what you should know about ordering merch

Lesson #1 : Finding a Good Printer.

there are so many things happening behind the scenes in the merchandising industry and bands have no idea where to start when they want to make an order. usually they end up going with whatever is cheapest, and let me tell you that is probably the worst decision one could make when choosing a printer!

so here is an outline as to what you should know when ordering merchandise:

1. quality merchandise

printers often go on and on about how they can do this and they can do that, but the truth is, any truly progressive printer will try anything. if you want something done a certain way and they don't have the skills to do it, a good printer won't say "nope it can't be done!" they will see if there are options to make it happen. you should be able to tell by the products that they are displaying if they are the right printer for you. if they are displaying lots of corporate t-shirts and hats and things like that, chances are they aren't taking any measures to try and find business with the little indie bands and they aren't going to care if they mess up your order. coroporate businesses have the money to be able to account for losses, little bands don't.

research which printers work with bands frequently, look for merch-specific printers if you can. they will understand more about your market and the types of garments and printing you need and they will be able to facilitate that for you with little to know hassle.

2. cheap vs. good

there are so many reasons why cheap is one way to get your order severely screwed up. nobody understands better than i do how important it is to stay under budget and when you're a small band needing merch to make money you often have little to no money to start with so the cheapest option seems like the best option.

in reality, it's better to have no merch than merch no one will buy, isn't it?

be prepared to spend at least a couple hundred dollars on your first order, and remember that if the deal seems too good to be true, it probably is. make sure you know about all of the extra costs like set up charges and screens and art charges up front.

cheap prices mean cheap quality and cheap quality means it'll either fall apart or it won't sell, either way, it's not going to do much good sitting in tatters in a box in the back of your van, is it?

3. know what you want

if you go to a printer with a bunch of question marks, they're generally going to throw those question marks right back at you. do your research about how screen printing works so that when you bring them a design it will be ready to be printed.

if you don't know what you want then you'll probably end up with something you didn't want.

4. design the merchandise for screen printing

whether you're designing it or your buddy who goes to art-school is designing it, designing for printing is much different than designing for web or digital prints... limited colours save money, one colour is always the cheapest route and doesn't have to mean an ugly print. stick to one or two locations, you don't need to throw your bands logo all over the shirt, the people buying it probably already like your band anyway.

5. be assertive

don't let your printer jerk you around! (and this says a lot coming from a printer, huh?) if you asked for something and it's not what you got, say so. don't give them money for a job that was screwed up! get a discount on your merch if possible and a credit on your next order.

but this also means you have to be specific about what you want and dont want before the order goes to print, if the printer messes up because you didnt give them the right details then it's your fault, not theirs.

6. plan ahead

if you can only afford to order 10 t-shirts right now but you know those will sell out fast, make sure to let your printer know. see if they can hold your screen for a few weeks until you can get more money together to re-print your job. chances are they will and you won't have to pay a screen charge again that time (maybe just a set up) if you sell those shirts then you can go back with more money and have more shirts made!

if you remember all of these tips and put them into practice you'll be selling loads of merch in no time flat!

Homework: Go onto the websites of different printers in your area and compare and contrast pricing. See how progressive they are in terms of printing styles and look for companies that print bands' merchandise on a regular basis.