Tomorrow marks one year since I opened my Etsy shop! I hit 100 sales around 9 months in, and as of this post, it’s climbed to 147. (09/2020: And now I’m over 3400+!) With my primary job of raising two little girls, I’m still very much in the part-time seller camp, but I am selling things and making a profit.
Other than some high school accounting classes, I don’t have any formal business or marketing education. That said, I have always had an entrepreneurial streak, and I secretly love bookkeeping. I’ve learned a lot during my first year and continue to learn new things every day. The following tips are based on my experiences.
1. You are creating a boutique.
When selling on Etsy, it’s understood that you should have clear and descriptive listings, beautiful photos, and a cohesive look to your shop. All of this takes a really long time to set up. This isn’t eBay. You can’t just throw up a bunch of stuff willy nilly and expect it to sell. If it does, kudos to you! But the majority of shops have to put some thought into it to show any success. Your goal should be to create a cute/pretty/pleasant shop full of related items.
2. Your shop won’t be perfect from the beginning
This was a hard pill for this recovering perfectionist to swallow.
I was trying to get everything just right before opening up shop. Keywords, tags, titles, descriptions, photos, policies, etc. Well, that was a next-to-impossible task. Try your best, open up shop, then see what needs to be changed based on how people are finding (or not finding) your items. As time goes on, every sale (or non-sale!) is a chance to learn more and develop your shop.
And you will make mistakes.
- You will introduce products that don’t catch on.
- You will undercharge for shipping.
- You will buy a bunch of the wrong materials or shipping supplies that you will never use.
I’ll own up to all of those. Trial and error are my best friends.
3. Keep active
If you set up shop and don’t sell anything, don’t list anything new, and let the shop sit stagnant, your items will fall out of favor in Etsy searches. I don’t have any reference for that, it’s just my experience.
Etsy is not a “set it and forget it” type of thing. You have to tend shop. Etsy searches seem to favor “activity.” The more favorites you get, the more views that item seems to get. The more views you get, the more sales you get. It’s all related.
4. More is more
Filling your shop with 100 items on Etsy is some kind of mythical milestone that supposedly makes it easier for your items to be found in searches. In my experience, hitting 100 sales had much more of an impact. But I can’t argue that every listing is a potential entry point into your shop, so more has to be better. Personally, I see small bumps in views every time I list a few items, and with each tier I achieve (50 items, 100 items). I also saw improved traffic and sales as I built up one of my shop categories from just a couple of items to more like 10-15 items.
Sometimes I get a spike in views and no sales. Some days I get just a few views and multiple sales. I cannot make sense of that.
5. Add new listings a few at a time
After you’ve filled your shop initially with a page or two of items, add listings slowly. I tend to create a batch of items, save them as draft listings, and then publish one or two each day. Etsy favors “activity,” remember?
6. SEO is everything. EVERYTHING.
It kills me when I see shops misusing the SEO opportunities Etsy provides. I think people are either too quick to set up shop and just fill out the form fields Etsy requires, figuring they’ll change it later, or they haven’t done their research.
Entire books could be written about Etsy Relevancy and SEO, so here are just some basics based on the most common errors I see.
Your “Shop Title” is not your shop name! It should be a brief description of the items you sell. I see this mistake all the time.
Repeat the same phrases in your Shop Title, your listing titles, the first part of the item description, and in your tags. Bonus points if the Shop Section is also named similarly.
Your Shop Announcement is intended to be a note to customers that you can change, announce news, sales, etc., but the first part of it is also the description of your shop that shows up in Google searches (if your shop gets indexed), so you kind of have to weigh what is more important to you personally.
In your tags, use long-tail keywords (that is, phrases) that someone might actually search. Try not to use single word keywords, though some categories and items probably defy this rule. Don’t use “red” and “pillow” and “cover.” Use “red pillow cover.”
Even after your items are listed, you should tweak your titles and tags if your items aren’t being found in searches. If you start to type into the item search box at the top of Etsy, it will give you suggestions about what phrases you might want to use as tags.
If you label things right, your items will come up in Google Shopping results! That is huge. I have sales I can attribute directly to Google Shopping from first time Etsy buyers.
(If all this still seems really confusing, here’s a link to basic SEO information from Etsy.)
7. Figuring out what to charge for shipping is hard
Hoo boy. This is still one thing I’m trying to figure out. In these days of Amazon Prime or “any size order ships for $5,” people have an unreasonable expectation of what shipping charges should be. People don’t like to pay for shipping. Unfortunately, shipping charges are expensive. I live in St. Louis (right in the middle of the US) and to ship a 2-3 lbs package to one of the coasts can cost more than $10. I am sure it is worse shipping from one coast to the other. It makes no difference that the item value is only $15-20.
So when the shipping estimate is high, I tend to cut my shipping cost down a bit. Like if the estimator says it could be $10, I charge $8 and take a hit on my profit. Sometimes I adjust the price of an item to make up for it, but not always. My goal is to keep my prices affordable and reasonable, so most of the time I feel like I’m pushing my prices as high as I can. This is just what I do, and I’m still experimenting. Your situation and experiences may be different!
Update 03/31/2015: Recently, Etsy has added an estimated shipping option for sellers. At this point, it’s completely optional and you can even have some items listed with estimated shipping costs based on weight and others listed with a flat shipping fee. So far, this is a great development to solve the problems I described above. If you sell items that weigh over a pound, give it a try!
