75 Ideas for the Band Merch Table

Many musicians have a hard time making a living making music, partly because they have a hard time accepting that being a working musician/band also means running your own small business. But that is exactly what has to happen in order to find success as a professional musician and actually make money.

One key area to spend a lot of time on is your band's merch table. Why? Well, for one, it is a place where you can meet and mingle with fans, so it is important that it be representative of you and your band. Secondly, it is a means to actually make money, even if you show up to a venue that has conveniently found a way out of compensating you for your musical abilities. And finally, the items you sell at your merch table are not just meaningless knickknacks for people to buy and ignore; hopefully, they will be a great way to continually promote your music and your band in the areas you perform, even when you're not in town. I'm sure there are other good reasons for having a solid band merch table, but do you really need any more?

What makes up a good merch table? What should a good merch table be? That's open to debate. But as a musician in a band with some experience in this area, I personally think a good merch table should be:

• Something appealing to the eye
• Something that offers a variety of items in multiple price ranges
• Something that includes means of clearly stating the band's name (and tour name, if applicable) as well as merchandise prices and deals to avoid confusion
• Something that offers up interaction (email list sign-up, freebies, autographs, photos together, collaborative artist/audience artwork, Polaroids and a scrapbook, etc.)
• Something that allows for multiple methods of payment
• Something that is run professionally without being stuffy

But you can't have a band merch table at all without actual merchandise to offer (otherwise, it would just be a band table...) So that is why I am here to offer you 75 ideas for the band merch table. I truly hope they help you out.

1. a tip jar
2. business cards
3. a way to sign up for your mailing list
4. stickers / bumper stickers
5. CDs
6. t-shirts
7. matchbooks / matchboxes
8. posters
9. photos
10. autographed photos
11. lighters
12. coasters
13. beer cozies
14. shot glasses
15. coffee mugs
16. tote bags / reusable shopping bags
17. patches
18. thongs
19. balloons
20. mousepads
21. memo pads
22. buttons
23. bandanas / scarves
24. sweatshirts
25. beach towels

26. pens /pencils

27. digital download cards

28. temporary tattoos

29. wine bottle cozies

30. ashtrays

31. jewelry

32. hats

33. water bottles

34. blankets

35. vinyl records

36. lanyards

37. stuffed animals

38. back scratchers

39. pajamas

40. leggings

41. mini coolers

42. flashlights

43. magnets

44. ornaments

45. keychains

46. DVDs

47. boxer shorts

48. tank tops

49. bobble heads

50. disposable cameras

51. guitar picks

52. beer steins

53. journals

54. tapestries

55. flip flops

56. windbreakers / jackets

57. onesies, bibs, and other baby stuff

58. paperweights

59. letter openers

60. flasks

61. shoe horns

62. aprons

63. banners / flags

64. pillowcases

65. decals

66. photo books

67. shoelaces

68. wallets

69. emery boards

70. tissue packs

71. phone / tablet / laptop cases

72. car air fresheners

73. tablecloths

74. candies / mints

75. drumsticks, old gear and stage costumes

Well, there you have it: 75 ideas for the band merch table. Some of the ideas may have been more obvious to some of you than others, and not all of the ideas will be your band's cup of tea, but I do hope that every musician who reads this gets something positive out of it, even if they don't use a single idea.

Peace and Love and Rock n' Roll!

I hope that you enjoyed my list of 75 ideas for the band merch table. I am glad that I put it together as a resource for myself and my band and even more glad that I can now share it with you all, and help others who are in the same boat as me and my band.

Be sure to check out the additional resources I have for you in the "Helpful Links" section as well, and if you have any more ideas for items to add to the list, please share them in the comments section below! I'm sure people would love to hear them! (I know I would!)

Thanks for reading and rock on!