Merch Minds Podcast

This week Kelli Roberts better know as KelliPublish returns to the show. The boys catch up with her and see how her businesses are doing. She discloses her numbers for December 2018 publishing low-content books on Amazon. If you remember Kelli made $17k in the month of December 2017. She had set her goal to do more than double that but unfortunately, she wasn't able to meet her goal. However, she's staying positive because she knows that she still made more in month than some people make in a year. She's working on other projects as well. She talks about hiring ghostwriters and working on audiobooks. Make sure to subscribe to her YouTube channel because she gives great advice and her channel is growing. Kelli Publish YouTube Channel https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCtIrgxIAX9x6nu3rJ_vfGiQ Sponsors Merch Informer https://merchinformer.com/223.html Merchinator https://merchinator.com/s/e66c4a55

The boys are back with a fresh new episode after having technical difficulties last week. With no significant news in the POD community, they just have a casual conversation. The year is flying by quick and the boys are trying to figure out a way to get back on track. Yong talks about how he is scaling his KDP account publishing no-content books. As you may have heard he is leveraging his shirt designs into journal covers. Glen is now back on a regular schedule on Merch by Amazon since he no longer works for his parents. What are you doing to grow your business? Leave a comment or send the boys a message and let them know what you are doing. As a community, we can all grow together to meet our goals. Sponsors Merch Informer https://merchinformer.com/223.html Merchinator https://merchinator.com/s/e66c4a55

Rob Cubbon is an entrepreneur living the good life. After creating multiple income streams for himself he moved from London to Chiang Mai, Thailand. He moved to greener pastures where he lives a stress-free life while making money online. Rob scaled his KDP account to where he is making well over $1000 per month with low and no-content books. He also does a little Merch by Amazon. While his numbers might not be mind-blowing in the sense that over six-figures per year he's living in a place where the cost of living is ridiculously low. Rob has a course on how you can build and scale your KDP account. He is offering the listeners of the Merch Minds Podcast a generous offer of $49 for his Selling Notebooks & Low Content Paperback Books On Amazon course. There are no expiration dates and no coupon is needed for this exclusive offer. Selling Notebooks & Low Content Paperback Books On Amazon http://bit.ly/2Bcb1HM Sponsors Merch Informer https://merchinformer.com/223.html Merchinator https://merchinator.com/s/e66c4a55

This week the boys interview their good friend Elena Saris. Elena is a criminal attorney turned an entrepreneur who found success in just about everything she's done. She's done private label, wholesale, Merch, and recently dropshipping on Shopify. Every entrepreneur will tell you to have a diverse income stream and that's exactly what Elena has done. Just about everything she's done she found success. So she comes by and shares her story with the boys. Elena is also having an event for all entrepreneurs in Las Vegas. On Sunday, March 17, 2019, Elena is giving you an opportunity to rub elbows with some of the most successful entrepreneurs from print-on-demand to dropshipping. Make sure to reserve a spot today and everyone listening to this episode make sure to convince Yong to attend! Ecomm Elite http://merchmindsetc.com Sponsors Merch Informer https://merchinformer.com/223.html Merchinator https://merchinator.com/s/e66c4a55

Happy New Year! Glen and Yong are finally back with their very first episode of 2019. In this episode, they talk about what they were doing the past few weeks. Q4 is officially over. A lot of people made good money over the holidays. It's now time to focus on the new year and the boys discuss their strategy. For Yong, Merch is still his priority but he is also uploading on KDP. With three years under his belt on Merch, he finds it very competitive these days. Glen no longer works for his parents so he now has a schedule that helps with his Merch business. SponsorsMerch Informer https://merchinformer.com/223.html Merchinator https://merchinator.com/s/e66c4a55

With 2018 coming to an end Glen and Yong recap the past year. They go over some of the more popular episodes of the year. They had some great guests and memorable moments. For the next couple of weeks, the boys will be taking a break from the show. In the meantime enjoy Q4 and the success it had brought to some people. We wish you a wonderful Christmas and a safe New Year Eve celebration! During the break feel free to go back and listen to some of the previous episodes. Let the boys know what your favorite episode was. As always, they will be available by email and messages. Sponsors Merch Informer https://merchinformer.com/223.html Merchinator https://merchinator.com/s/e66c4a55

This week Glen and Yong discuss 2019 goals and predictions. It's fair to say that we all want to scale and grow our numbers next year. The boys talk about how they can scale their Merch and other POD platforms. Yong is going to focus on quality as he always has. Glen talked about getting back on a schedule and getting his wife more involved in his eBay business. Either way, they agreed that it's important to not give up and to try and scale in 2019. What are you guys doing to try and scale next year? Will you focus more on filling up your slots or marketing? Either way, let us know what your strategy is to grow in 2019. Sponsors Merch Informer https://merchinformer.com/223.html Merchinator https://merchinator.com/s/e66c4a55

Do you guys want another option to run your own POD business? This week the boys talk to Dean Jayroe and Courtney Cramer. This powerhouse couple purchased their own DTG printer to fulfill their own shirts outside of Amazon and business is booming! The boys talk a lot about building income streams outside of Amazon and that's exactly what they did. With the purchase of their DTG printer, their margins on Etsy have skyrocketed and they now control their fulfillment schedule. They no longer have to rely on Printful and other fulfillment companies. Would you guys ever consider buying your own DTG printer? It can certainly be rewarding but you must be committed. Let the boys know if purchasing your own DTG printer is a viable option or not. Sponsors Merch Informer https://merchinformer.com/223.html Merchinator https://merchinator.com/s/e66c4a55

