Redbubble was founded in 2006 by Australian entrepreneurs Martin Hosking, Peter Styles, and Paul Vanzella. It was created to give creators an opportunity to sell their designs on a print-on-demand product. The platform was acquired by its competitor, TeePublic, in October 2018. Redbubble has over 700,000 creators and over five million customers on its platform.
What is Redbubble?
Redbubble is a print-on-demand platform that lets sellers add their custom designs to products. Sellers can add their designs to products, such as stickers, phone cases, wall art, stationery, clothing, and more.
Buyers can browse a collection of professionally designed items to purchase. For example, shoppers can buy graphic tees on the platform. Redbubble regularly offers discounts on its platform. Products range in price, but a graphic tee falls between $20 and $35.
How does Redbubble work?
Redbubble works by having a designer create a design for a product using their recommended dimensions for that particular product. For example, the printable area of men’s t-shirts is larger than that of women’s. Each product you design needs to match its dimensions. Redbubble also has a maximum file size limit of 13500 x 13500 or 300 MB.
Once you’ve created your design in the right size, you can log in to Redbubble and add your product to start selling. From there, Redbubble adds your design to the product. They also ship the product to the customer for you.
Then, buyers browsing the website can purchase your products. To rank higher in search, you’ll need to use keyword optimization. For example, adding the name of the phone and model for phone cases you design. Getting a few sales will also help buyers find your products more easily, so promoting products yourself can help too.
What you need to know about selling on Redbubble
One thing you need to know about Redbubble is that it can be hard to build a profitable business on the platform. There is a 20% platform fee for premium artists. However, there is a standard 50% fee on monthly earnings. Also, sellers who set product markups will be charged a 50% fee if the markup is more than 20% higher. The enforced fee cap is $150 each pay period. Overall, these fees are expensive and hurt your earning potential.
Redbubble is also highly competitive, with millions of products to choose from. Customers will likely buy items they see first or that they’re specifically looking for. If you’re a new seller, you might not have as much visibility on the platform as a more experienced seller. Getting visibility may require you to run your own ads. However, Redbubble specifically states that you can’t integrate with their Facebook pixel or Google Merchant Center.
You don’t own your customer data on Redbubble either. For example, you can’t build an email list with those who buy your products; only Redbubble owns that data. Thus, making retargeting and remarketing efforts harder. Considering most buyers are usually repeat customers, it’s important to choose a platform where you can own your email list.
Redbubble also has high standards for its products. If your products don’t meet that standard, they may be removed. For example, you can’t have repetitive designs, use unmodified vector packs, clip art, or royalty-free photos, or have low-resolution photos. Overall, if you’re hoping to use someone else’s design, even if you paid for a commercial license, and add it to a product, you’ll find that your product will likely be removed.
This platform also doesn’t offer instant payouts. Instead, you’ll get paid on the 15th of every month, provided you were on the platform on the 1st of the month, when the pay period begins. Orders that haven’t shipped will be added to the following month’s pay. If your account is suspended, you will not receive any compensation, even if you generated sales from your order.
Is Redbubble the best platform to sell products?
No, Redbubble isn’t the best platform to sell products; Payhip is. Payhip is a Redbubble alternative that allows you to sell products on your website. You’ll be able to create your own products and sell items beyond just physical products. For example, you can sell ebooks, software, courses, coaching services, memberships, and more. If you’re a designer, you can still sell your assets on the platform too. To start building your own website, you can sign up today.