First steps...

[HungarianWorkshop]

Hi fellow Woodworkers,

My name is Balazs and I was just wondering if it would be a good idea to start making smaller things like picture frames, shelves and other little items that cost less to get the ball rolling sort of speak. I know I ve only been here for a week but Im willing to try what ever to get a first sale. Im guessing customer might be intimidated to make a large purches from a seller who dosen't have any feedback yet.

Any thoughts?



Thank you in advance,
The Hungarian Workshop

[Former_Member]

I usually make large to medium sized furniture pieces and built ins, but it is all local work. Shipping and purchasing smaller items sounds good to me and I have started to change my product line.

[Former_Member]

Welcome to Etsy! The first thing to realize is that, as woodworkers, we occupy a niche market - so don't expect your shop to "take-off" right away. (It took a year before my shop started making consistent sales.)

That said: it's definitely good to list lower-priced work (in the $50 - $100 USD price range) - especially if it fits in the area of "practical luxury" - items that serve an everyday need or can be given as gifts.

With the holiday shopping season approaching, items like uniquely-shaped cutting boards, pencil holders, and the like can be good sellers - as well as a great way to utilize beautiful yet otherwise unusable off-cuts.

[HungarianWorkshop]

Looks like i got my answer, thanks guys I better go and get started. Come back and visit my site i should have some new smaller items up next month.

Thanks again,
The Hungarian Workshop

[Former_Member]

Very Helpful insights. What is the best way to advertise on Etsy? Do you have any advice for the best way to Network? Is it helpful to add people to my circle, and favorites- or should I concentrate on showcasing my Shop? Are any of these methods worth trying and paying for?

Thanks~

Matt

[Former_Member]

What's the best way to advertise on Etsy? Great question! First, let's take a couple steps back and talk about the basics for a minute.

Selling is all about establishing and maintaining buyer confidence - confidence in you and in your product. (You already know that, but it's worth re-stating because selling on-line is 10 times harder (at least) than selling in person.)

To do that you first need to understand your ideal patron, then create work that appeals to that person, display it in ways that are attractive to that person, price it accordingly and write good ad copy to describe your work and answer your patrons' questions. Your copy should also reflect sound SEO principles (as a simple example: use simple, descriptive titles that people use when searching such as: "French Provincial Cabinet.") Use descriptive single-word tags and put the most important words first - for example: cabinet, French, Provincial, walnut, and so forth. The idea is to attract customers who don't necessarily belong to Etsy, but who use Google, Bing, and other search engines to find (in this example) French Provincial cabinets. (You want proof? Close to 50% of my Etsy sales come from first-time Etsy buyers who found my work from a search engine.)

Next, take great pictures of your work. Invest in professional photography if you can afford it, otherwise learn to do it yourself. You don't need expensive equipment (I use an old 4mp camera, five ordinary shop lights, 20% gray poster board backing, a pvc pipe frame I made myself, and Gimp (a freeware Photoshop competitor) processing software. Total investment? under $200. But whatever you have - you need to learn how to get the most out of it. (Just like in the shop, the right tool helps - but only if you keep it sharp and use it properly.)

Next: have a great shop banner. (Hire a graphic artist to make one, if you can't do it yourself.) Write compelling introductions and sound shop policies. (I found it worthwhile to have my shop critiqued professionally - Cathy at EurekaGuides will give you an excellent one for around $25. There are probably others, but Cathy's very good.) The advice will probably hurt, but remember: you want SALES - not pats on the back. If following that advice generates sales, that's all that counts. So check your ego at the door, so to speak, and follow that advice!

Next, join a large and very *active* team and participate in forums/discussions. Create a treasuries featuring others' work - at least monthly and more often if you can. Reach outside your comfort zone. As woodworkers, we typically think in terms of things that create sawdust. But think in terms of what your ideal customer typically buys. (Trust me, guys - it ain't woodwork!) And feature that kind of work in your treasuries. (Look at the treasuries that make the front page and those that are the most popular and style yours accordingly.)