8. Give customers as many options to pay as possible
An overwhelming majority of my customers pay via Direct Checkout. That is, paying with a credit card directly through Etsy (instead of using PayPal). If you don’t have Direct Checkout set up (you need a business checking account to do this, and really, you should have one anyway), then you are likely missing out on sales. As commonplace as PayPal has become, it’s extra hassle to some buyers.
9. Answer your convos (emails) ASAP
Convos are Etsy’s internal email messaging system. You might think answering messages promptly is just a courtesy to customers/potential customers, but it actually has a self-serving undertone.
Customers typically message sellers to ask questions about items before they purchase them. People send convos while they are shopping. Answer them quickly, and you’ll probably catch them while they are still on Etsy, or at the very least, still in the shopping mindset and at their computer. Many times, I will get a message asking things like if I think the item will arrive in time for so-and-so’s birthday, etc. before they purchase it. I answer quickly, give the buyer’s confidence in ME, and have gotten a number of sales this way. If I had delayed my reply, they probably would have moved on.
10. But take a breath before answering messages
I know! I’m contradicting myself. But sometimes, people ask strange questions. Or they’ll request something custom that doesn’t seem in line with what I do. Taking a breath to really think about what they are asking, makes my responses a thousand times better.
11. Keep a tight rein on spending
It is easy to spend money. It is easy to “need” something for your business. I’m a frugal girl at heart, and even I have a hard time with this. Be smart about how much you spend and how much you stock up on raw materials.
I keep my basic materials and shipping supplies in stock. If I am going run out of something I need to complete my work (like paint or printer ink), that’s sort of an automatic purchase. I also allow myself one “improvement” purchase each month as long as I am still making sales. In the past, this has been a new work table, a custom rubber stamp, new business cards. If I make a large raw materials purchase, I might hold off spending on anything else that month.
12. Use the Sell on Etsy app
This is a separate app than the regular Etsy shopping app. It’s just for sellers! Every time I get a convo or a sale (!), I get a notification on my phone. It’s pretty great. And it’s still a surprise every single time a new order comes in.
13. Use Etsy shipping labels
…and buy some self-adhesive mailing labels.
Etsy allows you to print postage at home, and at a small discount even. This has saved me so much time, not to mention printed labels look about a thousand times more professional than handwritten addresses. You can even print international postage with the customs form included. (Don’t forget to sign the customs form!)
This is the brand of labels I use. (*affiliate link). Other cheaper ones have spotty reviews. They cost about five cents per label. If you are printing your postage on plain paper and then just taping it on? Trust me, you are using more than five cents in packing tape. Just get the labels.
Update 09/2020: A couple of changes to the way I ship!
I now use a dedicated label printer and 4″x6″ thermal labels (*affiliate links), and I’ve been really happy with it! The labels print fast, there’s no ink to replace, and the labels themselves are very inexpensive (like 4 cents each). If you are shipping a lot of packages and are in business for the long haul, I highly recommend!
I also started using Pirate Ship to buy shipping labels both for my Etsy and Shopify shops. Why? A few reasons.
First, Pirate Ship allows you to access Priority Mail Cubic rates, which are cheaper Priority rates for packages over a pound, but that measure less than a cubic foot. You can save real money here! Second, Etsy started deducting shipping label fees out of your balance rather than billing them separately at the end of the month. This made it so you can’t use a credit card (and earn reward cash back) to pay for all those expenses. In good months, my postage bill can be hundreds of dollars, and I will take all the cash back I can get! Especially in tough times 2020. Third, as a bonus, it is easier to track postage expenses from multiple platforms when it is all filtered through Pirate Ship.
Once my packages are packed and labeled, I run them to the post office and drop them off. I’ve heard that you can also arrange home pickups, but I live close enough to a post office that waiting around for a pickup seems inefficient. If your items are small and light enough, you can even deposit them in the outdoor blue mailboxes. Beware though, that you need to mail them from your home zip code. If you don’t, you might be saddling the buyer with postage overages.
14. I believe in Etsy karma
That’s not an official thing that factors into any fancy algorithm; it’s just something I like to think exists. What do I mean by Etsy karma? If you sell on Etsy, you should be shopping on Etsy. I really do think it makes a difference. I am the last person that would suggest spending a bunch of money on stuff you don’t need, but should you need gifts or supplies, search Etsy first.
Thank you for your support over the last year and to everyone who has purchased something from my shop. Many thanks!
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Excellent information. I am not an Etsy seller, because I’m not creative in that sense, but this is realistic, down-to-earth advice. I love that you’ve given honest tips about how it really works, rather than some cookie cutter post about general basics.
Awesome!
-Liz
Thanks, Liz!
I did a lot of research before opening my shop. I read books specifically written about Etsy, and countless articles and blog posts, but there are so many things that still weren’t covered. Hopefully these tips are helpful to someone!
I don’t sell on Etsy, but this tutorial was so interesting I read through the whole thing anyway. And now I wish I did sell on Etsy. 🙂
Ha! Glad you found it interesting!
I know this is an older post, but it’s so helpful! I had no idea the shop title was suppose to be a description, or that Google showed my shop announcements. I’ll be adjusting a ton of stuff. I’m a new seller but not unfamiliar with selling online and your post is the first one that actually taught me new stuff about etsy. Your shop is also beautiful!
Only a few months old. 🙂
I feel like there are some things that Etsy could explain a lot better when filling out that initial shop info. Glad you found some tips you could use!
