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7 tips to make more money with Etsy

admin — Wed, 22 Jun 2011 02:49:06 +0000

When you think about selling your handcrafted goods on the internet, it’s hard not to think of Etsy. They allow anyone to list their handycrafts even without much knowledge about opening an online store and it’s free to list with a low commission on sold items. Although Etsy takes care of the technical aspect of listing your wares online the promotion and success of your shop is up to you and without going this extra mile it is easy to be disappointed. Below are some tips to help you make more money with Etsy.

Read up about Search Engine Optimization

Although Etsy is a popular marketplace you still need to do some work yourself to drive traffic to your shop. You can do this by improving your shop’s position in search engines for certain keywords that your customer is likely to search for. Try to think of the best possible words to describe your shop and your items. What would a customer search for to find you? Your shop title, section names, item listing pages and shop announcement should contain these important keywords.

Can’t think of keywords? Use a keyword suggestion tool.

Google Adwords has a fantastic keyword suggestion tool that not only shows you keyword ideas but also other useful info like how many local and global monthly searches are performed looking for the particular keyword. This will give you an idea of the best words to use throughout your shop to get more customers.

Get social on Etsy

Etsy is a social marketplace and community and the more you participate the better. You can post on their forum, join teams, exchange links between shops and take part in Buy and Replace treasuries.
Etsy Teams – This is a feature on Etsy where you can connect and collaborate with other Etsy members. Teams band together to help promote each other’s items. There are many teams on Etsy and they are a great way to help you make more money with your shop or just to mingle with other crafters. It is also a good way to get advice from fellow Etsy users who may have more experience.
Buy and Replace Treasuries – Buy and Replace Treasuries can help you gain sales and be noticed by fellow Etsians. Purchase an item from the treasury of your choice and that item is replaced by one from your shop. More info can be found on the Etsy forums.
Link exchanges between stores – Find a store with good sales that does not sell the same products as you. Ask if they would be willing to exchange links with you by listing your store as one of their favorites in their shop announcement, and sweeten the deal with a free item from your shop. In turn, list theirs and return the favor. Thanks to Andrea Albee- Owner/Creator of etsy.com/shop/althea1326 for this tip.

Get social on Facebook and Twitter
Start a page on Facebook and use Twitter as well to promote your shop. Just make sure not to spam, make it interesting, colourful and of value to your customers. Here is an example of a good Facebook page promoting their Etsy shop: facebook.com/AnnaKayCreations

Join other online communities
There are plenty of crafty communities on the internet. Forums, blogs, craft directories, these are all places where you can comment, leave a link (remember to read their rules first) and it all help in getting the word out there about your craft. As well as the promotion it also helps improve your Search Engine rankings.

Start a blog
Why not start a blog that aims to capture the audience that might be interested in your craft items? There are many benefits to blogging about your business and it can open more doors too as well as help you make money on Etsy. There are many sites where you can start a free blog such as wordpress.com and blogger.com

Promote offline
Don’t forget to promote offline too. Hand out business cards wherever you go and also include one with each sale you make.

Make money creating wedding invitations

admin — Sun, 01 May 2011 03:31:45 +0000

If you are a crafty person who designs cards and wedding invitations WeddingInviteLove.com may just be the site you are looking for. It is a bit like a directory of wedding invitations, designed in a way to help the customer find just the right product for their wedding. The site does not mention how much fees or commission they take if anything, but it is worth a look. It could be a great way to promote your wedding invite business, the site is nicely designed and focused.

Becoming a successful Etsy seller

admin — Tue, 13 Jul 2010 00:48:35 +0000

Etsy is a popular site for creative individuals to sell their products. The site is growing exponentially, and buyers and sellers are both flocking to it in droves. Number of sales on the popular website continue to soar. Last year the company sold over 180 million dollars worth of products and hundreds of sellers regularly use it as a place to make a full-time or supplemental income.

The site has become an ideal place for artists and creative-types to sell their hand-made goods. However, selling on Etsy isn’t always as easy as it looks. Many sellers never sell more than a handful of products and don’t have much success. Fortunately, there are certain things that potential Etsy sellers can do to increase their chances of success and ensure a profitable endeavor.

Quality
To become a successful seller on Etsy, entrepreneurs need to ensure that their products are high quality and one of a kind. Etsy is famous for offering products that can’t be found anywhere else in the world. The most successful sellers make a special effort to ensure that what they create and sell is unique. Buyers are simply more likely to purchase unique products.

Photographing your product
Another factor that needs to be considered for success on Etsy is to ensure that photographs and descriptions of the product are extremely high quality. Unlike a brick-and-mortar store where individuals have the opportunity to see, feel, and closely examine products, Etsy buyers are purchasing products that they’ve never seen in person. It’s crucial that sellers are as descriptive as possible about what they are selling. Buyers should feel confident they are getting exactly what they want before it actually arrives.