The boys apologize for the audio quality in this episode. What do you expect when RJ Martinez joins them for an episode of the Merch Minds Podcast? He brings bad mojo and bad audio quality. As mentioned RJ Martinez joined Glen and Yong to talk possible throttling. Despite what Amazon is saying Yong strongly believes that Amazon is throttling everyone across the board. This is all to reduce chaos in the forums and to reduce emails being sent to Amazon. On Thursday, November 15, 2018, both Yong and RJ experienced an unusual day of sales that went through the roof. Yong sold five times more than what he normally does. Then the whole ASIN removal on Cyber Monday really was what made them believe that there is throttling even though Amazon denies it. What do you guys believe? Sponsors Merch Informer https://merchinformer.com/223.html Merchinator https://merchinator.com/s/e66c4a55

Glen is becoming a superstar and he seems to be too good to hang out with Yong. Glen was in San Jose, CA visiting the eBay headquarters and ignored all of his Yong's messages. First Time magazine and now eBay Live! On this episode, Glen and Yong talk about the importance of good communication with your designer. Unfortunately, people are still not communicating with Yong when purchasing custom designs even though he provides clear instructions. This is causing unnecessary revisions and causing more work for Yong and his designer. This is something that has been discussed on the show before. Always give a full and detailed description of what you want regardless of who you hire. The better you communicate the better relationship you will develop with your designer. Sponsors Merch Informer https://merchinformer.com/223.html Merchinator https://merchinator.com/s/e66c4a55

Yong is upset. In fact, he's quite pissed. Once again, Glen has hogged the spotlight. Our very own Glen Zubia was featured in an article by Time magazine. Since Glen found early success on Merch by Amazon, he was contacted by Time magazine for an interview. Glen tells the backstory on how he was contacted and interviewed by Time. Congratulations to Glen for the exposure and a great article. Also, our good friend Michael Essany from Merch Momentum was also featured in the same article. You can find the URL to the article below. Time/Money Magazine featuring Glen Zubia Jr. https://ti.me/2QqDLSL Sponsors Merch Informer https://merchinformer.com/223.html Merchinator https://merchinator.com/s/e66c4a55

You might recognize the names Jose Fernandez and Ruben Lopez from the Merch community. Jose has made a career of designing shirts for well-known companies from Disney to Old Navy. Ruben has been scaling his Merch account under Jose's tutelage and they both been stellar members primarily in the Spanish Merch groups. Because of the lack of information in Spanish they recently came out with a course for the Spanish community. It was well received, and it was only a matter of time before they came out with a course in English. They announced the pre-launch of the course exclusively on the Merch Minds Podcast. So how does the course differ from dozens of other courses out there already? Jose has mastered what he's now calling the "Organic Rabbit Hole Research Method." He will teach you how to do research and find the perfect niche without any paid services or products. He will teach you how to find micro-niches that leads to other valuable discoveries. This is a good thing because if you discovered a niche by accident chances are others won't find their way there. For the next 48 hours, you can pre-purchase their course for $147. That means that at 11:59 pm on Wednesday the course will be back to its original price of $197. Don't miss out on this deal and make sure to purchase the course at the discounted price today. Merch Academy in English https://mbaacademy.thinkific.com/courses/merch-academy-english?ref=ccb6d8 Sponsors Merch Informer https://merchinformer.com/223.html Merchinator https://merchinator.com/s/e66c4a55

Glen is out of town this week as he was attending eCom Chicago. Dale Roberts, aka Kelli Roberts husband, stops by to talk with Yong. Dale has been a staple in the print-on-demand community especially with self-publishing. Dale talks about how he got into his entrepreneurial lifestyle. He talks about how tough it was in the beginning but with hard work and perseverance, he's able to see the light at the end of the tunnel. He's also doing a little Merch by Amazon to help him diversify his income portfolio. Dale is also very big on branding and content creating. He's been scaling his YouTube channel and is experimenting with Twitch. Also, be on the lookout for his course in January 2019, which will help everyone that wants to learn about self-publishing. Self-Publishing with Dale https://selfpublishingwithdale.com/ Sponsors Merch Informer https://merchinformer.com/223.html Merchinator https://merchinator.com/s/e66c4a55

This week the boys talk to the very talented BeeJay DeLong. BeeJay is a designer and illustrator who got into Merch by Amazon just this year. In his tenure on the platform, he's quickly catching up to the Glen and Yong's numbers. The most heartwarming thing about BeeJay is he'd taken his talent and teaching graphic design in Ohio. However, his students aren't just regular students. His students are special and have impairments that affect their life activities. BeeJay is a true talent and his story needs to be heard. The community needs more people like BeeJay and his services. Make sure and check out his work on his website. BeeJay DeLong https://www.beejaydel.com/ Sponsors Merch Informer https://merchinformer.com/223.html Merchinator https://merchinator.com/s/e66c4a55

Amazon Merch launched two new updates to their content policy. You can now have designs that contain profanity, drugs, alcohol, violence, and sexual content in adult sizes. However, they will not be allowed on youth sizes. This was a surprising move considering Amazon was quick to pull the plug on these content. If you were on Amazon Merch from the beginning you know that almost everything was allowed back in the wild west. Make sure and review the content policy before starting to upload the new designs. Glen and Yong discuss how this will open up new niche markets. They talk about what they believe is allowable and their plan of action. What about you? What do you think of the new policy and will you be uploading in these new niche markets? Sponsors Merch Informer https://merchinformer.com/223.html Merchinator https://merchinator.com/s/e66c4a55

