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Whether you host a podcast, run a nonprofit, or play in a band, selling merchandise on your website is an exciting way to earn passive income. Custom merch like branded t-shirts can give your audience a way to support your business that feels connected to your brand.
Services like print on demand and dropshipping allow you to sell t-shirts without storing or shipping them yourself. Print on demand has few upfront costs. You just need an ecommerce store and a print on demand service to get started or test out new design ideas.
How to use Custom Merch to sell t-shirts online
Squarespace’s Custom Merch feature connects with print on demand provider, Printful, to help you create high-quality print on demand products for your ecommerce business—including t-shirt designs. Follow the step-by-step guide below to launch your online t-shirt business.
1. Set up your online store and connect to Custom Merch
If you don’t have an online store on Squarespace, start by signing up for a Squarespace Business or Commerce plan. Our ecommerce platform lets you create product pages, set up your store’s checkout process, and more.
Once you’ve signed up for your online store, connect with the Custom Merch integration. Custom Merch will walk you through creating print on demand products to sync with your store on Squarespace.
Learn more about how to start an online store with Squarespace.
2. Pick your shirts and customize your design
Once you’re connected to Custom Merch, decide which types of t-shirt you’d like to sell, and in which colors and sizes. Then you can jump into Printful’s mockup generator.
You can come ready with your own designs or put your graphic design skills to the test with Printful’s fonts and design tools. If you have your own design, you can upload it, customize the placement, and preview it.
Branding your t-shirt can be as simple as adding your logo or company name. Not sure where to start? You can find inspiration by looking at merchandise from brands you admire. Once you finalize your design, order a sample so you know exactly what your customers will get when they make a purchase.
3. Sync with your Squarespace Store
After designing your t-shirt on Printful and approving a sample, it’s time to sync your designs with your Squarespace store. Custom Merch makes that simple. All you need to do is choose the page in your shop where you’d like to sell your t-shirt. Custom Merch will add it in moments.
Product photography, pricing, and a product description will automatically sync from Printful to your storefront. You can use the product images from Printful’s mockup generators on your product pages to get listings up quickly. As you grow, consider replacing these with your own product photography.
Consider customizing the product titles and descriptions in your Squarespace store too, and consider SEO best practices to help your products get discovered.
You’ll also need to connect a payment processor to your store to start accepting orders.
4. Set your pricing
Sell your t-shirts at a price that gives you a reasonable profit margin. Be careful of setting prices so high that customers won’t consider buying. Printful helps you figure out your profit margins based on the cost of creating and shipping the product.
There are no upfront costs with Printful. You only pay when you make a sale, and Printful manages all of the production and shipping for you.
Learn more about optimizing your online store
5. Promote and sell your products
Once your t-shirts are live on your website, it’s time to promote your new merchandise to your audience and make your first sale.
If you’re still finding your audience, start by building your audience on social media platforms and growing your mailing list. Squarespace Email Campaigns makes it easy to promote products to your audience through email marketing. You can browse the templates under “Promote a Product” for an easy starting place and seamlessly import your product listing into the body of your email.
Learn more about getting started with print on demand
Benefits of print on demand and dropshipping
The biggest benefits of selling products online using a print on demand business model are:
No inventory for you to manage
Low or no minimum order amounts
Order fulfillment is handled by a third party
Ability to sell on your own website
For example, with Custom Merch, when a customer buys a t-shirt from your store, the order goes directly to Printful. Printful then prints, packs, and ships your product to your customer. Since print on demand services also include dropshipping, you don’t need to warehouse products or set up a shipping station in your own space.
If your site already has a shop, print on demand is also a way to diversify your inventory and offer items at lower price points. This can make your products accessible to a larger audience, and increase the average order per customer.
Learn more about promoting your brand with Custom Merch
Ready to start selling your merch online?
This post was updated on May 19, 2023.