- Wanna hear something nuts?
There are over 90 million people right now
that shop on Etsy.
Etsy is one of the biggest marketplaces in the world
where people sell jewelry, handcrafted goods,
furniture, you name it.
And the reason why sellers love Etsy so much
is because you can either do it as a side hustle,
or it can be your main gig.
So, if you wanna get in on this action
and you need a step by step guide
on how to sell your products on your own Etsy store,
then this video is gonna be for you.
If you guys are new here, welcome.
My name is Michelle Bali, I'm gonna be your host for today.
And this channel is all about learning
how to become an online entrepreneur.
We have all the tips, we have all the tricks
on starting, running, and growing your online business.
So if you think that you would benefit,
make sure that you're hitting subscribe,
because we literally have any and every resource
that you could ever need
whether that's, like, running Facebook ads,
or growing an Instagram account, or a TikTok following,
we got you covered.
Is Etsy right for you?
So, first let me give you a bit of background on Etsy
so that you can decide whether Etsy makes sense
for you and your business.
So, you know how there's a whole strategy
behind, like, selling on Amazon and eBay?
It's very similar with Etsy.
There are certain products
that are gonna sell faster than others.
And the items that sell fast on Etsy, if you're wondering,
are gonna be handmade goods,
home and living products, art, and jewelry,
and those are just the top ones
but I'll also link you guys a list of all of them
so that you guys can know for your own businesses,
and I'll put that in the description box.
So, if you're on that list
then you've got the green light to go onto the next step
which is seeing if your audience is in the right regions.
So, the United States, Canada, and some European countries
like France and Germany are gonna be making that list.
There's more, again,
I'll just link that in the description box.
And if your audience is on that list,
then again, you've got the green light
and you're good to move on to the next step.
Opening up your store.
Okay, cool.
So we've decided that you have the right products,
you have the right audience,
now it's time to actually make your store.
So what you're gonna do
is you're gonna go onto etsy.com
and then you're gonna click create your store,
enter some basic personal information
and then that's it (laughs).
That's literally it, you've made your store.
So now we have our account, we can make our shop.
So let's take a bit of time
to enter our shop preferences, like this here,
and then you're gonna wanna enter your shop name.
If you're stuck on a name, you don't know what to call it,
Shopify has a really cool name generator,
it's definitely gonna give you some cool ideas
just to get the ball rolling,
so, this is a really good tool
if you're not sure what to name your store.
Now we're gonna upload our products.
And at this point, one of the most important parts
is uploading images that are gonna slap, okay?
Because if you think about it,
customers can't actually see your products in person,
so you're gonna wanna make sure that these images
are professional, that they're showing all the angles,
and guys, you have 10 slots,
so if you can fill all 10 slots,
the more the merrier.
You can do product images, you can do lifestyle images,
you can do up close images, wide shots,
you wanna make sure that you're, you know,
creating a bit of a mix.
Basically, do what you gotta do
to sell that piece of jewelry
or sell whatever it is you're selling
because your pictures are gonna be key
in getting your products flying off the shelves.
The next most important part is search engine optimization.
So, you're gonna wanna make sure
that you're using search engine optimization
when you're titling your products
and writing your descriptions.
Guys, if you're not sure what search engine optimization is,
it's basically just using words
that you think people will be typing into Etsy and Google.
So, like, for example,
you may wanna call your product ceramic blue vase,
instead of dreamy night sky modular flower piece,
you know what I mean?
Because no one's gonna be typing
whatever I just said into Google.
Ugh, and it's always gonna be a struggle
between trying to come up with a fancy marketing name
that's, like, on brand and clickable, but, like,
also trying to balance that search engine optimization.
So, you know, you could do a little bit of both,
you can do some fun enticing marketing names
while still being functional at the same time.
And if you're not sure how to find keywords for Etsy,
check out a tool called Key Search.
This is a keyword and tag generator
that is specific for Etsy,
so that's a really cool tool.
I actually just found out about that tool
through Claire Westbrook,
she's the founder of Etsy shop called Trendy Journals,
so appreciate you for that little tip.
So yeah, that's that on keywords,
but now let's start plugging in our prices.
Okay, cool, that's done,
and now here we're gonna set how many items we have on hand.
Guys, make sure that this is accurate
because you don't wanna oversell,
although that does sound like a pretty good problem to have.
Okay, then you can enter your skew.
Now, if you don't use skews, don't worry about this
you can just leave this blank.
And now here you can add variations like colors and sizes,
and then, yeah, you're gonna wanna upload
the shipping details that customers are gonna wanna know
before they make a purchase with you.
So, like, how long does it take to ship,
and the cost of shipping, and all of that.
One quick thing that I wanna mention
is that it helps to make your shipping free
if you're trying to make more sales on Etsy,
and, like, honestly,
who isn't trying to make the most sales possible.