The 100th episode of the Merch Minds Podcast was a huge success! Thank you to all our loyal listeners and the Merch community. What started as a podcast to share our personal journies evolved into a show where listeners tune in for advice and a little entertainment. Listed below are the winners of the prizes. If the prizes are not claimed a winner will be drawn. Dale L. Roberts - Winner for Local Merch Course jhrennie - Winner for No Content Book Publishing goudj230178 - Winner for Design Bundle from Merch Design Factory ric60640 - Winner for Lifetime License for Pretty Merch Pro aquadocpools - Winner for Lifetime License for Pretty Merch Pro goudj230178 - Winner for Lifetime Subscription to Merch Momentum Strategy Guide yazide79 - Winner for Lifetime Subscription to Merch Momentum Strategy Guide verdammt - Winner for Lifetime Subscription to Merch Momentum Strategy Guide klee - Winner for One Course of Choice from Pin Traffic Power aquadocpools - Winner for One-Month Subscription to Merch Informer driscolli - Winner for One-Year Subscription to RJ Martinez and Matt Sheeran's Research List littlebinky51 - Winner for 50 Shirts Designs, 50 PopSocket Designs, and 50x50x50 Training Method from Design 4 Dollars optimumlifeusa - Winner for the Etsy Book Duy Truong- Winner for the Etsy Book shuying - Winner for the Etsy Book blankman1869 - Winner for Private Coaching with Ken Reil sonicfokx - Winner for the POD Squad Graphic Design & Photoshop/Illustrator Training uintatrading - Winner for One Month of Penji Design Service Paul Chang - Winner for Custom Design from Eric Rosner glassgowdesign - Winner for One Hour Coaching and Five Designs from Merch Juice dino_bintangku - Winner for Merch Wizard sonicfokx - Winner for Both of Michael Essek's Books [email protected] - Winner for DIY Publishing Course rahmounemlila - Hamza Iqbal - Winner for Design Bundle from Merch Designs Club patriotictwist - Winner for a Custom Design from BeeJayDel pdxshredguy - Winner for Amazon Backpack with Goodies from Merch by Amazon Conference barracine - Winner for a Custom Design from Detour Shirts ih8h8 - Winner for Q4 Strategy Guide from the 45/54 Podcast jutta2222 - Winner for Q4 Strategy Guide from the 45/54 Podcast alpinemed - Winner for Lifetime License for MerchCreate gouadjeliayazid - Winner for Lifetime License for MerchCreate soroos.gunnar - Winner for Merch and the World of Print on Demand normaltshirts - Winner for Merch and the World of Print on Demand danieldennis - Winner for Merch and the World of Print on Demand sonicfokx - Winner for Merch and the World of Print on Demand mitchmauldin - Winner for Merch and the World of Print on Demand yazide79 - Winner for a Custom Design from CJ Johnson

With days away from the Merch by Amazon conference in Seattle, Glen and Yong talk about what to expect at this year's conference. The boys attended last year and they both agree that all the talks last year were great. This year they will be both presenting but they are more excited about the networking. They probably said this about a thousand times by now. Networking is important for all business models. Even if you can't attend the conference they encourage you to reach out to other members of the Merch community and network. If you are attending the conference make sure and say hello to the boys. They love meeting other members of the Merch community. And who knows, you can be working with them in the near future. Sponsors Merch Informer https://merchinformer.com/223.html Merchinator https://merchinator.com/s/e66c4a55

What would you do if you lost your Merch account today? What other platforms are you selling on? Would you be able to survive without a paycheck from Merch by Amazon? Yong recently had multiple conversations with people who had their Merch by Amazon accounts suspended. It is one of his biggest fear in the Merch community. Whether it was an honest mistake or not the Amazon is not our platform and everything that we worked for can be taken away. The boys the importance of a diverse income stream. Besides Amazon, everyone should be selling on other POD platforms. There are countless platforms out there that can bring in a nice revenue outside of Amazon Merch. Sponsors Merch Informer https://merchinformer.com/223.html Merchinator https://merchinator.com/s/e66c4a55

Chances are you are using the Pretty Merch Chrome extension in your Merch by Amazon dashboard. It is the number one extension when it comes to Merch. It's only right that Haris Petrasitis is a guest on the Merch Minds Podcast. Haris is the developer of the Pretty Merch Chrome extension. While selling shirts is fun and for some profitable Amazon doesn't give us any data. With Pretty Merch Pro you get sales update and lifetime analytics of the 100 shirts you sold. In the business of e-commerce this is very important because you need to what sells and what doesn't. Haris also puts the conspiracy theory of stealing your data to rest. There is some conspiracy theorist in the community that claims that extensions like Pretty Merch are stealing their data. While it is possible to steal your data Haris is running a legitimate business with the Pretty Merch extension. He wants everyone to know that none of your data is being stolen and invites anyone to take a look at his code. Pretty Merch Pro https://gumroad.com/a/874296435 Sponsors Merch Informer https://merchinformer.com/223.html Merchinator https://merchinator.com/s/e66c4a55

Q4 is almost here. Labor Day is officially over and the leaves are starting to change. That means that Halloween is creeping up on us real soon. This week Glen and Yong talk about their Q4 predictions and expectations. On a previous episode, Glen even hinted maybe doing FBA again because he thinks there will be another freeze or throttle. Yong agrees. With Amazon having launched Merch Collab, PopSockets, Merch UK/DE, and Merch AMS all in one year there is a great chance of some kind of freeze this Q4. Also, if you're publishing on CreateSpace take note that they are officially merging to KDP. For a while, there have been rumors about the move but Amazon announced last week that the move will happen. Make sure and learn the ins and outs of KDP! Sponsors Merch Informer https://merchinformer.com/223.html Merchinator https://merchinator.com/s/e66c4a55

