Question

Topic: Advertising/PR

Marketing A Tee Shirt Business Online

Posted by Anonymous on 4/15/2008 at 1:15 PM ET 125 Points
I recently started an online business (www.teezetees.com). I have a small inventory, everything is in place, but I don't have the budget to advertise in the big magazines, and we didn't realize how much the trade shows cost to get into. Does anyone have any suggestions to get the name out there within a reasonable budget? The target is women teens to twenties (maybe even young 30's). Small sizes for now until we expand into the extra large.
To continue reading this question and the solution, sign up ... it's free!
SUBSCRIBE
Or, SIGN IN

RESPONSES

  • Posted by Levon on 4/15/2008 at 1:20 PM Member
    I went to your site and was confused as to whether you create custom shirts (made to order) or have a line that you sell. I would perhaps focus on building a site that communicates right away what you do and excites people about your products. I would showcase your products - so people can see what you offer. This site is your shop front, right? Merchandise it like a store!
  • Posted on 4/15/2008 at 1:31 PM Accepted
    One thing for free is I would start a Facebook profile for your shirts/company and start inviting people of your age bracket to become friends.

    I would also send press releases to your local paper, and to teen magazines.

    Donate a few to your local girls groups. Get booths at church fairs. They are cheap.
  • Posted by Tracey on 4/15/2008 at 1:40 PM Accepted
    You might try advertising on blogs. There are lots of blogs dedicated to fashion tips for the audience you describe on your site. I agree with the Facebook suggestion. Check out Cordarounds on Facebook -- great example of a well-branded company. Their campaigns are fantastic and really speak to their audience in a fun way. You could also start your own blog (this will take time).

    I agree that you need to refine your positioning. The t-shirts with the sayings aren't really something that the readers of In Style, In Touch, etc. would wear... I think they would need to be edgier and more graphic for that. However, the fact that your t-shirts are American Apparel is a good differentiator -- it's known as a quality brand and has a bit of a cool factor to it. I'd recommend that you either refine your product, or choose a different audience -- not the readers of fashion magazines but teen and pre-teen girls (more like the readers of Elle Girl, Seventeen, etc).
  • Posted by Jessica_Castro on 4/15/2008 at 2:11 PM Member
    Beatrice I think I may be able to be of some help...

    I am your demographic, and I also know a little bit about having a strong online presence....

    First of all your site is visually appealing although in my opinion the options are a little plain jane...Maybe make them "pop" more. If I'm shopping online if its not easy for me to find what I'm looking for I'm not buying... I would consider changing your options when you click buy as well. Instead of words explaining what the shirts are you really should just have visuals. If I have to read about the shirt, I'm done. (think of online shopping like window shopping) I like your pages featuring the actual shirt. They are easily accessible and easy to purchase. Although I can see W.M.M.A's point of view..If I am going to buy your shirt I would prefer to see someone my age modeling it...(you can post up want ads at colleges and pay kids like $20..i've seen it before and you only really need four girls; just as a suggestion).

    I think the site has potential...but you really need to focus on SEO and press releases right now. You can do both of these things yourself with minimal cost to you if any at all...

    I hope I could be of some help and if you need another opinion feel free to email me... Good luck!
  • Posted on 4/15/2008 at 2:22 PM Accepted
    I would take a different approach. Having once been involved with clothing marketing for many years, I can tell you there is a LOT of product out there. Much too much "noise" in the apparel sector.

    I like the cute slogans, etc. I have a 10 year old niece who is of "tween" age who would love these.

    I would take a different approach to getting these shirts out there. I wouldn't market the t-shirts themselves. I'd market the "movement," the expression of girls' individuality and coming of age, etc.

    Get on the blog bandwagon with your own blog. This technology is common and pretty inexpensive and can be added to your site easily. It will give the girls a forum to express themselves and will get them coming back over and over again.

    Get the girls to visit your site and have them decide on new designs, colors etc.

    Participate in local activities centered around this demographic. Sponsor an activity at a junior high or high school.

    The local mall is a great place to start. If you can afford to write off some inventory, give away a few shirts to local girls to create a buzz.

    As for advertising, yes, facebook and myspace are perfect. Look into building a following without blatantly advertising.

    There is so much advertising that potential customers are tuning out in droves. We are marketers, and yes, YOU are a marketer my dear, have to get extra creative to get above the noise level.

  • Posted by Levon on 4/15/2008 at 2:56 PM Member
    I would locate distribution for your product lines and build affiliates and a commission structure in to feed an affiliate network. Get people to sell for you.

  • Posted on 4/15/2008 at 3:29 PM Member
    Hi. I just visited your site. It's really adorable. Definitely for the tween market.

    However, I would definitely invest in a professional photographer and some models to make the tshirts more appealing. Show the audience the product being worn by models in their age group/figure type.

    Also, I would change the graphic to a girl wearing jeans, shorts or a skirt along with a tshirt. The image of the girl wearing a gown or a dress will through people off.
  • Posted by Tracey on 4/15/2008 at 7:18 PM Member
    Beatrice -- you're probably right to rely on your testing more than my opinion (not based on testing). So, if you found out that your shirts are selling to 20-somethings, then keep testing to find more info. You may not want to include too many questions on your purchase form, but you could try including something like "Are you purchasing this as a gift?".
  • Posted on 4/16/2008 at 8:06 AM Member
    From my perspective, no online business can survive nowadays without a basic knowledge of search engine marketing.

    Start here for some good advice:
    www.searchenginewatch.com
    www.highrankings.com

    Also, try providing some free samples of your t-shirts printed with your website. Give them out to family and friends and they may do well in getting people interested in your product and wanting to visit your website.

    Good luck :)
  • Posted by Harry Hallman on 4/16/2008 at 8:27 AM Member
    You might like to read a white paper on the subject.
    Social Network Marketing
    Creating Digital Footprints Your Customers Can Follow
    https://www.octanecorp.com/portals/5/whitepaper/socialmarketingconsumer.pdf

    There are more white papers on www.marcomgeek.com
  • Posted by Jay Hamilton-Roth on 4/16/2008 at 9:47 AM Member
    Start by adding web analytics (Google Analytics is free). It'll help to let you know how many people are visiting your site, which pages they look at, etc. You may be getting lots of visitors and no purchases, or few visitors. These require different strategies to fix.

    Your home page doesn't tell me who you're targeting, other than girls. The fact that your sales is by young women, not girls, tell me that the group wants to feel cuter. I'm also guessing that the demographic are single.

    The Teeze name doesn't say anything more about your brand. I'd suggest a tagline to give me a bigger clue.

    Clicking on "Take the Teeze test" doesn't bring me to any test for me to take.

    Your main graphic depicts an ultra-skinny woman - something that might also cause resistance.

    On an e-commerce site, you don't want people spending a lot of time clicking to find what's for sale - you want to make it obvious and enticing to click more.

    Compare your site to some of your competitors, for example: https://www.startupschwag.com/

    If you want more web traffic, you need to spend some time spreading the word. Search for blogs that use your phrases ("girls rule", "boys lie", etc.) and basically say, "Hi, we agree with your sentiment so much that we created a line of tee shirts with the message on it. Please visit our store at:" For example, one such blog is: https://geekgirlsrule.wordpress.com/
BACK TO TOP

Post a Comment

Related Discussions

Community Info

Top 25 Experts
(Advertising/PR)