Add people to your circles. By extension, many will add you to theirs.

Set up a Facebook Fan page, become active on Twitter and StumbleUpon. All will generate leads.

The idea is to become as widely known as possible for creating amazing work at prices people are willing to spend. In short, create a compelling value proposition - and make yourself known as widely as you can without breaking the bank. I could go on, but I think I've made my point.

Wait a minute, you might ask: doesn't that take a LOT of time? When do you find time to make anything? The answers are "yes" and "whenever I can." I only get to spend 20 - 30% of my time (if I'm lucky!) in the shop/studio making wood chips. The rest is spent doing all the above and more. But that, as they say, is life - and business.

Anyway, I hope some of this helps!

Brad

P.S., In the interest of full disclosure: I have no commercial interests in any of the products or people I've recommended.

[Former_Member]

Thank you for your experience. It's just really confirmed a lot of things I've been thinking of doing.

~Matt

[Ebeniste]

Brad, your post is by far the best advice I've ever read on the Etsy forums. Thank you!

Gill

[Former_Member]

I agree Brad, you're post is most informative. Glad to have you as part of this team! You've got a lot of great ideas and knowing the time it takes to promote, your honesty is welcomed. You don't sugar coat nor discourage. I enjoy reading your posts. Thanks for your insight!

~Karen

[Former_Member]

BradSearsWoodturner has EXCELLENT advice!
We've done some of what he has suggested and it tripled the visitors to our site in one day.
We joined Twitter and opened a Facebook "fan site".
We are currently joining different Teams on Etsy and adding many other sites to our Circle.
Best of Luck to all us ETSIANS!!!!

[Former_Member]

I think it's always a good idea to offer different price points in your shop. Frames sell very well on Etsy as well as smaller wood items that are under $20. I don't keep up a twitter account and my facebook is pretty lacking too. But I'm in the forums a lot. Your items are beautiful, I'm sure you will have a following in no time.

[Former_Member]

Thanks so much everyone for your discussions in this thread, great input. Brad, great advice.

[Former_Member]

Brad. Appreciate the insight. Very good. I have one question as a Newbie. I have had four sales on Etsy so far and hopefully looking at more during the Christmas shopping season. I am turning segmented music boxes with a Christmas theme in addition to my regular work.
Two questions. Do you have any opinion or insight on how to promote woodworking during the holiday season? I have messed around with changing categories from woodworking to seasonal etc to see if I get any better hits.
Second question. Do you go back to the people you have already sold items to via convo and let them know you have new items that they might be interested in or is that asking to be rude?
Thanks for your help. Tim

[Former_Member]

@TwistedTimber - apologies for the delay getting back to you (been busy in the shop and neglecting the team :(

But to try to answer your questions: (1) How to promote woodworking? I don't know that there's any special or unique way to promote woodworking per se. I think Google Adwords ("pay per click") is probably good. I tried it last year and it worked reasonably well. The nice thing about Adwords is that you control the cost based on your budget. But beyond that, the advice I gave previously is about the best I could suggest.

(2) Do I go back to previous customers? You need to be careful here because of the laws regarding unsolicited email (convos), which state that if you send email solicitations, they must be (a) agreed-to by the recipients in advance and (b) you must give them the ability to "opt-out". (All the email solicitation engines (Mad Mimi, MailChimp, et al. have the opt-out feature built in.) The convo tool doesn't allow for opt-out, so you could get in trouble if you use it for unsolicited commercial purposes.

What you might try - and I haven't done this, so am interested in others' thoughts - is: when someone buys from you, ask them (in your order acknowledgement email) if they would like to receive new product announcements, (when they say "OK" be sure to keep their responses!) then sign-up for an email solicitation subscription and use that rather than the convo tool.

[Former_Member]

http://www.etsy.com/listing/85022627/cocobola-wood-fountain-pen-with-gold?ref=pr_shop