How to create a successful YouTuber merch store: 7 Simple steps

Looking for a great way to bring in extra money from your YouTube channel? Setting up your own merch store is a fun way to connect with your followers and get the word out about your channel all at once.

But have you ever wondered how your favorite YouTube personality went about getting their merch shop up and running? If so, then you've come to the right place to find out.

Join us for a step-by-step breakdown of exactly how to create and sell your own YouTuber merch. We'll describe the process in detail and even take cues from some of the top YouTuber merch stores along the way.

• Offering YouTuber merch is a great way to monetize your channel and connect with your subscribers.

• Many YouTube personalities partner with print on demand services so that they never actually have to pay for merch until it's been sold.

• Print on demand services like Gelato take care of everything from the production of your custom YouTube merch to order fulfillment, shipping, and delivery, freeing you up to focus on creating.

So you've created your own channel, uploaded lots of brilliant YouTube videos, and amassed a respectable following. Now what?

We'll let you in on the YouTube merch secret that all the top creators already know. Rather than ordering tons of logo merchandise and hoping your inventory sells, many YouTubers turn to a print on demand service for all their merchandise needs.

When you work with a print on demand service like Gelato, you can create custom products with your YouTube logo or branded design and only pay for what you sell. Whether you want to sell shirts and hoodies or water bottles and mugs, we've got you covered.

When your fans make a purchase, we'll take care of everything from the product's creation to its delivery. Print on demand makes it easy to offer your fans merch of the highest quality standards, without ever having to deal with inventory management or order fulfillment.

Ready to become a YouTube shop owner? Here's how to get started.

The secret to offering the best YouTuber merch for your fans is to understand what type of merchandise they'd most be interested in purchasing. When in doubt, it's almost impossible to go wrong by offering products like t-shirts and hoodies, which you'll find in almost every YouTuber merch shop.

Starting with just a few flagship products can be a great way to test the waters and figure out the best designs to offer. When you're ready to expand, be sure to ask for advice from your fans.

Run polls and surveys to ask what types of products your YouTube channel subscribers would be interested in seeing next. The odds are that the nature of your YouTube channel itself already holds valuable clues.

Take the five friends behind Dude Perfect, a YouTube channel that currently has over 59 million followers. Dude Perfect is a sports and comedy channel created by five dudes who were once roommates at Texas A&M University.

Given their fans' shared enthusiasm for sports, it's no surprise that the creators chose to add customized sporting goods and athletic apparel to theirmerch store offerings. While selling accessories like customized footballs might not make as much sense for a creator with a cooking channel, they're a great fit for the Dude Perfect brand.

Partnering with a print on demand service not only takes the hassle out of creating a YouTubers merch store but also cuts out traditional overhead costs. The beauty of partnering with a print on demand company is that you don't pay for any products until they've actually been ordered.

Just make sure to choose a print on demand partner that your customers can rely on to create and fulfill their orders. When searching for potential partners, you'll want to consider things like:

• Do they offer the type of customizable products you plan on selling?

• Can they ensure that your merch will be high-quality?

• Does their service pricing leave enough room for you to charge a reasonable retail price without overcharging?

• What are their shipping rates?

• Where do their products ship from and how long does delivery take?

• Do they offer reliable customer service options in case you need to reach out on behalf of a customer?

At Gelato, we've worked hard to make sure we've got all the stuff great print on demand suppliers are made of. Our products are high-quality, cost-effective, and ready to be transformed into awesome YouTube channel merch.

By working with over 130 print providers, we're able to produce 90% of all orders locally, which cuts down on shipping time and carbon emissions. With afocus on sustainability and worldwide delivery options, we offer a one-stop solution to taking your YouTube merch shop global.

Now that you've selected your supplier and reviewed your audience's feedback, it's time to select the type of YouTube merch you want to feature. Keep in mind that YouTuber merch stores come in all shapes and sizes.

Jimmy Donaldson, better known as Mr. Beast, has gained over 140 million followers by posting YouTube videos of his elaborate stunts and challenges. While he's largely regarded as the most popular YouTuber on the planet, Mr. Beast's YouTuber merchandise largely consists of a few products such as t-shirts, sweatshirts, hoodies, and beanies.

Like many YouTubers, Mr. Beast has narrowed down a few products and accessories that work best for his fans and offers each in plenty of unique designs. Even if you only have one design or logo, you can still utilize various design placements to offer your fans more options.

As long as your choices are selected with your crowd in mind, there's no right or wrong when it comes to the number of different products you should offer. Here are some ideas for products you might consider integrating into your YouTube merchandise store:

• T-shirts

• Tank tops

• Hoodies

• Water bottles and mugs

• Wall art

• Tote bags

• Phone cases

Remember, the best YouTuber merch is designed with your audience in mind. If your channel is dedicated to yoga, you might choose to offer things like athletic apparel, water bottles, and tote bags.

If you are an artist, then wall art,photo books, and t-shirts featuring your art might be right up your alley. The possibilities are endless and print on demand makes it possible to offer as few or as many options as you like with no risk.

After narrowing down the type of products you want to offer, you'll then need to select designs to feature on your YouTuber merch. When you're first starting out, it might be as simple as featuring your channel logo on a number of different products.

To see a great example of this idea in action, check out the merch store of Evan Fong, aka VanossGaming, a popular gamer and music producer. While some of his designs are a bit more complex, many simply feature his logo printed in a single color.

