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Insights

Let’s talk samples

Congratulations on receiving your sample. Now, head out with friends, style them in your products, get snapping—the best way to send fans into a frenzy over your new collection (and increase sales).

So your sample has just arrived—this is the fun part. Paired with your expert content creation skills, they’re sure to increase sales. Like a lot.

Unboxing your sample

Get your community excited by capturing your sample unboxing moment. Once your box arrives, take pictures of yourself opening your package, or share a short video like @exploreeffectgear or @liannefrankel. Sharing teasers gets fans excited that something new is coming. Consider creating a countdown or giving fans a release date to build anticipation for your product launch.

Don’t forget to tag @springforcreators or use the hashtag #createshareearn for the chance to get featured on our Instagram grid. Click below to get started.

Promote on social media

Creators who feature samples in promotional content can increase sales by up to 6x compared to those who don’t. Posting sample imagery on socials is an engaging way to create excitement around your collections. See how other creators are using their samples on our Instagram grid below.

Pair social content with a link straight to your listing. Present products underneath your videos using the YouTube Integration, or set up the Instagram Shopping Integration to begin tagging your products in posts (and more). Don’t have access yet? Start using the Linktree Integration, available to all creators right now.

Check out inspo from our top creators killing it on socials below.

6 ways to create content using samples

There’s no one way to create genius, eye-catching content. Our advice? Head to a beautiful spot (like the beach), and unleash some creative genius. You’ll have a blast, and sell some products. Win win. 

Once you’re done, tag us with the hashtag #CreateShareEarn. We’ll feature our favorite promo images on our Spring Instagram feed.

Try your hand at product photography

You don’t always need to be wearing or holding your products to show off the quality of your designs. Sometimes the beauty is in the details. @aestheticallyrica definitely has the right idea.

Show how fans can enjoy your products IRL

Feature your samples in a way that feels natural to you and the style of content your community loves seeing on your feed. Take for example @weretherussos, who put their die cut sticker on the back of their 4×4.

Create video content using your products

For YouTubers, it’s a no brainer. Wear your samples in videos. Instagram creators: videos get more engagement—It’s a known fact. @delta_of_phoenix is a shining example. Featuring samples in TikTok content is always a great way to inspire fans to purchase your products too. Don’t forget to have your Spring store accessible within your Linktree.

Get creative with your imagery

@ashleyooacevedo includes samples in almost all of her Instagram content. Check out how she has photographed her hoodie design and jazzed up her Instagram post with her own illustrative touches. Super cool!

Combine samples and online design templates to promote sales  

Just like @loudmouthpod has below. Hands down, the best way to shout about a promotion on your social media. Choose from hundreds of completely free post templates on Canva, including sample imagery.

Organize a giveaway contest

Samples make it easy for you to run giveaway contests on your social platforms. All you need to do is mail them to the lucky winner. Giveaways are a great way to thank your community for their support and boost engagement on your content.

We created an example using sample imagery below. Head to Canva to get started with yours.

Categories
Insights

Promotional practices *really* working right now

Start glowing-up your social media platforms and get on top of your promo game ready for the holiday season. Keep reading to discover our round up of techniques and content creation hacks to use across your social media platforms.

Plan merch photoshoots

Posting content that shows yourself sporting or using your own merch is key. For all types of creators, showing off the quality of your products to your audience helps to increase sales as well as establish your personal brand. Set up your own DIY photoshoot and style your products in a way that engages your community. You can order samples of your products at base cost within the “Listings” section of your account.

Creating video content is an effective way to capture the interest of your community of fans on social media. Use platforms such as TikTok, YouTube and Instagram IGTV, Reels, and Stories to upload dynamic videos featuring your merch samples–this can increase sales by 50%. Wear your merch while filming, mention your products within your content and even consider filming a dedicated editorial style video to announce the launch of your products. Always make sure to provide links and reference to your products by using #linkinbio on Instagram posts and including URL links in your captions and descriptions. Check out this super cool video by Miles Carter generating hype around his Made to feel products.

