# Selling on Etsy



## agallant

Any one out there have any luck selling their stuff on Etsy?


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## Loren

You can sell stuff on Etsy. It works. Whether you'll find the financial
rewards you want for your wood products is another question entirely.

If you just want to make money on Etsy, wearable stuff and craft supplies 
are among the most vibrant areas on there. Wooden jewelry may be
a sales area you could succeed in if you want to stick with wood products
only.

I've learned a lot about Etsy helping my girlfriend build a business on there. 
She's done well, but her core market is as a vintage and supplies dealer - 
if she stuck to selling her own art only she'd make much less money on
there than she does now.


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## Cornductor

I sell on Etsy and have done well. Granted it's no second income but it gives me spare cash to build up my supply. It was very tough at first but I was up for the challenge.


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## tyskkvinna

Etsy can be good. You have to do a lot of legwork on your own-I've met people who sign up to Etsy and believe that they just have to make their things, list the items, and wait for orders. Some people get really lucky that way, but honestly it's generally people who make little things that cost under $10 (think keychains, cell phone cosies, etc) or supplies/vintage items that are in high demand or really cheap.

If you want to sell items you've made on Etsy, it can be done. This is what I did, and it ended up working out pretty well for me:

Do a few hours of searching products on Etsy that are the thing you want to sell. It's okay if other people make the same thing, but if the market there is totally saturated with that item, you may want to reconsider what you make. Look at the price points, see if it's a price you're comfortable with. You don't have to match them, but you need to be prepared for people to go towards the significantly cheaper ones.

Find a couple of things that look like what you want to sell - they can be similar items too. Go to the seller's page, and check out what they have for sale. Is their shop full of mostly woodworking items? Or do they have a handful of woodworking items and then a lot of other stuff? Check out their "sold" listings. Etsy won't tell you how much money the item sold for, but they will show you what items sold. Are most of the items sold the items that are in your price point? Are they even woodworking?

After you've found the sort of item that you can see people buy on Etsy, but isn't totally overwhelmed, and you can make at a price point that satisfies your financial requirements, find a few more!  My experience is that my shop works best if I have items that sell at at least 3 price points-for me it is $10, $25 and $40. And then a handful of items that sell for $100+. Variety is really good.

Once you've come up with what you're going to make, you need to set up your shop. Roam random, popular shops (looking at items on the front page is an easy way-doesn't matter if what they make is even remotely similar to yours) and check out their bios, return policies, banner images, etc. You want your shop to look good, look legitimate, give people a reason to like you. Fill out every possible field for your shop so that it's concise and trustworthy.

Then make a handful of items to start. There's no point in making 15-20 boxes to start (or whatever), but making one of each main type is a good idea. Make good, clear, catalog-type photos and post good, strong descriptions. (Again, browse random shops that pop up on the front page to see how they do it).

Once you've got shop up and running, work on making people see it! It starts by sharing it with people you know. Put your Etsy url on business cards that you give to locals. Get involved in the Etsy forums and post a lot- relevant, intelligent, useful responses. People will click through and check out your shop.

also, a trick a lot of Estians use to establish a positive rating (like Ebay's system) is to make some purchases in Etsy to get positive stars from those. If people see that you are an active, honest Estian, they will be more likely to purchase from you, even if you've never made a sale.

I closed up my Etsy shop a while ago due to a lack of things to make and sell, but it was a very positive experience and I intend to start it back up pretty soon.


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## LepelstatCrafts

I also sell on etsy. As posted before, selling on etsy can make you some money but not a real income unless you sell something that is a consumable were people will want to buy again and again. Honestly, wood project which I make do not sell as well as the other items that cost less than $10. There are also allot of different scams going on with the people who visit shops. The site is constantly updating its look and usage which has driven sales way down for me. Overall, you can make money for that new machine or parts for a project, but if you think your going to be the next Bill Gates, you need to promote yourself like mad.

http://lepelstatcrafts.etsy.com


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## MrsN

I have an etsy shop, and have had a couple of sales. My problem is that I don't have the time/desire to do most of the leg work required to have a successful etsy site. Lis offered excellent insite on what it takes to have an etsy store. 
I like that it gives me an online presence with out having to do all the work of making and mantaining my own website. Also the fees are pretty low, so I am not losing much in the process. 
MrsN


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## closetguy

Contrary to popular belief, Etsy is not the be all, end all of widget selling. Unless you come up with the next "pet rock", you won't get rich, or make a living on it. However, if you are patient and work to promote your shop, you can generate a good revenue stream over time. Luck has nothing to do with it. It's like any business. You get out of it what you put into it. If you toss some items out there, prop your feet up and don't so anything else, you will be disappointed.

Etsy is subject to the ebb and flow of consumer buying habits. There are good months, and bad months. November and December are the best. Late Spring through the summer months are the slowest for me, but this is when I am busy with shows, so it doesn't matter anyway.


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## nate22

There has been a lot of good advice so far and I have a etsy store to. It all depends on what your selling and what people are looking for. Like me I sell bigger items like furniture. I get a lot of emails and people looking at my shop and I haven't got any sales yet but I just started mine a few months ago. But if you put like ten items on there and you sell one thing you already paid for all of the listings that you put on there. So it can be rewarding just don't try to make it your sole income. And if you do the leg work for it and don't sit back and wait for people to find you, you can sell stuff on etsy. And like someone else said put it on your business cards and let other people know that your on there.


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