Etsy questions

[Ricc Havens]

I know it's hard to make a living wage as a turner. And, from what I have read on forums some things might sell well in one geographic area but not another geographic area.

With that in mind I still need to try to make a few bucks to supplement disability payments by selling some turned stuff such as bowls, peppermills, toothpick dispensers, etc. (probably won't sell pens as there are too many pen styles, kits, bushings etc that I can't afford to buy)

So what are your experiences and thoughts on Etsy? What works and doesn't work? Tip, tricks, etc for dealing with their website, system, etc? What do you do to handle payments?

Also, if I decide to add a basic webpage online do you have any recommendations for easy website builders?

Thanks
Ricc Havens
Indiana

[Marty Tippin]

I've never tried to sell on Etsy, but my observation from browsing the site in the past is that, unless you're selling some sort of niche specialty item that is unique from everything else, you'll just get lost in the crowd. Poke around out there to find items similar to what you want to sell -- are there dozens of other selling the same thing? How will yours stand out from the rest?

I personally don't know anyone who's ever bought anything through Etsy, but that's not to say there aren't folks who do.

[John Keeton]

I tried Etsy and wasn't impressed. As for building a website, I use WebEasy Pro. About $40. I host with GoDaddy. Depending on what you do with images, you may want to get Photoshop Elements. Imaging is 90% of the work behind a website.

[Dan Masshardt]

I love etsy. It has been a great sales outlet for me over the past couple years.

There are several factors that contribute to success.

And to the point of a flooded market, many of the items I sell are pens. Pens is a very flooded category on etsy and I still sell them. And it's not because I'm the cheapest priced.

I have a list of tips somewhere I'll find to share.

[Greg Just]

I do fairly well on Etsy but certainly can't retire on it. I have had a shop there for about 6 years and sold about 175 items (30 items a year). I have sold to people all over the world with a lot going to Canada. As Marty mentioned above, you have to find a niche. Mine is travel mugs and cocktail shakers. I also have an engraver I can call on to do custom work and personalize the item. Customer service and positive feedback are important. I get a lot repeat business and referrals. It doesn't cost anything to open a shop, 20 cents to list an item and 3% commission per sale. Credit cards take another 3%, but that's better than the 30-40% I pay in consignment fees in the 4 shops I sell in. In addition, my prices are higher on Etsy than in the local shops.

[John Keeton]

I think uniqueness, smaller price point and a consistent product like Greg's travel mugs are important considerations for Etsy. I am confident my price point was outside the usual Etsy market.

[mike pockoski]

I'm with John here... my time is valuable and my product is high quality, and I don't want to compete on Etsy with people who will sell their time for low-dollars. So I've skipped it for that reason and made my own site...and i do pretty good there (but put a lot of effort into building a following on other social media platforms). YouTube will guide you on how to make a site even if you have no clue - look for a video that's over an hour long on building a website, they'll walk you through step-by-step if you decide to go that route. don't be scared, keep it simple. paypal to get paid is easy... (but keep it clean and very simple...like google, empty-page and one-line of text kind of simple).

And i'll second John's point about photography. Beauty wins the internet - you're competing with fast-scrolling, short attention clients who have immeasurable inventory to choose from...and you've gotta get them to pause long enough at your product as they scroll by long enough to take (literally) a half-second look at it and decide to investigate further...

Spend a few hours on YouTube learning about "product photography" - lighting and F-stops and aperture and backgrounds and contrasts and all the necessary stuff that I don't do well enough yet!

Observe yourself as you use the internet...go to amazon and look at toasters, and observe which ones make you look longer, which to you quickly pass... Professional marketing plays to our reptilian, instinctive brain that makes product purchases through emotion and not logic...so that's the world your playing in. See how the pros do it and copy them. Beauty and emotion sell.

I also do well at craft shows, but i don't attend many because 10 hours on a Saturday is PRECIOUS to me and my kids, so i've gotta make a big stack of cash before i'll give that up. And most craft-folks are looking for 12-dollar items and not 100+ dollar items, so that means LOTS of volume and LOTS of production turning (not fun for me) to make the time worth it.

not trying to be a downer - just trying to give realistic expectations. the folks you see doing it have been at it for many years building a loyal following...it takes lots of time and effort.

[Ricc Havens]

Dan, look forward to seeing your lisy of tips if you find it.

thanks
Ricc

I love etsy. It has been a great sales outlet for me over the past couple years.

There are several factors that contribute to success.

And to the point of a flooded market, many of the items I sell are pens. Pens is a very flooded category on etsy and I still sell them. And it's not because I'm the cheapest priced.

I have a list of tips somewhere I'll find to share.

