How to design a t-shirt that sells

How to Design a T-Shirt That Sells In 2024

A T-shirt is not just another piece of cloth to cover your body. It is a feeling. It’s an identity. It is closer to your heart than a designer dress worth thousands of dollars. This love of T-shirts brings a great responsibility to the manufacturers to design such t-shirts that can connect with their target audience. Then only you can become the best t-shirt seller in the USA. Sometimes companies try to make out-of-the-world designs and fail, while sometimes, the simplest designs become the best sellers. Read out this article to find out the tips for designing T-shirts that sell.

Think About the Purpose

The first question that you must ask is ‘why are you creating this t-shirt. And for Whom?” Are these shirts for some national event or some social awareness-raising event or maybe some uninteresting marketing campaign. With the proper purpose in mind, you can maximize the profits. Designing a rainbow t-shirt would not work for a business conference, and similarly, if someone wants the stock for the ambassadors and staff of the rock concert, you cannot give them go-green-themed shirts. Your designs have to spread the right message in the relevant tone to start the conversation and build curiosity among the audience. There are some designs that never go out of fashion, like Weekend vibes, emojis and cartoon characters, etc. these evergreen artworks will keep providing juice all year round.

Select the Best Material

There is no limit when we consider the competitors in this business. So do not give your customers reasons to move on to your rival. You better sustain the sell the wrong quality t-shirt, and they will never return! In addition to all the other factors, the material is one of the most significant determinants of your success as a best t-shirt seller. You may go for some cheap t-shirts for printing but make sure to give your customers the best value for the money they are spending. Polyester, cotton, and sometimes their mixture is widely used fabrics for designing t-shirts. Both these materials have a beautiful texture, softer feel and are affordable.

Well Planned Selection of Colors

Well Planned Selection of Colors
The color sense is not everyone’s piece of cake. More than anything else, the audience is susceptible to the visuals. The selection of hue is not limited to the design, but it also includes the color of the t-shirt on which you will print the design. Therefore, everything must be in harmony. To improve your color coordination, you must start learning color psychology before designing a t-shirt to sell. If your collection contains t-shirts with grey text on a white t-shirt, it’s time to replace the whole stock. Black on a white shirt captivates the observer, but grey will make the text less visible. And that is why it looks unattractive. The best solution to this problem is to offer customization, but if you are selling some standard designs, improve your skills by learning introductory color psychology before designing a t-shirt.

Fonts may Kill the Look

Was the quote on the t-shirt supposed to communicate the message? But due to lousy typography, everything went in vain? Fonts are a crucial part of designing a best-selling t-shirt because readability matters the most. Instead of using confusing fonts, use those that make your text looks prominent and easy to read. That said, you could choose from various Serif and San Serif typefaces. Additionally, be as precise with the words as possible, mainly if you deliver some critical message through the shirt. Long sentences are boring and not as memorable as attractive and short ones.

There are Multiple Printing Options

Printing Options
Printing Options
As you are done with color, graphics, fabric, and fonts, you are done with only 50% of the job. The next and crucial step is to choose from various printing methods. All methods have pros and cons, but the selection depends merely on purpose. Some of the types of shirt printing are as follows:

Screen Printing

Screen-printing (also known as Silk Screening or silk printing) is a printing method where the manufacturer prints the graphics on the t-shirt using a mesh screen, a squeegee, and ink. The design is printed on the fabric’s surface instead of soaking in the shirt’s material, giving it a tangible look. Screen printing is known for producing intense colors, which is why it is used for darker-colored shirts. This method is cost-effective for companies because they can replicate the design multiple times using the same stencil. Due to the complexity of the process, the selection of colors is limited, which is why this method is helpful for simple designs of promotional camping shirts where a customer needs the same design for all the shirts.

Dye sublimation

Dye sublimation is the process that uses digital printing technology to create beautiful artwork on t-shirts. The method transfers the design directly to the fabric using heat. The print is embedded in the cloth fabric, which makes it permanent. Due to this, the artwork remains intact after several washes and never fades away. Plus, you have multiple colors options with dye sublimation, and it is also best for complex designs.

Mockup The T-Shirt

Mockup The T-Shirt
Before producing the whole stock, design a few samples for preview. Once you confirm that the designs, color, fonts, spacing, placement, and all the other dimensions are as per your requirement, you can print the rest. You can send some of the shirts as giveaways or gif them to friends and relatives and get feedback for further approval. People are good at pointing mistakes. Let’s leverage their habit.

Final Words

Now that you are all set to design perfect t-shirts, let us ask you something. Did you select the budget and the quantity? Before practically manufacturing t-shirts, be very clear about your budget and the number of t-shirts you want to make. It will help you decide the printing method, the number of colors you can use, and the material of the t-shirts you can purchase within your capacity. Therefore set the budget first and then proceed with the rest of the tips.