Does anyone have their own website? Is it worth it?

[WrappedbyDesign]

Just wondering if many people on Etsy also have their own website? If you do, is it worth it in terms of sales vs cost?

If you don't have your own site do you think it's necessary? Do you plan on getting one in the future? And if not, why not?

[Former_Member]

We started off with a website, but have tweeked it to be more the blog format. Folks seem to like that personal touch with updates over a static page with sale items. Our Etsy shop is where we are focussing for sales. But I see lots of folks doing well adding sales to their blogs and even facebook pages. I have a facebook friend who does "quick sales" almost daily. She posts that there will be one later in the day. Then she posts a picture of her artisan jewelry piece and says "the first one to comment with their email address gets it!" She sends off a paypal invoice to that email, and voila! She's doing quite well.

Of course... if a seller is high volume and does wholesale, I can see that a website would be a neccessity.

I guess it all depends on what someone's selling and what their market is.

I figure "why compete with etsy?" I'm happy to have the potential of their market!

Just my 2 cents!
~Linda

[JujuTreasures]

Not yet but I'm definitely thinking of opening one. I love Etsy, but I think it's a good idea to have your own place as well.

[WildWildernessPhotos]

www.wildwildernessphotography.com is my other website I created to have a more professional site, but it does not get nearly the traffic as my Etsy Shop.

[WrappedbyDesign]

@Linda, thanks for your input, that's an amazing idea about the quick sale, I've seen people do something they call 'deal or no deal', which I think works in a similar way. I'll have to try it one day.

@Julie, I love Etsy too! :-) and, like you, I think it's good to have your own place, as relying almost entirely on someone else's site where you have no real control over what happens seems more restricted and risky in the long run.

@Andrea, thank you for that. Do you put in as much effort with promoting your own site as you do with your Etsy store? or more?

[suebeads]

I have my own, I use Pappashop to run it. I figure as long as I get sales equal to the amount of money i pay per month to have the web site, it is a wash. More sales is gravy! My web site has my "made to order" items whereas my etsy store has all my items currently available in stock. I need to put more effort into promoting my own web site, though!

[Former_Member]

I have a website because I thought it would be fun (www.toosdetectiveagency.com) which connects back to Etsy for buying things online. I do a lot sales in person and have items in brick-and-mortar stores, so the website is a great resource to connect with those customers. The website allows me to post pics of all the coasters I make, not just ones that are sold on Etsy. I love my cute little website (highly recommend the designer if you need one!) and think they are great for the right reasons.

[WrappedbyDesign]

@Susan, I suppose it could work using the two sites for different things (custom/RtS). The whole promoting thing is what puts me off, as I'm sure that any website I create will need a lot more attention.

@Sara, Your site is very cute! I also have a 'fun' website already running (www.wrappedbydesign.co.uk), which just connects back to my Etsy store and my blog, but looking into getting one that is focussed on driving sales and where I'd have more control over what happens.

Thanks for everyone's input!

[HouseOfMoss]

I just bought my domain name for my real website (HouseOfMossShop.com). It's not set up yet, but now that my business is growing so much outside of Etsy, I want to have an official site to send them to. It will link back to Etsy for shopping.

[Former_Member]

I have an art portfolio site (www.evey-in-orbit.com) that I get some shop views from.

[Former_Member]

I own my own website now because I thought it would be nice to get my footprint in the dirt. (www.artCain.net)

I don't sell from my website -yet. I just use it as a blog and communication source for information about my projects and keeping up with other artists.

[Former_Member]

Hi,I'm Joanna
I do have my own website (http://www.allaboutyoudesign.com/). Yes, It incurs costs but it makes as much or more than Etsy. In all honesty that didn't happen over night. I built my first website in 2002 and built 2 after that by myself. The one now was built And is hosted by Launchpadonline.com. It's owner/president is a woman. It's an awesome company! It's not cheap but for me it's worth it. So I've had a presence on the web for 9 years. BUT, having said that I would NOT leave Etsy! I Love Etsy & I feel like I have a personal relationship with many of my Etsy customers. It's a tough decision but if you do well on Etsy you might want to build up a presence here before launching off into the http:// wild world of even more competition. Whatever you do I wish you lots of success!

[Former_Member]

I bought a domain name which brings people straight to my Etsy store. I have it just in case I ever decide to open my own site.

[buffalogirls]

I've had my website before I joined Etsy, I do close to same business as here. I am a web designer so I would be a shame not to have a website.
Www.buffalogirlsdesign.com

[BriggleSticks]

Hi there! I had a website for about a year, started roughly 4 months before I opened my Etsy shop. It does make it easy to share where to find your goods when someone has not heard of Etsy. Then you have to explain all of it just to get them to find your shop : ) After a year I cancelled the subscription to the domain name, because it was not bringing in much traffic, and it was one more thing to keep updated (I also have a blog).

