A picture sells a thousand works

Here is the honest truth = If your pictures stink, you more than likely won't sell much if any.

Catalog companies have been dealing with this for years. Good pictures are critical when selling your items.

Here are some tips:

1. You do not have to hire a professional. We live in the age of the digital camera, so we can create good photos for a very low cost.
2. Try and take your items in indirect sunlight. This creates the best lightening to enhance all aspects of the item.
3. If sunlight is not readily available, consider a photo lightbox set up. You can spend money on a lightbox kit, but many tutorials like this one exist out on the internet. For very little money and a bit of elbow grease, you can be set up in no time.
4. Consider your background, your arrangement, and the "extra" stuff in the shot during the photographing process and during the editing process. Some great ideas don't translate onto the screen.
5. If your item is quite small, learn how to use your camera for short distances. Many cameras take great distance shots, but create blurry and unusable micro shots.
6. Learn to use a photo editing program to "fix" your photos. Many free programs including Gimp exist that are simple to use but are still very effective. It is totally unnecessary to spend hundreds of dollars on Photoshop to adjust your Etsy photos. Take some time to really learn how to adjust the colors of the photograph to make sure it is an accurate representation of your item.
7. Get feedback on the forums by asking for help and suggestions. There are so many Etsyians who are out there to guide you. They too have been through the photography maze and have experiences they can share.
8. Go to shops and look at what works and what doesn't. This will give you some guidelines on how you want to present your product and thus yourself.
9. You have 5 frames to use for each listing. Don't be afraid to use every one. The more angles a buyer has of a product, the more likely they will feel comfortable with their purchase.
10. Don't give up. Tweaking and learning are all part of this process. Eventually, you will feel you have the best combination of techniques for you and your shop.

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Ok - Who is going to buy my stuff?

Such a basic question, but truthfully, something to really think about for more than 5 minutes. So here is a bit of important knowledge -

Etsy is a relatively new site - it started in 2005 but has really picked up speed in the last 6 months. There are approximately 1 million accounts (although that does not mean they are all active). As of this writing there are roughly 76,000 shops with at least 1 item in them. The total store count is 160,608 which means that there are quite a few shops that are empty and have been left empty for awhile.

The store count on March 1, 2008 was 137,271 versus the 160,608 open today (4/16). 28,337 new stores have opened in 6 weeks. That's alot of new blood, alot of new competition, and alot of new buyers as many sellers are definitely buyers as well.

So that is an overall numbers picture .... More specific data is required to get a much better idea of what the buyer "looks" like -

Etsy did a survey earlier this year to gather some current and informative data that would best describe an Etsy customer:

She - yes, SHE - by a resounding margin (96%) - is 32 years (41% fall in the 25-34 category) - lives in the United States (82%) - has graduated from college or will be graduating (80%) - and has a household income of $67,000. Half of the buyers work and 23% are full-time moms. Many belong to a social networking site (73%) including MySpace and Facebook, shop online frequently, and might have her own blog (36%).

The link to the Storque (Etsy's online blog/newspaper) article is here that summarizes all this information. There is a "download this file" link that contains a .pdf of detailed survey information which is definitely worth a read.

As an artist and or craftsperson, creativity is your driving force and statistics may at first seem like a sure way to limit this creativity. Instead, use this information to provide some structure and perspective - - maybe not so much when you are creating, but definitely when you are marketing yourself and your product. Knowing your audience when you are wearing that "hat" will make the process that much easier.

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Opening a shop - What's in a Name?

Having a strong, memorable name is very important when opening your shop. This will be your brand and will stay with you for the entire time you have your business. So, don't sell this step short.

Follow my logic: The name Etsy is in itself is quite odd --- not unlike Ebay when it first started. We all know what Ebay stands for now, but can you imagine the first time someone explained what Ebay was? More importantly, what if he or she had never explained it and made the person hearing it for the first time guess what the site was for? I would be willing to bet a great deal of money that few if any said it would be an auction site.

