Etsy Shop Tips

Hello everyone! 

Giving away many of my images for free over the years was fun, but eventually I decided to start an Etsy Shop and try to sell some of them. I listed a bunch of items and that's where I left things until just recently. Everything is such a learning curve, and it takes a while to get it right. 

I hadn't been making very many sales and after a while my shop seemed almost stagnant. You could literally hear the flies buzzing around. If you're having a similar problems or are new to Etsy, this post may be for you! 

Here are some changes I've made.

1) Labeling your listing with appropriate keywords is the best way to get buyers to find your item when they are searching on Etsy or Google and other search engines. The first thing I did was go through all my listings and review my tags for each one. This is an incredible important step that I hadn't given enough thought to. 

Most people use one-word keywords. For example, if I had a masculine card image, I might have used tags like masculine, cards or stamps. This is a poor way to use this tool. 

To take full advantage of your tag tool, phrases like: 'masculine stamp' or 'Vintage Car Digi' are better to use. You have to think like the buyer.  Use tags as if you are searching for your item. You have 13 different tags per listing, and 20 characters per tag, so use them well. 

2) I live in Canada and I want my images to be affordable for my Canadian buyers. The difference in the US and CAD dollar is currently quite substantial, so I decided to offer more competitive pricing. I could do this because I am providing digital images, which are different ducks as I can sell them over and over again. I am in no way suggesting everyone should lower their prices. If I were offering handmade physical items, my pricing would reflect cost and time as well and I would happily charge accordingly. However, for digitals you can sell them in quantity and offer a good price.

3) Opting into Etsy's Direct Checkout provided more purchasing options for my buyers.  It is affordable, easy and will give your buyers a variety of purchasing options that work for them. Etsy then deposits the money into your bank account at regular intervals. Easy peasy. 

4) In the past I would post a number of digital stamp in one day. They would all expire on the same day a few months later and I would then renew them all at once. Now I post or renew 1 or 2 items every day or two. This keeps my listings in the public eye on a regular basis. 

Since I've made these specific changes (Keyword phrases, Competitive Pricing, Purchasing Options and Regular Listings),  I've seen much more activity and sales. It's been a pleasant eye opener. All 4 of these tips have made a ton of difference. My sales are up and I'm so pleased that I'm considering making up more images. 

So if your shop feels like it's going nowhere fast, try some of these tips and see how they work for you. Good luck! 

My shop: Carmensplace

Blessings,

Carmen