Last spring, amid the Merch By Amazon shutdown that prevented Merchers from creating new designs at the onset of the pandemic, POD creators turned to other platforms to tackle topical opportunities. One such opportunity in the U.S. involved stimulus payments.
Last spring, millions of Americans received stimulus checks as part of pandemic recovery efforts. Subsequently, humorous and sarcastic niche designs about stimulus money drove apparel and novelty product sales on multiple platforms outside of MBA, only because Merchers simply couldn’t rapidly make such designs as:
- You Only Like Me for My Stimulus Money
- I Blew My Stimulus Check on New Guitars
- Quit Staring at My Stimulus Package
- My Stimulus Money Goes Straight to Cryptocurrency
- The Government Wants Me to Spend My Stimulus on New Tattoos
Guess what? Merch is now open for business, just as tens of millions of Americans prepare to receive their latest round of stimulus checks. So the opportunity to leverage this niche momentum is back, as the “stimulus” topic, memes, and internet GIFs are going to be everywhere in January.
To be clear, the types of niche designs I’m advocating aren’t meant to appeal to people looking to spend their stimulus money, but rather appeal to niche audiences always interested in funny and topical ways to articulate their interests and passions.
I predict early 2021 will provide fertile ground for niche messaging about stimulus. As long as you steer clear of anything Covid or pandemic related and keep your stimulus messaging focused squarely on niche hobbies, careers, interests, and humor, I think you’ll have a safe and potentially profitable idea to run with on Merch that you were unable to fully capitalize on 8 months ago.