# Marketing Advice!!



## krclothing07 (Nov 16, 2012)

Hello T shirt experts, 
I have a clothing line that i just started and its doing well as far as being relevant but i am not making the sales i desire. I use word of mouth, and my free sources such as the internet. Is there a way to improve this problem in a more efficient manner? Here is the Website TheKrucialSpot.com check it out thanks!


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## Gecko Signs NT (Aug 3, 2012)

Getting your name out there and being successful takes time. Time, patience and perserverence. How long have you been in business for? Do you sell offline as well? 
People need to know who you are. And with the other million plus tshirt websites out there, how are they going to get to know you?
Take your product on the road, so to speak. Sell at markets/fetes/fairs etc. Do some email marketing. Focus on a group of people you want to target and get your flyers, business cards, postcards etc.
Don't just rely on the internet, because if you do, you will struggle.
Best of luck


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## notorioustees (Mar 6, 2009)

Have you created an account for your site on as many of the social networking sites as you could? everything from Facebook, Twitter, to tumblr and Printerest? Utilize all of those for free exposure.

I have in the past also created flyers, cards, and inserts, got them printed and passed them out. The inserts you can have placed inside an issue of the local newspaper, but the cards and flyers. I've set stacks on the main counter or promotional table at my gym, at the bar I work at, and the entrances of grocery stores and other locations.

And as Gecko says it takes time and patience, if those aren't options then $$$ for adwords and paid advertising


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## krclothing07 (Nov 16, 2012)

Gecko Signs NT said:


> Getting your name out there and being successful takes time. Time, patience and perserverence. How long have you been in business for? Do you sell offline as well?
> People need to know who you are. And with the other million plus tshirt websites out there, how are they going to get to know you?
> Take your product on the road, so to speak. Sell at markets/fetes/fairs etc. Do some email marketing. Focus on a group of people you want to target and get your flyers, business cards, postcards etc.
> Don't just rely on the internet, because if you do, you will struggle.
> Best of luck


Yes i been seeling offline, at my school, and through word of mouth ive gained new customers. But I never thought of making flyers due to the limited amount of pieces i have as of now. Can i still do it? I am still in the start up stage. Did you check out the site?


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## Gecko Signs NT (Aug 3, 2012)

Yes I did look at your site. And I noticed you only have 3 designs. Which is fine for starting out. And you can still do flyers. You don't have to put every design on the flyer. You just have to advertise your business as opposed to your product, if you understand what I mean.
Its possible that you may have too higher expectations of success, and I think we all did that when we started out. Until reality hit, and we all realised that it wasn't going to be easy. Be patient. For myself, I set goals that if I get at least 1 sale a week from the web, 5 sales from the markets and 5 enquiries direct to our shop a week, then I'm doing well. It can only grow from there.


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## krclothing07 (Nov 16, 2012)

Gecko Signs NT said:


> Yes I did look at your site. And I noticed you only have 3 designs. Which is fine for starting out. And you can still do flyers. You don't have to put every design on the flyer. You just have to advertise your business as opposed to your product, if you understand what I mean.
> Its possible that you may have too higher expectations of success, and I think we all did that when we started out. Until reality hit, and we all realised that it wasn't going to be easy. Be patient. For myself, I set goals that if I get at least 1 sale a week from the web, 5 sales from the markets and 5 enquiries direct to our shop a week, then I'm doing well. It can only grow from there.


 Another thought i had was are my prices reasonable? Are they too high? My demographic is college level students to adults. Does my designs match the group of ppl i want to reach out to?


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## EnMartian (Feb 14, 2008)

One thing I saw right away is that you're selling logo wear, but you don't really say for what the logo stands. You're about us page is a promo for shopping your site. How do people know what they're representing when they wear your logo wear?


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## Riph (Jan 11, 2011)

krclothing07 said:


> My demographic is college level students to adults.


I would suggest that you spend a little time to learn some basic marketing concepts. One of them is what as know as "STP Marketing".

STP stands for Segmentation, Targeting, and Positioning. 

The part above that I quoted is an example of poor segmentation. Segmentation is the process of subdividing the population into ever smaller groups that have a common need or interest that you can appeal to. "College level students to adults" is way too broad for a single marketing message to appeal to. Segment, then segment your segments. Ruthlessly. Until you do that, you are slinging crap at the wall, hoping something will stick. Once you have a well identified segment, then you can properly target them and position your product.

Here's a decent online guide to STP marketing. What is the STP Process?

The guru of STP is Philip Kotler. Even if you don't go take some marketing classes, get a copy of his book "Marketing Management" - it is the bible for learning basic marketing concepts.

The other thing I will say is don't confuse marketing and selling. Marketing is the work you do way up front - to determine who is your targeted market segment, what product serves them best, and importantly, what is the best method to get your message in front of them and product in their hands. If your product is not selling, maybe you are trying to sell it to the wrong people, or in the wrong place. When selling is failing, it can often be traced back to poor marketing analysis.

Yes, I know this is a bit of a conceptual answer. But there's a reason you can get a PhD in marketing. It's not all simple and obvious. I'm just encouraging you to take a hard look at to whom you want to sell, figure out a product that appeals to them, then sell to them in a way that fits how they buy.

Good Luck!
Riph


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## krclothing07 (Nov 16, 2012)

EnMartian said:


> One thing I saw right away is that you're selling logo wear, but you don't really say for what the logo stands. You're about us page is a promo for shopping your site. How do people know what they're representing when they wear your logo wear?


 I noticed that my about us was pretty vague so i made a couple adjustments. However, On the home page it gives a little taste of what my line has to offer. What do you think?


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## krclothing07 (Nov 16, 2012)

Riph said:


> I would suggest that you spend a little time to learn some basic marketing concepts. One of them is what as know as "STP Marketing".
> 
> STP stands for Segmentation, Targeting, and Positioning.
> 
> ...


 So are you saying the mission of my company does not fit the demographic i am attempting to reach? Am i going about it the wrong way?


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## Riph (Jan 11, 2011)

I am saying that "all college students and adults" is too large of an audience to effectively market to. Can you list some identifiers of a subset of that group that you are going after? 

For example, is your line targeted at college students and adults between the age of 21 and 94? 45 and 59? 21-29? Maybe you're just after college students. Maybe only college students that are majoring in business. How about "achievement oriented teens and adults in the USA between 17 and 23." Those are all very different groups. They respond to different products, different sales approaches, etc.

I'm suggesting that you should narrowly define who you are trying to sell to. Then craft a strategy that appeals directly to them.

Real world example: I sell to "business owners that offer recreation related souvenir-wear to tourists, with 10 miles of my location." No one else. That is very narrowly defined, probably amounts to about 100 potential customers. I don't sell to them via a website, because for the most part they don't spend much time looking at websites. They are too busy. So I sell to them face-to-face. I save them a bunch of time because I go to them. So I have identified a target market segment, I have products that fit their needs (T's and Caps), and I sell to them in a way they want to buy (direct). In a very basic form that's an STP based marketing strategy.

The critical part is to get the segmentation right. Focus Focus Focus! 

Everything else follows that.


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