5 Things You Can Sell on Your Sports Website
Managing a sports team no matter how big or small is an exciting opportunity. However, as your team manager, one of your main duties is to find funding and ensure consistent cash flow. Without funds, your team will be missing out on a lot of opportunities. If you don’t have enough money for your team, you can’t participate in tournaments, afford new equipment, or host matches in your town.
A good way to raise money is through sponsorships, selling event tickets, and collecting member dues, but that might not be enough to cover all the costs associated with running a sports team. This means you need to find different ways to make money and one of the best ways to do that is to add an online store to your website. We’ve covered how to use SportsPress and WooCommerce to create an online store on your site previously. In this article, we’ll share a few ideas on items you can sell and how to promote your store.
5 Things To Sell On Your Team’s Website
Here are 5 ideas of what to sell on your site and raise more funds for your team.
1. Club Merchandise
Aside from selling event tickets, the most obvious choice is to sell club merchandise. Keep in mind that you are not limited to just jerseys here. You can sell scarves, beanies, hats, t-shirts, jackets… you are limited only by your imagination. Your diehard fans may prefer a jersey they can wear while they play the same sport but some of your fans might prefer a different type of clothing. In the end, they want to support you and help you succeed so wearing anything with their favorite team logo goes a long way toward showing that support.
2. Club Photos
Another item to consider is selling club photos. From group photos to individual shots and photos featuring memorable moments, any true sports fans will be happy to add these to his collection. You can take it a step further and sell autographed photos as well. It’s even better if you offer your fans an opportunity to get photographed with the entire team or their favorite player.
Golden State Warriors Team Photos
3. Various Accessories
You can also sell various accessories featuring your team logo. Consider items like:
- Cups
- Keychains
- Tumblers
- Bumper stickers and decals
- Sunglasses
- Sleepwear
- Beer mugs
- And more.
You can see from the screenshot below that the Boston Celtics offer a wide variety of accessories in their store.
4. Advertising Space
Similar to sponsorships, you can sell advertising space to other sports-related websites and businesses. This includes sports blogs, equipment stores, gyms, health-related websites, and more. You can create an advertising package that allows them to place a banner on your site which can be shown in the header, sidebar, or below posts. You have a variety of options for configuring a package; from different pricing based on the length of the package to basing your prices depending on which spot they choose.
5. Affiliate Products
If you have a favorite equipment store, consider partnering up with them as affiliates and sell their products on your site. You get a small commission for each sale you make while they get more exposure. You can also partner with a local health store, considering many sports fans are interested in balanced nutrition.
4 Ways to Promote Your Store
Now that you have some ideas on what to sell, your next step is to market your store to increase sales. Here are a few tips to help you spread the word about your store to your existing fans.
1. Feature your store in your navigation menu or sidebar
Once your store is set up, you need to link to it in your navigation menu. You can also include a link to it in your sidebar. This works as a subtle reminder for fans and visitors who come to your site to check out what you have to offer without feeling pushy. And thanks to built-in WooCommerce widgets, you can easily display a list of recent or most popular items in any widgetized area on your site. While you’re at it, don’t forget to include your store on your team page as well.
2. Include a call-to-action at the end of replay videos
Consider including a call to action at the end of your replay videos, encouraging viewers to check out your store. You can briefly describe what type of merchandise they can find and explain how every purchase helps your team to upgrade their gear and participate in various tournaments.
3. Promote your store on social media at least twice a week
Your fans might not immediately notice the new shop section on your website. It’s your job to let them know. Start by announcing it before the official launch day and build hype. Once the store is launched, create a few promotional messages that feature different items or newly added products and add them to your social media schedule.
4. Link to your store in your bio
You can also replace the link to your site’s homepage with the shop page. Alternatively, consider creating a landing page where fans can redeem a coupon and link to it or pin the tweet or Facebook message with that link to the top of your profile.
Add Versatility to Your Store
Many clubs feature online stores where fans can buy team merchandise and other goodies with their logo. Keep in mind that you don’t have to create all of the products in advance and worry about inventory. Thanks to print-on-demand companies, you can pay for the production of the item once the order has been placed which is a great way to save money.
Use our ideas to make your store stand apart, add versatility to your store, and delight your fans. If you need a little help getting started, be sure to read our guide on setting up an online store with WooCommerce and don’t forget to download our checklist of items you can sell in your store as a handy reminder.
