Amazon Merch on Demand Review: Is It a Good Platform to Make Money?
If you're looking for a way to make money online, you'll want to stick around for our Amazon Merch on Demand review.ย
Merch by Amazon is a platform that allows people to sell custom-designed merchandise. You can create your own designs and sell them on t-shirts, tote bags, phone cases, and more.
And luckily, making money with an online store on Merch by Amazon print-on-demand platform is a lot easier than you might think. In fact, with some effort and tenacity, you should be able to start making a profit in no time at all.
How profitable can it get? Well, Empire Flippers sold a website in this niche last year for a cool $93,000. Not bad for a site that was listed on their marketplace for just 19 days.
In this article, weโll provide an in-depth Merch by Amazon review as well as everything you need to know to start making money on the platform.
Let's dive in!
Merch By Amazon
Summary
Obtaining the invite to take part in MBA will take some time, and after you do, the success of your Merch by Amazon business will take some more time. But if you have the patience for this, some creative flair and a dash of tenacity, you can turn your MBA business into a healthy side hustle and beyond.
Pros
- Itโs completely free to use and removes all the hassle of printing and inventory fees
- All products are hosted on one of the largest eCommerce platforms in the world (Amazon)
- The platformโs user interface (UI) is very intuitive, easy to navigate, and straightforward
- Once you gain momentum it's a great way to earn passively
Cons
- Sellers have to be approved before they can start selling their merchandise
- The commission you earn per sale isnโt particularly high
- The platform doesnโt offer any third-party website or marketplace integrations like Shopify or Redbubble.
- The selection of merch and products you can sell is quite limited
Contents
- Amazon Merch on Demand Review Overview
- Who Should Use Merch by Amazon?
- How Do I Sign Up For Merch by Amazon?
- How to Do Merch by Amazon Research
- Optimizing The Title For Your Merchandise By Amazon Program Product Listing
- How To Promote Your Merch
- What Functions And Features Are Available To Sellers?
- Does Merch By Amazon Have Customer Service?
- Merch by Amazon Review: User Experience
- How Much Money Can You Make With Merch By Amazon?
- What Products Does Merch By Amazon Offer?
- The Pros and Cons of Merch by Amazon
- The Takeaway: Amazon Merch on Demand Review
Amazon Merch on Demand Review Overview
Merch by Amazon is a print-on-demand (POD) platform from Amazon that allows its users to sell custom-designed products. And the best part about it is that users donโt have to worry about inventory or shipping.
Amazon takes care of all of that for you while you get to receive royalties from every sale and generate an income passively.
Plus, unlike some other POD platforms, Amazon only creates and ships products when a sale occurs, meaning that you donโt have to pay for the inventory, and there are no hidden or upfront costs either.
Who Should Use Merch by Amazon?
If youโre an artist, graphic designer, or simply someone who has ideas for product designs, Merch by Amazon print on demand service can be a great way to make money.
Itโs also a great platform for people who are looking to start an online business with little to no upfront costs. And because Amazon is such a trusted brand, itโs the best and safest platform to build your business on and generate passive income.
However, itโs important to note that Merch by Amazon can be a very competitive platform. So if youโre not willing to put in the work or donโt have unique designs, it might not be the right fit for you.
You need to put in the work to sell your products and make money. If you donโt, then you likely wonโt see the results. Amazon wonโt sell your products. Youโll have to do that bit yourself.
And itโs for this reason that the platform is ideal for bloggers, influencers, known brands, or anyone with a large enough following that you can promote your products.
But this doesnโt mean that if you donโt have a decent following, you canโt start selling on the platform. There are a few other ways to promote your designs that weโll discuss in detail a bit later in this article.
How Do I Sign Up For Merch by Amazon?
If youโre interested in signing up for Merch by Amazon, the process is pretty straightforward. But is Merch by Amazon free to sign up to? The answer is yes, signing up for Merch by Amazon is free and easy.
All you have to do is go to the Merch by Amazon sign-up form and fill out the page with your personal information.
Youโll need to provide details like your name, email, phone number, and mailing address. Once youโve submitted the form, Amazon will review your application and let you know if youโve been accepted to the program.
This approval process can take up to 60 days. However, it usually doesnโt take that long in most cases.
