Having trouble keeping your print on demand community buzzing with excitement? Community challenges are a proven way to spark creativity, boost participation, and make your group more fun. Use these ready-to-go challenge templates to inspire action and connect your members.
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Community challenges tap into our natural desire for play, achievement, and social connection. By inviting members to participate in fun or educational activities, you create a sense of belonging and shared purpose. Challenges foster friendly competition and give everyone an easy entry point to engage, even if they are usually quiet.
Print on demand communities thrive on creativity and experimentation. Regular challenges encourage members to try new design styles, share their work, and learn from each other. This ongoing engagement helps members build confidence, showcase their skills, and feel valued by the group.
Challenge time! Design a product for a quirky holiday coming up. Post your creation below.
💡 Example: "Challenge time! Design a product for National Donut Day. Post your creation below."
Show us your best-selling print on demand item this month. What made it a hit?
💡 Example: "Show us your best-selling print on demand mug this month. What made it a hit?"
Mini challenge: Create a product using only three colors. Share your designs in the comments.
💡 Example: "Mini challenge: Create a product using only red, black, and white. Share your designs in the comments."
Try a new product type this week and share your experience. Did you enjoy it?
💡 Example: "Try a new product type this week, like tote bags, and share your experience. Did you enjoy it?"
Design duels! Post your favorite t-shirt design and let the group vote with likes.
💡 Example: "Design duels! Post your favorite cat t-shirt design and let the group vote with likes."
Flash challenge: Make a design in 30 minutes or less. Can you do it?
💡 Example: "Flash challenge: Make a design in 30 minutes or less. Can you do it?"
Share your first print on demand product ever. What would you change now?
💡 Example: "Share your first print on demand mug. What would you change now?"
Weekly theme: Nature. Create and post a product inspired by the outdoors.
💡 Example: "Weekly theme: Nature. Create and post a product inspired by the outdoors."
Can you make a design using only text, no images? Share your results below.
💡 Example: "Can you make a design using only text, no images? Share your results below."
Post a product you made that surprised you with its popularity.
💡 Example: "Post a mug you made that surprised you with its popularity."
Take the 7-day upload challenge: Add one new product each day. Who's in?
💡 Example: "Take the 7-day upload challenge: Add one new product each day. Who's in?"
Show us your workspace. How do you stay organized while creating products?
💡 Example: "Show us your workspace. How do you stay organized while creating products?"
Design a product for your favorite fandom. Share your work and tag a friend.
💡 Example: "Design a product for your favorite anime fandom. Share your work and tag a friend."
Group challenge: Everyone create a sticker design this week. Post your results here.
💡 Example: "Group challenge: Everyone create a sticker design this week. Post your results here."
Share your favorite design tool or resource for print on demand.
💡 Example: "Share your favorite design tool or resource for print on demand."
Try remaking an old design in a new style. Show us the before and after.
💡 Example: "Try remaking an old t-shirt design in a new style. Show us the before and after."
Monthly goal check-in: How many new products did you launch? Celebrate your wins.
💡 Example: "Monthly goal check-in: How many new products did you launch? Celebrate your wins."
Create a product inspired by a trending meme. Share your funniest design.
💡 Example: "Create a product inspired by the latest cat meme. Share your funniest design."
What is your go-to mockup style? Show us an example from your shop.
💡 Example: "What is your go-to mockup style? Show us an example from your shop."
Weekend challenge: Upload a new product using a color you rarely use.
💡 Example: "Weekend challenge: Upload a new product using a color you rarely use."
Create a design for a specific niche, like pets or travel. Share your ideas.
💡 Example: "Create a design for the pet lover niche. Share your ideas."
Share your best tip for getting more reviews on your print on demand products.
💡 Example: "Share your best tip for getting more reviews on your print on demand products."
Lightning round: Post your quickest design ever. How long did it take?
💡 Example: "Lightning round: Post your quickest design ever. How long did it take?"
Vote: Which print on demand platform do you love most? Share your reasons.
💡 Example: "Vote: Which print on demand platform do you love most? Share your reasons."
Try making a product for a different audience than usual. What did you learn?
💡 Example: "Try making a product for teachers if you usually target students. What did you learn?"
Post a product that did not sell as expected. Ask the group for feedback.
💡 Example: "Post a mug that did not sell as expected. Ask the group for feedback."