Try to focus on using colors that align with your brand and start out with simpler designs rather than more complex ones. If you feel confident in creating your own designs, you can use your favorite software or the tools in Gelato's Design Editor to create mock-ups using high-quality images, graphics, and easy-to-read fonts.

If you're not so confident in your own design skills, then it's worth spending the money on a freelance graphic designer to make sure you get the style just right. Throughout the process, you can even watermark your designs and tease them on Instagram or your other social media profiles to get feedback from followers.

This can be a great way to both perfect your current designs and generate ideas for new ones. Last but not least, it's always a good idea to order samples of each piece of YouTube merch you plan to offer in your store.

This will give you a chance to check out the quality and appearance of our products and designs in person. After all, it's better to catch any flaws upfront than to hear about them from a fan who is unhappy with their purchase.

In order to sell YouTube merch, you're going to need an online store! There are several different options when it comes to setting up shop and some YouTubers even choose more than one.

Your Own Website

Many YouTubers choose to create a dedicated website for their merch, an option that comes with several perks. Take a look at the merch website created by Ian Hecox and Anthony Padilla, better known collectively as Smosh.

The creators launched their sketch and improv videos on YouTube over 15 years ago and have since established a fanbase of 25 million subscribers. With plenty of time to develop their brand, Smosh now features a huge range of YouTuber merchandise featuring everything from their logo to quotes of favorite characters from their sketches.

Not only did making their own website offer Smosh the opportunity to organize their products into different categories, but to align their store with their own unique branding. Sites like Wix offer plenty of great tools that can help you create a merch website that can be effortlessly integrated with POD services like Gelato.

Social media

If your channel's social media profiles have large followings, then you might consider using them to sell YouTube merchandise to your fans directly. Whether you set up a Facebook & Instagram Shop or simply post links to your merch website, social media marketing is a great way to let your fans know about new releases.

Ecommerce platforms and online marketplaces

Depending on how you want to promote your merch, you may also choose to use an ecommerce platform like Shopify to set up your store. While Shopify has a lot of great features, just be aware that you will also be charged a monthly subscription fee.

Online marketplaces like Etsy don't charge upfront fees, but they do get a cut of each sale you make. You'll also discover that many online marketplaces don't offer a huge array of customization, which can make it hard to promote your brand.

YouTube Shopping

One of the most obvious venues for selling YouTuber merchandise is YouTube itself. YouTube shopping has plenty of tools to help creators promote their merch right alongside their own videos.

While many youtube creators still choose to have their own dedicated merch websites, some feature at least a few products on their YouTube page. It's never a bad idea to get inspired by checking out how your favorite YouTubers offer their merch.

Once you've chosen the right venue or venues for your store, it's time to get things up and running. If possible, make sure you customize your merch shop to fit your brand as closely as possible.

Next, you'll want to set up payment processing and shipping options, and create a clear refund and return policy. When you're ready to upload your merch offerings, make sure you use high-quality images and detailed product descriptions with relevant keywords.

Last but not least, you'll need to set prices for your merch. Make sure that you're able to make a profit after factoring in the price of your print on demand partner's services, as well as any marketing you may choose to invest in.

That said, it's also important not to go overboard. Even if you're the best YouTuber on the planet, you'll still likely be hard-pressed to find a fan willing to drop 70 bucks on a t-shirt.

Do your research by looking into some of the best YouTuber merch stores online and getting feedback from friends about fair price ranges. Looking into your competitors' merch shops is also a good way to ensure that your own prices are on point.

Once your merch shop is up and running, then all that's left to do is get the word out. But first, you might consider announcing a presale for your audience to give them a chance to buy your merch before it's available to the public.

As an established YouTuber, it's likely you already know your way around internet marketing to some extent. Now is the time to put your skills to use by coming up with fun ways to promote your merch online.

Whether it's creating a video featuring your customized clothing or running paid social media ads targeted to your subscribers, the possibilities are endless. If you have an email list, this is a great time to use it to promote your merch, announce discounts, or run fun contests with free merch rewards.

If you are friends with other YouTubers or influencers, then be sure to offer to team up for cross-channel merch promotions. The more fun ideas you can think of to get the word out about your merch, the better.

Many YouTubers partner with one or more print on demand providers to offer customized merchandise to their fans. Partnering with print on demand suppliers like Gelato allows creators to offer their fans high-quality YouTuber merch without having to worry about keeping up with inventory or fulfilling orders.

You might get a variety of different answers, depending on which creator you ask. Each YouTuber has their own unique approach when it comes to what merch products they offer and where.

Some YouTubers sell merch right from their YouTube channel, while others have a dedicated merch website. Others still offer their custom merchandise on social media or ecommerce platforms and marketplaces.

Finding the right fit for you will depend on a variety of factors such as:

• The size of your audience

• The platforms or social media channels you use to connect with your fans the most

• Your budget

• Your desired level of store customization

• Your desired price ranges

Offering YouTubers merch can be a great way to make a profit, all while connecting with your YouTube fans. By partnering with a print on demand service like Gelato, you can enjoy all the benefits of offering your subscribers clothing and other merchandise that reflect your brand's unique style.

From hoodies and t-shirts to tote bags and phone cases, Gelato offers high-quality products just begging to be transformed into YouTube merch. Our easy-to-use service is designed to help you scale right alongside your subscriber count.

Feeling inspired? Take the first step toward getting your YouTuber merch shop up and running by signing up for a Gelato account.