Amazon Merch and the Latest Trends

So check this out. I got this e-mail a few days ago and wanted to share it with everyone, as well as my thoughts on the subject. Basically, the person wanted to know if following trends would be a good way to make money.

Hi Justin,

I saw your you tube video on amazon Merch.

Ok, first off, what a fantastic way to start an email. And by fantastic, I mean not fantastic, because their proper nouns are all fucked up.

I bought into the Amazon hype 2 years ago. Like 25K in the hole and 3 failed product labels later I’m giving it up. 🙁

Read: I bought the same Fulfillment by Amazon course as thousands of other people, didn’t do my own proper research, and tried to make a quick buck off the examples they gave. Because actually doing something worthwhile takes too much time and I don’t want to put in the hours, I’ll move onto the next big thing.

Everyone on Amazon sources the same products like salt & pepper shakers from china and slap their logo on them. The only winners were the ones to get their product in the fastest meaning you had to be on top. Or the ones with pockets big enough willing to make .01 pennies on each sale.

So you weren’t creative enough to find your own lane.

Do you think it’s possible to make money on merch by constantly looking out for the latest catch phrase, trend, pumping it out then bouncing? Or have you found that to be unsustainable… I’m wondering how much $ is realistic from this march business.

Thanks,

[Name]

You what?

So here we have this person who’s tried all this get rich quick nonsense and wants to know if they can get rich quick by pumping and dumping trending shirts on Merch (or march, per their last sentence).

No. Hell no.

If you look for trending topics, you will have to constantly look for trending topics.

It’s like self-publishing. You can write erotica and make $200 off of one book in December and then not make any more money from it, or you can write a nonfiction book that makes $30 every month for the last 2 years.

Those trending shirts will make $200 while the topic is hot, but Hillary for President shirts aren’t going to be a hot commodity in six months.

You’re better off finding a niche, figuring out what makes those people tick, and creating shit for those people. Also, look for ideas that will last a bit longer than three months.

We’re going for longevity here, folks. Not a quick buckerooni.

Big dawgs gotta think