If you are accepted, youโll be able to log in to your merch account and start uploading designs. And if youโre not accepted, donโt worry, you can always reapply again at a later time.
How to Do Merch by Amazon Research
One of the most important things you can do to ensure your success on Merch by Amazon is to research your designs and target keywords properly.
If you donโt take the time to do proper research, youโre likely not going to see the results you want. And while it might take a bit more time upfront, itโs well worth it in the long run.
To get started, you could try using Google Keyword Planner or Google Trends tools to find out whatโs popular.
You can also use keyword research tools found in our detailed review here.
However, itโs important to realize that these tools donโt utilize Amazonโs data, so youโll also need to do research with other tools that use the eCommerce siteโs data to see what your target audience is looking for on this specific platform.
Youโll need to perform Merch by Amazon niche research just like how an Amazon seller does for their Amazon FBA business.
Hereโs an example of how to do Merch by Amazon research and how to use Merch by Amazon tools to help you target the best-performing keywords:
- Start by looking up your closest Merch by Amazon competitors. Ideally, you should only include the products and designs that are most similar to yours.
- Start noting down the productโs ASINs.
- Make a list of all the relevant ASINs.
- Head over to an Amazon-specific reverse ASIN lookup tool like Cerebro and enter your list of ASINs into the tool.
- Look at the data and figure out which keywords your direct competitors are ranking for and start incorporating them into your strategy.
Additional great tools to use for Merch by Amazon research
Here are some of the best tools that the top success stories of the Amazon program use to grow their passive income.
Jungle Scout
Jungle Scout is a comprehensive Amazon product research tool that helps you discover profitable products to sell on Amazon.
It provides the following benefits:
- Helps you find profitable products to sell in your own online store
- Gives you data on the best selling products in any category
- Allows you to analyze the competition for any product and find out their sales volume, estimated monthly revenue, and more
See our full Jungle Scout review here.
Buzz Sumo
Buzz Sumo is a social media monitoring tool that helps marketers and businesses to know what people are saying about their brands, products, or services.
The benefits of using Buzz Sumo for Merch by Amazon research include:
- Providing real-time data on what people are saying about your niche on social media.
- Giving you insights into your competitorsโ marketing campaigns.
- Allowing you to monitor the effectiveness of your Merch by Amazon social media campaigns (if you choose to do them).
- Offering an easy way to measure the performance of your content marketing efforts.
Google Trends
Google Trends is a free tool that provides insights into the search patterns of Google users. It is an invaluable resource for content marketers, SEO specialists โฆ and Merch by Amazon companies!
Google Trends offers a variety of ways to explore the data. The user can choose from different time ranges, regions, categories, languages, and types of searches.
One of the most popular features is Insights. It provides data on how a word or phrase has trended over time in specific geographical locations and languages.
Optimizing The Title For Your Merchandise By Amazon Program Product Listing
One of the first things you need to do when listing your product on Merch by Amazon is to optimize the title.
Your title is one of the first things potential customers will see, and it needs to be catchy and to the point. It also needs to include relevant keywords so that your product appears in Merch by Amazon search results.
Here are a few tips for optimizing your title:
- Keep it short and to the point. Ideally, it shouldnโt be longer than 80 characters (just to stay on the safe side, always aim for around 60 characters). Shorter titles are easier to read than longer ones and are more likely to maintain a readerโs attention.
- Include relevant keywords. Just be sure to not use all caps. Except for prepositions (in, on, with), conjunctions (and, or, for), and articles (the, a, an), capitalize the first letter of every word.
- Make it catchy and attention-grabbing. Study the different title lengths and styles for similar listings on the eCommerce platform.
- Start the title with the productโs brand name. Additionally, make sure the brand name field is also populated.
- Refrain from using subjective comments. Try to be as objective as possible and try not to include words like โBest Sellerโ or โPopular Itemโ in the productโs title.
Some examples of optimized Merch by Amazon titles for selling t shirts:
- โFunny Sarcastic T-Shirt for Men - I'm Not A Morning Personโ
- โCute Cat T-Shirt for Women - I Love Catsโ
- โGraphic Design T-Shirt - I Turn Coffee Into Designsโ
As you can see in our quick Merch by Amazon review, these titles are short, to the point, and include relevant keywords. Theyโre also eye-catching and likely to make someone want to click on the listing.
