It’s now easier than ever for anyone to become a small business owner through Amazon. Merch by Amazon, the e-commerce giant’s on-demand printing service, lets sellers upload their own original designs to be printed on clothing and other merchandise. No upfront costs, no overhead, no need for inventory or an office… just a creative notion and a computer.
What is Merch by Amazon?
Amazon Merch is a print-on-demand service from Amazon that lets almost anyone sell their designs without any upfront costs. Instead of investing in inventory to print original designs – and hoping to sell it all – Amazon sellers can upload their designs, then list them on products like T-shirts, sweatshirts and pillows. Amazon won’t print the items unless someone orders them, and the company pays a royalty to the artist for every purchase.
What Products does Merch by Amazon Offer?
Amazon offers a lot more than custom T-shirts through its invitation only platform. Sellers can upload their designs to be printed on a variety of products, including:
- Standard T-shirts
- Long sleeve T-shirts
- Pullover hoodies
- Zip hoodies
- Sweatshirts
- Tank tops
- V-neck shirts
- Raglans
- PopSockets
- Phone cases
- Throw pillows
- Tote bags
What are the upfront costs of Amazon Merch?
There are no upfront costs to sellers through Merch by Amazon. That’s right… it’s absolutely free to upload designs and list merchandise for sale. There’s not even a cost for inventory or shipping when a customer buys a product. Designers are paid a royalty for every product sold based on its purchase price.
How Much do You Make on Merch by Amazon?
How much money can you make on sites like Amazon Merch? The amount a seller makes from Merch by Amazon varies greatly based on a few factors. Obviously, popular designs are going to sell in greater volume, boosting royalties earned. Likewise, a designer who uploads 25 designs for multiple products usually will have more financial success than a seller who lists just one custom T-shirt.
How much are royalties through Merch by Amazon? Royalties vary based on the product, its price and the country where it is sold. For example, the royalty for a standard T-shirt in the United States ranges from about 14% for a $15.99 garment to more than 37% if the shirt sells for $25.99. the company determines this royalty by accounting for Amazon’s costs, including materials, production, fulfillment, customer service and shipping. You can take a look at some Merch by Amazon success story to see just how much you can make.
How to Create an Amazon Merch Account
Want to create an Amazon Merch account? The process is straightforward:
- Log in to Your Amazon Sellers Account
- Request an Invitation: While anyone can apply to sell designs on Merch by Amazon, not everyone will be accepted. Just fill out the application, and wait a few weeks to see if you’ve been invited to join.
- Fill in Your Payment Details: Amazon requires a bank account that accepts ACH deposits in order to deposit sellers’ royalty payments.
- Add Your Tax Details
- Submit Your Application
- Wait for Approval: There is a waiting list for Merch by Amazon, so even applicants approved to join will need to wait for a spot to open. Once an invitation is requested, Amazon emails applicants with a timeframe to expect their decision, but keep in mind it reportedly can take as long as six months.
- Start Selling!
How do you create a product on Amazon Merch?
It’s simple for anyone with an original idea to create a T-shirt design or add ano image to another product using Merch by Amazon in just a few steps:
Create a Design for your T Shirt or Other Product
Amazon Merch sellers can use any graphic design software of their choice to create their graphics. Popular choices for to create quality designs include Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Illustrator, GIMP and Pixlr. When choosing layouts and color schemes, be sure to consider on which merchandise you want your design to print, whether that be a pillow, a tote bag or a custom T-shirt. For example, T-shirt designs will differ from Pop Socket designs. The design must be entirely original and adhere to Amazon’s content policy.
Upload Your Work
Upon admission as a Merch by Amazon seller, Amazon emails designers a link to their Amazon Merch dashboard, where they can upload new designs and list them for sale. From here, sellers can choose to “Add Products,” before selecting on what type of merchandise they want to see their design printed. Users then simply click, “Upload Artwork,” and add the design to the product template.
Check Your Work Aligns with Amazon’s Guidelines
Designs sold through Merch by Amazon must meet the online store ’s content policy. Amazon approves no objectionable content and it does not allow the following types of designs:
- Illegal or infringing content is forbidden. Content must comply with federal, state and local laws where listings are available, and it cannot incorporate intellectual property.
- Offensive or controversial content is banned, including anything promoting violence, hatred and intolerance, containing and adult content, relating to human tragedies or natural disasters or promoting illegal activity. Content cannot contain profanity used to attack an individual or a group.
- Other disallowed content includes soliciting customer reviews, promises to donate to charity and any content that might lead to a negative customer experience.
Fill in the Details
You’re selling products, so you have to tell Amazon and customers the details. The Amazon Merch dashboard makes it simple to provide product details like type, price and color.
Create a Product Description
What do you want potential customers to know about your product and design? The Amazon Merch dashboard will allow you to write a product description to display on the product page. Be straightforward and honest, avoid misinformation or misleading language in your product description. Also remain professional, always double-check all spelling and grammar used in your Amazon Merch product descriptions.
Let Amazon Handle the Shipping
One of the greatest parts of Merch by Amazon is designers just supply the graphics, and Amazon takes care of the selling, printing and shipping. Amazon Prime customers get free shipping, while other customers have shipping options including no-purchase ground shipping, of they can pay extra for express delivery.
Increase Your Businesses Profits
As in any business, you can increase your profits by promoting your Amazon merch products and designs. Amazon recently began offering some of its Merch by Amazon accounts access to Amazon Advertising, where sellers can create sponsored ads for their products. Merch by Amazon sellers also regularly promote their businesses on social media, using influencer marketing or their personal and brand networks.
Image: Depositphotos
This article, “Merch by Amazon Lets You Sell Your Designs on Anything” was first published on Small Business Trends