I am getting ready to open an Etsy shop and it is bit overwhelming. your article is very informative and has helped me out thank you for the information
Great, I’m glad it was helpful, Lori! Good luck!
Thank you so much for these tips Erin! I am planning to open my blog design shop on etsy in the new year and this was very helpfuL!:)
Awesome! Good luck!
Now I know where to look! I really want to start a blog to support my beekeeping and honey sales, but I’m just really overwhelmed by it. How many times have I wished I could just pay someone to set it all up, and take it from there?
I have sold honey and wedding favors with honey on and off on etsy, which is know isn’t ideal, but raw honey, despite what people think, is a seasonal product, and if you run out, you run out. While I haven’t used the print-out labels linked from etsy, I used them all the time from just the USPS online store, and was able to get them picked up at the same time. For me this was big because I have 3 very small children and I just hate to take them to the post office. And I totally agree with you about shipping charges. Selling heavy honey in heavy glass containers is a trick to keep cost-effective. What worked for me (because of the heavy nature of the product) was mailing in priority boxes (unlimited weight…for the most part) which kept a consistent price no matter where I shipped, and I was lucky enough to get all the free packaging I needed from my husbands work (he built bikes for a living and there was a lot of all eco-friendly packaging leftover from parts). Great post. I’m gearing up to getting the shop up and going with new labeling and new products, as well as a new business name…a fresh start….and this was helpful.
Maybe a website without a blog would be a good place to start. Blogging can be kind of a chore to keep up with sometimes, but a website wouldn’t need to change that often. I’m sure you could find someone to do that for you. Maybe even on Etsy.
I wish I could use those Priority boxes, alas, they are all way too small for what I ship!
Good luck with your new start!
Great information
Easy to understand for me and very precise info^_^
Thank you for sharing.
No problem. Cute shop!
How long did it take you to open your Etsy shop? How much time and preparation did it take for you to be comfortable opening up your shop for the first time?
I know you mentioned that you read books directly related to selling on Etsy? Are there any specific books you recommend that helped you?
And last question, before you initially opened your shop, how much money would you say (rough estimate) you invested into making enough product for your shop?
This post was extremely helpful, thanks for the insight!
-Libby
Wow, that’s a lot of questions!
It took me quite a while to open my shop, both because of planning, perfectionism, and just building up courage. It seems kind of silly now, but I was really nervous to put myself out there. I have no idea how long it actually took. I was developing the things to sell and starting the shop at the same time.
I read a lot of business books, though the only Etsy-specific one was Etsy-preneurship. I don’t know how helpful it was, but it has some exercises and business-plan type stuff to go through. I got it from the library.
I have no idea how much money I spent initially in materials. Maybe a few hundred dollars? I’m pretty frugal. My materials are inexpensive, and I didn’t buy my printer or start selling prints until I was already selling things for about five months. I would recommend starting small and selling enough to fund the “next step.”
If you have any other questions, you can shoot me an e-mail. erin (at) lansdownelife.com. I’d be happy to answer!
Thank you! It is all so confusing and I am still trying to grasp it, but this was very useful in helping me understand. I am now going to go back rewrite my titles of all my listings.
There is a lot to learn and take in at the start, but I promise it will start to make sense the more you play around with it. I am still constantly tweaking keywords and checking to see which ones turn up my items in the search.
Great information, and good tips thanks
Karen
You’re welcome!
Thank you for all these valuable info, Erin!
I can’t seem to find the specific Etsy Seller app you mentioned, would you have the exact name?
Nathalie
It’s called “Sell on Etsy.” It’s fairly bare-bones, but I think it works well.
https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/sell-on-etsy/id860815329?mt=8
Also available for Android
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.etsy.android.soe&hl=en
Thanks so much Erin!
Heading over to my Etsy shop to implement your SEO tips! Thank you – that’s an area I struggle with.
I think it’s an area that everyone struggles with! Good luck!
Thanks for writing such a brilliant post. This was SUPER helpful! I opened my shop in October and I’ve still got a long way to go, but it took months of preparation. I’m working on loads of new products at the moment so hopefully that will help increase sales. I would love for you to take a quick look at mine and let me know what you think or if you have any feedback! Thanks again for all these brilliant tips 🙂 and congratulations on such a successful year! Amy x
https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/midgins
Cute shop! It does take a lot of work and time. I’m certainly no expert, but keep filling your shop. You also might want to put some solid keywords at the start of your titles instead of their names (like “owl plush” or whatever). Think about what a customer would type in the search box. You could try it on a couple of listings and see what happens. No rule that says all of your titles have to be in the same format!
Lots of great info! Thanks!
One question..what about taxes etc…does the etsy e-commerce take care of figuring all that out and what about filing taxes? I haven’t seemed to be able to find one article on how to file taxes at the end of the year or if you can write off part of your monthly home expenses as a home office. Any info would be great! Thanks!
Hi Meg,
Etsy will charge sales tax at the rate you enter. But that’s as far as it goes with taxes. Etsy leaves everything to do with income taxes to the sellers themselves. They do not withhold anything.
I think the reason you are not finding the tax information you are seeking is because taxes are so complicated, everyone’s situation is so different (sole proprietorship, LLC, corporation, etc.), and no one wants to be held accountable for giving tax advice. I found a lot of information about what was deductible as a business expense within TurboTax.