Matt Carlett from Merch Design Factory joins the Merch Minds Podcast this week. Matt was one of the original members of the Merch community and experienced early success on Merch. He comes from the reselling community and talked about how he transitioned from doing Amazon FBA to Merch by Amazon. Matt agrees that we need to drive traffic to our listings. He talked about how he leveraged Pinterest to drive traffic and for the most part, it worked. Driving traffic to our listing is important because Amazon likes it when we drive traffic to their site. Make sure and check out Merch Design Factory. They offer unique designs that are ready to be uploaded on to Merch by Amazon. All designs are sold once and have been checked for trademarks. Merch Design Factory https://merchdesignfactory.com/ Sponsors Merch Informer https://merchinformer.com/223.html Merchinator https://merchinator.com/s/e66c4a55

First off, both Glen and Yong apologize for the technical issues that they had last week. Unfortunately, they don't see or notice any technical issues on their end until it's uploaded. Yong thinks RJ Martinez hijacked the show somehow. This week the boys talk CreateSpace in depth. For the past couple of months, they have briefly mentioned CreateSpace and how the platform complements Merch by Amazon. And the popularity of Kelli Robert's course created a buzz in the Merch community. So is CreateSpace worth publishing on? While Yong is on board with CreateSpace Glen is uncertain about it. Many have already found success after taking Kelli's course, and some are already making over $1k per month. What do you think? Have you found early success on CreateSpace? If so let drop us a message and let us know how you're doing. Sponsors Merch Informer https://merchinformer.com/223.html Merchinator https://merchinator.com/s/e66c4a55

This week Matt Sheeran and RJ Martinez from Real Talk stop by on the Merch Minds Podcast. While RJ had been on the show, this was Matt's first time on the podcast. This was a fun show because you never know what will happen when all four guys get together to chat about Merch. They don't disappoint. They talked about everything from Merch to running Facebooks efficiently. While most of you know RJ from his YouTube channel, Matt is known for his writing. Make sure and sign up for their Merch Newsletter. Also, all four guys will be speaking in Seattle at the Merch by Amazon Conference. Seats are limited to just 150 people, and that's including the speakers. Make sure and register today to reserve your seat. Merch Newsletter https://merchnews.email/ Merch by Amazon Conference http://www.merchconference.com/ Sponsors Merch Informer https://merchinformer.com/223.html Merchinator https://merchinator.com/s/e66c4a55

Glen and Yong discuss UK and Germany marketplace. While they both don't have access to the marketplace they discuss the potential. They also discuss the new policy changes because of the new marketplace. While the new marketplace has the potential to bring in more income we all have to be careful. As we all know Amazon is notorious for making policy changes without making any official announcements. So this episode is a reminder to keeping checking the content policy on a regular basis. Let the boys know if you have the international marketplace yet? If so how is it and have you started making sales yet? Typography Dissected Poster Digital Download [Free] https://gum.co/eAFbD Sponsors Merch Informer https://merchinformer.com/223.html Merchinator https://merchinator.com/s/e66c4a55

Spencer and Shannon from the Merch Lifestyle Podcast stop by this week to talk to the boys. They are ex-neighbors from Cincinnati that got into e-commerce together. Spencer now lives in Mountain View, CA not too far from Yong. They talk everything about print-on-demand. They discuss how difficult it is to scale on Merch by Amazon. They also talk about how they're scaling they're Esty store, which they have more control of. They are two smart guys building their online career. They're creating multiple income streams and creating sustainable income on multiple channels. Make sure and subscribe to their YouTube channel listed below. Merch Lifestyle Podcast https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC_aEvn11t35Eboo0qKqGSSQ Sponsors Merch Informer https://merchinformer.com/223.html Merchinator https://merchinator.com/s/e66c4a55

We talked about how saturated the Merch by Amazon is these days. With more and more competition our products are getting lost in hundreds if not thousands of the same type of listings. While some are still finding success with the organic traffic on Amazon most of us are getting frustrated with the lack of sales. Yong hinted in the past about creating niche affiliate websites around his best selling shirts. This way we control the traffic and the data. So this week they talk to Alex Park who has made a career of creating niche affiliate sites. Yong met Alex back in May and they discussed how niche sites can help with Merch sales during the slow times. It's more than Merch sales. When you pick the right niche you can double dip on other products through the Amazon Associates program. This isn't for everyone. If this is the route you're going to take you won't see results immediately. Depending on your niche and products you might not see results for up to a year. Sponsors Merch Informer https://merchinformer.com/223.html Merchinator https://merchinator.com/s/e66c4a55

Yong is back! He may sound like he's better but he's still coughing. The good thing is his fever is down and he's able to continue with the show. This week Glen and Yong are catching up. Glen was out of town visiting his brother in Austin. Yong was in beautiful in Morro Bay on a workcation and to just get out of town to rest. They are catching up with their lives and Merch by Amazon. Yong talks about his frustration with Merch. Although he's grateful for the opportunity he's finding that it's getting harder to scale as more people are being approved for Merch. While he won't give up on Merch he discusses how he will focus more on how to drive traffic to his listings. Creating an affiliate website is one of the ways he's planning on driving traffic to his shirts. He also talks about how he will revamp his Etsy store since he has more control over it. Yong also talks about a potential private label opportunity. He was given an opportunity to mass produce a skin oil by a guy who is retiring at the end of the year. This could be a gold mine as the only other competitor has a BSR of 300 on Amazon. Sponsors Merch Informer https://merchinformer.com/223.html Merchinator https://merchinator.com/s/e66c4a55

