Having your own web store as a broadcaster can be very beneficial for exposure and an added source of income. We recently spoke to Trey Swartz the Director of Business Development for all things Design By Humans Gaming. If you were interested in opening a web store, the interview below should shed some light on the topic.
Interview by: Chris
Images by: Design By Humans
Streamer News: Can you please introduce yourself and tell us what you do in the industry?
[su_note note_color=”#f5f5f5″ text_color=”#2f2f2f” radius=”4″]Sure. My name is Trey Swartz and I’m currently in charge of business development as it pertains to all things gaming for DesignByHumans
[/su_note]How long have you been working with design by humans? The gaming division really started to take off last year.
[su_note note_color=”#f5f5f5″ text_color=”#2f2f2f” radius=”4″]Since summer of last year, ha.
[/su_note]That’s pretty impressive with how much it has grown for a new division. What do you look for when creating new storefronts for broadcasters, teams, and companies?
[su_note note_color=”#f5f5f5″ text_color=”#2f2f2f” radius=”4″]Thanks! It’s definitely been busy and it seems like more and more people are taking notice. As far as what we look for, I’m happy being the merchandising solution for every partnered broadcaster. I’d like to get them all on-boarded eventually. For teams we handle all the merch for Evil Geniuses, Winterfox, Alliance, etc. and are looking to bring a few more on in the coming months. Additionally we currently have licenses for Blizzard, Ubisoft, Star Wars, and more. We’ll of course be looking to bring on more licenses this year as well.
[/su_note]Have you been working in the apparel industry for a while? What was your background before?
[su_note note_color=”#f5f5f5″ text_color=”#2f2f2f” radius=”4″]I already had some limited knowledge of apparel manufacturing, but prior to this my background is just heavy in marketing. I was an ad agency Creative Director pitching new business and before that worked for NBC launching their interactive department. Games have always been a passion.
Now you get to mix your marketing skill sets with one of your passions. Which seems to be the equation for the perfect job for some people.
[su_note note_color=”#f5f5f5″ text_color=”#2f2f2f” radius=”4″]That was the idea, ha. So far it’s been great.
[/su_note]Do the partnered broadcasters have to have a certain requirement for a store front?
[su_note note_color=”#f5f5f5″ text_color=”#2f2f2f” radius=”4″]Typically, no. We try and stay intentionally inclusive. We definitely want to make sure the brand is represented well, so far we have not had any issues with the broadcasters we have worked with.
[/su_note]Understood, makes sense. Then anyone and everyone could have a DBH Gaming store.
Design By Humans had a nice booth at TwitchCon. What was it like having the broadcaster meet, greet and sell exclusive products during the first ever con in San Francisco?
[su_note note_color=”#f5f5f5″ text_color=”#2f2f2f” radius=”4″]Absolutely! TwitchCon was a blast! We naturally have a lot of gamers in the office so it was just fun all around. And yeah it definitely turned into a place to hang out and chat which wasn’t a bad thing. The primary goal of selling merch at the event was more of a service to the broadcasters. As a company we want to support them as both a fan and a partner in a way that gives them as many revenue streams as possible.
You also released exclusive broadcaster merchandise that exclusively released at TwitchCon, do you plan to do that for future conventions you will have a booth at?
[su_note note_color=”#f5f5f5″ text_color=”#2f2f2f” radius=”4″]Definitely. We plan on being at most events this year in some capacity and will sell exclusive merch at the events where it makes the most sense.
[/su_note]Online you also do limited campaigns for a set amount of time. Do you feel the sell through and success rate is higher on those or products that are available all the time?
[su_note note_color=”#f5f5f5″ text_color=”#2f2f2f” radius=”4″]I would say so because of the sense of urgency it creates. It just ultimately depends on the individual’s ability to drive traffic.
[/su_note]Agreed, and usually the design is never available again in that style.
What would you say the top benefits are for a broadcaster to open a store with DBH Gaming compared to other web stores?
[su_note note_color=”#f5f5f5″ text_color=”#2f2f2f” radius=”4″]All of the above, ha. Partners have the ability to run both campaigns but also offer products on-demand which is of huge benefit to their fan base. And while there are other on-demand services we have a very high production quality on account of all our licenses. So when you order a product for a streamer you’re getting the same quality that is going out for officially licensed Star Wars apparel (as just one example). We have distribution facilities both domestic and international and ship to over 187 countries for as low as $4. We have a completely open API that’s available to everyone which allows for integration with TwitchAlerts, SubAlerts, etc for live on screen notifications. We have in house artists dedicated to creating designs for all of our streaming partners. Custom promo codes for subs, affiliate and referral programs, access to licenses, free product for giveaways, and a whole lot more. Basically if a streamer wants it and it makes sense we’ll do it.
That’s not even mentioning our customer service team, social teams, etc.
That’s cool how open DBH is when working with broadcasters. It allows them to create custom options for their viewership and own business.
You recently started selling stickers, do you plan to sell other accessories?
[su_note note_color=”#f5f5f5″ text_color=”#2f2f2f” radius=”4″]We do. We have quite a few new products in the pipeline. Several of which are being added specifically because of requests from streaming partners.
[/su_note]That’s cool, can’t wait to see what other products DBH Gaming will add. The options are already quite a bit from design prints to phone cases.
What other future plans and personal goals do you have for DBH Gaming?
[su_note note_color=”#f5f5f5″ text_color=”#2f2f2f” radius=”4″]Just to continue to grow that segment and to further cement ourselves as the go to solution for streamers and content creators. The specifics of which I’m very excited about, I just unfortunately can’t share the details yet 🙂
[/su_note]Haha, understood. In closing, what advice would you give to a broadcaster trying to open a web store on DBH Gaming and what is the best way to do do?
[su_note note_color=”#f5f5f5″ text_color=”#2f2f2f” radius=”4″]Do it! Ha. It’s a really simple process and doesn’t take but a second. They can sign up here dbh.la/apply and if they have any questions shouldn’t hesitate to email us at [email protected]
[/su_note]SN: Haha understood.
In closing, Awesome! Thanks for your time Trey, we look forward to all the new features Design By Humans will offer for the new year.
