Pricing is still hard.

[Former_Member]

I realized I was greatly under paying myself. I raised the prices really because I had to. I am still unsure if it is right. I do hand embroidery which is very time consuming and I use my own designs. It is hard to figure out an hourly rate for myself because I will make five stitches and stop to take care of my son, then get back to it sew for 10 minutes and need to stop for some other reason. I see the creating as my hobby so I don't mind undercharging a little but I need to make enough if I want to make my little business work. Which I really really want it to. Please give me any feedback but specifically about prices. Thank you.
This is my blog if anyone is interested. :)
http://thegirlinthelane.blogspot.com/

[WintergreenDesign]

Hi Andrea,

I think pricing is hard for everyone... especially when things are time consuming. Pricing is also very subjective... what is expensive to one person might be a great deal to someone else. I think in your case (being that embroidery is so time consuming) you just have to look at piece and decide a price that you would be happy in receiving for your design and hard work. You don't want to sell a piece and say to yourself "well that was a waste of time"... The key to being successful here on Etsy (or elsewhere) is finding your target market and promoting directly to them. Best of luck.

[OodlesOfWhimsy]

I'm hopeless when advising on price unless it's a craft I do a lot. Only you knows what it is worth for your time, talent and satisfaction. You can do an Etsy search for similar items. Your embroidery is very detailed and neat ! Tidbit: add to your titles from your search tags to help people find you. For the "white bear" I would add Nursery Decor or Art to the title. Any item that would work for a wedding, include the word, "Wedding" in the title to get more views :)

[Former_Member]

You should check this one out. The article gave me good perspective and good insights were shared.

www.etsy.com/blog/en/2014/4-ways-to-conquer-pricing-pitfalls

[AttentionGetting]

Start with your labor, and try to measure it by uninterrupted time. So if one of your items takes an hour to make and you are charging $30, then you are essentially paying yourself $30 per hour, less materials, less Etsy fees, less PayPal fees, less packing materials, etc. If that arrives at an hourly wage you are happy with, then no need to change.

On another note, are these your original designs? If so, consider making the patterns available as digital downloads. This is another revenue stream for you and digital downloads have very high profit margins because you essentially make once and sell many times.

[MarcootBoutique]

I struggle with pricing also. If I paid myself an hourly wage my items would cost too much. I just try to be sure I make a little profit on each outfit - enough to buy more fabric!!

[PapierMiche]

This is something I definitely struggle with as well! Seeing as my shop has only been open since January, I try to look around and see what others are selling similar products for. I then consider my costs for running an Etsy shop and try to go from there.

It's definitely been a learning process!

[HeidiDiCesareDesigns]

I'm with Thelma!

[Former_Member]

Hi Andrea, I looked at your shop and you've got some great items! I thought that some items were well priced (headbands & cards), but some were a bit expensive. Everything is hand embroidered and takes time ( I know, just me making cards is time consuming!), so I totally get why you had raise the prices. Hopefully, the customers will understand too. Overall, the prices are a little high, but not by much. I hope this helps!

[Former_Member]

Thank you all for your help. It is a learning experience. I'm getting there.