The significant issue here is that your fan base can include different people; it could consist of different genders and people from different generations. There are things that people of the older age like and that those of the younger generation detest. Once you start creating your music for one generation, you lose the others’ audience and interest.  

You also have to consider other factors such as the graphic to include in your merchandise. For instance, it won’t be practical to use sexual content, weapons, and other advertising profanity in your graphics if you are still reaching out to young people that are still schooling. 

Also, you have to create your merchandise in a way that is relevant to the two genders. For instance, men are not very likely to buy a shirt with another man on it. But in case you have to create merchandise relevant to just one gender – male gender, for instance – use the death metal. There are exceptionally few female fans into that music genre, so that will be more male-centric merchandise. That’s how you show that you know your audience when marketing.  

Be present and available. 

You might set up a table for a festival, concert, or tour, but there are different factors that potential customers will look for before considering you. A significant factor is the presence of your band members. Their presence will boost fan engagement and make them more than likely to show up at your booth. The fans might not even plan to buy your merchandise, but the likelihood of them coming is higher with the band present. Their coming might not have to do with buying the merchandise initially, but to meet the band and get an opportunity to greet them and take pictures. However, this can lead to them buying your merchandise. 

A good business move will tell the fans that you will be at the sales booth once the show is over. This is very likely to boost your sales. And the more people buy the merchandise; the more people become aware of the band. People will ask questions inquisitively when they see the merchandise on others, leading to more awareness for the band. That’s how effective being present is. However, if you aren’t present, you should not expect your merchandise marketing strategy to grow. 

Where you have the band is where you will have the fans. So, being at the sales booth or table before the show and after it will increase your customer engagement and boost your conversions. 

Have more than one price 

The chances you will have some fans attend the show without any intention or budget for buying the merchandise are very high. This is why you also need to have less expensive items to accommodate these ones and still make your sales. Not all the fans present would have attended your shows enough to know that you have set up a booth. For those that already know, they might have their budget for your music merch. You can drive their purchase with valuable items. But for the other groups, you need to brand inexpensive items to sell to them just to serve as a souvenir for their attendance. Have a different product with a wide price range to give the fans various options and push them to make a purchase. 

You might also need to be more flexible with your prices, like agreeing to sell merchandise for $8 instead of $10. While you might not make much profit from some of the merchandise, it will later serve as an advertising medium for the band and could win over more fans for you. 

Add incentives to your merchandise marketing strategy. 

Merchandise will help your marketing strategy a lot. However, you can still incentivize it. You can start by organizing online contests and offering the winners giveaways. You can also use these incentives to promote user-generated content. 

For instance, your customers can boost the band marketing by encouraging them to post pictures of themselves at any band’s shows they attended. You can then put up prices for fans who have the highest likes and ship their winnings to them. 

Another method is to ask fans questions about the band to test their knowledge of the band and make the band members deliver merchandise to the winner of the contest by themselves. This will add to the experience and make it more fun. 

You can use the merchandise to engage with customers and create an online community contributing a lot to the music marketing. User-generated content is useful for driving more people to the band. 

Stock up differing merchandise 

If you are going to have a different price range for your fans to choose from, as mentioned above, then that means that you must have a variety of merchandise to fit into the price ranges. 

For instance, a T-shirt might sell for $13, which is more expensive than $2 for a pin. But there are other things that you can also sell, such as caps and beanies, which people wear every day. Stickers might also be a good option for your fans for their laptops and cars and other possessions, at different sizes and prices. All of these make your merchandise more sellable and increases your visibility in the long run. 

Have an online store 

While you are making good sales from the tables, you can be more efficient in selling your merchandise by opening and running an online store where you get to sell all the merchandise that you have available at your shows. 

This has a lot of advantages because some of your fans might be unable to attend your shows or tours but would love to get the merchandise still. There are other fans too from different countries that might not be able to come down to your shows in other countries. Having an online store where they can buy the merchandise makes them feel like a part of the group, and they indeed won’t feel left out on supporting the band. 

Your online store will also give you an extensive reach as you could get a global footprint in no time. For instance, fans from other countries buying your merchandise might boost your visibility and follow in that country or region too. At some point, you might have the opportunity to perform in those regions also. 

Make sure that your online store is mobile-friendly and well organized. Also, you should be able to receive payment via different methods such as Skrill, PayPal, and different debit and credit cards. This will make the user experience an enjoyable and seamless one. 

Conclusion 

Music merchandise can be a very effective music marketing strategy as it can help you grow internationally in no time. Making your table very attractive and also operating an online store are two necessary things to maintain. 

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