Iron Man has finally broken down. Since starting the podcast, Yong has never missed an episode. Unfortunately, he missed episode 88 because he was coughing up his lungs all last week. Glen holds down the show and interviews the young entrepreneur Jacob Bates. Jacob is a young guy but light years ahead when it comes to running online businesses. They talk about everything about print on demand and even Createspace, which happens to be the hottest trend right now outside of Merch. His portfolio of running print on demand business range from Merch to the Etsy Printful integration. He also runs a design service company where you can purchase pre-made designs. How many millennials do you know that run multiple online businesses like Jacob? Merch Ready https://merchready.com/ Sponsors Merch Informer https://merchinformer.com/223.html Merchinator https://merchinator.com/s/e66c4a55

With AMS dead what are you doing to drive traffic to your listings? Most of us know that Amazon has great organic traffic but they also control our listings. That's why it's important to utilize platforms like Pinterest to drive traffic to our shirts. Glen and Rose talk to Teresa Rose who has done just about everything from eBay to having her own Shopify store. One thing she learned during her business endeavors is how important it is to drive traffic to your store and listings. She found that Pinterest is a great platform to utilize to get more potential customers in front of our products. Teresa offers a comprehensive course that teaches us how to leverage Pinterest efficiently to get the most traffic to our products. The number one lesson learned from her interview is "keyword." Remember that and make sure and check out her course below. Pin Traffic Power: Pinterest For Merch By Amazon Bundle https://pintrafficpower.thinkific.com/bundles/pinterest-for-merch-by-amazon?ref=c87e98 Sponsors Merch Informer https://merchinformer.com/223.html Merchinator https://merchinator.com/s/e66c4a55

Yong is back from VidCon and HustleCon! He reviews each conference and they both get very different reviews. In a nutshell, VidCon was a bust and HustleCon was weird but very interesting. PopSockets are officially here. After a week into uploading designs for PopSockets the boys talk about how they did. Also, are you guys making edits to your listings since Amazon said we need to describe the design? Let the boys know if you are and what changes you're making. Also, Kelli Roberts released her course No Content Book Publishing. This is the same course that both Glen and Yong paid for to learn how to publish blank journals. Kelli is making $6k per month and in December of 2017, she made a whopping $17k! Kelli's course will complement your Merch by Amazon business. You can take your Merch by Amazon designs and use them for your cover on Amazon. And since we're not writing anything the work is half done already. You can purchase Kelli's course by going to the URL below. No Content Book Publishing https://gumroad.com/a/628929651

This is a late post but it's better late than never. It's been a crazy week for the boys. Yong is currently in Anaheim attending VidCon in hopes of learning from Merch by Amazon as they will be there. This week the boys talk about the PopSockets that was just announced by Amazon. Amazon will be releasing them on a rolling basis and it's not clear who all has them so far. Glen and Yong have them and they been slowly uploading their designs. In fact, Yong already has a few sales for PopSockets already. While they are no experts they discuss possible strategies. Amazon said they released PopSockets because their data stated that they are good sellers. Let's hope their data is correct. Sponsors Merch Informer https://merchinformer.com/223.html Merchinator https://merchinator.com/s/e66c4a55

On Episode 81 Yong had the opportunity to briefly talk to Manny about his Etsy business. Yong invited Manny back on the show so they can have a more in-depth conversation about what he's doing. Manny, who is a graphic designer, hadn't found much success on Merch so he focused his efforts on Etsy and it's paying off. Manny admits he's doing parody designs in a certain niche. However, he's working on eventually branching out to his own platform and creating a Shopify store. That way he's not solely relying on Etsy's marketplace. The good thing about Manny is that he was able to start and leverage social media early on. He created a huge following for his apparel line on Instagram. His stuff is so hot that he only does a pop-up shop one week per month and he clears $6k every time. Sponsors Merch Informer https://merchinformer.com/223.html Merchinator https://merchinator.com/s/e66c4a55

This week's episode is out a little early. With so much going on the boys decided to release the episode before the weekend. And as promised Yong delivered on his promise. Yong mentioned a couple of weeks ago that he was going to interview his personal CPA. So this week Abe Saghieh talk to the boys and provide general tax advice. As a disclaimer please talk to your own personal CPA because everyone's situation is different. Abe and the boys discuss everything from Amazon to eBay. Abe tells the boys why he thinks collecting royalties is a good business model. He recommends what bookkeeping software are the best. He even answers the question about the evil VAT. Also, Yong has been beta testing the Pretty Merch Pro Chrome extension for the past several days. While most people know about Pretty Merch the developer recently added the Auto Re-Login feature. Imagine a whole day without being logged out of your Merch account! However, Auto Re-Login will be available exclusively to Pretty Merch PRO users. The subscription fee is normally $9.99 per month. Make sure to use my promo code: 20FORLIFE to get 20% off your Pretty Merch Pro subscription. This is a limited time offer so click the link below to subscribe today! Pretty Merch Pro Promo Code: 20FORLIFE https://gumroad.com/a/874296435 Sponsors Merch Informer https://merchinformer.com/223.html Merchinator https://merchinator.com/s/e66c4a55

After almost a two week hiatus the boys are back. Glen was in Washington DC to film his Outhustled series on YouTube. As much as he hates going there Yong was in Las Vegas for the Licensing Expo. In this episode, they recap what Yong experienced in Las Vegas. Amazon gave a keynote presentation on Tuesday morning and they introduced Merch Collab. What exactly is Merch Collab? It's an opportunity for REAL graphic designers to collaborate with influencers such as Shane Dawson, Rick & Morty, Crossfit and more. As a designer, you submit a design and the influencers will accept or deny them to be sold on Amazon. Yong also talks about some of the vendors at the expo. He talks about how overwhelming it was. There were some huge companies such as WWE, Dr. Seuss, Mattel, and Playstation at the expo. In order to talk to them you had to set up a meeting but also have deep pockets to even shake their hands. So Yong stuck to his strategy of talking to small vendors and he had some very interesting conversations. Also, the staff at Merch by Amazon had a pop-up meetup for some of the people that attended. It was an opportunity to meet some of the people at Merch and have a conversation. Content creators and the staff at Merch by Amazon had a nice Q&A, which ended up being the highlight of the whole trip for most people. Not just that, as he always preaches Yong was able to network. He met so many other content creators in the Merch community. Yong plans on attending again next year now that he has a clear understanding how everything works. Sponsors Merch Informer https://merchinformer.com/223.html Merchinator https://merchinator.com/s/e66c4a55

