Etsy is a fabulous way for artisans, wreath makers, and handmade sellers to bring their items to a large and eager market on the internet. When you first decide to open your shop you may feel overwhelmed about how to successfully sell your products. Here are 7 tips that are crucial in your success on Etsy.

1. Do Your Research

Etsy is a vibrant marketplace, with a large variety of interesting and exciting handmade items to grab shoppers attention. It is important to make your shop stand out and represent your brand, but you also want to take notes of shops that have been selling for some time on Etsy and are getting a high volume of sales. What stands out to you about those shops? What are they doing right? What would you change? Take note of your competitors, or similar shops in your industry. This will give you an idea of what you should consider pricing your items for.

2. Offer Deals and Specials

Offering deals and specials to shoppers, especially loyal customers, is a great way to ensure repeat visitors. People have a tendency to gravitate towards what they know, so if a customer has previously done business with you and had a great experience, a little incentive to return is an excellent way to encourage them to buy from you again. I include a card in each of the packages that I ship that has a ten percent discount on a future purchase from my store. This has been extremely effective in gaining repeat customers. Offering a special (limited time only) sale is also a great way to get a shopper who has been eyeing your products to take the plunge and make a purchase.

3. Keep Your Shop Updated

It is important to keep your shop updated and to add new listings regularly. This can be difficult when you are first starting out and may not have a huge selection of products or inventory, but try to schedule out your listings so you are posting new ones as often as you can. This signals a vibrant and active shop. You also want to make sure to keep the announcement section of your shop up to date with any specials, exciting news, or changes.

4. SEO is EVERYTHING

SEO (Site Engine Optimization) is a very important detail not to overlook when building a successful shop on Etsy. A huge amount of shoppers on Etsy come from web searches that lead them to products on Etsy. You want to use this in your favor, and have your shop optimized so that when potential shoppers search for products relevant to yours, your shop shows up in the search engine. This is done by using keywords. Long tailed keywords, which are phrases, are always great to use because they are more detailed and generally have less competition. Here is an example: if you are selling a wreath with red roses, rather than just using the keyword “wreath”, you could use a keyword phrase such as “red wreath for front door”.

5. Great Photos

I cannot stress enough the importance of quality photos when listing your products on Etsy. The shoppers who frequent Etsy are generally very visual. They want to see the product as if they were shopping and looking at it in person. Take pictures from all angles and close up to capture any special details. Use a high quality camera or smart phone to take pictures and be sure to have very good lighting. You can purchase an inexpensive lighting kit here, and natural, outdoor, lighting generally lends itself well for photographs.

6. Detailed Product Description:

Just as it is important to photograph your products to show all of its unique details, it is vital to list those details in the description. Don’t just post a vague or generic description of your product, be detailed. Include exact dimensions, and any special of identifying qualities. Consider any questions a shopper may have about your product, and attempt to answer those questions within the description. If you have a made-to-order product I recommend being very forthcoming in the description about how long it will take to produce the item.

7. Great Customer Service

Excellent customer service is key to having a successful shop on Etsy. Try your best to respond to messages as quickly as possible, and make it a priority to communicate any changes or production issues with your customers. If you strive to go above and beyond for your customers they will more than likely become loyal, repeat customers, and they will likely tell others about their experience which will lead to more sales.

I hope you take these tips and use them to enhance your experience on Etsy. I am passionate about helping people, particularly those that make and sell handmade products, turn their hobby into a thriving business! Are you ready to level up your Etsy shop? Is your Etsy shop not getting the attention it deserves or are you struggling to attract customers or convert views into sales? Then it’s time for an Etsy audit! Let’s turn your passion into profits. Schedule a Private Etsy Shop audit TODAY!

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Be sure to check out:

• How I made 800 Sales on Etsy in 6 Months
• Pricing Wreaths: How to Price Wreaths to Sell