to speed up turnover.
SELLING MERCH Alternatively, it is now possible to load
up designs to online stores, which will do
items on a print-on-demand basis. This
means there is no upfront cost, since the
T-shirts are only created once the order is
received - but the cost per tee to produce
these is higher.
Bands have long realised the power of
having great t-shirts to sell at shows.
Some have even become iconic, like
the Ramones T-shirt design which has
purportedly sold far more than any of their
albums. Some bands even invest in their
own screen-printing equipment and then
buy their own blank t-shirts to use, which
keeps their costs to a minimum.
However doing a run of T-shirts (whether
printed professionally or created using your
own set-up) does mean that you will often
There are many companies that offer this
service online such as local outfits like
Printpoppa and PrintMighty or overseas
ones like Teespring or Printful. It’s worth
doing an hour’s research to find the best
price point and options to suit you. For
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