This week the Merch Minds Podcast comes to you live and direct from Las Vegas. Yong is in the Sin City for the Licensing Expo where Amazon Merch gave a keynote presentation. Fellow graphic designer Manny Pinedo and RJ Martinez accompanied him during the trip. They have a funny story that they share in this episode. While Yong was aboard a plane Manny and RJ were trying to check into their Airbnb. It's a funny and unforgettable story that will have all listeners laughing. All three of them talk about what their strategy going to the Licensing Expo. They agreed that a good strategy for smaller players like them would be to approach small vendors. Big companies like WWE and Disney require deep pockets so they agreed they would approach the smaller companies. Yong also talks to Manny about his Esty business. While Manny's Merch business has been subpar his Etsy business is booming. He's doing parody in a particular niche that brings in tons of traffic and sales. In fact, business is so good that he does a pop shop once a month on Etsy and he makes over $6k every time. Sponsors Merch Informer https://merchinformer.com/223.html Merchinator https://merchinator.com/s/e66c4a55

The past couple of months Yong has been beta testing an app that allows him to upload his designs across several POD platforms outside of Amazon. Finally, the boys talk to the man responsible for introducing the app to them. Dennis Duncan has been consulting with a couple of developers who developed Orbitkit. So what makes Duncan special that he was one of the consultants for Orbitkit? Well, he's been in the POD business for years, and he's on the 20k tier on Merch. He not only scaled his Merch account but he's leveraging all PODs including Etsy Printful integration. In fact, Duncan developed an app that can help with your Etsy Printful integration. He created Printsy that will help streamline your uploads without a VA. You can now automate your uploads to your Printful & Etsy uploads with Printsy. Printsy is only $9.99 per month and will save you hundreds of dollars if not more. As for Orbitkit, the webinar is for this Thursday, May 17, 2018, at 1 pm PST. I was told they are capping the release to just 100 people. While more than a 100 people registered, you might get lucky and be able to reserve yourself a spot. Orbitbit Webinar Registration https://zoom.us/webinar/register/7515251037749/WN_fYiBWSqLSlKU0HEdJiVUoA Printsy http://paykstrt.com/4531/19107 Sponsors Merch Informer https://merchinformer.com/223.html Merchinator https://merchinator.com/s/e66c4a55

Yes, it's true! The boys finally have their first female guest of 2018. This week Kelli Roberts get interviewed by Glen and Yong. Kelli is now the official "First Lady of 2018" of the Merch Minds Podcast. Kelli has been around for a while. She's pretty quiet in the groups, but she is a go-getter and successful in her own right. While her numbers on Merch are average shes makes a killing on Createspace. Kelli talks about how she operates her Merch by Amazon business. Like the boys, she is a one-man operation, and she explains her routine when it comes to Merch. She also talks about her Createspace business and how she made $21,000 in December of 2017. She recently started her own channel so make sure and subscribe. While the channel is new, she has a lot of experience under her belt. So make sure and check out her channel below. KelliPublish YouTube Channel https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCtIrgxIAX9x6nu3rJ_vfGiQ/ Sponsors Merch Informer https://merchinformer.com/223.html Merchinator https://merchinator.com/s/e66c4a55

If there is one conference we should attend this year, it's the Rocky Mountain Reseller Conference. Travis Ross, the founder of the conference, stops by and talk to Glen and Yong in this week's episode. And don't let the name fool you. This conference will have plenty of Merch topics and experts. Travis talks about he founded the conference just a few years ago. Between him and his co-founder, he was able to scale the conference in only a few years where it attracts some of the biggest players in the reselling and the Merch community. He has a very impressive lineup this year. Check out some of the speakers that will be present at this year's Rocky Mountain Reseller Conference. Eddie Levine Casey Gauss Anna Hill Amit Desai Robyn Johnson Edward Ruffin Garland Sullivan Neil Lassen Harvey Spectre Anthony Busciglio Kevin Levonas Rachel Greer Assad Siddiqi Ashlin Hadden Tim Jordan Luke Humbrecht Ken Reil Make sure and register today before it sells out. Also, the fee will go up on May 1, 2018. Use our promo code listed below and get $50 off today. Promo Code: merch50 http://resellerconference.com Sponsors Merch Informer https://merchinformer.com/223.html Merchinator https://merchinator.com/s/e66c4a55

This week Glen and Yong talk to the million dollar man! In case you haven't heard Mike Gual has been the focal point of the Merch community the past few weeks. He made over a million dollars in royalty since starting Merch with just a little over 160 shirts live. So how did he do it? He did by implementing what's now being called the Local Merch Method. He's targeting local businesses in his town and offering them an opportunity to get customers with his t-shirts. Not just that but he's creating another source of income stream for them. The boys talk with Mike and pick his brain for a whole hour. This is an episode you don't want to miss out on. Mike explains how with the Local Merch Method there is no competition. You don't have to worry about copycats or keywords. Out of all the guests the boys have interviewed Mike is probably the most humble person they have ever met. Even after making a million dollars the guy continues to work his day job. Not just that but he absolutely loves helping people in hopes that they can also succeed. This is what we don't want you to do. Even though he would be more than happy to answer your questions, please don't bombard him with 100 questions. Instead, purchase his course to support him and get direct access to Mike and his private Facebook group. There is a lot of action already taking place in his group. Mike is providing actionable content and guidance with his course and group. Through Mike, Yong has already landed a potential client within two days of talking to him. Take action today! Local Merch by Mike Gual http://bit.ly/2HnfxEq Sponsors Merch Informer https://merchinformer.com/223.html Merchinator https://merchinator.com/s/e66c4a55