The reason being is because
this is gonna help you do well on Organic Etsy Search.
Just wanted to share that little, you know,
piece of advice with you.
I got that from Gail Oliver.
Gail Oliver is the founder of Attention Getting Marketing,
so, appreciate you Gail Oliver for that hot little tip.
Movin' on.
Inventory is done,
so now we have to decide how we're gonna get paid.
This is the fun part
where we get to picture ourselves as multi-millionaires
and all the cash that we'll be raking in.
So, first you're gonna go select
whether you are an individual seller
or an incorporated business.
Once you're done that
then you're gonna enter your personal information over here.
And then finally
you're gonna enter the details of your bank account
to be able to get those dollars in your bank.
All right, so now we have to set up a payment method.
It's free to make an Etsy account
but you have to pay to make sales, if that makes any sense.
So you'll just choose a payment method
just like this over here.
But if you are wondering
how much it actually costs to sell on Etsy,
I personally think that one of the biggest downsides
to selling on Etsy is how many fees there actually are,
there's a lot of fees.
Etsy, I think, is an amazing tool for getting discovered,
and getting exposure, but it can get a little pricey.
I guess that's just the price that you pay for exposure.
But anyways, let's go over all the fees.
Okay, so there's gonna be a listing fee,
listing fees are gonna be 20 cents per listing,
it's gonna throw us over the edge here.
No, but for real, there's a 6.5% transaction fee
on every single purchase.
And then depending on where you're at in the world
there's also gonna be a regulatory operating fee,
and that can range anywhere from 0.25% to 1.1%.
So it's all kind of like adding up.
And then, don't forget, if you opt into Etsy payments,
which will allow you to take Apple payments,
and Google payments, and all that kind of stuff,
there's also a fee on that, that'll be 4% of your sales.
You know?
It's a lot.
Honestly, it's making me sweat just thinking about this.
Sweating even harder because there's more fees.
All Etsy transactions are processed in US dollars.
So, if you're selling in Europe, for example,
you'll get the rate that Etsy converts it to
but that might not be market rate,
you might be losing money on there as well.
It is what it is, I guess.
And, oh, one more thing,
you might also get charged a 2.5% conversion fee.
So, yeah, it can get pricey.
There are also some other optional fees
like Etsy Plus and running ads through Etsy.
So, those are optional,
but if you are growing your business on Etsy
those can be some good tools, but they will come at a cost.
Okay, now that I accidentally just bashed Etsy,
even though, in all honesty,
I actually do think they're an amazing platform
and I love them.
We're gonna move on,
we're gonna customize our storefront.
So, let's choose a profile picture.
This could be your logo, this could be yourself,
this could be a cute dog in your jewelry,
I don't know, get creative,
and then you're also gonna wanna choose a banner photo.
Once you're done with the photos
then you're gonna create a little blurb about yourself
and what your business is all about.
And, I think, in this section,
try to be as personal as possible
because you don't wanna seem like a sketchy company
that's just, like, selling stuff hot from the manufacturers,
you know what I mean?
If you're making the jewelry yourself,
say that you're making the jewelry yourself,
people love that.
If you're painting your watercolors in your basement,
introduce yourself as an artist.
So, I really do think
that this is the opportunity to be very cute
and very personal,
so take that opportunity.
And also you can use this place
to state your policies, like your return policy,
and your privacy policy, and all that kind of stuff.
All right, so at this point, I would be fool not to mention
the fact that if you're selling on Etsy
you should probably also be selling on Shopify too.
I would recommend that you start on Etsy
because you can grow your customer base really easily,
and then transfer those customers over to Shopify.
The reason why I say this
is because Etsy can help you get a kickstart,
like I said, it can help you get a lot of exposure,
but Shopify is just gonna have less transactional fees.
So, like I mentioned, Etsy's fees are gonna be 6.5% minimum
but then when using Shopify,
you do not pay transaction fees at all.
You would just pay the external payment gateway
that you choose to go with,
and that would be anywhere from 0.5 to 2% fees,
so it's a lot less.
And if you are selling a lot of products
then make sure that you are checking out Shopify
because you can get a plan that's gonna be $29 a month
for the basic subscription,
and, yeah, that just might make more financial sense.
Plus it has a lot fewer restrictions, like,
you're gonna get more flexibility in your store design,
built in marketing tools, all that fun stuff,
and you can really, truly build your own brand.
So, in every video, I always leave a link for you guys
for that free 14 day trial.
So I leave that for you guys in the description box
so that you can play around, see if it's right for you,
no strings attached.
So, love that for you guys.
(laughs)
Check that out in the description box.
All right, that is it.
Thank you guys so much for joining me today.
My name is Michelle Bali,
I have been your host for today's video,
and I will see you guys in the next video, bye.