I can tell you that I am a sole proprietor, and I filed my taxes with my regular income tax return. (I don’t know if there’s a limit to the income you can make as a sole proprietor and still file with your regular return.) However, I did not “pay myself” (all of my profits stayed within the business), so I did not pay “self-employment” taxes (Social Security & Medicare). It gets complicated quick, especially if you have a lot to learn about accounting as well. I am no expert, and I am still learning!
Thanks! That’s a ton more info than I could ever find anywhere so far! You’re a peach!
Try searching for “income taxes” and “artist.” Even if you are not an artist in the purest sense of the word, the information would likely still apply.
Ahh, this was very helpful! Really appreciate your tips on SEO on etsy – I’ve just re-edited my tag words after reading this.
#2 rings so true – I have tried really hard to perfect my product, and am proud of it but I”m not a photographer, and had problems shooting my product (I make dresses) but finally had to settle and get them up there. I do need to re-shoot them but hey, you have to start somewhere. Thanks for giving such clear, concise info.
Yes, you have to start somewhere! If you are determined, everything will work itself out eventually!
I cannot wait to implement these tips to my new shop. It is always great to see fresh suggestions!
Great! Good luck with your new shop!
Thank you for sharing.
You’re welcome!
its been said but this is a really useful list. Thank you. Aside from technical information I just haven’t wanted to face I love the idea of setting up an online boutique ….that changes the game for me. Thank you! Marika
Awesome! Glad I could help!
Great article, Erin! I’ve been preparing to open my shop (KatyAnne Collection – doll clothes for American Girl dolls) for almost a year now. I work full time during the school year and so have limited time to work on it. Some of this technical stuff is so confusing – and I consider myself a fairly intelligent person! Thanks for the insight from someone who’s been through it. Good luck with your shop, and thanks again for taking the time to help the rest of us.
You’re right, a lot of it is confusing, and it’s also just a lot to learn at once. I promise a lot of it does get easier with experience!
Thank you for this article! It was very helpful. I didn’t know I would need some of these things to casually ‘set up shop’ on Etsy.. Like a printer, label stickers, a business bank account, etc. Thanks again! Best of luck to you in your selling endeavors! 🙂
Hi Abbey,
I think there’s a common misconception that selling on Etsy is like selling stuff on eBay. And while you certainly can casually list items to sell on Etsy, the system is not set up to serve those sellers. And your items likely will not sell (or even turn up in searches!) without the presentation and activity of a full, curated shop to back it up. And the printer, labels, business bank account, and other things like that are complete necessities if you plan to sell long-term. Good luck!
Great article! I just hit my 1,000th sale two days ago. And most of those sales were in the past year. I started making girls hair clippies and only sold 7 in over a year. I didn’t really spend much time in my shop, since I work f/t and had another Etsy shop that was doing “okay”. Then I listed baseball flip flop flowers and sold 19 pairs my first day!
Here’s what I’ve learned in the past year:
1. Have a product that people want or is trending.
2. Be active in your shop…tweaking titles, tags, and descriptions if you aren’t listing new items. Update your pictures and use all 5 spots if you can! (I use my IPhone because I’m too lazy to use my Nikon.) Take pictures like there is no description, and write a description like there are no pictures.
3. Many other people may be selling what you are, but it’s your customer service that can set you apart. Respond quickly to convos, ship on time, and your packaging helps you stand out.
4. Be prepared. If you want your shop to succeed and you start getting busy, expect to put your heart and soul into it. I had one week where I had to make and ship 161 pairs. I cried, (drank), and lost a lot of sleep but it was all worth it!
5. Take responsibility for your shop’s success. Etsy makes constant changes and so should you. Update your info, work on SEO, and have fun!
Great tips, Karen! Especially the part about writing descriptions as if there were no photos! And taking responsibility for success. It really is all up to the seller to make it work!
What a great post. I immediately went and changed my ‘Shop Title”. I was guilty and had it as my shop name! This is great advice that I am currently editing my Etsy shop with and will use when I open my mom’s shop which I am in the midst of doing. Thank you!
You’re welcome! So glad you could use some of these tips!
Thanks for the tips! I’ve had my shop for a while, but these tips will help out. Off to implement these changes. Thanks for sharing!
You’re welcome, Elizabeth. Cute shop! Good luck!
Wonderful article! Like you, I was waiting until everything was perfect before opening my shop but then decided to just do it! I decided that I would learn as I went, and I am! Your article showed me I was doing many things right but also many things wrong! I’ve since changed my title from a cute quote to the suggested description of what I sell! Also I’m updating tags, shop and item descriptions too! Thanks again for all the advice!
You’re welcome, Dawn! Learning as you go is the only way to do it!
great write up Erin, thank you for taking the time to help out us newbies!
No problem, Tim! Good luck!
Hi! I’ve read this and this is very very helpful 🙂 I’m in freshman year highschool, and I’m planning on selling vintage pendants and up cycled vintage on etsy, but I only have 6 items ready to sell. Unfortunately, I had to “borrow” money from my mom to purchase the starter items, and she prefers me not to purchase more until at least one of my products has sold , but I don’t think 6 items is enough 😛 should I open the store anyways and sees how it goes or should I try to figure out how to fill up my store inventory first? Thank you in advance!!! (P.s, I will pay back my mom eventually 😉 )
That’s awesome, Kelly!
Why don’t you get those six listings up and show your mom? Maybe she’s just waiting to see if you’ll take it seriously?