Remember, your title is one of the most important elements of your Amazon merch listing, so be sure to take the time to optimize it and make it look great!
For more information about product title requirements and how to prevent your items from experiencing Merch by Amazon search suppression, be sure to review Amazonโs product title requirements for sellers and Merch by Amazonโs terms and conditions.
How To Promote Your Merch
Most of your actual work begins when your Amazon merch goes live. Yes, even though Amazon is an eCommerce giant, it doesnโt mean that youโre always going to get guaranteed sales.
To succeed on the platform, youโll need a strong promotion strategy for your Merch by Amazon brand.
Luckily, promoting your Amazon store isnโt any different from promoting any other online business. You mainly need a good social media following, and given that you can only sell clothing items via the platform, itโs recommended to primarily focus on Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok.
Amazon advertising is also a great way to make your products stand out in Merch by Amazon search results, direct traffic to your store, and create consistent sales.ย
The best thing about running Amazon ads is that it's relatively cheap and workโs much like Googleโs pay-per-click ads, meaning you only have to pay when potential customers click on your ads.
You can also use the following marketing strategies to promote your Amazon merch:
- Join relevant Facebook groups and forums where your target audience spends most of its time and post about your products there when appropriate.
- Create a blog for your brand and make use of content marketing to include links to your store to get more exposure and traffic.
- Promote your merch using influencer marketing or by getting streamers to advertise your products on platforms like Twitch.
Once your merch is live, take the time to brainstorm and think of new ways to market your products. Youโll definitely be able to come up with a winning strategy for your Merch by Amazon store if you think hard enough (and might as well start with a good Amazon store name).
What Functions And Features Are Available To Sellers?
Put simply, the key feature and biggest highlight of our Merch by Amazon review is that Amazon owns it.
The eCommerce platform doesnโt offer or feature any unique functions for sellers. Its main highlight is that you get to sell your merch on Amazon with little to no effort (not including the design).
Unlike other print on demand companies, Merch by Amazon is a powerful source of passive income because it doesnโt require sellers to spend money on storage, customer service, or shipping. Itโs unique because you can quite literally start a merch business without having to spend a single dollar.
Plus, it offers all of its sellers the option to list their merchandise as Amazon Prime products, which gives it a big advantage over regular products by giving it greater reach and discounts on shipping which can lead to greater sales over time.
Does Merch By Amazon Have Customer Service?
Yes, Merch by Amazon has a customer service team that can help sellers with any issues or questions they may have. Amazon merch sellers can contact customer service via email or by simply filling out their Contact Us form.
Unfortunately, you canโt get in touch with them for queries by calling. However, they feature a very extensive Merch by Amazon FAQ section where sellers can find the answers to most of their questions.
And if you canโt find what youโre looking for there, they even have a dedicated forum where you can present your questions.
For your buyers, the customer service is completely handled by Amazon itself. As theyโre taking responsibility for the fulfillment, shipping, and production, they are more than capable of handling all customer queries.
For all Amazon users, thereโs no difference in customer support whether a shirt or hoodie is sold by a popular clothing brand like Calvin Klein or by an individual seller on Merch by Amazon. If they have any issues with their Amazon merch order, the customers can contact Amazon, similar to any other purchase.
Merch by Amazon Review: User Experience
Merch by Amazon's user experience is positive overall. The platform is easy to use and navigate. Uploading designs and creating listings is pretty simple. And there are plenty of helpful resources available to Amazon merch sellers, including a customer service team.
The only downside is that Merch by Amazonโs application process can be a bit lengthy, and getting into the program isnโt always guaranteed. However, if and once you get through the approval process, you can start selling your Amazon merch right away.
Overall, Merch by Amazon is a great platform for selling t shirts and other merchandise. So, if you're looking to start your own merch business and arenโt in a time crunch to launch your t-shirt designs, it's definitely worth considering due to its ease of use.
How Much Money Can You Make With Merch By Amazon?
By this point, Iโm sure most of you have a few questions like, โIs Merch by Amazon profitable?โ or โ Is Merch by Amazon worth it?โ,
Well, the answer to both of these questions in our Merch by Amazon review is a resounding YES!
Plenty of Merch by Amazon top sellers are making a full-time income from selling their products on the platform. And with the right strategies in place, thereโs no reason you canโt be one of them.
