Marketing and Promotion Tips?

[Former_Member]

I'm REALLY bad at promoting and marketing myself.

Is there any basic tips that anyone lives by that they can share that actually help but aren't "spammy"?

Thanks in advance!!

[Former_Member]

Facebook has those ad spaces, but you have to pay for them. I haven't tried it yet, but I've seen tons of etsians that have and I'm really tempted to do it, cause think of the millions of people that would see that!

[Former_Member]

I'm the same way, I hate feeling like I'm bothering people. I don't want them to think I'm spamming. Maybe do a giveaway on a blog/facebook/twitter?

[Former_Member]

You should add enough featured items to always have four along the top of your page and enough to replace sold items. There is only one on your shop right now.

Facebook pages that link to your shop and vice versa are a plus. You can add an etsy shop to your profile and a page. Make a coupon that people can only get after liking your page.

Stumble Upon is a good one too, if people start stumbling your items, you will be overwhelmed with sales.

Join some teams and be proactive in the forums (sellers are buyers too!!). Use forums other than on etsy with a very subtle link to your page.

Reseach SEO and use Google Analytics to check your progress.

Try a showcase on busy days (Mondays and Tuesdays for me) and see how traffic increases. Use your best selling or most hearted items.

Create Treasuries and check out other people's Treasuries for ideas.

Encourage your buyers to tell their friends. Sometimes all you have to do is ask people to promote your business for you. If they were very satisfied, they might tell a friend! Include a business card or flier with each order shipped out.

Check out craft fairs, flea markets, farmers markets, and other niche sales events in your home town. It might just help you figure out what people are looking for and what they do not like.

Hope this helps!

[Former_Member]

These are all great suggestions! Any ideas how to get people to Stumble Upon you?

[SoapForYourSoul]

BNR

try it for just $4 buy in here:
http://www.etsy.com/treasury/MTI5NTk3MjR8MzQ5MjE5ODIz/openbnsaholicsblissteam-rnd-12-4min-buy?index=...

[Former_Member]

Also, try hearsty.me

I am trying it out right now, here is my link if you want to get an idea of how it works.
http://heartsy.me/deals/4240/like

[Former_Member]

I have recently discovered trading as a way to build my feedback! I don't quite have 100 items in my shop yet, and with only 1 sale since I joined in March, I wasn't attracting buyers. This is a way to build feedback, network other artists, and have more of my work out there! Sara

[Former_Member]

@SoapForYourSoul: What exactly is that?? What is a BNR, that looks interesting but I am not sure how that works.

[ThePixelwood]

Quick and possibly dumb question.

What time do the showcase time slots get updated each day (as in, when does another day for purchase get posted?)

I've looked through the Seller Guide, hoping it would mention something, but alas, no such luck.

I'm trying to crack into the wedding category showcase slots, but they're always booked up, and I can't seem to hit the right time for the next available day that gets posted.

I'm assuming midnight? Late night for me one day, maybe...?

[Former_Member]

It is at midnight EST. My category is children which fills up within 30-45 minutes sometimes.

[Former_Member]

Okay now THIS truly might be a dumb question. But... I've been looking at the BNR and considering it. But how does it promote your shop if it only viewed by other Etsians? Do you really think it helps if I have one of the higher priced items for sale (like $16 to $26.00)?
Thanks for the help!

[SoapForYourSoul]

$2 buy in....Get lots of exposure....
http://www.etsy.com/treasury/MTU0OTE4ODd8NDE1NjI0NzMx/open-prettykinds-2-minimum-bns-round-18?ref=pr...

[TheSnapDragonsLair]

I've just gone back to the StumbleUpon site, again, to see if I can figure it out. Guess I'm not tech saavy enough!