If I were you, I would just finish making what you have, get the listings up, and continue to tweak and build the shop. It takes a while to set up everything, understand Etsy and all the menus, etc. You have to start somewhere! But you’re right, six items is not really enough to fill a shop or get noticed. Just consider it the starting point.
In the mean time, is there something else you could make without borrowing any more money? Or maybe you could earn some more start up money doing chores or babysitting or something?
Good luck!
Thanks for replying Erin! I will take all your advice, very helpful once again 🙂 Unfortunately, I’m not allowed to babysit (protective parents), I usually don’t get paid for chores, but I will ask my mom about it and list what I have so far so I can show my mom I’m going to take it seriously , like you said. The advice seriously means a lot, now I know where to start! Thanks!
Thanks for these great tips. I have opened my shop for two months now and I’ve noticed I have more favorites than sale. I have one sale not too long ago and it’s not even the most favorited item in my shop. I’m trying to figure out what’s wrong. Maybe I don’t have enough products in the store? Or maybe my price point is too high?
Hi Cat,
You will always have more favorites than sales. Some people use favorites like window shopping, other people use them more like bookmarks for things they want to buy, and sometimes other Etsy sellers use them as a way for you to get them to look at their shop. I don’t think favorites and sales are directly correlated.
Your shop looks great! And six sales in your first two months isn’t nothing. As I understand, jewelry is a really competitive category. Just keep at it! Maybe add some more items? Maybe try promoting off-Etsy?
Thanks for the insight and tips. I’m getting around to opening an etsy shop so this has been invaluable. It’s all so mind boggling while I’m trying to be creative and raise 3 under 5’s by myself. I love what I do though.
It is a lot to learn at first, but it gets easier over time! Good luck!
Hi Erin! I just opened up my Etsy shop today so I’ve been searching around seeing if I’m doing the right things and found this article. Very helpful and already see some things I need to work on for my shop.
One question I do have that you didn’t touch on, I’m always curious for shops that are successful, do you remember how you got your first sale? I’ve been an Etsy customer long before I thought of opening a shop and generally tend to choose a shop with a decent amount of reviews (and good ones at that) because it’s easier to trust that shop. So as a newcomer, how do I get those first sales with no reviews? Any advice would be greatly appreciated!
Hi Meredith, your new shop looks great!
First sale. That is a really good question and one that I don’t have the answer to unfortunately. I tend to shop like you and use ratings as part of the decision.
My first sale was from some kind soul. I didn’t know her. I sort of felt as if she sought me out and was so super nice to me because she knew it was my first sale. She left me a great review as soon as she could. That was maybe after two weeks of having my shop up.
The next few sales were mostly people I didn’t know, mixed with a few friends who were trying to support me. Not all of them left reviews. The number of people who have left reviews for me is less than 20% of sales, actually.
I think you just have to be patient and make sure your items are coming up in searches. If they aren’t, tweak things until they do. I search for my items all the time just to make sure they can be found.
When you do get that sale, make sure the experience is a positive one!
Hello, I just thought I would post a quick reply to the gal asking about first sales. In my case, I had my first sale from someone who simply bought a dress, and after me following up, never replied or left a review…I was a little crushed, but after talking to friends of independent business owners, many people don’t leave reviews, unless it’s negative.
I’ve since had 4 more sales on Etsy (I’m in my 5th proper month of business) and I also sell at markets. I think for your first sale, you just have to have someone willing to trust your product is as good as the photos show the product to be, and be willing to accept returns. Good luck!!
Thanks for sharing, Joanna! Yes, I think being willing to accept returns gives customers a bit of security to take a chance on a new shop.
Thank YOU so much for shearing your experience this first year selling on Etsy! I learned a lot about SEO
Great, glad to have helped, Natalia!
Really great post! I have been selling on Etsy for 7-1/2 years, but this is good advice for experienced sellers, too. I have a friend who wants to open a shop, and will pass on the link to your post so she has a good idea what she is in for.
A couple of notes–and please note that my comments reflect my experience, not anyone else’s. You don’t actually need a business checking account to use Etsy’s Direct Checkout. I have a personal account that I use only for Etsy (which is good business sense, anyway). Also, though you can print Etsy’s shipping labels on plain paper, I recommend covering it with clear packaging tape simply because most of us are using home printers with ink that can run if the label gets wet. This is less a cost issue for me than it is a “I want the label to be legible from departure to arrival” issue. Finally, I never reduce the price of shipping if it seems high to me. I charge the customer exactly what it costs, based on the weight and/or size of the item. You can pick up a digital kitchen scale that will help you figure this out. In my mind, reducing the price of the shipping from what it actually costs helps to feed into the “Amazon Prime mindset.”
Great tips otherwise! Thanks for writing about your first year’s experiences, and sharing what you have learned with others.
Thanks, Judy!
Good to know about the business checking account re Direct checkout. My business account is a free checking account, so there was really no reason not to open an official business account. Either way, you’re right, a separate account is essential for good accounting.
Since writing this last summer, the shipping situation has changed. And if you are selling lightweight items, it’s not even really an issue.
My original problem stemmed from the shipping to California being $12 on an $18 item. Before estimated shipping, there was no way to charge customers different shipping prices based on their location. So that flat $12 shipping cost was going to work against me always and turn off buyers. Personally, I would not buy an item with that high of a shipping cost, and I believe many customers would feel the same way.
So the shipping price I would list was sort of an average of what it might cost. If it’s $7 to Chicago and $12 to California, I might charge $9. Sometimes I’d win, sometimes I’d lose. If the customer lived very close to me, and the shipping was more than $1, I would refund the difference.
