Selling Your Crafts & Art on the Internet: My new Strategy with Crosslinked Lumberjocks & Etsy.com

Good Luck mark. Nice job on the cross link.

-- What happens in the workshop stays in the workshop. No wait that doesn't sound right. Karson Southern Delaware karson_morrison@bigfoot.com †

good luck .. hope it works well for you

-- work from your heart and your spirit will live forever

That is slick, Mark. I wish you nothing but the best and if we can enjoy and share your postings AND you can get them sold I think that is a winning combination that benefits us all. Since this is just a hobby with me (and I am glad of it since I like to eat regularly) I have a great deal of respect and admiration for those who do this on a professional level.

-- With God's help all things are possible- even woodworking. Woodworking is not just a hobby, it is an (expletive deleted) expensive hobby.

great mark , cant think of anyone more deserving of some sucess than you . a comment some time ago that ill always remember was made i think by lee jessberger to tom angle when tom said he was closing up and going to wyoming to work . anyway whoever said it said , it should be near criminal for someone with your talent and craftsman ship to not have work . the more i think about that the more it seems so true .

good luck mark !

I felt the same way as Lee when Tom went horseback riding to Wyoming. I sat around and wrung my hands wondering if I was next. Truth be told, I heard from a lot of folks in 2008 that went “horseback riding” to find some income. It was a tough year, especially on those that made most of their income from folks buying houses and putting in new cabinets.

I wish I felt that 2009 would be better for the economy for everyone.

Stay strong, stay “free.”
“The borrower is servant to the lender” Someone very wise once said.

M

-- Mark DeCou - American Contemporary Craft Artisan - www.decoustudio.com

quite true mark , i know my patch aint near covering the hole for quite a while . im not much on horseback but im may be close to seeing if i can still handle a bicycle ! lol

Good Luck Mark!

I’ve been thinking about doing this exact thing. Thanks for leading the way, your success is encouraging.

-- I am always doing what I cannot do yet, in order to learn how to do it. - Pablo Picasso -- http://blanchardcreative.etsy.com -- http://snbcreative.wordpress.com/

I’m anxious to see how it works Mark, so keep us updated. I’ve had a store on Etsy for almost a year with mixed results. It’s all about driving people to it. I’ve had better results from my separate web site which has a shopping cart that checks out through Paypal also. 90% of my traffic is coming from Flickr. When I started posting my product pictures to Flickr groups, my traffic tripled.

If you haven’t done it yet, create a googlebase data feed to your Etsy store. Etsy has also just added support for Google stats which gives us information on who is visiting our shops and what they are looking at.

-- I don't make mistakes, only design changes....www.dgmwoodworks.com

I’ve got an etsy site as well so if this is appropriate please visit it. It is www.azuremoons.etsy.com. My girlfriend makes jewelry and I make woodwork. I haven’t sold anything yet but I have my fingers crossed.

-- ~ Inspiring those who inspire me ~

Best of luck—2008 was a good year for me as well, just enough volume to stay busy but not too busy and – frankly – as a result of posting my hobby projects on this very site. I hadn’t considered the etsy angle but I am intrigued and wish you nothing but luck.

-- Dan M, SW Suburbs, Chicago IL -- http://www.djay-crafts.com

I, too, have an etsy account although I’ve never sold anything on it. I think it’s about time the internet started giving back. If there’s a way to make a legal buck and use the net to do it, then by all means use it.

-- http://ye-olde-cabinet-shoppe.com/

Good luck to you and thanks so much for posting this blog !!!!!!!!!! What great infomation…..............

Between you and closetguy and others, I thing I am really ready to try and get this going for myself. I have an etsy account, no website yet but trying hard to get one going. I also have tried “the other big auction site”
and had a pretty good December but now back to almost nothing.

I’m going follow your advice and try to follow your steps…....... if I have any questions I may PM you if that is o.k…............

Thanks again for posting

-- Gene, Majestic Eagle Woodworks, http://majesticeagleww.etsy.com/, http://www.flickr.com/photos/majesticeagle/

Thanks for getting it all figured out so I can steel all your good ideas. (maybe more true than funny)

-- http://www.woodsongsfurniture.com

Hi Mark;

First off, I have to commend you for sharing your “journey to success”, with us. What a very unselfish thing to do.

Many business men would say it’s foolish to give away your secrets, so for you to “test the waters”, and then pass on what you’ve learned, speaks volumes of your character.

I am fully aware of the difficulties you face, since I too “eat what I make”, or if things go right, eat what I buy from things I make. And, as you know, wood is a great source of fiber, but it doesn’t taste good.

I did make those comments that Mr. Trim pointed out, regarding Tom Angle. From deep in my heart, it does hurt me to see so much talent being passed over in favor of mass produced junk. I just can’t understand how it’s right.

Like kolwdwrkr having difficulties now, to me is a crime, as he too has talent that equals that of any rock star or sports figure. Yet I don’t see any of them selling their cleats or guitars.

Or politicians getting nice fat salaries, and outrageous pensions, and for most of them, lying is their skill. (maybe it’s unfair of me to say that so bluntly, when they’re doing their best to hide it).

For these guys I’ve mentioned, it is a unique combination of talents that make them the artists that they are, and that in itself makes them a commodity to be honored. At least in the Japanese culture, artisans such as these are highly respected. Maybe we should all move there.

Well, just maybe Mark, you have helped with your sharing. I surely hope so.

