Most independent and up-and-coming artists already know it’s crucial to get their music on streaming giants like Spotify to help grow their fanbase. And if you want to turn your passion into a legitimate career, making money off of your music is obviously the goal. But what a lot of artists don’t realize is there’s a lot more to monetize than music alone.
That’s why so many turn their attention to merchandise – clothes, stickers, hats, posters and even vinyl records and tapes. There’s a reason millions of fans have collected merchandise from their favorite shows and artists for decades; it’s a way to support those artists and share a bond with the people making their favorite music and other like-minded fans with the same tastes. For an artist, selling merchandise isn’t just another revenue stream, it’s a way to engage your audience and promote yourself at the same time.
Integrate Shopify with Spotify
So how does Spotify factor into this? You’ve already got your music on the platform, which boasts more than 300 million listeners around the world. That’s a huge audience of potential fans for your music, and a huge audience of potential customers to sell merchandise to. And Spotify has a new integration with Shopify that makes it easy to grow additional revenue streams.
With Shopify, it’s easy to manage your inventory and decide what items to feature on your profile. And it’s easy to release new merch whenever you’re ready. Here’s how to set everything up.
Spotify for Artists
First, you’ll need Spotify for Artists – which you already have if you’re listed your music on the platform. Once you log into Spotify for Artists, click on the “Profile” tab and then select “Merch.” There you can choose three items to feature on your artist profile. You’ll need a Shopify account, too, and you can start with a 90-day free trial if you’re a Spotify artist signing up for the first time. After that, a basic Shopify account is $29 per month, or you can pay $79 per month or $299 per month for added features and capabilities.
What if you don’t have any merchandise to sell? You can find a local graphic designer and use those designs to purchase things like shirts from a local screen printing business. An easier route is to use an online service like Printful, which offers a 30 percent discount for your first two print-on-demand orders as a Spotify artist.
Let’s say you’ve got your music on Spotify, you’ve got your Shopify account and you’ve got merchandise waiting to be purchased by your fans. Now’s a good time to focus on getting more fans, so you get more streams and can sell more merchandise. This is when hiring a music PR company like Starlight PR can be really beneficial.
Let Starlight PR Help You
Starlight’s Social X Campaign – available for three weeks, six weeks and for major labels – focuses on organic growth on Spotify and TikTok. Starlight’s strategic influencer partnerships will get your music on playlists and drive engagement and growth on TikTok. That means more people discovering your music, and more people buying your merchandise. And that means turning your passion into a legitimate career is one step closer.
