New Etsy Format - Early Bird Writing Tips!

[#1]

If you’ve been trying to figure out what’s going on with Etsy's update (final switch due in April, but small changes are being made every day), it might look a little confusing. Things have been moved around, sections that used to be at the top are now at the bottom, and, on the desktop, many images are now much larger. How will this affect the writing in your shop? Let's take a look.

SHOP ICON and SHOP TITLE
The name of your shop, your icon, your personal photo and your shop title (looks like a tag line) now appear at the top of the Home page. This puts a huge amount of pressure on your shop title and icon to deliver powerful messages that instantly engage buyers. Revisit these two items if you aren’t sure that you’ve fully optimized them.

Note: If you opt for a banner or cover photo, that image will appear across the page at the very top. If you decide to use a banner, make sure it’s gorgeous, and gives visitors a very clear, very appealing idea of what you sell and what makes your products so special. It’s extremely “in your face” when you land on your Home page, so you might consider leaving it out unless it adds real value.

REVIEWS INFO
Everyone seems to have noticed that your star rating and review count now appear at the top of the page. This will be difficult for new shop owners who by definition have had few sales so far. It also negatively affects anyone who has run into a difficult customer or two and has suffered from negative reviews that perhaps they didn’t deserve. Nothing much to be done about it, unfortunately.

On the other hand, this is good news for successful, long-term sellers with lots of great reviews and high sales volume. Here, as well, though (and the same was true in the past), sellers with lower-priced items that sell in large volume will get a break compared to higher-end sellers with expensive items and lower per-item sales overall.

FEATURED PRODUCTS
Your four featured product images come next on the page. This means that buyers will see some product photos before they get to your shop announcement. Keep this in mind when planning your strategy for overall marketing or for special sales. For example, suppose you have a limited promotion going on and have decided to use your shop announcement to highlight it. In this case, you might want to feature photos with a “SALE” notice on them, because buyers won’t see the “sale” message in your announcement unless they scroll down.

SHOP ANNOUNCEMENT
The visible portion of the shop announcement is very short, so use the opening sentences for your most powerful, most engaging messages. As mentioned above, you can also use the opener for special sales or promotions. The visible portion is even shorter on mobile devices, so you might want to investigate how your announcement looks on several different popular platforms.

PRODUCT PHOTOS
The next thing that buyers see moving down is a set of product photos and, to the left, a list of your categories/sections. These photos are huge now on the desktop, so your photography could make a big difference. Great photos will sell even better. Bad photos will hurt even more.

Good news: A little more of the listing title shows up underneath each photo in the desktop display, so you might be able to use that to your advantage.

REVIEWS
Next in line scrolling down are your latest reviews. I don’t know how many reviews will show up before the “see more.” These reviews are also quite large and conspicuous on the desktop, so a lot might be riding on how generous your buyers have been recently.

SHOP ABOUT INFORMATION
All the text that was previously on your shop About page now appears under the reviews on the Home page. You can also add a video or photos above the text. Whether or not to use photos/video depends on how strong a story you can tell visually. If your photos or video add a tremendous amount of appeal and value, and strongly support your selling messages, then by all means use them. Otherwise, you might consider going straight to the text.

The visible portion of the About section only contains a few paragraphs, so use the opener to deliver your most important messages. Readers won’t always click on “Read more.”

EXTERNAL LINKS
Links to your outside website, Facebook, and so on, previously appeared in the right-hand column of the shop About page on the desktop. In the new format, they’re located after the shop About information. Not as convenient as before, although this was already the case on mobile devices.

SHOP MEMBERS BIO(S)
The little bio blurbs that used to appear at the top of the shop About page have been moved to a lower position on your Home page, following the external links. Will anyone ever read this material? I’m not sure, but you should fill it out anyway.

POLICIES
Finally (this is a very long page!) your Shop Policies are listed. You can keep your current policies language or opt to use Etsy’s new policies template. Take a look and decide if Etsy’s template is better than your own wording. My guess is that there will be tweaks to the template over time as sellers begin to use it and provide feedback.

