YouTube Launches Merch Store For All Partners

Last year YouTube launched the Merch Store to help indie musicians with the sale of music, concert tickets and merch by partnering with Amazon, iTunes, Topppin, Songkick and Google Play. Today YouTube announced through the Creator Blog that they would be expanding on the Merch Store concept by allowing any YouTube account holder in good standing to add a store to their channel.

Image courtesy of YouTube Creator Blog.

The evolution of the Merch Store includes a partnership with CafePress, a promotional merchandise company that boasts 11 million unique visitors to their site each month, that will help account holders to create the merchandise they wish to sell on their YouTube channel.

Well I'm sure this evolution was designed for YouTube channel owners like Jenna Marbles, whose nyan cat costume I need to steal for Halloween this year, or Epic Meal Time; I can't help but see the value in the Merch Store for brands.

More and more often community managers and digital strategists sit in on a brief only to be told by the client that, "We need a viral video." Which, as we've said before, is a very difficult task to accomplish but if you succeed at creating an incredible video that miraculously goes viral then what does the brand get in return? We can't directly correlate a rise in Skittle sales after the launch of their award winning cat video. Until now.

What if after watching the strange cat video, admittedly more than just the 1 time, I could purchase Skittles merch? What if I could buy some weird cat ears and a bag of Skittles? What if I could purchase a light that looks like the broken Skittles rainbow? Wouldn't that be fantastic?!

By adding a Merch Store to all accounts YouTube has opened the door for endless merchandising opportunities both for brands and vloggers.

I for one can't wait to see what some of my favourite channels produce... seriously Jenna, I want that nyan cat costume.

- Shan