Researchers estimated that by 2025 social media users will increase to 4.41 billion worldwide! Social media has become an essential advertisement strategy for apparel businesses; it is the best way to engage with 1000’s of customers.
The t-shirt business is thriving, and the competition is stiff, so..
How can you effectively advertise t-shirts online?
Today, apparel brands are having success advertising t-shirts online through several channels, such as Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and Pinterest. T-shirt Brands can also achieve a positive ROI when advertising with Google ads, Google Shopping campaigns, and Bing ads.
But it’s not just about buying ads for your merch. There’s a lot more to “advertising” your apparel brand.
I put together a few effective ways to make a success out of your t-shirt business online. Getting your t-shirts in front of the right people is the key to advertising your brand effectively. Let’s get to the tips below.
Hint: #5 is an actionable tip you should go out and do right now. It’s my favorite!
8 Proven Ways to Advertise Your T-shirts Online
Nowadays, technology, regardless of our age, has basically taken over our lives. We rarely pay attention to ads placed on billboards. We mainly discover businesses online. According to Statista, the apparel industry spent over $700 million on ads in 2020.
Therefore, effective online advertising is essential for all businesses. Let us look into 8 creative ways you can advertise t-shirts online starting today.
1. Engage With Customers Online and Be Active On Social Media
The key to this tip is the word Engage. It’s not simply starting an account and following some people, then you will get some sales and have a brand. You have the opportunity – especially on Instagram – to deeply engage with your followers. This builds relationships and a loyal following.
Stay active with potential customer accounts. A simple response to the comments they left on your recent posts will gain their attention and trust. Like and share their content as well. This goes a LONG way in building your brand.
Post new content frequently to keep things interesting. Give users a sneak peek of what you have to offer and create polls to find out what products potential customers would be willing to buy from you.
2. Recruit T-shirt Brand Ambassadors (Influential People)
Finding brand ambassadors to represent your business is easy. Many online influencers are willing to promote your brand to their followers on social media, especially when they learn they can earn a small percentage of each sale they bring in.
This is not a quick, today strategy. But start today, and in 6 months you will see huge benefits paying off.
You can create online applications to make it easier to recruit and reach influencers who know they can advertise your products to the appropriate target audience.
3. Create An Awesome Destination for Your T-shirts
I find it frustrating when it is difficult to determine what products and services online stores sell. Or what the brand is about. Be clear about your brand. Advertising your t-shirt brand has a lot to do with the destination.
You don’t have to get complex. Keep it simple, but awesome.
Make it so that when customers type in your brand or click your website link from social media platforms, they will be pleased, excited, and even inspired by what they see.
Showcase reviews on your store. This is SO important to advertising your apparel brand online. Showcase reviews with photos, and comments that are unique to your designs. This is a critical part that can’t be overlooked. I personally love the LOOX reviews plugin on Shopify. It has really built our brand, and it’s simple and intuitive.
4. Post Customer Feedback On Your Social Media Accounts
Ask customers to review the products they purchased from your business. Often new customers read feedback to check if your business is trustworthy and the products and services are worth the money.
Again feedback and reviews on your social platforms just amplify the reviews that live on your eCommerce store, or Etsy store.
5. Give T-shirts Away in Competitions (my favorite)
This is something you can do right now. Go to Instagram, create a post with one of your shirts. If you want to add a ribbon and the word “T-shirt Giveaway” in Canva, go for it. Then add a few rules:
- Follow our IG profile @yourtshirtbrand
- Like this post
- Everyone you tag is 1 entry to win this t-shirt
- Winner(s) will be announce on XX/XX/XXXX
But that’s not it. Here’s a PRO TIP.
Below those rules, add in a discount code (that you create) and say something like, “To get this t-shirt (or any of our gear) right now for 15% off, use this coupon code: COUPON which is good until we announce the contest winner!”
Then promote it. Boost this post for the duration of your contest. This is the best and easiest way to get a ton of engagement with your brand, and get more followers.
If you are saying to yourself, “But I can’t afford to give away free merch”, then you are not ready to grow the brand. That’s it.
According to Pew Research, 59% of U.S. Adults use Instagram daily. Competitions get your brand in front of people with more reach than any regular post.
6. Give A Shout-Out To Your Loyal Customers
Create socials posts and tag all your loyal customers, thanking them for their regular purchases and supporting your new business. More people will see your effort in delivering satisfying services and products to your customers.
This should be a given for all T-shirt brands.
I would have felt very special if online stores thanked me for my numerous support and purchases!
7. Create Unique Apparel Videos
Tiktok is the most favored social media platform right now. With over 1 billion monthly active users, your business can grow in no time. Short and unique apparel videos on Tiktok are a great idea to let future customers know what your business is all about. Tiktok also offers sponsored ads.
I have a friend who is having huge success growing his t-shirt brand by filming “behind the scenes” videos of his t-shirt business. Whether he’s printing a t-shirt, packaging one up, or filming a stack of packages that are ready to ship, his videos are getting tons of views (over 100k on several).
You can share the promotional videos on any social media platform but if you are going to make videos, make sure you share them on Tiktok too!
8. Create Apparel Stories on Instagram
50% of people say they have made a purchase after seeing a brand in a story. Those are big numbers. And stories are so easy to make. Create stories from every regular post you create on Instagram. But also create unique stories with a story creation tool.
Use stories more than regular feed posts to showcase your apparel. Unlike your regular feed, stories won’t negatively affect your engagement if people don’t like the amount of “product” posts they see.
Use coupon codes and use your brand logo in stories. Get people used to seeing your brand colors and logo in your stories.
Conclusion
Promoting and advertising a t-shirt business online is no easy feat, especially when there so much competition. Therefore, gaining the trust of potential customers is very important.
Keep your website simple and awesome.
Most of all be yourself. Show who you the person is behind the brand. What’s your story? That’s one of the most important ways to create a loyal following who will ultimately advertise for your brand.
Bryan E. Robinson is the former owner of TshirtGrowth. He has sold t-shirts since 2006 through dropshipping, screen printing, vinyl printing, DTG, Print on Demand, and more. Bryan has created his own t-shirt designs through Photoshop, Canva, and other platforms, as well as worked with freelancers to create many of his designs. Besides t-shirts, Bryan has over 18 years of experience in online marketing with eCommerce, B2B SaaS, B2C products, and more.