Now with estimated shipping, this is sort of a moot point. I am so happy with the new development!
Thanks Erin for sharing. I just listed a few products a few days ago and have done all of the above but found myself getting frustrated because it seems to be so time consuming. I havent listed anymore items but do you know if there is a way to create a template to use everytime and just edit as needed and as well as picture?
My store is SteppinOutBoutique13 you can also find me on Facebook under Steppin’Out Boutique and Instagram steppinoutboutique_13 to take a look and see if you could give me anymore pointers. On etsy I made sure I focused on my title and tags.
Thanks
Hi Tamara,
Setting up a shop does take a long time! There’s no way to create a template, but you can copy a listing you have created and just change the necessary details and the photos. When you’re looking at the Listings Manager, just click on that little gear shape to the right and “Copy” is on the drop down menu.
It looks like you are just getting started on Etsy, so I would take the time to fill out the rest of the info like your Shop Title and Shop Announcement as described in the post above. (Your Shop > Shop Settings > Shop Info & Appearance). Other than that, just list a lot more items. At least enough to fill a page or two. Good luck!
Great tips – I am trying to maintain a steady stream of sales but it seems to be tailing off somewhat. Keeping my focus on reposting and pinning at the moment!
My sales tend to come in waves with some downtime in between, but everyone has different products for sure! Just keep going!
Hi Erin, I value your information even though I am not new to Etsy. I have learned some things from your post and appreciate you taking the time to keep fellow Etsians informed.
Thank you, Margie
Great! Glad to hear experienced sellers could still use some of this info!
My friend sent me on the link to this post and Its FAB!!!!! Thanks for all the info .. I just set mine up the other day with just a few products so far . I need to make seperate stuff for the shop as I am always doing craft fairs … My page is Delabud Creations … So happy to find this … Del
Glad to hear it, Del! Good luck with your new shop!
Wow! I did not think about the shop title being so important. I just changed mine! Thanks!
Awesome! I don’t think Etsy does a good job of explaining this on the form where you fill out your shop info. But they do have pointers in the help section.
From the Etsy SEO page I linked above: https://www.etsy.com/help/article/247
“Your Shop Title will be the page title for your shop page. The page title is the text a person sees in the search engine that links to your shop. … Etsy will also automatically include your username in the page title.
“TIP: In the Shop Title briefly describe your shop and the items you sell. Consider including your full name or your business name in your Shop Title if potential customers are likely to search for you that way.”
Erin, thank you so much. One hears SEO and you change the item names, then you change the tags, but your suggestions I did not know and I read the Etsy email blogs when they arrive. I changed my title, and now changing item names and 1st line descriptions to have some of the same wording. Checking key words, definitely will buy a scale and shipping labels with a postal account, and will drop shipping prices a little to attract more customers. Thank you so much! http://www.pippihepburn.etsy.com
This is just what has worked for me, but repeating the same keywords throughout reinforces your chances of coming up in search for those search terms. You can always change just a few listings to see if it makes a difference for your items!
EXCELLENT advice! After 2 yearsof selling on Etsy, I totally agree with everything in this article. I spent several weeks researching everything before I opened my shop, and the results were worth the wait. SEO’s are still a bit of a mystery to me, but I feel I’m movong in the right direction. Thanks for the advice!
Glad to hear it, Susan!
Hi, Erin,
I’m so glad I’ve found your tips about selling on Etsy – thank you!
I agree with all your suggestions and I hope that Direct Checkout will soon be available for all countries in EU – I can only offer PayPal to my buyers in this moment. Oh, and here we can’t use Etsy labels – it would be much easier to ship worldwide in this way.
I’m quite new on Etsy but I love to create and hope to take my shop to a higher level – also by adding more products and improving SEO, photos, descriptions.. etc.
I would like to ask you: what do you think about social media? I’m on FB, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest… but I feel like this is taking away the time I really need in order to create new items. Do you think that being active (promoting) on social media is necessary?
Thank you very much,
Mojca
Hi Mojca,
Right, the Etsy labels through the US Postal Service are only available to US sellers, as far as I know.
I am not great at social media. Because of my limited time, I have mainly been focusing on getting sales by maximizing my opportunities to be found in Etsy search, and I’ve made more than 600 sales this way. I have social media accounts, but am not super active. The sales I can attribute to social media were made by friends or friends of friends. I’m getting ready to try and start marketing outside of Etsy a little better.
It’s really hard to do all things at once, so my recommendation would be to pick one social media account and use it consistently. Maybe pick the one you like the best because you’ll stick with it. Or the one with the biggest following? Don’t try to do all of them at once (unless you have loads of free time).
Thank you so much! You did a great job covering so much necessary information and made it just a bit less intimidating to open my shop. Very much appreciated.
You’re welcome, Nancy. Good luck with your shop!
I LOVED this article. Very, very helpful. I opened up my store last year with only a couple of items and nothing sold so I just ignored my store. I just recently became active again about a months ago and added more items than I did the last time and I have just made two sales just this past week! I know that’s a small amount but I’m so excited. I have a lot of improvements to make. I’m printing off this article to make necessary changes to increase me sales. Thanks.
That’s great, Juanita! Congrats on the sales! Keep going!
It’s one of the most well-done explanation I’ve reed about Etsy. Thank you, Erin!
You’re welcome, Lesia! Good luck with your shop!