Throwback challenge: Use a retro font or style in a new design.
💡 Example: "Throwback challenge: Use a retro font or style in a new design."
Show us your process: Share a behind-the-scenes photo or story from your latest launch.
💡 Example: "Show us your process: Share a behind-the-scenes photo from your latest t-shirt launch."
Challenge: Create a matching set of two products. Share the pair below.
💡 Example: "Challenge: Create a matching mug and tote bag. Share the pair below."
Create a design using only free resources. List what you used with your post.
💡 Example: "Create a design using only free resources. List what you used with your post."
Share a print on demand fail and what you learned from it.
💡 Example: "Share a print on demand fail and what you learned from it."
Holiday prep: Create a product for the next big event. Show us your ideas.
💡 Example: "Holiday prep: Create a product for Halloween. Show us your ideas."
Suggest a new challenge idea for the group. What would you like to try next?
💡 Example: "Suggest a new challenge idea for the group. What would you like to try next?"
Who inspired your latest design? Give them a shout-out and share your creation.
💡 Example: "Who inspired your latest design? Give them a shout-out and share your creation."
Try a collaboration: Team up with another member and make a joint product.
💡 Example: "Try a collaboration: Team up with another member and make a joint product."
Share a tip for staying motivated during slow sales seasons.
💡 Example: "Share a tip for staying motivated during slow sales seasons."
Create a product based on a customer review. Show us the inspiration and result.
💡 Example: "Create a product based on a customer review. Show us the inspiration and result."
Show off your best packaging idea for print on demand orders.
💡 Example: "Show off your best packaging idea for print on demand orders."
Challenge: Launch a product in a completely new category. Report back with your results.
💡 Example: "Challenge: Launch a product in a completely new category. Report back with your results."
Pick your favorite color palette and use it for a new design. Show us the outcome.
💡 Example: "Pick your favorite color palette and use it for a new design. Show us the outcome."
Share your print on demand goals for next month. Who else is setting big plans?
💡 Example: "Share your print on demand goals for next month. Who else is setting big plans?"
Show us a design that made you laugh while making it.
💡 Example: "Show us a design that made you laugh while making it."
Pick a challenge template that fits your community's vibe and current goals. Announce it with clear instructions and an inviting tone. Encourage all members to participate, and offer small incentives or shout-outs to keep motivation high. Remember to interact with participants, highlight great entries, and share updates on progress. Rotate challenge types to keep things fresh and interesting.
On all platforms, use pinned posts or announcements to highlight challenges. Leverage polls, photo albums, or hashtags to organize entries. Respond promptly to submissions and tag participants to keep the momentum going.
Print on Demand trends shift rapidly, so use challenge templates focused on sharing current bestsellers, trending niches (like holiday themes or viral memes), and evergreen design topics. Prompt members to post screenshots of their current trending products or discuss what’s working in their shops, then encourage feedback and discussion around niche selection and trend spotting.
Use templates that ask members to post side-by-side mockup images from different platforms or with various background settings. Specify the platform in the challenge (e.g., 'Show us your Redbubble tote mockup!'), and include prompts about mockup style choices, file requirements, and how visual presentation impacts conversion rates in the POD space.
Leverage challenge prompts that explicitly ask members to describe their design process regarding commercial licensing, use of stock assets, or inspiration sources. Include specific language reminding members to avoid trademarked content and to discuss how they ensure their designs comply with platform-specific content policies.
Create challenges where members post their product listings with pricing and explain the rationale (e.g., premium pricing for limited edition designs or value pricing for high-volume items). Use template prompts that ask for A/B test results or invite feedback on how pricing impacts sales conversions and profit margins in the POD context.
Customize a challenge template that prompts members to share screenshots or descriptions of rejected designs, specifying the platform (e.g., Merch by Amazon, Zazzle). Ask them to detail the reason for rejection (e.g., trademark issues, low quality, or policy violation) and what changes they made to gain approval, fostering peer learning and awareness of platform guidelines.
Design challenges that prompt members to share anonymized or percentage-based performance data, such as 'Which design saw your biggest month-over-month growth?' or 'Share a graph of your top 3 performing SKUs.' Remind members not to disclose confidential marketplace data or violate any platform’s TOS, and encourage sharing general trends or learnings rather than exact figures.
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