Using your existing customer base

If you have an existing apparel decorating business, there is no need to look further than your existing customer base. Everyday you are delivering orders to your customers; why not add a little advertisement in the form of a printed shirt to the order?  Make sure you put your logo on the shirt (small is okay) and include a brief note "introducing" your customers to the direct to garment process, maybe even offer a discount on their first direct to garment order for a limited time if they mention the note you included. If you want a more generic approach , try coming up with a collage design that shows a family reunion, little league sports team, In Memory of, Looks who's 40, etc on it. Any type of event that may merit a t-shirt to commemorate it would be good on this shirt. Use your imagination and watch the orders start coming in.

If you are starting up a business with the direct to garment printer, more than likely you had some direction prior to your purchase. It doesn't hurt to "fish" a bit for more business, however. If you have a passion (soccer, football, fishing, dogs, cats, etc.), try to find a local group that will provide a venue for you show custom t-shirts that you can produce either onsite or by taking orders. Going to a dog show or a custom car show with a "generic" custom shirt, a digital camera and an order pad can be a good way to get orders. Make sure to include enough profit in the order to be able to Priority Mail the finished garment to the customer ($4 should be enough). You can also try taking out ads in small, local periodicals as well - they are usually inexpensive and target specific geographic areas or demographics.

If your business model is more business to business (B2B) then a slightly different approach will work. Invest in one of the inexpensive business card scanners (they are available for less than $75) and simply pick up business cards from prospective clients and generate a custom shirt with their logo on it and bring it in to them. This is a great ice breaker and can very easily open doors for you, maybe for even more business other than just your direct to garment printer. With a little cleanup you may also be able to pull this feat off from potential customers' websites (be aware that most web graphics are only 72 DPI - so you may need to do a bit of software magic!).

These are not the only ways to make money with your DTG, but they are a good start. If you notice one thing - all of these methods involve actually printing a sample shirt and showing or giving it to a prospective client. They need to be sold on this process, just as you were when you bought your machine. Odds are that you requested and received a sample prior to making the commitment to "go digital". Besides, it's good for your machine to print everyday, so why not turn maintenance into an advertisement!