In fact, there have even been cases where people have sold merch worth $700 per day or, as we mentioned in our introduction, sold their Merch by Amazon stores for north of $93,000.
Of course, how much money you make will depend on several factors, including:
- The niche youโre in
- The quality of your designs
- The demand for your designs
- The price of your products
- Your competition
- How well you market and promote your products via Amazon advertising or elsewhere
But if you're willing to put in the work, there's no reason you can't start making serious money with Merch by Amazon or at least add a nice passive income stream to your monthly budget.
Regarding how much Merch by Amazon pays you for each sale, generally speaking, you can expect to make 13-37% commission on each sale (find out more about Amazon pay here). So if you sell a $20 t-shirt, you can expect to earn approximately $5 per sale.
Of course, the more products you sell, the more money you'll make. And if you're able to sell your products at a higher price point, you'll earn even more commission.
So if you're looking to make some serious money with Merch by Amazon, it's important to create high-quality designs that people are willing to pay for.
You can learn more about how Merch by Amazon works out its predefined prices for every type of product and an outline of the Merch by Amazon royalties on their site.
What Products Does Merch By Amazon Offer?
The Merch by Amazon program originally started as a POD platform specifically for printing custom t shirts. Since its inception, Merch by Amazon print-on-demand services has slowly added several products that you can customize and sell on the platform, such as:
- T-Shirts
- Hoodies
- Tank tops
- Long sleeve t-shirts
- Sweatshirts
- Phone cases and pop sockets
- Tote bags
- Throw pillows
Despite diversifying its catalog, offerings on the Amazon program still arenโt as extensive as some of its competitors. However, at least it covers most of the popular merch options.
Plus, their product and print quality is also pretty solid, as long as you make sure the design you upload is of decent quality and resolution.
The Pros and Cons of Merch by Amazon
There are a few things to consider before you start selling on Merch by Amazon. Here are the pros and cons:
The Pros of Merch By Amazon
- Compared to Merch by Amazon alternatives and other POD platforms, itโs completely free to use and removes all the hassle of printing and inventory management fees. The only real work that sellers need to do on the print on demand service is to design their merchandise.
- All products created with the print-on-demand services are hosted on one of the largest eCommerce platforms in the world (Amazon's marketplace) and are Prime-eligible, resulting in better visibility and potentially greater sales.
- The print-on-demand platformโs user interface (UI) is very intuitive, easy to navigate, and straightforward.
- A print on demand service is a great way to earn passively. Simply create your merch, forget about it, and wait for the money to start rolling in.
- There are plenty of resources available, including a customer service team.
The Cons of Merch By Amazon
- Sellers have to be approved before they can start selling their merchandise. And the application process can be lengthy. It can take weeks or even months to get approved, and even then, there's no guarantee you'll be approved.
- The commission you earn per sale isnโt particularly high, and the competitive market means that sellers will have to sell lots of merchandise through the platform to earn a decent profit.
- The platform doesnโt offer any third-party website or marketplace integrations like Shopify or Redbubble.
- The selection of merch and products you can sell is quite limited, only offering popular items like clothes, phone cases, pillow covers, and tote bags, while some Merch by Amazon alternatives offer much more like keychains, jewelry, and mugs.
The Takeaway: Amazon Merch on Demand Review
So, is the Amazon Merch on Demand platform worth it?
If you're willing to put in the initial work, then the answer is yes.
Our review shows that it can be a great way to earn extra income by selling custom products via Merch by Amazon without having to deal with the hassle of managing shipping, customer service, and production.
However, it's important to keep in mind that the application process can be lengthy, and there's no guarantee you'll be approved.
That's why it's best to have one or more other revenue streams set up, and the Amazon program shouldn't be the only print platform you're selling on before you rely on Merch by Amazon as one of your main sources of income.ย
Want to learn step-by-step how I built my Niche Site Empire up to a full-time income?
Yes! I Love to Learn
Learn How I Built My Niche Site Empire to a Full-time Income
- How to Pick the Right Keywords at the START, and avoid the losers
- How to Scale and Outsource 90% of the Work, Allowing Your Empire to GROW Without You
- How to Build a Site That Gets REAL TRAFFIC FROM GOOGLE (every. single. day.)
- Subscribe to the Niche Pursuits Newsletter delivered with value 3X per week
My top recommendations