54 – 10 Print on Demand Sales Tips

Nikki

0:01
Last week, we shared all about getting started with print on demand marketplaces and how you can create either a Society6 or Spoonflower Shop.

Laura

0:09
Or both.

Nikki

0:11
Right.

Laura

0:13
Well, today we want to share 10 of our best tips for increasing your POD marketplace sales. So let’s dive in.

Laura

0:23
Hi, this is Laura Lee Griffin.

Nikki

0:25
And this is Nikki May with the Startist Society, inspiring you to stop getting your own way and start building an art biz and life that you love.

Laura

0:35
We are artists who believe strongly in the power of community, accountability, following your intuition, taking small actionable steps and breaking down the barriers of fear and procrastination that keep you stuck.

Nikki

0:49
Follow along with us on our creative business journey as we encourage you on yours.

Laura

0:58
Alright, so tip number one is to batch create the files and formats that you will upload – vertical, horizontal – so that you will find it easy to post new designs on a regular basis. But as much as you might want to, make sure that you don’t post them all at once. Search engines favor shops that post consistently, not shops that post everything in one go.

Nikki

1:23
And tip number two, create multiple colorways of the same artwork either through recolor tools in Adobe Illustrator or hue adjustment tools in Photoshop and Procreate or other similar apps. That way you can leverage your art and appeal to a broader audience. Someone may not love the dog you drew on a blue background but they might love it on magenta.

Laura

1:47
Don’t use proper nouns, brand names or trademarks in your titles or descriptions. Society6 just did a Star Wars collection but they received a special license for specific artists so not everyone on Society6 can just go make Star Wars art. Same with your favorite Disney princess right Nikki? Now which Disney princess would you be I would be the one from Brave, Merida, with the wild curls the mad bow and arrows skills and I think she ends up not needing a prince and just getting to run the whole place. How about you?

Nikki

2:21
Well I would be the one with a man in every port, does that Disney Princess exist? Okay, let’s get back on track, number four: be sure and use your affiliate link for extra commission if you use Society6, you can earn an extra 10% on those sales.

Laura

2:39
Yes, it’s awesome. And tip number five: if you order any of your own products, take unique pictures, share them on social media and tag the marketplace accounts where they’re located. You never know when they might feature you in their next blog post or email newsletter, or social media account. On a side note, ordering your own products can help move them up in the search results.

Nikki

3:03
And yeah, share your products with your people in emails and social media, in your Instagram bio. Just because you’re on Society6 or Spoonflower doesn’t mean people automatically find you and buy all your products.

Laura

3:16
Dang it. I was hoping the case.

Nikki

3:20
We can always hope Laura.

Laura

3:22
We can always hope Alright, tip number seven. Don’t forget to advertise on your own website. Create an advertising banner on your website that links to your marketplace online shop.

Nikki

3:35
And tip number eight. Put up a strong body of work with your best designs, the more the better, and the more there is to shop from.

Laura

3:43
True. Tip number nine, once you have some sales under your belt, see what’s selling and a) do more things like that and b) share the designs that are your best sellers in front of more people. Use that link sticker in your Instagram stories to link directly to the items in your shop.

Nikki

4:04
And number 10: take advantage of the marketplaces sales and seasonality.

Laura

4:11
So it was really great that during Christmas time I posted rainbows and butterflies.

Nikki

4:18
Well, you might actually consider designing a line of Christmas fabrics for Spoonflower that you’d post in the fall as people are beginning to make gifts for the holidays. Or post Valentine’s Day heart designs in January.

Laura

4:33
Okay, that makes sense. Note to self. And a final bonus tip. There have been some great Skillshare classes on preparing your art for print on demand and specifically using Society6 and Spoonflower. We’re going to link to some of our favorites in the show notes so you can check them out too.

Nikki

4:55
To grab a free download of Startist Society’s top 10 tips for increasing your print on demand marketplace sales go to startistsociety.com/podsalestips.

Laura

Thanks for listening and we’ll see you next week.