Etsy

[Myonlysunshine123]

I'm probably posting this in the wrong bit but here goes!
Has anyone actually sold anything on etsy?. I set up my etsy shop /account a few weeks ago and I just cant sell anything. I crochet things, that's all I do, it passes the time and i mostly give things away so thought I would try etsy,.because ebay seems to be rubbish for some things. I've priced my items more than fairly, I just think I dont take very good pictures. Any ideas? I'm checking my little view/visits graph on there all the time and hardly anyone has looked! I dont do other social media so I think maybe people advertise themselves else where?? I was just trying to make a bit extra while doing something i enjoy .
Tips welcome

I've bought from Etsy but it was something very niche that came up on a Google search when I was trying to source. You do probably need to direct people to your site. Or make cute things for animals, that'll get some views!

Are you in UK op and are you hoping to sell outside uk? I have bought a fair bit from etsy but have steered clear of any UK sellers since Brexit. I just do not what is going on re import taxes and vat etc. Other than that look at your item descriptions maybe. Will your shop come up when people do a search for key words? Maybe get a friend to check it. And def promote on your other social media. I often click through from Instagram.

I've sold a couple of things and I mean literally 2. I cross stitch in my spare time and make bookmarks to put up. But like you I don't really promote on social media anywhere so people only find my stuff by chance. Etsy is so saturated it's very difficult to do.

I have no advice really because I just take the money as and when it comes cos I only do it as a hobby!

I think you have to treat Etsy like other social media. Follow other sellers, have a wish list, link to
instagram/twitter/whatever accounts where you post and comment regularly. Send a sample to some influencers. There are a lot of big businesses on Etsy these days so you have to fight to be seen. Don't know if folksy is any better?

Post a link here for advice views

See I made a little doll blanket and pillow and did say that a cat might like it, because my cat stole 2nd one I made! I read all the reviews on there , and I do make stuff that's just as nice I'm sure,.going to make a light box , that'll be the answer . Refuse to go on Facebook tho, wouldn't know how to link things up anyway..
Thank you for replying

@Jenjenn if I knew how to post a link I might do that!

I buy things from Etsy, some have been good and some not so good. I have thought about selling on there but I think to be successful you need to be making something totally unique. I can see why some struggle to sell as there are so many sellers on their selling the same items.

The last thing I bought was a print that I couldn’t have found anywhere else. I bought some bath bombs a few weeks before ant they were awful 😞.

I have got Instagram but the people I follow are all crafty people who wouldn't need to buy the things I make
Haven't heard of folksy, I'll look into that.

I’ve really struggled with Etsy although I do sell in a very saturated market.
I also have my own website which costs significantly less in fees than Etsy so to be completely honest I haven’t invested loads into it but I’d be interested in hearing from anyone who has cracked it.

There's a thread here for those of us who sell on etsy
Any Etsy sellers want to chat / share tips?
www.mumsnet.com/Talk/_chat/4195102-Any-Etsy-sellers-want-to-chat-share-tips

There are some Facebook groups that can help you setting up your listings and guide you in things you may be doing wrong. The one I am in is

www.facebook.com/groups/BeginWithEtsyFreeGroup/?ref=share

I've recently started selling and had about 40 sales so far, I'm directing everyone from Instagram though and have recently tried Etsy ads. I have had quite a lot of traffic from that. I think if you're not advertising what you're selling it's almost impossible for anyone to find you as there are just so many sellers.
Have you had a look through the Etsy sellers guide?

Thank you everyone. I'm not on Facebook so cant see that page but will look on the thread on here. @jobsagudden wow, 40, what are you selling?

I hesitate to post as I sell similar things to you (don't want added competition!) I am moderately successful - approximately 750 sales in the last 3 or 4 years, although most of that is in the lead up to Christmas.

When I started, like you, I had virtually no interest and discovered why when I chatted on the forums. I wasn't adding tags to my listings. This is critical for buyers to find you in the search. Also, once you make a sale, you rise up the order of listings so success makes you more prominent to buyers and so brings more success.