If I can help you out with your website, I would be happy to do so. Just let me know.

THANK YOU;

Lee

-- by Lee A. Jesberger http://www.prowoodworkingtips.com http://www.ezee-feed.com

Thank You Mark for this post.
I learned a lot from it.
Good luck whit your Etsy store.

-- My woodwork blog : http://www.isetehtud.pri.ee/blog/

This is what i want and need to do. Thanks for all the info, hope it all works out for you.

-- Brian, Eternal Furniture & Design http://www.eternal-furniture.com Repurpose Reclaim,Stay Green

Folks, give this method of cross linking a try. It takes awhile, trust me. Lots of typing and posting, but it’ll get you out away from the television more. And, expect it to take several months for the google activity to come to a point of bloom.

It is sort of like what I’ve read about growing Bamboo. You water and fertilize, and nothing for several years. Then, one day, “KaBoom” a shoot pops out of the ground and grows as you stand there and watch it.

I’ve found that most of my customers have been looking at my work for months and even a few years, before the sum total of everything they’ve seen and read about me motivates them to buy, or place an order. Impulse buyers are few and far between, especially in items that aren’t inexpensive. This process started for me in 1997 when I first started this adventure, so be patient, and work hard.

I decided to blog this information I’ve been learning, as I know there are many other people that could really use this methodology to find customers, and the customers are out there looking for you right now.

Without the artists willing to sell their work, we’d all be buying imported factory junk. That’s great for the Industrial Tycoons, but terrible for the Landfills and Environment.

Now, go make dust,
M

-- Mark DeCou - American Contemporary Craft Artisan - www.decoustudio.com

I couldn’t be more pleased to hear that you are enjoying a measure of success. There are so many deserving folks here that I hope find more on their tables as a result of your sharing this.

-- "Bordnerizing" perfectly good lumber for over a decade.

I take my hat off to anyone who can make a living working with wood not easy these days.A lot of people won’t even consider paying for the cost of the wood with big comercial ventures selling wall papered wood with a hint of a grain on it someone here called it burled mdfLOL keep going I don’t have the toime ofr health for this I make to order what my kids all grown up want God Bless and keep the faith you’ll do ok I am sure of it Alistair

-- excuse my typing as I have a form of parkinsons disease

Made a sale today with the help of lumberjocks.

In my ebay auction/me/home page I link to my lumberjock project pages. The customer bought a couple of my pieces on ebay and wants a commission piece like one of projects found on here.

-- work from your heart and your spirit will live forever

Timely subject as I just found Etsy a week ago by accident sort of and have been looking into trying to market somethings. From what I have seen there aren’t “a lot” of woodworkers on Etsy so the more that could set up on there the better in my thinking.

Anyway, thanks for sharing your thoughts.

Matt-

-- Just remember,it was a lone amatuer that built the ark, and a team of experts built the Titanic.

Good luck, Mark. Keep us posted on your progress. I too looked at Etsy a while back.

-- Thos. Angle

I’ve had a page on Etsy for a couple month’s and haven’t gotten a nibble. I think Mark has found a good combination with his links and such. It has me thinking again on how to expand my internet exposure too.
A little research on Etsy, it easy to see people who are having great success, ebay too for that matter.
I don’t plan on ever making my own website, not as long as Lumberjocks is around as home base.

That is a great cane Mark, well thought out assembly and at a great price.

-- work from your heart and your spirit will live forever

Mark I agree with you it is a scary thing to HAVE TO sell your work to eat. As far as the “Cyber Selling” goes here are some articles and very good information for anyone who wants to sell over the internet on what to expect. http://pagebuzz.com/howto.html
The owner whos name is also Mark has been at this a long, long time and I think his success is a testament to the advice he gives.

-- Sell it here> http://woodworkerslist.com

Thanks for the post Mark. I hope it continues to produce sales for you. Might have to try it myself, if things keep slowing down like it has been lately.

-- Les, Wichita, Ks. (I'd rather be covered in saw dust!)

Thank you for sharing this helpful information. It’s a bugger trying to sell creations you’ve taken many hours to create and the public never seems to understand why you want so much for them. EB’s fees are outrageous and the service is so unpersonable and trying to contact a human is beyond super natural capabilities, although they have attempted to have more access.

My heart goes out to all of you who have to sell your work to pay the bills. It’s not easy to keep a steady income when you’re the whole factory and have to market your work on top of it. In this economy it will be even tougher, but at least you have a skill.

I wish the best to you and all of us who need to make it through a tough economy. May all have a prosperous year ahead of us.

-- "They who dream by day are cognizant of many things which escape those who dream only by night." ~ Edgar Allan Poe

Thanks for the info Mark!!! I know exactly were you are coming from.Think I will start looking at this as well.I wonder though how large “furniture type” items would do it may be a good place to start with my bowls etc.Good luck and keep up the great work.

-- Scott NM,http://www.shangrilawoodworks.com

The Stars are in alignment ;) Congrats and wishing you best of luck!!!

-- ~ Debbie, Canada (http://www.execulink.com/~yohan)

If I was skilled enough to actually do this for a living, I would find inspiration in your plan! Who knows, someday. Maybe when I grow up….. Peter Pan syndrome and all….

-- Adventure? Heh! Excitement? Heh! A Woodworker craves not these things!

Good luck Mark! hope it all works out for you.

-- John in Arizona (but it's a dry heat!)