Note that clickable links at the top of the Home page can take a visitor directly to the About section, reviews or policies. We’ll have to wait and see if buyers actually use these links.

PRODUCT DESCRIPTIONS
Product descriptions evidently look the same in the new format, but the editing area for each listing now lets you view a preview of what supposedly will show up in Google search results. Unfortunately, testing has revealed that this preview isn’t entirely reliable (at least not at this time), so the information might not be especially useful.

The opening couple sentences of your product description remain the most important. Use your top selling points to engage buyers immediately. Also include your top one or two SEO keyword phrases to improve your chances of being seen in buyer searches.

I'll keep tabs on the update as Etsy continues to implement changes, and will let you know if I spot anything new that affects the writing in your shop.

By the way, If you'd like me to take a quick look at your shop, just post below. I might be able to offer some quick tips.

Note: Feel free to view this article and previous posts for Etsy sellers at http://www.facebook.com/chaconsulting.

[SusanSumnerStudio]

Hi Barbara
Thank you for the very informative post! If you have time, I would greatly appreciate any suggestions
Sue

[BCCopywriting]

Gabriella, Mihaela, and Susan: Your shops are all lovely! I didn't realize before posting that the process on the team is for people to post their requests for critiques in the team threads. It's easy - just "Create a Thread" and ask your question, then "post." You can ask for a general critique or ask a specific question. Once that's done, both Mary and I (and in fact, anyone else) can provide some feedback for you. I'll be on the lookout and will be glad to help from the copywriting perspective.

[BCCopywriting]

Brenda: Check into the name change a little more. Etsy Help says you can change your shop name once and I think it says it even changes the URL. That way, you retain all your history. (I don't know if anyone who's bookmarked your shop will get forwarded. But you can do a little more research on that.)

It turns out that the process here on the team is to post in the threads for a critique. That way both Mary and I can have a look and give you the full scope of SEO-to-copywriting feedback. You can "create a thread," write your questions or ask for a critique, then "post." I'll watch for it!

[suemako]

Hi Barbara,
If you get time can you peek at my shop and let me know what you think?
Thanks much.

[BCCopywriting]

Sue: Thanks for your comment. I didn't realize before posting that the process on the team is for people to post their requests for critiques in the team threads. It's easy - just "Create a Thread" and ask your question, then "post." You can ask for a general critique or ask a specific question. Once that's done, both Mary and I (and in fact, anyone else) can provide some feedback for you. I'll watch for it!

[myTotalHandMade]

https://www.etsy.com/shop/totalhandmadeD

:))

[BCCopywriting]

Ourania: I didn't realize before posting that the process on the team is for people to post their requests for critiques in the team threads. It's easy - just "Create a Thread" and ask your question, then "post." You can ask for a general critique or ask a specific question. Once that's done, both Mary and I (and in fact, anyone else) can provide some feedback for you. I'll watch for it!

[DecoDazeFineVintage]

Barbara:

You're amazing and I've read through the posts and your suggestions and help are amazing.

I would be grateful for a word on two on how I'm doing with my writing etc when you have some time.

Thank you in advance,
Andrea

[AuntMaymesAttic]

Barbara, I've been a lurker here but I see how your posts really have value! The original post is tremendously helpful and I appreciate all the info, and the time you took to write it.

Could you please take a look at my shop? I've changed my cover photo, my shop icon, and my photo, and tweaked a few things. Hopefully I'm on the "right track" and it won't take too long.

Thank you!
Beth

[BCCopywriting]

Andrea and Aunt Mayme: Thanks for your comments! Glad the information has been helpful. I didn't realize before posting that the process on the team is for people to post their requests for critiques in the team threads. It's easy - just "Create a Thread" and ask your question, then "post." You can ask for a general critique or ask a specific question. Once that's done, both Mary and I (and in fact, anyone else) can provide some feedback for you. I'll keep an eye out for your posts!

[Former_Member · Accepted solution]

Hi everyone!

Barbara's expertise and background is in copy writing and is here on this team to help with copy in your shops and websites. It is very kind of her to give everyone help in other areas,

BUT . . .

To get a brief overview critique / review, start your own thread on this team asking for a review and tell us what you are having trouble with or what you would like help with. If there are many requests for reviews that it might take a few days to get to everyone.

