I started my Etsy shop almost a year ago. It began when a former coworker in Michigan mentioned she was selling her yoga mat bags.  I hadn’t heard of the site.  Around that same time in 2009, I had discovered a unique new method for baking cakes.  It involves jars.  Flash forward to today-  I have had about 75 sales to date and several local catering gigs. Through trial and error, I have figured out what works and what doesn’t.

For those who don’t know, Etsy is a top site for selling and buying handmade goods.  I often explain it as a grassroots eBay, sans bidding.  (However, the Alchemy section is similar to bidding.  Buyers can request custom goods and sellers offer a price; then haggling occurs.)

Etsy has its own culture, one of individual attention and a commitment to genuine handmade quality.  It is a real community.  If you make anything with your hands, from food to clothes to art to canoes, Etsy might be the place for you to sell. Here’s the Etsy guide for beginner sellers.  But I have my own tips too (a guide for sellers somewhat familiar with Etsy):

7 Etsy Seller Tips

1. Posting

Spell check and reread anything you post- errors look unprofessional and may create doubt as to your reliability.

2. Photos

Take quality pictures that display your products clearly- buyers want to see color, size (some items do well to be photographed next to a penny or ruler as a guide).  Use a good digital camera and avoid artificial lights- photograph items in the daytime with natural light and in a setting relevant to the item.  If it’s jewelry or clothing or an accessory, use photos of the item alone and then on a model.  For edibles or other sanitary-sensitive goods, use discretion for having human models.

3. Interacting with Treasuries

Create a treasury to reach out, share cool items, and support other sellers. Treasuries are themed collections of handpicked items.  For example, a treasury title might be: I Love Chocolate, Red, Father’s Day Gifts, etc.  If you’re feeling charitable, a treasury featuring items that donate to a cause is a nice idea.  Always let other sellers know you have featured their items.  Etsy’s guide on creating treasuries.

For example, this is a Gulf Oil Spill Relief treasury I created in Treasury East (non-expiring):

There is the original Treasury West and the new beta testing ground for Treasury East.  West treasuries expire and there is competition for space.  As soon as one expires, you have the chance to jump in and create a new one.  At East, however, new features include no expiration date on treasuries, wide screen, and easy rearranging of items similar to shop rearrangement.  Rundown on East’s (IMHO superior) features.

4. Social Media

Blog, tweet, and/or create a Facebook page for your Etsy shop.  This will help you engage with the community, and when appropriate (I.e. when balanced by more sharing of content than self-promotion) you can use it to advertise.  Remember though, golden rule of social media: no one wants to fan or follow someone who purely self-promotes.

5. Listing

List in small quantities so that you can relist after a sale and have the item go back to the top of the default sorting of items, which is Most Recently Listed.  (Searches can be by relevancy, price, and date of listing- but many people simply search with the default of recent listings.)  Take advantage of this by relisting sold items often, or adding new items a couple times a month.  A shop with all old listings looks like it’s not updated or cared about.

6. Communication

Communicate with your buyers.  Be on top of your sales in a timely, polite, and grateful manner!  Message them with a thank you and a notice you have shipped the item, along with the projected date of arrival.  Don’t simply mark the item shipped.  This ghost seller M.O. is considered “eerie.” Ask politely for Feedback in the note you include in the package or in a convo message after the transaction.  I recommend a handwritten thank you note for every transaction.

7. Packaging (As in the 5 P’s)

You may know of the 5 P’s of marketing.  Some lists (E.g. powersbusiness.com) include Packaging within Product, while others list Packaging as its own P: “The basic marketing tools known as the 5 P’s are still the most effective way to product launching. The 5 P’s stand for Promotion, Place, Price, Product, and Packaging.”

Or the list is: Product, Price, Placement, Promotion, and People (powerbusiness.com).

Either way, packaging is hugely important for Etsy specifically.  If your product is just mediocre but is beautifully, originally wrapped and personalized, it will be better received.  Think of Godiva’s lovely signature gold box.  Imagine that the chocolates contain preservatives.  Your mouth still waters at the sight of the packaging, right?  (PS- Godiva did begin using preservatives, and the Lust trigger, which I learned in Sally Hogshead’s book Fascinate.  Do peruse this book if you want your brand (or yourself) to be fascinating.  See my blog on the Triggers of Fascination.)

Go green on packaging- the Etsy community loves this.  Either mention in your Shop Announcement and/or include a card indicating how much of your packaging is recycled/recyclable.  Go to USPS.com to order free packaging supplies. (I like the Flat Rate boxes because the small one is $4.95 and fits most of my single batch orders.)  Boxes will be delivered to your house.  Pack at home, and in bulk when you can- it’s faster and you have all your supplies in front of you, vs. navigating the stampede/cluster and disorganization of most sadly underfunded U.S. post offices.)

Do you have a specific Etsy question?  Comment and I’ll answer.

@emilybinder:
@adoreajarbakery: