Celebrating 31 Years
If you took a stroll through downtown Reading between April 1st and April 10th, you may have heard the smooth sounds of easy jazz billowing out of the local pubs, restaurants, and eateries. Perhaps you were even lucky enough to grab tickets to the headlining shows that packed venues such as The Santander Performing Arts Center and the Double Tree by Hilton. For ten incredible days, performers like Steely Dan! and Boney James called Reading their home and brought the city to life with the energy and excitement that only jazz can offer.
A staple in the Berks County community, this year’s annual Berks Jazzfest celebrated 31 years, and the directors wanted to make sure this year’s theme was special. After two years of unreliable rescheduling and COVID disruptions, it was clear that this year should focus entirely on the most important aspect of the festival: its fans.
In Executive Director Justin Heimbecker’s welcome letter, he highlighted the resilience and enthusiasm of the Jazzfest fans in making this year’s event a reality. In addition, he encouraged Jazzfest fans to stop by the Marketplace to grab some “swag.”
Jersey Ink caught up with Justin Heimbecker to discuss the importance of event merchandise and the secrets to better merchandise sales.
The Secrets to Selling Merchandise
What are some strategies you use to enhance merchandise sales?
JH: “I would say that starting with a solid graphic and design for our audience is key. We have two ‘evergreen’ logos and one specific graphic for the gear, so when you combine them, they make a really nice store with variety.
The other thing that we are always looking at is presentation and location. This year we shifted our merchandise marketplace closer to the bar area and where there was more guaranteed foot traffic. We also utilized rolling racks and grid wall to use HEIGHT effectively, rather than only using tables. It created more of a walk-through experience for the customer, which was really beneficial.”
What did you do to generate interest in the merchandise before the event began?
JH: “The addition of an online pre-sale this year helped us to generate interest (and revenue) before the festival even started. And, it cut down on lines and wait times because we had those pre-sale orders packaged and ready to hand off to the customer when they arrived. And we trusted that they would still come back for more during their stay.”
Did you do anything different or new this year to attract more attention to the merchandise?
JH: “We definitely took a few risks this year with new ideas (jackets, barware, etc.), and with those, we ordered relatively low quantities. We can get away with that because we have an awesome partner who is able and willing to re-print for us if something is really selling well!
The NICO tribute shirt was a limited edition, ‘once in a lifetime’ shirt that had a lot of emotion attached to it for our fans. We received a blessing from his family and agent to go ahead with the shirt, and we ended up placing TWO re-orders in a matter of two weeks. By far, NICO was the hit of the year.”
What was your favorite part of the process?
JH: “The best part is the process of working with our staff, volunteers, designers, and producers to make sure that we are considering many perspectives before making final decisions. And then, when it works and fans love the merch, it’s a rewarding feeling for the entire team!!"
Lessons from an Expert
Design graphics with your audience in mind.
It’s easy to come up with a logo that YOU like, but not as easy to come up with something that your target audience will relate to. Keeping your audience in mind is the first step in creating desirable merchandise.
Generate merchandise interest before your event.
Just about every event we attend is accompanied by merchandise but rarely does the audience get to see this merchandise prior to the event. Using your merchandise as imagery in social media posts and advertisements leading up to the event can generate stronger interest and drive people to merchandise booths upon arrival.
Take risks.
Justin’s team added new items to their offerings this year, taking the risk that they may not sell. They worked closely with our team here at Jersey Ink and relied on our ability to print items that were unexpectedly popular. In addition to taking risks, this highlights the importance of having a close relationship with your printer. The better the relationship, the more prepared we are to help out in an emergency situation.
Collaborate with a team.
Justin did not make merchandise decisions unilaterally. He collaborated with a team of volunteers, designers, and producers to brainstorm the best possible ideas for the target audience. (Spoiler alert: This team was made up of people who belong to the target audience.) Having a strong team dynamic breeds buy-in and makes the success of the event the entire team’s success.
If you want to speak with our team about your merchandise printing, please reach out!