Thank you!

[CarolBDesigns]

Barbara...... could you look at my shop! I hate to ask, but I need to know if everything is all right. I want to tweak it to it's best! Thank you so very, very much!

[BCCopywriting]

Carol: I didn't realize before posting that the process on the team is for people to post their requests for critiques in the team threads. It's easy - just "Create a Thread" and ask your question, then "post." You can ask for a general critique or ask a specific question. Once that's done, both Mary and I (and in fact, anyone else) can provide some feedback for you. I'll be on the lookout and will be glad to help from the copywriting perspective.

[ClaycrazyPottery]

marking

[PatsysPressedFlowers]

Barbara, thank you so much for all the ideas regarding updates to my shop! I have just started working on revising my listings; keywords in titles, tags and descriptions.
You really have motivated me to reach for the next level in sales.
I see I also need to put my shop name in each listing to make them come up if someone clicks on items after entering my shop name!
I could just hug you for all your kind encouragement and regard for my work!

[PatsysPressedFlowers]

Mary, thanks for the heads up about starting a new thread when asking for a critique. I actually have never started a thread, a little shy maybe, but most teams tell you not to do so. I am also pretty low tech and only have an iPad to work on. I see my updates already showing up on the iPad too.
I have referred a few friends to this team, and have made a few new friends here as well. Thank you, both!

[GoodLuckWishes4U]

Hi Barbara, I'm sorry that I'm replying so late to your review. I really appreciate the things you pointed out and I have been working on them. I used the frames in my cover photo because I have always use the phrase "wearable art" referring to my necklaces. I changed the word gallery to jewelry on the text to avoid confusion.

Regarding my grammar tenses, this is a real issue I have and my biggest struggle as English is my second language. I really wish I could contact you for a paid critique but right now is impossible for me. Anyway, please go back and check the changes when you have time. I also got a new logo. www.etsy.com/shop/goodluckwishes4U/neu

[Former_Member]

Hi, I'm new to techy stuff and don't know how to 'start a thread' - I've looked everywhere and can't see anything that says 'create a thread' ...?? Probably looking right at it!! Anyone - help please!

[BCCopywriting]

Cormeen Home Decor: I know, it can be a little confusing. There are two sections on the main page of this team. The top one is "Featured Discussions." Below that is "Latest Discussions." Go to "Latest Discussions." On the right, you'll see a clickable link that says, "Create a New Thread." Just click on that, and you'll see where to put in your information. If you have any problems, let us know.

[EvieZaccardelliArt]

Barbara, I wondered if you could have a look at my shop in general from your expert's angle - thank you for any help :)

[BCCopywriting]

Evie: I didn't realize before posting that the process on the team is for people to post their requests for critiques in the team threads. It's easy - just "Create a Thread" and ask your question, then "post." You can ask for a general critique or ask a specific question. Once that's done, both Mary and I (and in fact, anyone else) can provide some feedback for you. I'll be on the lookout and will be glad to offer some brief comments from the copywriting perspective.

[BCCopywriting]

Carmen: Your changes look good! I think that's an improvement. If you're on Facebook, visit: http://www.facebook.com/groups.copywritingcoach. The free activities there might be helpful.

[ThePassionatePearl]

thank you so much Barbara, this is very valuable info. Marking this page! Yes feeling a bit overwhelmed and likes the smaller photos better, looked more classy I think...but we have to go with the flow, that's one thing I have learned on etsy over the past 6 years. If you have a minute would you be able to see my large banner/cover photo and see what you think? Thank you for all your hard work...really appreciate it

[art4u2buy]

If you have a minute I would appreciate a quick review. Thanks!

[SpringsteenMania]

I just lost a month of time to work on my new shop due to severe pneumonia and am desperate for someone to take a peek at my shop so I can get it somewhat ready by Monday.

Re: keyword. I assume since I have a niche market that my main keyword is Bruce Springsteen or just Springsteen. I hope I am right because that part is very easy to incorporate throughout the shop.

Thanks so much for your time. You have no idea how much I appreciate it!