There are a tons of tools online you can utilize to help you to create effective video content featuring your products. For example, experiment with Placeit’s video section of mock ups and insert your merch designs for Instagram stories, video posts and product demo’s. Don’t forget, Instagram and TikTok both have free built in video editing functions, and they’re super simple to use—add text, filters, cuts, music and more!

Collect and share social proof

Successful creators incorporate social proof into their promotional efforts by collecting and sharing customer photos. Fan’s selfies act as positive reviews of your products and sharing them is an engaging way of generating trust in your brand. 

Whatever way you decide to promote your product, encourage fans to share photos wearing your products. Double up this kind of content for your own social channels and promote the popularity of your products. Sharing your fan’s content helps you interact on a more personal level with your community while building relationships with your followers, encouraging loyalty and building trust.

Brand consistency

It’s important to create brand consistency across all of your social platforms so followers can easily recognize you—we recommend using the same branding elements between your store and socials. If you need help creating design assets, check out these design resources to help you get started.

The last, yet perhaps one of the most important promotional practices is making sure you’re frequently sharing good quality imagery with your followers. Consider creating a Later.com account to plan your content across all social media platforms. Try to post at least 3-5 times a week with a variety of content. Come up with a strategy and experiment with posting at certain times of the day to see which posts get more engagement.

Kick off your promotional strategy by ordering samples of your physical products at base cost price. Head to the dashboard to get started.

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Creators

How conservationists are combatting COVID-19 setbacks with merchandise

Deon Appelcryn, the director of Untamed Brewing Company, has one mission—to save Africa’s wildlife, one beer at a time. Centering their work around conservation and inspired by the African wild dog, they collaborate with non-profit organizations. Using income from sales, they support the ongoing struggle to preserve endangered animals and their habitats. Untamed Brewing embraces their passion for beer, Africa and wildlife to fuel their business, vision and product collection. 

Diversifying income with their social store

Unfortunately, like many other small businesses worldwide, COVID-19 has severely impacted Untamed Brewing. Being locked down for several weeks has forced the company to close its doors, unable to sell alcohol or even distribute merchandise to their international customer base. Despite their recent hardships, the team is finding new ways to keep themselves afloat and stay active with conservation efforts through merchandise. 

“COVID-19 has already caused a huge impact on our business, so if it’s extended further, we don’t know how we will recover. However, we have plans in place and are positive we will see this through. In the meantime we can continue to sell our merchandise globally through Teespring to fund our business and raise awareness.”

Finding ‘wild’ inspiration 

Untamed Brewing’s products are created around the face of the business—the African wild dog, making their most popular design the ‘Logo Dog Range’. Deon’s volunteer work with the species is the inspiration and story behind Untamed Brewing’s merch designs. Apart from their popular t-shirts, they offer sweatshirts, hoodies, athletic wear, and kids clothing too. Based on recent sales trends they’ve also expanded their collection to include a range of homeware and accessories like mugs, pillows, wall art, phone cases, bags and socks.

Selling on social media  

As a passionate, global group of supporters on social media, Facebook is their primary platform for promoting merch. By following our Facebook promo guide, they are able to generate high engagement and click through rates on the content they share. Notably, the team also wears samples of their products regularly to raise awareness for their brand, conservation efforts, and drive sales.  

 

“We use Facebook adverts as well as selling merchandise at events. All staff are always wearing branded clothing. We get people stopping us on the street asking for shirts! Our adverts on Facebook cause spikes in sales on Teespring, so we’re pushing those more and more.”

Building a conservation community

From connecting with locals at events to spreading awareness of their work (and beer) on social media, Untamed Brewing’s story demonstrates how you can turn a passion (or two) into a successful business that makes a real, positive impact in real life. Their merch enhances brand building by creating opportunities for followers to support their business, contribute to a worthy cause, and raise international awareness. 

“Creating a custom store on Teespring provided the best option–from fast products to customer service. It enables us to build our brand and sell products at scale without having to worry about fulfillment logistics and customer support.”

Despite the challenges posed by the global pandemic the Untamed Brewing team maintains a positive mindset and looks to the future. We’d like to thank them for sharing their story and wish them the best of luck in the future!

Want to support Untamed Brewing Company and their ‘pack’?

Check out their store, follow @untamed_brewing_company and visit their facebook page Untamed Brewing.