I opened my shop at the beginning of the year and was really excited to make my 300th sale in August! I thought I'd put together a miscellaneous list of things I've learned that have helped me out!
✔ Use search ads.
Modify search ads to benefit your store. Click 'Specific items from my shop' and select your most popular items. Only use the most relevant key words for your shop and unselect the rest.
✔ Reads the forums!
Schedule a little time each day to scan the forums. There is so much good advice out there. Here are some of my favorite posts from some Etsy power sellers:
1. 1000 sales and I quit my day job
http://www.etsy.com/teams/7722/business-topics/discuss/10069837/2. My First Year of Full-Time Crafting: Ten Things I Learned the Hard Way
http://www.etsy.com/teams/7722/business-topics/discuss/6513093/3. $20 000+ worth of sales in 5 months
http://www.etsy.com/teams/5002/etsy-success/discuss/7561969/✔ Watch your shop stats
The biggest help to my shop was watching my shop stats -specifically the keywords section (words people use in searches to find your items). I only had 15 prints, from 15 different authors, and started watching to see which authors were most popular. I used that to start building my shop based on what people were interested in and buying.
✔ Do a giveaway!
Giveaways are a great way to promote your shop and get your name out there. Give readers a discount code so you can track sales you get from the giveaway (10 - 20% is good). I've done two, both brought multiple sales and a repeat customer. Some questions to ask yourself -does this blog meet my target demographic? Do blog posts get comments (you want a blog with active readers)? Are there enough followers to make it worth my time (300+)? If a blog has 1000 followers but only gets 5 comments an entry, it's not active enough.
✔ USPS Priority Flat rate is your friend!
Priority flat rate envelopes through paypal shipping includes the envelope, delivery confirmation, and gets it to your customers super quick (2-3 business days) for $4.90. There are small boxes too. They also offer small boxes, and medium/large sizes at a higher price.
✔ Use etsyonsale.com for sales events.
Etsy on sale will edit all your listings for you to show buyers the regular price and the sales price. Once your sale is over, they'll revert all the listings back.
✔ Think about hiring a professional photographer
I know this seems intimidating to most people, but it never hurts to search for photographers in your area. Once you find their site, message them with specifics of what you're looking for and ask for an estimate. You might be surprised! I did this earlier in the year, and emailed 7 places locally. A few didn't get back to me, 2 were way too expensive, one offered to trade products, the last offered a really reasonable price and had a great portfolio. We agreed to $100 for 10 items, 2 photos of each, but she sent me every take (120 photos) so I could pick and edit the ones I wanted.
✔ Packaging is important!
I get a lot of positive feedback regarding it and it makes the experience more special to the buyer. You can find lots of great sellers on Etsy or buy in bulk if you are selling enough. Kraft paper is a super inexpensive way to wrap items, as are glassine bags. Wrapping things in twine is a cute touch. I also love washi tape rolls, which have cute designs and last a long time. Misc. shops I recommend for supplies:
-Clearbags.com -I use them for backing board, protective sleeves, and large mailers.
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http://www.etsy.com/shop//purelypapers - Cute thank you tags
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http://www.etsy.com/shop//chickydoddle - Great selection of Washi Tape
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http://www.etsy.com/shop//CraftyTheresaDSupply - Colorful twine!
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http://www.etsy.com/shop//kawaiigoodies - Cotton filled kraft jewelry boxes
✔ Respond to customers ASAP.
I'm always surprised to see neg. feedback with buyers complaining the seller didn't respond. Customer service is so important for a successful business. Don't wait to respond to someone. If you aren't home to work on a custom order or take more photographs of an item, etc., just message them a simple note thanking them for their interest in the item and letting them know when you will be able to take care of their request.
✔ If an item doesn't arrive - replace it!
Out of the 300 sales I've had, three did not arrive. Only 1% of my total sales. Sometimes people want to argue that once it's shipped, it's not their problem - it is always your problem if a customer is unhappy. One item was irreplaceable (buttons from a vintage book) and I refunded entirely, the other two I reshipped. Always treat your customers like you'd like to be treated!
✔ Ship international.
Shipping international opens you up to a much wider base of customers. Be sure to update your listings when you do to show measurements in both inches and cm.
✔ Offer items at all price ranges.
Make sure you offer items at all price ranges. If you do artwork or photography, think about purchasing greeting cards or postcards with your images. Moo.com has great greeting cards, thick cardstock and you can upgrade to kraft envelopes too. You can get 10% off an order with this code:
http://www.moo.com/share/89ybc6 for them, so it comes to 36 for 25 cards. I don't really sell mine for a profit, but to offer something for those who like my work, can't afford larger sizes, and may come back later to purchase a print if they like it. It's also great for when someone purchases it for a friend, and gets your name out there. Do not leave the back blank, include your shop name and link on it.
✔ Take advantage of the great offers for business cards.
Business cards are a must have. If you go to VistaPrint.com along the top of the page they have an offer for 250 for $10 (although they do charge an upload fee of $4 or $5 if you upload a graphic). Vista Print cards are thin, with no gloss (I think you can upgrade) but the colors are fantastic and always have a good price. Moo.com cards are very thick, glossy finish, and you can upload multiple designs for the front of the cards, but you pay a lot more. Here are some of their promotions:
Free 100 Minicards:
http://us.moo.com/partner/etsy-minicard-trialFree 50 Business Cards:
http://us.moo.com/partner/etsy-business-cards/That's all I can think of for now, but hope it helps!
