Are you a maker? Or perhaps a collector? Maybe both? Have you ever wondered whether you could make a bit of income from your hobby? Read on, perhaps you can!
I opened up my SKYQUILTER Etsy shop a year ago. Honestly, it was just an experiment, but I’ve learned a lot. And I think I’ll keep on selling!
I like to sew, mostly one-of-a-kinds – quilts, tote bags, little works of art. Many of my early creations went to friends and relatives. I also made several things for my home. As I became more and more creative, I kept making more and more.
I also love to collect vintage items, mostly mid-century – fabrics, tablecloths, sewing notions and the like.
At some point I realized I just don’t have the room to keep on making and collecting! So I thought perhaps I could pass along some of my goodies, and make a little cash!
I wasn’t very successful at my first attempts at selling.
- I tried to sell a few things at a consignment shop.
- I had a booth at a local craft fair.
- I set up at a large flea market.
Shoppers at these types of venues are looking for LOTS of DIFFERENT things. And there are only a small percentage of those shoppers looking for what I have to sell!
I have a website. I’ve thought about selling items from here. And I might someday, but I am not yet ready to handle the finance side of independent selling – taxes, etc..
So I decided to give Etsy a try. A friend of mine shared her knowledge of Etsy with me, so in turn I would like to share with you!
These are just a few of the items I’ve sold!
Below are some of my Etsy tips, and things to think about –
- What do you want to sell? Etsy allows you to sell items you have made, craft supplies and vintage items.
- What is your goal? Will this be your main source of income, a supplement to your other sources of income, or “fun” money? This is important. You don’t want to lose money, and you also want to be realistic as to how much money you can make.
Okay! You have items to sell, and you have a goal! Let’s get started.
- Pick a name for your Etsy shop. You might want to consider setting up social media accounts using the same name – Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest – and Etsy. Try to “brand” yourself!
- In addition to your Etsy shop name, think about a “logo” for your shop. There are many Etsy sellers that make and sell logos! I got mine from DgtlSignsandBanners. For only $8, I got two images (see photos at the top of this blog post) to use at the top of the Etsy shop. I also use them on business cards, and on my website. A pretty good buy!
Etsy takes care of most of the financial items for you. Buyers can use credit cards, PayPal, etc.. Etsy also takes care of charging the buyer state taxes. But there are a couple of financial items you will need to do when initially setting up your shop.
- You will need to set up two accounts for your Etsy shop. The first account is where Etsy will deposit your profits! I set up an account with my local credit union. I wanted to keep it separate from my other bank accounts.
- The second account is where Etsy will draw from – only when necessary. This might happen if you have no sales in a given month, but have listing fees. I set up a new PayPal account for this, pointing to a credit card. Once again, I wanted to keep this separate from my other PayPal account. And I did not want this one to be a bank account. So far, Etsy has not had to use this account.
- You have lots of options here. Research and do what you think is best for you.
Once you go thru Etsy’s setup steps, you can start listing items for sale. If you haven’t already done so, be sure to do some searches on Etsy for items similar to yours. Look at the prices, the quality, the photos, the descriptions. Learn what others are doing. Make yours better!
- Each listing costs just 20 cents (for 3 months)!
- Take GOOD pictures using natural light. Pay attention to what’s in the background of your photo! Show the item from a distance, and close up. Show it being used. Add a short video.
- Take time to describe your item. How it was made, materials used, colors, etc.. You want your item to stand out from the others.
- Think about the keywords buyers might use to search for your item.
- Price your item competitively. But don’t short change yourself. Think about your time and the cost of the materials you used. REMEMBER YOUR BUSINESS PLAN! People that “don’t make things” are often willing to pay a good price for homemade items.
- Pay attention to holidays. Be ready with those items several months before the upcoming holiday.
- You have the option to charge for shipping, or to offer free shipping. I do “free shipping”. “Free” really isn’t “free”. I decide what I want to sell an item for, and then add about $8 to $10 dollars to that price. I have learned that is the average shipping price for my items. I think buyers like to see the word “free”, and in reality, I think it is easier for me.
- When pricing your items, keep in mind that Etsy has 2 fees. They take 3% as a transaction fee, and another 5% as a payment fee (allowing the buyer to use a credit card or PayPal). So for example, if you charge $100 with free shipping, the buyer might pay $105 with tax, Etsy takes $8, shipping might cost $10 – so your take is $82. But remember, that does not take into account your time and materials.
- Shipping is pretty simple thru Etsy. You can package up your item, and ship on your own via USPS, UPS, FedEX, etc.. Or you can create a shipping label and schedule a USPS pickup – via Etsy. I find that works great for me. Compare to see what is most economical for you.
- I bought a small postage scale, boxes from Staples and some tissue paper. I try to make each shipped package look attractive, preventing wrinkles with tissue paper, using bubble wrap when necessary, and tying a simple ribbon around the item before packing. I insert the printed receipt in an envelope, along with my business card, and another card with written care instructions (when appropriate). My main goal is to protect what I am mailing.
- I include a coupon code on each receipt to encourage repeat buying.
- I currently only sell and ship within the United States. I hope to learn the ins and outs of selling world-wide soon.
- I do not accept returns, but optionally, you can.
- Keep track! Keep track of your sales, your fees, your expenses, your profits. Etsy is required to report your information to the IRS. Yes, you will be required to include this on your income tax – but you can also show your expenses… I will be doing this for the first time this year, so I am certainly not an expert in this area…
Let’s talk about advertising… How best to reach the “zillion” people that will want to buy your items… My best advice here is to not depend on your social media “friends”. Yes, people you follow and friend on Facebook, Instagram, and the like, will give you lots of ‘likes’, ‘loves’ and ‘hearts’! But many of them make and collect the same things as you! Be sure to explore other options. I have found that using ‘Etsy Ads’ has helped me reach people from all over! Be smart though; when you are a small seller (like me) you don’t want to spend all your profits on advertising. Etsy allows you to spend as little as $1 a day, for as many (or few) days as you want. I have found that my buyers shop on the weekends, so every now and then – not every weekend – I turn on ‘Etsy Ads’. I usually spend anywhere from $2 to $5 dollars a day, for only 2 or 3 days. This puts my items at the top of the page when people search for items like mine. In addition to more sales, I get quite a few ‘Favorites’. When someone ‘Favorites’ my item, or my shop, they begin seeing my new items in their ‘Etsy Feed’. I really think this is key.
One last tip, and probably a very important one, is to have a “Plan B”. Selling on Etsy might be a good option for you, just like it is for me. But, you don’t want your livelihood to be dependent on Etsy. What is Etsy “goes away”? Changes its rules? Becomes too cost prohibitive? A “Plan B” will allow you to continue to sell your items anyway. My “Plan B” is to someday sell items from my own website. I may never get big enough to do that, but you never know! I also want to explore other platforms.
I have a lot more to learn, but I hope I have inspired you. Making and creating, whether quilts, baby clothing, patterns, jewelry, toys, wreaths, woodworking, wall art, whatever – keep making! Enjoy the process. And perhaps consider sharing your artwork with others.