These tips are so great! Very easy to read and super helpful, thankyou so much!
You’re welcome!
I LOVE this! Thanks so much for the fantastic advice. I’m opening up shop at the end of the month and this gives me a lot of confidence!!
Good luck with your shop, Rachel!
Great article! I have been selling on Etsy for 8 yrs now. Very hard work goes into maintaining a successful etsy shop. I am still discovering mistakes that I make in my shop set up. Learning new tips on shop success everyday!
http://www.christicreations.etsy.com
Yes, it’s definitely hard work!
So many great tips. You have done all the work for me! I am about to open an etsy shop and this has been so helpful.
The shipping is what makes me the most nervous. Thanks for the wealth of information. Much appreciated!
You’re welcome! I understand your worry about the shipping, but it’s really no big deal. You’ll develop systems that work for you once you start mailing packages. I’ve had extremely good experiences with the USPS!
Thank you for sharing your know-how! I’m off to block out a chunk of time to update all the tags on the products in my Etsy shop.
Etsy has been great for me so far but hopefully this will push it up to the next level.
Thanks again. Cheers!
Tags definitely do make a difference! Good luck!
hi,
Saw you Pinterest page. I am debating opening an Etsy shop. Making jewelry quickly builds inventory. Your information is very helpful. Any ideas about packaging that would enhance customer base support? Best, Bettye
Hi Bettye, Jewelry is a highly competitive category, so I would definitely do your research and make sure you develop products that are different and will stand out on Etsy. As for packaging, I don’t sell jewelry, so I’m not sure what the options are. Make sure it’s pretty and gift-worthy. You can even include it in your photos if you think it enhances your product. Hope that helps!
Bettye,
You can find supplies for shipping jewelry at discount stores like Big Lots. I just opened my shop with jewelry for siblings but I don’t have items yet. I found little gift boxes at Ollie’s – 6 for $1. Or you can try to buy in bulk at Fire Mountain Gems.
Erin, thank you so much for this post! Once I put my designs up, I’ll be sure to follow the advice you gave above especially staying on budget!!!!
Thanks for sharing your packaging sources, Amy!
I have been trying to start an Etsy shop since June 2015 but talk myself out of it every day. Being a stay at home mom of 3 teens and stuck at home not able to drive due to seizures, I find that using my time being crafty is best. I mostly give stuff away. Everyone tells me NO… start a shop! You’d be great! Your post is so specific it finally gives me the confidence. Tomorrow is my day. New Etsy shop here I come. Thank you!
Good luck, Julie! When I was starting my shop, I just did one thing each day that moved the plan forward. Made everything much less overwhelming!
Thank you so much Erin for sharing !!
Very helpful! Much appreciated!!
We have been really trying hard with etsy!!!
Petroula from Little rocks!!
You’re welcome! Your stuff is so cute!
yeeeiii!!! Thanks !!!!
i really like this article. I’m thinking about starting an etsy shop and this info is a great start. Thanks #nextroundremodeling
You’re welcome, Danielle! Hope it helps!
These are great tips, thanks for sharing. I think (?) I have implemented many of them, I’m still getting next to no views though.. it’s really hard to get some momentum!
Hi Dee,
Five sales in your first month is pretty good! It takes time. Just keep tweaking things. Your tags should be phrases and not single keywords. Think of what other people might search and use the Etsy search bar for clues.
Also, your photos are great, but think about how they show up as thumbnails. Some of them (with the print above the desk) are impossible to read as thumbnails. Think about how things look when they come up in pages of search results. You want images that draw people in. Good luck!
Thanks so much for taking the time to look, and offer some suggestions! I’ve spent a lot of time trying to figure out tags, I think most of them are now long tail keywords, but my listings are still buried so deeply that they don’t get any views!
I’ve been tweaking my listing images, I agree – you can’t read anything on some of the thumbnails. That’s a work in progress, I’ve changed about half of them to close ups, just as an experiment but I’m not getting much traffic in general so it’s hard to know what will/won’t work! I’m trying not to get discouraged, just adding more listings – I figure if I have lots and lots, the shop will eventually find it’s way to the surface!
Don’t get discouraged! The summer in the US is not typically a time of high sales for most. Just keep at it. Things do pick up in the fall. Keep tweaking your shop. Keep adding products. You have a really good start!
Hello
Your article is AWESOME! Thank you for spending your valuable time to write this. We have been w/etsy since May w/ only 3 sales. We feel like failures here. Have spent time tweaking everything from words, to pictures, to prices …. We have spent countless hours doing research to try and figure out where we are going wrong. We have paid for advertising w/in etsy. Still no more sales. Please offer some tips. Is it our crafts are just too awful?
Hi Nella,
So the biggest error I see in your shop is that you don’t have enough items. Some articles will tell you that you don’t need many, but I think that advice comes from shops that have been around a long time and have a big audience already. My recommendation would be to create as many listings as you can. Stretch for 100. I know that might seem crazy, but over time, you will get there. I try not to let my shop drop below 100.
Also, look at your tags. Don’t fill them up with one word keywords, especially those that don’t belong with your products. Create “search phrases”. Strings of keywords that people might actually search.
For instance, your pink cupcake toppers. Don’t just fill that up with words like “Easter” or “Prom.” Those are not going to work for you.
You should be using “pink birthday,” “pink birthday party,” “first birthday,” “girls birthday,” etc. Type “pink” in the search box on Etsy like I describe above and see what you can come up with. It really does give you the clues right there.