Keep trying. If you have seen other people selling what you wish to sell, make sure your prices are competitive, and hang on until October. The market really picks up massively then.

I sell on etsy and have done for years. (my shop is down temporarily as its on holiday mode as I am due to have a baby next week). Do you have international shipping set up? I'm in the UK but most of my customers are based in America. One thing that really helps is setting a small budget for etsy marketing, mine is between 1-3 USD per day. Also, renew your listings every few days so etsy can see you are active. It does cost 20 cents I think but can be worth it. There are some really good videos online on how to boost etsy sales. I watched alot before I got it right. Some of my items didn't do well but some do extreamly well (I sell sunglasses and bags mostly).

@Kittytheteapot
Thanks for that! I have worked out the tags bit, but didn't know about rising up the order of listings, that was my feeling though, if I just sell a few things and get some reviews surely it will go from there. I have these big ideas, then think oh I wont be able to keep up with lots of orders, then zilch, nothing, no need to worry, haha.
Also answering previous question, I'm in uk and have opted to only sell in the uk, in case I get postage really wrong or something gets lost.

@Reign21
With the renewing listing, do you mean completely take them down and start again, I have tried to redo some pictures in better light

Unless you spend a lot with Etsy advertising AND sell very niche things you’ll not make sales sitting by passively, you need to drive customers to your product. Think if it as a brick and mortar shop. Currently your shop is a teeny little shop down a back alley away from the centre of town, not many people will walk past so you wont get a lot of footfall, however if you market and advertise correctly it’ll bring people in. Social media drives a massive chunk of my visits but it’s hard work.

Wise words @MikeWozniaksGloriousTache
Thank you

Meant to add, and contrary to all the advice here wrt advertising, I have never advertised all, and do not post links to my shop on social media. I recently discovered I had been signed up to Etsy ads, or whatever it is called, but that I would pay higher commission for any sales made. As I already sell my items very competitively, and, let's face it, with crochet, you rarely get paid enough for your time, I opted out. Have my sales suffered? It wouldn't seem so. Even at this time of year when I normally am not interested in making sales, I am still selling one or two items a week.

Which is not to say don't advertise, but it isn't the be all and end all.

However, I do sell outside the UK. Most of my sales are to the UK, but America is a significant market and you would do well to look into postage costs so you feel confident to sell there.

@Kittytheteapot well crochet certainly doesn't meet the NMW does it! I've just checked that I'm not signed up to etsyads because I would actually make zero if I started paying $ a day.

@Myonlysunshine123 I do personalised portraits snd art prints, I've had a few big ordered of art prints since I started using Etsy ads but haven't really got my head around it yet. Xxx

I've been on Etsy for five years. It was slow to start. But I do pay for advertising now - I have to as I hit the $10,000 worth of sales in a year that is the limit over which you have to pay for external ads (can't switch it off) last year so I'm 'locked into advertising' now.

I do use Twitter and Facebook for social media. I used to find that quite hard, especially in October/November when the majority of my sales come. I'm making orders 7 days a week then to get things out - I'm not pushed on orders but I sell into America and you need to get things posted asap to beat the USPS backlog so I make and pack every day!

But I discovered Hootsuite which is a free scheduling tool so I schedule 2 or 3 weekly social media posts to both Twitter and Facebook in a spare couple of hours then get on with the making. Hootsuite puts the posts on for me as the dates/times I specify arrive. Saves my sanity! I post about my interests or a nice day out as well - people don't want sell, sell, sell all the time and it makes you appear more human.

Tags are your friend along with good photographs - use all your photographs. Don't forget people can't pick up your item to look at it so show the back as well if you have a spare photo slot.

Make sure your titles are accurate too.

And have a look at the competition! Not to copy them of course! But to see what you think makes them sell? Are their photos really nice? why, what's appealing to you? Do they have a social media presence - it'll show in their About section. What sort of social media do they use if they use it? See what they post to that and how often and what sort of hashtags they use. I learned a lot by picking random people who sold what I make and critically looking at their pages/social media etc. It helped me measure my own shop against an established shop when I first started.