Hard work but lowest sales ever

[Former_Member]

Hi All,

So recently I spent two months where I worked 40+ hours per week on my shop in an effort to take it to the Next Level. I got a new banner, I reconfigured all of my tags and titles and descriptions, I re-took over a thousand photos, I branded myself, and I did vast efforts in social media and promotion. I do not know anything else I can do at this point, I touched every piece of data or imagery in my shop!

I thought sales would increase for the more professional, better looking and worded and tagged shop. But October has been my worst month ever! And not due to browse, as I never got many category hits anyway.

Can anyone tell me if there is something I am doing wrong? I did a lot of research into my changes, and maybe I've just been staring at my shop too long to be able to tell!

Any help or insight would be greatly appreciated! :)

[TheSortedBead]

i didnt get very many daily views at all, but then a couple of days ago i started an ad campaign on Facebook, and it does seem to help with that, havent made any sales as of yet because of it, but i have noticed my views going up :)

[ChrisOsCreations]

hi there!
firstly i noticed that you have OOAK at your titles (i didn't checked the tags..) but i wouldn't have it at a title , if you want to have it write -one of a kind
not everyone knows what ooak means
second your photos are too bright for me , have you tried a wooden surface instead of a white background?i think that the gemstones you use will pop up in a more natural surface

ow and for the categories , i had 5 hits and i'm not the only one, so just concentrate at seo
this tool helps a lot
https://adwords.google.com/o/Targeting/Explorer?__u=1000000000&__c=1000000000&ideaRequestType=KEYWOR...

[Former_Member]

Hi Chris, and thanks for taking the time to check out my shop! :)

yes, the ooak conundrum.... I've been wondering about that for awhile. I searched "ooak" and "one of a kind" on etsy, and the results' numbers are nearly the same, so I figured it was a 50/50 chance on using either? But you're right, prolly better safe than sorry and use the actual more obvious wording.

This is my first round of photos that actually look decent, so I am open to suggestion! I will try them out on wood, thanks!

That is a great tool! Thanks for posting it, I'd forgotten about it!

Thanks, Rachel! I am glad they are working for you, but FB ads I've tried on 3 occasions and never really brought me much traffic.

[AnneLondezGlass]

Hi Arielle,

Nice shop. I see what Chris means with brightness, I don't think you need to retake your pics but maybe edit them and lower the contrast a little bit, on my screen they appear very bright indeed with spots of almost blinding glare. Maybe you're used to editing on a screen that's a bit dark.

The second thing I noticed was that in many cases you have a color as the first word in your title and the words "necklace" or "earrings" are pushed back because of it. While it's good to have the color in the title I wouldn't put it in the first 3 words but keep those for important descriptive words.

[Former_Member]

Hiya,

I think sometimes it is really hard to tell what outside forces are affecting the sales in our shops!

Do you normally find that October is a slightly less productive month for you?

I had a look back over your sales and the difference between previous October's sales is not SO huge - 13 in 2010 and 17 in 2011 plus this October is not over yet ;) There is still time for it to be your best October yet! You only need to make 5 or 6 more sales to achieve that! :D

I revamped my shop earlier this year and I didn't notice a difference in sales immediately. I also only noticed a difference when I combined the revamp with a huge promotional push (and after a break from promoting due to morning sickness, I am now back to sales in dribs and drabs again!).

Something else I would add is that I think your shop was better branded when you used a background to your pieces - don't despair that your hardwork has been wasted though- cutout images are essential for promoting your work in magazines and blogs etc

Hope that is a helpful comment, and not too annoying after you have put so much hard work into improving your images!

[Former_Member]

Thank you Anne for your thoughts and time! I was thinking it was the first four words that get picked up by Google, but is it the first three? Yeh, then I definitely need to move up the words bracelet, earrings, etc! And I will definitely consider tweaking the contrast a bit. Maybe my screen is dark! You know I work in a room with bright natural light, that could be part of it too! Thanks again! :)

Thank you Emily for your words, I really appreciate it! It's true, I was promoting a lot and have since stepped back again...guess that's one horse one should never get off of! Thanks for putting it in perspective for me, I guess October never was my greatest month. I just always thought that my old pics were too dark and blurry and not cohesive... so you think I should do like a combo of the old and new?

Thanks so much everyone for the very helpful insights!

[Former_Member]

Yeah I think you want to combine some aspects of the new and old style!

For example my fave thumbnails of yours are these two:
http://www.etsy.com/transaction/91545326
http://www.etsy.com/transaction/32083148

I realise that one of them is very blurry, but I think that it's the texture in the background that works. I think you want to find a lighter coloured background texture (as lighter coloured images are definitely favoured for treasurys!) that you use in every shot and that links in some way to your audience and market.

Good backgrounds are about putting your work into a context that helps define your brand, and who your market is. I see your market as being quite 'earthy' or spiritual women who appreciate colour and texture. That makes me think that a background like linen or marble would work.

I'd also arrange your products in exactly the same way for each photo- so all earrings will lie at the same angle, all necklaces will be looped as if worn round the neck etc

People have commented that the lighting on your new style photos is harsh - I also used to have the same problem! I now try and take my product photos on a well lit window sill, but on an overcast day. If it is sunny and I have to take product photos, I tape a bit of tissue paper (or even just ordinary white printer paper if the light is really fierce) up in the window to reduce shadows.


Hope those tips are helpful!

[Former_Member]

Thanks so much, Emily! You've given me a LOT of good feedback and a lot to think about and consider! Thanks for taking the time to do that. I've been researching some other jewel shops and have a good idea of how to proceed, once I figure out how to take them. My current process is a light box and editing with FotoFuze. I have tried natural light in many different ways and places around my house, and none have been successful so far. Either muted and dull or waaaay too hot and bright. I live in Florida, so we never get those perfect overcast days! I'll try what you mentioned with the paper though!

Thanks again and best wishes!

[AllieBlankets]

I'm so sorry you are getting so frustrated OP! I didn't get category views before browse but I still think it is causing the low views I'm dealing with. October is a slow month in retail as well.

Even if you are having a slow month, know that all that hard work is worth it! It will pay off in the long run, I promise. Shops can ALWAYS be improved, even the best ones! So continuously looking for ways to improve and never seeing your shop as "done" is a good way to run your business. I'm always improving photos, tags, descriptions, etc. I love coming in here and finding tips that I have not heard of and implementing them in my shop. And I'll have to keep that ever changing list the entire time my shop is open. :)

[Former_Member]

I do much better when I am using the "Search Ads" campaigns.

[KriyaDesign]

For me its like a roller coaster. It dives low and just suddenly shoots up and dives again. I am out of breath trying to understand the science of it. I only look at overall monthly sales. If it fall short of goals... I tweak. In which you already did. I haven't get to social medias yet. Too much going on right now.

I am impressed with your efforts. In fact, I am taking notes on them of what I might do next.

This may not be helpful, but it does help me. When I thought (the operative word here) I've done enough. I step back and play. Getting out of my own way. My jittery over what should happen, or what I want to happen may block the ... flow. Does this make sense?

[Former_Member]

Thank you so much for the positivity, Alisa! I think that is just what I needed! :)

[Former_Member]

Kriya.... what you are saying totally makes sense! Just get out of your own head, let the energy flow, and be positive instead of frustrated. Great words, thank you! :)