[Ricc Havens]

Thanks guys for the suggestions on photos, website building, niche items, etc. I will be looking into your suggestions. If there are others that have more input - keep the info coming. Not only for me but others will benefit too

Thanks
Ricc

[John Sincerbeaux]

My two cents!
If you want to make good money in woodturning you have to make things that are:
Large
Artistic
Finished brilliantly

Btw "good money" means well over $1000.00/piece.
Your product needs to be desired by wealthy people who want your piece to be displayed somewhere in their home or vacation home.

If just making "a few extra bucks" is your goal, then you can make little chachka items. For me, that wouldn't hold my interest for very long nor would that ever pay for the tooling investment.

[Justin Stephen]

Honestly, at $0.20 to list a piece, just throw them up there and list them at the prices you would expect to sell them for an in-person sale (or even bake the 3% commission into your price). You may not sell many, but its not like it costs you much if you don't sell very often.

That said, have lots of good pictures of each piece. The more good pictures you have, the more you will overcome reservations that a buyer might have about buying something sight-unseen. I would also include at least one perspective shot so that buyers can easily visualize how big the piece is.

[Quinn McCarthy]

I had some american girl furniture on etsy for 6 months and no interest. Now I am trying to find a place for 4 cribbage boards I am working on.

Quinn

[Brian Brown]

At the end of April, I will have had my ETSY shop for 4 years. The first year was good. I had a hard time keeping up with the demand. Each year since, it has dropped off. This is because of the huge proliferation of sellers competing for the same buyers. It boggles the mind the number of wood turners that have set up shops in the last 2 years. The real problem, is that I can post what I think is a unique piece, and if it sells, within two weeks, there are many more woodturners with shops that are turning the same things, with the same designs. Some do a poor job, and some do a great job. But poor or good, the common denominator is they almost always undercut my prices, and not by a small percentage. It is usually 50%-75%. I think my prices are the lowest I can go, and still break even, or make a tiny profit. How do I compete against someone selling what is essentially the same product for 75% less? Most do not consider the full expenses of production, i.e. wood, kits, finish, sandpaper, electricity, wear and tear on equipment and tools, cost of tools... and this is a short list. The only way I think some one can make money as a wood turner, is to turn artistic items that are not made from kits. Try to come up with something that few others are turning, with your own unique designs. You will sell less pieces, but they should be marked at a higher price to make it worth your time and expenses, and most of all, the price should reflect the fact that you are an artist, and are the only person on the planet who could make the fabulous piece of art they are considering.

Just a few other thoughts about ETSY. There is no Jury selection of any kind. All are welcome, and there is a sea of both good and bad work there. The work to put stuff up on the site will rip the hands off the clock. It is enormously time consuming to get exceptional pictures, write descriptions, size your images, and post everything. I hate writing descriptions. Also packing, shipping, and dealing with customer service takes a lot of time. If you do special orders, determine how much time that will take out of your turning time, and realize what a hassle it is. All that having been said, it is nice to have people appreciate your work, and purchase it. I have sold to customers in 13 countries around the world and all my ratings have been 5 stars.


Something else you might consider, is a site like Scoutmob. These sites are juried after a fashion, and are geared to moving a large number of the same items. If you want to do production turning, and just sell a few different items, you are likely to be one of only a few woodturners. I have not sold here, but do have a client who is doing well. She sells cooking spices.

Good luck what ever you do, and let us know how it goes.

[John Conklin]

I've enjoyed Etsy as a buyer for a long time, but never as a seller. One thing I can tell you is that Etsy now allows non-handmade items to be sold. Supposedly you are to have been involved in the original design of the product, but it can be produced by others. I believe this has a lot to do with the increased competition. If you google it, you can find much better than my explanation.

[Scott Lux]

Hi Ricc,

I've set up an Etsy shop, and I think it's probably about like other ventures: What you get out of it depends on what you put into it.

As near as I can tell, You need to have a few things going for you to be successful on Etsy.
1) Excellent photography - mediocre pictures (like mine) get lost in the crowd
2) Good quality AND/OR low cost
3) Visibility - This one is tough.

When someone buys or "favorites" one of your items, or your shop, that will boost you up in any search results.

My first couple of sales were to people I know. I asked if they would go through Etsy to help establish my reputation. I don't believe I was being unethical, as they were going to buy the items anyway. It's still been very slow for me. I have one piece that has been favorited at least 20 times. But it hasn't sold. I suspect if I was to drop the price, it might sell. But I like the interest it generates.

I've been experimenting with Promoted Listings. That's a pay-per-click ad Etsy gives you. I gave them up to $10 to spend. It's been over two months and I still have some of the $10. And no sales as a result of the Promoted Listings. At least not yet.