6 Tips in Creating Your Etsy Listings

First get a feel for the market. What is popular on Etsy that you know how to make? Check out best sellers. What do you make just a little differently? 

Here are some general tips when listing.  

• List new products in groups of ten. Offer a majority of simple, neutral items, 1-2 dark, 1-2 fun.

• Avoid copyright infringement! Unless you have physical permission, regardless of how many other shops do it and get away with it. DON'T use licensed characters. Shops are getting shutdown left and right for this. Buying the fabric to make something is not enough. In fact most say, not for resell! Be original :)
• Add more listings frequently. More listings help you get noticed more! 
  
  

Take uncluttered photos. You don't need a fancy photographer or equipment. Use what you have! A cell phone and window will do. 
Find the best window in your house when the sun is streaming in. Place your item on the ground and take a picture. Or move a table to that window area. Natural light and neutral backgrounds are some of the most popular and they accent your item! When doing clothing simply lay it out. This is known as a  "flat lay."

Your listings need multiple photos. So now take photos of your item at every possible angle. Lay on your stomach and snap a photo of how tall your item is, add some greenery or your nearest house plant as a backdrop. Focus in on features you want your buyers to notice. What makes your item unique? I love Canva (now mobile friendly) for photo editing. Their free version is awesome. Again, no affiliates (I hate affiliates - what's an affiliate? You click my suggestions and if you buy through my link or anyone with an affiliate I get a percentage) so everything I suggest is because I genuinely like what I use! 

Now your description. If you are not a good writer or terrible at grammar that's okay! Lets practice. Tell me about your item as if we were talking on the phone.

• How would you tell me about it?
• What makes it different than the person next to you selling the same thing?
• Why does yours stand out? 

My stand out feature is uniqueness. I NEVER make the same item twice. I research and continually evaluate the best possible materials for the things I make because I'm only making one! I want everyone who receives an item to be reminded of their value. What makes yours different? If you can't write them out or still need help and don't know anyone locally, look up Fiverr.com. There are lots of people that "bid" out jobs. Check their reviews and how many people ahead of you have jobs or check their “in queue” stats so you know how long of a wait you have. Some charge only $5 per project. 

What are these for?! These are what people would search for. If your familiar with SEO, this is it. Search Engine Optimization. How can we get your items noticed first?!

I make a lot of baby items but so do thousands of other shops. So your tags help YOU stand out from other shops. Think outside of the box. 

I can only do a certain amount of characters (letters and numbers) help!? This will require creativity so don't panic. We know you have that otherwise you would be working elsewhere instead of setting up a shop! Putting baby blanket or baby quilt won't do much, but searchable tags include details such as Unicorn Baby Blanket, Personalized Unicorn Quilt and so on. 

Think about what you search for when online shopping. Write it out. Look at other shops how do they word things?  Try putting your ideas into Google search. What pops up? These terms are generally similar to what people are looking for. Add those new terms as tags!

You can add tags to your listing title (seperated by commas is fine) use adjectives, (descriptive words) when I was researching the towels I embroider I literally tested tons of them. My husband would tease me every time we went to a store. I would feel the towels. Stretch them, compare them. I had never embroidered them but wanted to try. The quality I found was either awful in the embroidery or awful in the towel. So whynot have the best of both. 

I was volunteering for a mom's group at a women's shelter and we were discussing items the mom's could use that Christmas. One thing that came up was the fact many of these moms never had anything of their own. So that year I decided to try out embroidering my first towel. I ordered in towels I thought would be of good quality and tested them. I finally settled on the ones I offer in my shop. For me these are the luxury towels. Like the good ones you save for your guests coming to town. So then it hit me that's one of my tags. I'm buying luxury towels to sell. Why not add that! Seems absurd that it is that easy.

I think we over complicate things that are new and unfamiliar but it doesn't have to be hard. So try it out. Be flexible and keep trying. Ask people around you to describe your items as well!

Use every possible amount of space you can. If you need more help try Facebook. Erank is an awesome FB group and program to see how your tags are doing (show you if they are getting interest.)

Incorporate all the Etsy fees into your pricing.
Don't under price your work. I charge $15-25 an hour for my experience. How long does it take you to make that item?

• What are similar items selling for?
• Are the materials you use more or less expensive?

All of this needs to be factored into your final priced items.

You can use Etsy’s shipping service or another carrier. I use Endicia. We bought a heat transfer label printer. I also bought a scale from the post office. Your time is valuable going back and forth to the post office gets rough! You can schedule pickups with the post office on their website the night before. If you mail a ton, bless your carrier. A thank you note, clean pick up area/shoveled mailbox area, treats, etc. are nice. Yes, it's their job and yes, it's important in any situation to show appreciation and kindness.

 

Do I ship only in my country? That's up to you. Check any additional charges that maybe offered. 

Should I offer free shipping? I don't want my listings to drop? I've heard mixed things on this. Some swear it doesn't affect them others feel it does. Free shipping definitely draws people in but so do sales. Find what works for you! Price to where you can still make a profit and meet the needs of your customers.

I always try to send a photo of my finished item and the tracking information. Tracking is your best friend so don't leave it out!