Are you guys using Merch Lister Pro? If so, this is going to be an exciting episode as the boy's interview, Johnny King, the creator of MLP. And if you're not using MLP, then you will after this episode. If you follow the podcast, you know Yong had a difficult time filling up his slots because he's a one-man operation. However, Yong gives credit to Johnny and MLP as the primary reason why he was able to scale so fast from the 2k tier to the 4k tier in a matter of months. Yong spoke very highly of MLP and invited Johnny to be on the show. Johnny talks about why he created MLP. He talks about how he's also a one-man operation and how the uploading process on Merch is tedious. He wanted to streamline the uploading process, and with that he created MLP. MLP is no longer available for a one-time price. It is now available as a monthly subscription, but even then it is worth every penny at $9.97. It will speed up your uploading process and save you some serious time. If there is one tool you need for your Merch by Amazon business, then it's the Merch Lister Pro. MLP isn't just a one-time buy it and forget it tool. Johnny continues to improve it, and the support is exceptional. If you ever have questions or concerns, Johnny is quick to respond. Check out MLP today! Merch Lister Pro https://gumroad.com/a/68465779/aVpu Merch Guild Facebook Group https://www.facebook.com/groups/MerchGuild/ Sponsors Merch Informer https://merchinformer.com/223.html Merchinator https://merchinator.com/s/e66c4a55

Finally, Brother Hacks is on the show! This week Anthony Zubia, brother of Hustler Hacks, and a Jeremy Piven lookalike is a guest on the show. Anthony is also a graphic designer based out of Austin, Texas. Anthony talks about how he had his Merch by Amazon suspended. Since the suspension, he's not capitalizing off of other POD sites such as Etsy and TeePublic. He is also offering courses now on Skillshare that is relevant to the Merch by Amazon community. Anthony also talks about how he is available to do freelance work. If you're interested in hiring Anthony, you can find all his information below. Facebook https://www.facebook.com/anthonymzubia Instagram https://www.instagram.com/anthonymzubia/ Skillshare http://bit.ly/2HtAJd7 Sponsors Merch Informer https://merchinformer.com/223.html Merchinator https://merchinator.com/s/e66c4a55

Eric Rosner is an internationally beloved illustrator based in Los Angeles. He started his career working in animation, but he's now trying to launch his Merch career. The guy is so talented his work has been featured in CB2 and various publications. He's also done work for celebrities such as Jeff Bridges, Alec Baldwin, and Ed Begley Jr. As talented as he is why is he struggling on Merch? The boys talk with Eric and give him an honest critique on how he can improve his numbers. After hearing his story both Glen and Yong gave him the following advice. He should follow trends and current events. As great as his artwork is people tend to purchase items that are currently trending. Eric should build a brand under his name. Eric is already an established artist. His style is so unique it will be difficult for people to copy his work without Eric taking action. Yong suggested he focus more on his Etsy store. The style of work Eric puts out has the potential to attract a large audience on Etsy. What do you guys think? What else can Eric do to improve his numbers? Check out his work, and if you have any suggestions, please let us know. We will relay your suggestions to Eric. Website http://erosner.com/ Instagram https://www.instagram.com/erosnerart/ Sponsors Merch Dojo https://www.merchdojo.com/go?affiliate_id=1020263 Merch Informer https://merchinformer.com/223.html Merchinator https://merchinator.com/s/e66c4a55

Glen might have his groove back! His editing skills seem to be back on point. Thank goodness because the people were demanding his head on a platter. This week Glen and Yong discuss what it takes to make $10k in royalties on Merch by Amazon. After talking to Michael Essek who makes double-digits in royalties almost every month, they were inspired and try and dissect what people can do to make $10k. Making $10k has been Yong's goal for some time now. However, he was never in a rush. His approach to Merch was to put out quality designs, and for the most part, it has worked for him. Tune is as the boys discuss what it takes to make $10k per month on Merch by Amazon. Sponsors Merch Informer https://merchinformer.com/223.html Merchinator https://merchinator.com/s/e66c4a55

Maybe Glen should be fired! It seems as if he's losing his mojo. His editing skill has been subpar, and the quality of the podcasts have been mediocre. That's okay, we still love him, and he promises the audio quality will get better. In the meantime, try and listen to this week's episode of the boy's interview with Michael Essek. Michael is one of the few people who found success early on Merch by Amazon. As a designer in the U.K., he utilized his skills to scale his account to where he's making significant income. Michael talks about he scaled his account to where now he's at the 16,000 tier. He has hired both his sister and brother-in-law to help him with his business full-time. He also hired two designers, and he's now playing the role of project manager and no longer designing. Make sure to follow Michael on his blog. It's a little outdated, but the content on there is still relevant today. His ebooks are also available for purchase on his site. Michael Essek https://www.michaelessek.com Sponsors Merch Informer https://merchinformer.com/223.html Merchinator https://merchinator.com/h/e66c4a55

