Thursday 27 August 2009

just in the neighborhood

i admit it, etsy is a tough neighborhood, & even tougher when you would like to be noticed, & so here's a few tips i passed on recently to someone who asked, & i hope that they do help. (crosses fingers)


renew, renew, renew....
simply put, i renew one item in my shop once a day, its the first thing i do, really! why? well, its .20 to renew an item a day, & that is approx $6 a month for what could be considered cheap advertising. also, its important to realize that etsy searches items by most recent date added, & it takes noting to be in the far reaches of never being seen, this way i hope to be in the more recent searches, can't hurt.

post it at home...
other things, that have really helped me is owning a small, cheap scale, mine is even a food scale, it doesn't have to be an expensive postal scale. in this way, when i need to ship an item, & i want to ship it as quickly as possible, & if you live paycheque to paycheque it isn't always easy to take that postage from your own pocket. in this way i can ship my items from paypal/canada post online, & the money is taken directly from that shipping amount, i never feel it like i used to. also it elimates all that waiting in line at the post office, & i have the assurance for my customers of an item id reference # on every parcel.

personally, i'm sure there is alot of luck to this, & getting noticed is the big one, & trying to remain optimistic & patient, nothing happens overnight, well not usually...

9 comments:

  1. I think the renewing tip is a really good one! I think/hope things will pick up as it gets colder (here it's sweltering hot). I definitely feel the same kinds of fears and insecurities...but your knits DO stand out in my eyes!

    Some things you're doing right!:

    1. Your photographs are excellent (I'm jealous, haha).
    2. Your etsy is easy to navigate with several specific styles available in choice of color (something I seriously need to work on).
    3. Your items have cute names!
    4.Your knits are innovative and the styling makes people want to buy.

    Do you sell your things in any boutiques? I'm finding that it's hard to rely on etsy...if I don't make a sale for a few days I get nervous! But I have some things at a few boutiques, and the checks they send always save the day.

    You're doing awesome; don't worry!!

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  2. hi andrea, wow, thanks for the kind words, i have tried consignment shops in the past, i find the 40% take alittel hard on the pocketbook, as well, i've had trust issues with my items in the past, but i do have a new boutique in ottawa i'm excited to send some of my items too.
    i'm not sure how to find these boutiques, do they come to you?

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  3. those are great ideas!

    the shipping from home is kind of genius, i never really thought about it. i always run out of cushion mailers so i just get them when i get to the post office but shipping right from home through paypal is a great idea.

    thanks for that!

    i always try to keep my photos really clean and nice so they're more likely to be put on the front page. i try to go with a single color style on the photo as well. yours are great!

    i use as many tags as possible, anything i can think of relating to the item i try it.

    i also try to take photos in a full put together outfit so people can see the way clothes or knits can be worn.

    i love your shop, i wish i had more time to spend on mine!

    xx

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  4. oh - if you're looking for selling things on consignment - i have a friend of a friend who has a shop here who's looking for winter stuff.

    i just emailed her and i'll see what she needs and if she'd be interested :)

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  5. Some boutiques have come to me, some I come to them... local ones are the best because you can talk in person!

    I have a new tip! I just noticed this: instead of only using 1 word per tag (14 total), sellers can enter more than one word in the tag slots, for example "knit handknit" "chunky bulky" to maximize the number of words allowed in the tags. So if someone searches for "bulky knit scarf" they can find yours, does that make sense? It's really just a way to enter more words in the tags so you can show up in more search results. I hope it helps!!

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  6. i know etsy can be a bit of a rollercoaster. awesome when things are selling, depressing when nobody seems to be noticing your work. i hope you believe everyone when they tell you it truly is not you or your shop. your shop looks AMAZING and although i don't own any of your knits (yet...) i do trust that the quality is excellent. i'm sure part of it is that it's still summer in many places around the world (esp. the u.s. which are huge buyers on etsy, i think) so hopefully when the fall chill hits the air your store will get busier. that said, i know it's hard to sit and wait......

    ps. thanks for the tip to renew each day. i don't know why i've never tried that.

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  7. oh i would have been full of tips a few months ago, but my tried and trues are tired... renewing and great photos can be counted on, i do agree!

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  8. i LOVE your shop and your pictures & your items! One thing I was wondering about is if it might be worth showing the item on it's own as well, maybe on white background and maybe a close-up of it to see the material/textures better.

    Have you tried to get exposure on other design/fashion blogs? I think that's a really good way to get more people to know about you & generate more sales.

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  9. Hm, I was thinking of selling on etsy but now I'm not so sure! But ebay costs so much :(.

    You have great pictures!
    xxx

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