Feeling like my craft does not measure to Etsy "standards"

[#1]

Hello to all,

I have to admit, I feel like I might not belong to this venue of Etsy. I made crafts and have won juried shows for years. Yet, when I look through Etsy, all I see is: Jewelry, Clothes, Knitting, Painting, Printing from a Printer, Clay, Pottery, etc.

Please, someone tell me if I am wasting my time on Etsy? I have almost 60 items to list from Christmas Wreaths, Disney Themed Hat Wreaths, Christmas Ornaments and I was going to list my Bridal creations. ( I have been doing weddings for 5 years) I am debating listing Bridal as there is so much.

This is becoming very frustrating to me. I went to vote on the Handmadeology Etsy Top 10, and again all I saw to vote on were the above. (Yes, I added my items) They are averaging around 7.92 to 8.6.

I really feel this weekend will be my decision point. I don't mean to be a downer, but am I the only one who feels this way?

Thanks for the ears,
Darleen

[TheCatBall]

1) Don't give up. It takes time.

2) Now is the perfect time to be promoting Christmas stuff.

3) Read this:
http://www.etsy.com/storque/seller-handbook/from-etsys-merchandising-desk-july-12839/?ref=sell_blog_...

4) improve your photos. This takes time.

5) None of us had instant success. We've all been working at it.

6) You will find great tips and help in these forums and with the teams. Keep looking for information.

7) Consider joining Treasury making team. I learned a lot by doing this.
See my post on the topic:
http://jennasredrhino.blogspot.com/2011/02/join-treasury-making-team.html

[Former_Member]

Bridal is probably the best place to try. . .
The seasonal ones should almost promote themselves. . .when the time comes. Just list them.

[Former_Member]

Along with your handmade wreath, maybe try a supply section and list the items and materials that you do not use in your items.

Just another way to pull customers in who are looking for supplies to make their own wreath.

[Former_Member]

Hi dardawn,

I can see that your wreaths are very well made...stick to it. As many have said, it takes ALOT of work to get noticed. I work my shop full time and I can tell you that I spend the majority of my day getting my work out there via teams and the forums.

I have one suggestion, use your avatar to highlight something that is available in your shop. Everywhere you visit on here you will see that doing this in an opportunity for people to see a bit of your work! :)

Stay positive and promote your butt off! haha...you'll see things turn around!

♥

[Former_Member]

I've improved my marketing by renewing a few of my best listings every few days. I have had quite a number of custom orders stem from my listings and it wasn't until I started to renew my items. Etsy is an abyss and its easy to get lost in the mix. But, to do well in sales, create a website (blogger or wordpress are really inexpensive), keep listing on Etsy ('vacation mode' is my favorite feature when I sell 'live'), and don't give up. Get involved with a local community of crafters and start doing events and getting around word of mouth too...that will drive people to your Etsy site.

[Former_Member]

Oh yeah, and selling anything with Disney is a BAD idea. They will find you and sue the pants off of even the most obscure vendor.

[Former_Member]

Darlene, I learned about what to put in your policies section from another vendor who let me copy/paste from her page, then put in my specific info. If it would help you get going, you can do that with my policies. Sara

[Former_Member]

Hi! I was reading through everyone's post and you have been getting a lot of really great advice! I'm new to Etsy, and just opened my shop a little over a month ago. I was getting discouraged like you were, and I joined the team SASsy Critiques and had them critique my shop. They are really really detailed about every tiny thing that could be improved about your shop, and brutally honest (in a good way!!) I started making sales as soon as I made the changes they told me to. A lot of the suggestions they gave me, I never would have thought of, and even the complete opposite of what I thought would work. And I noticed that you asked about editing pictures, I am not very good with this either. But the suggestion they gave me was to make a light box or take pictures outdoors with no flash. I downloaded AVS photo editor (I think its only about $30 for a year?) It is a really simple and easy way to edit photos, especially for an amateur like me! But I hope you don't give up on, your wreaths are unique and beautiful and I think they could do really well.

[Former_Member]

I used Picasa, it's free and has some cool options in the free version. You can add more if you want to pay. It makes taking truer photos a lot less stressful for an amateur photog! I can even straighten out a necklace in a photo! so cool! I hold the pendant in my hand and adjust the image until I feel it looks just like the actual object. It can be time consuming, but it's pretty vital to have great photos!

[Former_Member]

Your product looks great and as someone mentioned - having a unique product is definitely a plus. Just keep at it. You got some great advice here.

If your product sells in other venues it can sell here - you just need to sell it differently and you are in the process of figuring that out.

I would also get a more professional banner. I just got one done by Countryatheart2008. It cost me $7.00 but I tried doing it myself and couldn't and it looks so much better and Sue did just what I wanted.

Best of luck to you

[opendoorstudio]

another great free photo editing tool is picnik.com there you are able to create your own banner too! ( it is nice for someone to help you or to hire someone to make a unique one) but in the mean time... this works well.
good luck! I agree... Etsy is an evolution! we all grow day after day and are never perfect! You will do well, just keep working at it..and be patient... it WILL happen! :)