All of this takes time and constant improvement and tweaking. I have redone my photos for my prints at least 4 times in less than two years. It’s hard work. Good luck!
Hello Erin ,thanks for the inspiring post ! I just have opened an Etsy shop and waiting for the first customer, I hope it happens soon because it is very discouraging nobody appreciates your work.Please could you give me your opinion and advise about my shop ,it means a lot to me 🙂
Thanks again,
Bibi 🙂
Hi Bibi,
It does get discouraging waiting around for sales, which is why I would encourage you not to wait around! Keep making improvements to your tags and listings. Do searches and see if your items come up for your keywords. Use social media to start some interest.
The biggest thing I see that needs help in your shop is your photos. It’s hard to see the detail in the stones. They look a bit too overexposed and blurry. Maybe over-edited? I love your drawn models, though! Cool and unique.
I don’t have any experience selling jewelry on Etsy, but I understand it is a really difficult category. Just keep working!
I just opened my Etsy shop today. I found this article at the perfect time. It is full of great advice. Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!
You’re welcome, Lisa! Glad you found it helpful!
This helped me alot, Thank you very much. Had my pen and paper ready to take notes. Again Thanks
You’re welcome! Hope it helps!
Thank you! This is such good information! I have been on Etsy for years as a customer but have recently made the switch to seller and WOW. Did NOT know about the titles or really how the tags work. This one article has helped me more than the 50 others I read that were just trying to sell me their book. Seriously, thank you.
Oh, you’re welcome! I hate those articles that tell you almost nothing. Such a waste of time.
Remember, the first three or so words in your titles are the most important, so make sure they count! I’m in the process of tweaking my titles (once again) and am trying to make sure those phrases have an exact matching tag.
Good luck with your shop!
Hello Erin,
Reading your article, I could feel the experience you’ve got in time. I opened my shop recently, and I try to find useful information to upgrade the shop. I know I dont have enough items, and its not easy – if no one is helping you to manufacture them, or sell them.I consider the process of selling the items is more complex then the process of creating them, because there are unknown facts or reasons why we dont sell. I might understand if I dont have enouph items in the shop – I dont have sells – I dont have reviews – so the potential client doesnt feel confident to purchase it. But my items dont have views. I try to create unique items (upcycled clothing), because this is my passion, and I get more motivation if my clients are happy with their purchases. I believe in myself and my potential, but I think that is not enouph to create the products and upload them on Etsy. I feel something is missing.
I appreciate if you would give me some feedback about my shop.
Thank you for your practicle article.
Hi Anamaria,
I feel for you! It’s hard getting started. You seem to have a very niche brand, so it’s going to take some time.
Some easy things you could do would be to create a shop banner and put up a shop announcement welcoming customers and explaining what you sell. Most every shop has those and without them, the top of the shop looks weird and empty.
Also, your tags while phrases, are not phrases people would search. Think of what someone might type in the search box to find your items. No one is typing “girl women ladies” into the search box. More helpful terms would be “upcycled jacket,” “upcycled clothing,” etc.
Maybe some other things you could try: listing your measurements in inches in addition to cm. In the US, we don’t use cm in clothing measurements most of the time, so someone might not want to bother doing the conversion.
Also, as you make more pieces, you might try to offer a larger range of sizes.And maybe list the sizes in your titles?
Sorry, I’m not really familiar with selling clothing, so my suggestions are a bit general. Good luck with your shop! Keep working at it.
Thank you for these! You really broke it down and explained the info section! Sending aloha.
You’re welcome! Good luck with your shop!
Absolutely beautiful list of tips! I shared this with my team: https://www.etsy.com/in-en/teams/27296/how-to-sell-on-etsy/discuss/17211877/
Thank you for putting out such wonderful information! 🙂
Thank you for sharing, Chandru!
I am looking to start an etsy shop and found these tips via Pinterest, thanks for posting I found this very helpful!!!
You’re welcome, Samantha! Good luck!
Hi Erin,
Wow thanks so much for putting time into researching and writing these super helpful tips for Etsy, I only just discovered Etsy and hope to set up shop soon. Btw I love your shop too I’m now following you!!
Thanks, Viv! Running a successful shop is a lot of work, but fun and rewarding as well!
This article is amazing! I printed it off along with all the comments because it is exactly what I was looking for – thank you so much!
There is so much to learn and would love any feedback that anyone can provide 🙂
Glad you found it helpful, Diana!
Looks like you are just getting started, but three sales in your first month is pretty awesome! Your templates look really great. The only quick suggestion I have is maybe try to use that “Adjust thumbnail” feature when editing your listing to zoom in a bit on the headers of your resumes. Close ups will definitely draw in more viewers. If you don’t want to do it to all of them, you could always just try a few and see what works better.
Good luck in January! The new year should be a great time for a shop like yours!
It is so nice to read that someone else has had the issues that I am having now! I love Etsy but sometimes it is so confusing and frustrating. Thank you for writing such an easy to read and understand blog with amazing tips! SO helpful!
You’re welcome! As I understand, it’s hard to stand out and be seen in the jewelry category and that brings its own set of strategies. Wish I knew more! Good luck with your shop!.
Hi , 1st of all THANK YOU SO MUCH. This helped A LOT . I want to start my etsy shop but so afraid that what would happen…fingers crossed. But after reading you article , i feel motivated. Thank you so much.
Good luck, Shaheris! The only way to find out what will happen is to start and keep going!