Now, think about the name Etsy. The reason for the name is fluid and has changed over time, so you, as you market your site (i.e. tell everyone you know about your new business (ad)venture) you will most likely have to introduce Etsy (and how to spell it) to your potential buyers.

Then you must decide what your shop name will be. This is the very first thing you must do when you begin selling. It will be your identity, your login, and how buyers find you and return to you again and again. Here are some helpful hints to guide your selection:

1. If you have been a buyer before you decided to sell, don't think you are "stuck" with your buying name. You can keep that as a buying account and open a selling only account. The downside to this is that you must have a second email address, but truthfully, it might be a great way to start fresh and there are so many free email options, this should not be a deterrent.

2. Try to make your name short. Too many letters can lead to misspelling and mis-typing and thus an easy way to keep buyers out of your shop.

3. As Etsy grows, the more obvious names will most likely be taken, so have a list ready. Go into search and type in a name then through the drop down menu, select "sellers: user's name" to see if it has been taken. Or, type in a partial word and all shops that have that it the title will appear and give you a sense of what combinations are and are not available.

4. Choosing your real first and last name may not be the way to go. I think it generates privacy and security issues which is always a consideration when using the internet. There are no hard and fast rules, but this is definitely a consideration.

5. Don't get too "kute" with a name. We all accept Froot Loops as a brand name for a great sugar cereal but changing up the letters of a basic word can lead once again to misspellings and one more way buyers can't find your shop. There is a fine line between memorable and too complicated.

6. And last but definitely not least, try to choose a name that implies what you are selling. Like the original example of Ebay (and even Etsy) -- these names were an initial henderence in the selling and marketing process because it was not initially clear what was on the site.

But - wait - your site is "3bagsfull" and you sell scrabble pendant jewelry. You broke your own rule. EXACTLY!! - use my site as an example and a word to the wise. I initially started selling wool felted handbags and 3bagsfull was a "not too shabby if I say so myself" name for this product. But, the product wasn't a good seller on the site. My product line had to evolve if I wanted to stay on the site. The name was memorable, so I chose to keep it. Because of this I will add a #7 to the list:

7. Don't get too specific because the market will change or you will change or your supplies will dry up, etc. etc. etc. -- but hopefully by then you will have established a BRAND so selling outside your core products will not create confusion for your current and future customers. They will know the name regardless of your product line because of your established quality, creativity and customer service.

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Make Stuff, Sell Stuff

So, you have been a crafter for awhile and you want to start selling what you make --- Now what?

Etsy is an excellent place to start selling your items. But, you need to plan before you jump into the deep end of the pool.

Over the next several posts, I will discuss things to consider including: pricing, marketing, photography, shop set up, shop name and more. My hope is that these posts will guide you while you set up your shop and will get you on the road to success.

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It's all in the numbers

Etsy was started in 2005 but has seen incredible increases in page views, number of new users, and total items sold. The recent push by Etsy's executive team to capture as much exposure for the site has really paid off as of late. Etsy has received press in many magazines and newspapers including the New York Times. In addition, the staff at the "Martha Stewart Show" has really embraced the site and what it stands for. In the last month Martha has interviewed Rob Kalin, Etsy's founder, along with many of the amazing artisans that sell their wares on the site.

Site Data:
January 2008 -
New Items Listed - 575,174
New Users - 68,013
# of Items Sold - 314,197
$ Total Sold - $3.7 million [ave. price per item: $11.77]
Page Views - 233 million
February 2008 -
New Items Listed - 612,641
New Users - 75,458
# of Items Sold - 349,092
$ Total Sold - $4.8 million [ave. price per item: $13.75]
Page Views - 250 million
March 2008 -
New Items Listed -700,000
New Buyers - 66,000 [note difference in terms]
# of Items Sold - 400,000
$ Total Sold - $5.6 million [ave. price per items: $14.00]
Page Views - 285 million

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