Marketing
Of course, one key to being successful in any business is to market effectively. Etsy sellers need to treat their store seriously and invest the effort needed to market and promote their products. There are a variety of marketing tools that Etsy sellers can use including blogging platforms and social networking sites like Twitter and Facebook.

A final tip to becoming a success is to get involved in the Etsy community. There are forums and blogs where sellers can meet and discuss techniques and methods for bringing in more customers. The Etsy community is a terrific place to get advice and even gain exposure. Building relationships with other sellers is a great way to understand what it takes to actually flourish on the site. Selling on Etsy isn’t easy but sellers can prosper by creating unique products, giving customers clear descriptions and promoting their store to the best of their ability.

Twee Bay – Buy and sell using Twitter

admin — Mon, 12 Jan 2009 08:04:27 +0000

As Twitter gets more and more popular there are many new services popping up for the Twitter community. One of the latest is Twee Bay – a free service you can use to buy and sell items using Twitter. There is the option of listing as an auction or as a classified and payment is handled by Google Checkout. Although the service is new it looks like something with a lot of potential.

Designing effective business cards

admin — Tue, 25 Nov 2008 02:59:17 +0000

Your business card can have a powerful effect on your small business. Being such a common thing, it can sometimes be taken for granted and even somewhat neglected at times. However it can be your visual brand, the thing that people will make decisions about you by before they even meet you. The more likely it is to portray the right image and be remembered the more likely it is that you will be getting some new (and possibly even more importantly repeat) business.

There are many places on the internet you can go to for inspiration when it comes time to design your card. Design blogs as well as the Flickr business card images set being some of them.
There are some amazing examples of what a little bit of creativity can achieve.

Whether you choose to hire a professional designer or design the card yourself, the procedure is a whole lot more affordable then it used to be. Printing a business card (or even poster printing for that matter) can be done online these days for a few cents per card (no more expensive print shops!) so there are no more excuses not to go out and get the best cards your small business deserves.

BuildYourSite.com – Web Design made easy

BuildYourSite.com – Web Design made easy

admin — Sat, 04 Oct 2008 05:03:51 +0000

Many people who are trying to get a home business off the ground feel that creating a web site is confusing and possibly quiet expensive. As well as the prohibitive cost it can also be a fairly lengthy process. Whether you choose to have your site professionally designed or take on the learning curve required to learn how to build a web site, it can take longer then you are willing to have to wait.

It doesn’t have to be this way however and even if you have limited web site design knowledge to build your own web site and can not afford a web designer there are still options available. One service that is quiet good value for money is the “Build It Yourself” service offered at buildyoursite.com (take their service for a free test drive here ). Create your own web site with the site builder that comes with over 4,000 industry specific templates. You can use them “as is” or customize them to your needs without having to be an expert. Also included is a domain name and hosting for just $9.99/month which is a pretty good deal.

With the design and hosting out of the way it leaves you (and your money) free to concentrate on marketing your business and new web site.

Selling your craft online

admin — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 09:13:20 +0000

I was planning to make a post about online marketplaces to sell your handmade art and craft items but I came across these two posts from At Home Mom Blog which I think do a fantastic job of summing up just about every place on the web. If you like to create crafty things and are wondering how to go about selling them then check out the following two posts, you won’t be disappointed.
Where to sell your crafts online part I

Where to sell your Crafts online part II

CraigsList alternatives

admin — Thu, 02 Oct 2008 04:43:05 +0000

This is just a very quick post today, it is school holidays here so I don’t have a lot of time to post until next Monday.
Below are a few alternate sites to Craigslist (free classifieds) which you may not have heard of.

Kijiji – called Gumtree in some countries, run by Ebay
ClickaPost
Zikbay.com

There are many more good ones out there no doubt. Do you have any favorites?

No related posts.

Direct Sales: Some ideas to help you sell more

admin — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 06:31:32 +0000

These are just some ideas on how to sell more with your direct sales business. If you have more ideas I would love to hear them so please leave them in the comments.

1) Set up a stall at craft shows and fairs
2) Hold more parties where people can buy your products
3) Always carry a product sample with you and work it into conversations with everyone you talk to
4) Fundraisers
5) Always follow up with your past customers. It is easier then finding new customers every time.
6) Give your products as presents on birthdays, xmas etc. If they love it they will order more.
7) If your products are suitable, pitch them to business owners to give to their employees and clients as Christmas or thank you presents.
8) Network with others, especially on social shopping and business sites.
9) Hand out catalogs at any opportunity including while lining up, at bus stops, dropping kids off etc.
10) Write some “how to” articles or videos and include your products. For example a makeover video with Avon products or a “how to decorate the bathroom” featuring your candles and soaps.

Related from Amazon:

Contest machine – run contests and giveaways from your blog easier

admin — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 05:00:36 +0000

If you run a web site or blog, you might be familiar with the work and effort involved in running a competition where there are prizes to award. ContestMachine is a new widget that hopes to solve this problem by automating much of the process. You can read what exactly it can do here. It is free to use for up to two contests per month. If you need to run more promotions then you will need to pay a fee.
Found via TechCrunch