I used Globat, which I found to be fairly priced and very easy to use for those of us who have no idea how to create a webpage ; )

It's hard to say with the jewelry market, I don't know too much about that. I know it is probably over saturated like most and hard to stand out. It depends on what you are wanting to get from it. What is it that you think a website can do that Etsy cannot? Maybe you can try a blog first and see how it goes? Blogspot.com/Blogger.com is great.

Good luck and much success to you!

p.s. LOVE this piece!
http://www.etsy.com/listing/85096755/three-stone-ring-viking-knit-wire

[ColorStyleDesign]

First I had a website that featured my creative insights, then I opened a store, then I closed my store and now I have my etsy shop. However, my website is still live and I get a lot of traffic. I haven't updated the site with my etsy link. I still need to figure that out. www.urbancolor.com

My advice is YES, get a website! Whether you sell directly or not from your site it will bring traffic to your etsy shop!

[HenaTayebPhotography]

I created my own website in september www.henatayebphotography.com for the above reasons mentioned.. I want the independence. I want to create my own brand.

It mostly came about from casual conversations I had with an art consultant and an art adviser. Both expressed that they liked my work but that having Etsy in my resume was actually a drawback. It prevent me from being taken seriously as an artist. I found that as a huge surprise at first.. but the more I thought about it started to make more sense.. hence the creation of the website.

They told me that when someone goggled my name the first thing to come up in searches is my personal website.. which may not happen immediately but I am working on it.

So far I have made one sale from the website.. and that fact that it has only been two months since launching it is something I had not expected and I consider it as a positive.

[Former_Member]

I already had the domain when I created the shop (I previously had a photo biz) so I decided to use it for the shop as well (might as well, I am paying for two domains for a now closed business..).

It's good for getting hits from search engines, letting people know about shop news that you don't want to make into a 500-word post on facebook, etc. It's also easier for running giveaways (especially since you're no longer allowed to host "like" contests on facebook. you can have one of the requirements to enter is to "like" a page, but that can't be an automatic entry)

I highly recommend every shop has a website, twitter, and fanpage. I use wordpress.org on my domain, so it's easy to set-up and update.

[Former_Member]

oh http://www.whenshuttersclick.com

:)

[Former_Member]

Jacqueline:
I had a website before I opened my etsy store and I have kept it up.

One of the benefits of having a website it that Google ranks your Etsy pages partially on the number of linking sites. So having links to your own etsy store through your website really bumps you up in the ranks. Also my website is through Wordpress, so it is also a blog; good for news updates, giveaways, coupon advertisements, etc. Finally, I have some older work that I am not currently selling on etsy. My website allows me to show off that work publicly, but not sell it immediately.
These are just a few things to think about when deciding to have a website. I would recommend starting with a blog and going from there.

My website/blog: www.Porcuprints.com

[Former_Member]

I used to do really well from my own website. Now that Etsy is more compatible with the Google search engines, my website no longer shows up in keywords searches for the types of items i carry because the thousands of Etsy results show up first. Now i hardly ever make sales from my own website anymore.

[darkcycleclothing]

We started our own website (www.darkcycleclothing.com) October 1st, it's doing decently but I need to put a whole lot of work into it to drive traffic.

I plan on hiring an SEO guru so we can really get it pumping.

[WrappedbyDesign]

Thank you everyone for all your replies!!

It's nice to read through everyone's individual experiences and opinions.

From what people are saying, it seems that having a website can easily go either way i.e. it can bring in as many sales as Etsy or it can sink into google non-existence, so.... the only way to know is to try it I suppose.

I really would like somewhere independent of Etsy where I can refer people to when they ask for my website AND where they can make a purchase directly.

@Annette Lang - Thank you for that little bit of promotion there and for the compliment!

And thanks to everyone again, your help is much appreciated!

[MyMexicanArt]

We have a bebsite, www.cristiferart.com. The Etsy shop is realy enhancing it. We started with a blog and evolve into a website. We use it mainly to promote our workshops. I think it helps to have a site, Etsy, facebook, and other outlets

[IslandPicnic]

We have had our own website for a little longer than we've been on Etsy (a few years now). It's nice to have, but we don't get near the traffic there that we do on Etsy. Still, the occasional sale that comes through is always welcome! I find that I don't put the same time and energy into that site as I do here, so maybe if I did our sales would go up there, too. If I only had more hours in the day, right??

Anyway, here's ours - www.organiluxe.com