Glen was out of town and couldn't record this week's episode. Yong argues that he's lazy, but Glen was actually at a reselling event in Kansas. So Yong called upon the presence of the always reliable Chris Avalos aka The Thrift Hustler. There wasn't much Merch news this week. Amazon did post a video in the dashboard that clarifies their content policy. They also added Guideline 2.6, which discusses the promotion of violence on Merch by Amazon. So Yong and Chris took over Glen's YouTube channel. They talked Merch and POD in general. Chris has a unique strategy for his account. Instead of chasing trends and current events he just cruises along and is in no rush to scale his account. Make sure to subscribe to Chris's YouTube channel. He talks about all kinds of things on his channel from reselling to print on demand. Tell him Yong sent you and say "hello." Thrift Shop Hustler YouTube Channel http://bit.ly/2DlgyKD Sponsors Merch Informer https://merchinformer.com/223.html Merchinator https://merchinator.com/h/e66c4a55

In Episode 70 Glen and Yong talk about Saint Patty's Day shirts. If Saint Patty's day is anything like last year, then the shirts will sell. Hopefully, the listeners have designed some as well. Yong is one week into using Penji, which is a design agency that offers unlimited designs. While he can't compare it to other services, he gives Penji an honest review. So far he is very impressed by the designs that they have submitted. They also talk more about Glen's suspension. Glen is positive that he was suspended for some kind of IP address issue. He's confident that it had nothing to do with his design or trademark violations. Penji https://penji.co/ 10$ Discount Code: n0va (The "O" is the number zero) Sponsors Merch Informer https://merchinformer.com/223.html Merchinator https://merchinator.com/h/e66c4a55

Yes, you read the title correctly. Glen's Merch account was suspended. His account was actually suspended a month ago, and it was finally reinstated last week. While Glen was open to talking about it, he wanted to wait and see how it played out. First off, we should all be grateful for Glen being transparent and sharing his experience with everyone. Not everyone would be open to talking about what their suspension. However, Glen not only talks about it but he was open to answering questions that were thrown his way. So what happened? Glen received an email from Amazon asking questions about his IP address. There was a list about five to six questions. After Glen and Yong reviewed the questions, they concluded that the there was some issue with his IP address, While they're not certain, that was the conclusion they came to. Maybe there was a trademark violation but Glen always careful about the type of his designs. So there is really no way to know for sure. There is no way to be certain why Glen's account was suspended because Amazon is always vague in their emails. The one thing we can learn is that Amazon has full control of everyone's account. While the boys are grateful for the opportunity, they wish Amazon was more explicit about what mistakes were made so they can learn from it. Sponsors Merch Informer https://merchinformer.com/223.html Merchinator https://merchinator.com/h/e66c4a55

This week the boys talk to Johnathan Grzybowski from Penji. Johnathan is the co-founder of Penji, which is a design agency that offers high-end designs from in-house graphic designers. Unlike other agencies, they focus more on quality instead of quantity. Penji is unique because they have a streamlined back-end where you can communicate with your designer. They are also capping off their services to only 300 clients. Currently, there have 200 clients, but the spots will be filled up fast. Johnathan talks about how he hires students and graduates primarily from Rutgers University. He specifically hires students going through a design program. He also puts them through extensive training before they can be hired as a designer at Penji. You can submit unlimited designs and get unlimited revisions. Most of their work is completed within 48 hours. Their convenient month to month plan makes it easy to join with no contracts. You also get the original source files and have complete ownership of them. The best thing about Penji is you get real in-house designers that sit in the office with Jonathan. You don't get people online who claim they are designers. And Johnathan is generous enough to give the Merch Minds listeners a 10 percent discount. Just use the discount code listed below. Also, check out Johnathan's podcast where he interviews entrepreneurs from various backgrounds. Make sure and subscribe to his podcast, which is also listed below. The podcast is called the Blind Entrepreneur. Penji https://penji.co/ Discount Code: n0va (The "O" is the number zero) The Blind Entrepreneur Podcast http://theblindentrepreneur.com/ Sponsors Merch Informer https://merchinformer.com/223.html Merchinator https://merchinator.com/h/e66c4a55

Passive income is a term that is being thrown around in the Facebook groups. Many content creators are claiming that they are earning passive with Merch by Amazon. While it's been discussed by Glen and Yong in the past, they discuss in-depth in this week's episode on whether Merch is really passive income. By definition, passive income is when you do all the necessary work up front resulting in cash flow on a regular basis. Glen argues that Merch is the closest thing to passive income. However, Yong strongly believes that you have to constantly work on your Merch account. What do you guys think? Merch by Amazon is not hard labor, but it does require effort. Whether you are a designer or not Merch can bring in a nice income stream. Regardless of whether you believe Merch by Amazon is passive income or not let the boys know what your thoughts are. Sponsors Merch Informer https://merchinformer.com/223.html Merchinator https://merchinator.com/h/e66c4a55

Didn't Yong mention in a previous episode that he hasn't had a cold in over ten years? Well, he jinxed himself when he made that comment. He caught a cold, and he suffered big time. However, like Michael Jordan in the epic "flu game" Yong came and performed. This week Michael Essany from Merch Momentum stops by to talk to Glen and Yong. Michael shares his journey into Merch, but he also discusses his new weekly Merch Momentum Monday Strategy Guide. Guys, this isn't your typical guide. Michael goes in-depth on his own best-selling niches, but he also shares niches you could have never even thought of. Every week you get over 15-plus pages of Michael's insight of the Merch business. In fact, Yong is so certain that you will find value in the guide that he is doing something no one else dares. He is personally putting up his own ten dollars that you will find value in Michael Essany's strategy guide. Within two weeks of your initial subscription if you don't find value in Michael's guide Yong will personally you the ten dollars out of his own pocket. After your refund, your subscription will be canceled. This really is worth the price so sign up today. Merch Momentum Monday Strategy Guide https://gumroad.com/a/660780147 Sponsors Merch Informer https://merchinformer.com/223.html Merchinator https://merchinator.com/h/e66c4a55