When you’re trying to promote a clothing brand, the competition can be fierce on platforms where other companies advertise. The more clothing companies bid on related keywords, the higher the cost to run ads.

However, that doesn’t mean it’s not worth spending money on ads. Paid ads work quite well, and when combined with other marketing strategies, it’s not hard to create a successful clothing brand.

Here’s what you can do.

1. Make it easy for people to view color selections

Whether you’re selling t-shirts, jeans, jackets, shoes, or anything else, make it easy to preview your different color or design options on your website. Don’t upload an image of a mockup or model that includes an embedded visual of what looks like a color selection tool, but isn’t functional. People will feel tricked and frustrated when they try to click on it to view other colors.

Instead, use an ecommerce platform that creates working color selection options that function even before the user clicks through to the main product page. The women’s leather boots page from Portland Leather is a perfect example of this. All you have to do is hover over the product image and select the color you want to preview.

The easier you make your website to use, the more likely you are to get sales. This includes everything from an easy navigation menu to a user-friendly checkout experience.

2. Research your market

Hopefully, you’ve already done enough market research to know your target market inside and out. If not, don’t skip this step. Thorough market research is what makes it possible to advertise successfully and generate sales.

When you started your clothing brand, you should have already done the research to know what type of clothing brand to start based on market needs. However, if you started your brand based on your passion first, you’ll need to dive a little deeper to find your market.

Advertising to a general market will only take you so far in terms of sales. You’ll have to put in more effort because you won’t be able to easily personalize marketing messages. To really drive sales, you need to identify a narrow target market and craft messages specifically for those people. If you haven’t already defined the avatar for your ideal customer, drop everything and start there. Once you get this, your ads and email marketing efforts will yield better results.

3. Order samples when drop shipping

If you’re using a company for drop shipping, order samples of every type of product you sell to make sure the quality is there. Getting samples will also help you market your products because once you have a sample in your hands, you can write better descriptions and even take video of someone handling your items.

Based on your samples, you’ll know immediately if the item is worth selling or if you should switch suppliers. Poor quality will tank a clothing brand fast. Ordering your own items will also help you decipher problems reflected in negative or neutral reviews.

For instance, you might need to update your descriptions with information that matters to your customers – details  that you overlooked when you didn’t have the product in hand.

4. Don’t bid on branded keywords

When you run paid ads on sites like Facebook and Instagram, make sure you aren’t bidding on keywords that belong to other brands, including their trademarks. For example, if you sell workout clothes, you might be tempted to use words like Nike, and that would be a bad idea. You’ll probably get your ad campaigns canceled and you run the risk of being sued.

Always make sure to use non-trademarked keywords for your paid ads. Use your own brand name and words that describe your product, but avoid using terms that include other people’s brands.

5. Advertise on channels where your market hangs out

Make sure to run ads where your market spends time. For instance, not every market will be on Instagram or Facebook, and some markets are easier to catch from Google searches.

It doesn’t hurt to advertise on all possible channels in the beginning to see which platform produces the best results. From there, you can eliminate the ones that don’t perform.

Keep marketing your brand

Unless you create a brand that takes the world by storm and generates natural brand ambassadors, you’ll need to continue marketing your brand with high intensity.

The good news is you don’t have to achieve rockstar status to be successful. As long as you’re reaching your goals and increasing profits, you can consider your clothing brand a success.