I've been an avid Etsy seller since December 2010. When I first opened my store, AnotherUse, in December 2009, I had no idea how to sell my items online. I thought all I had to do was take a couple of decent photos of my items and post them, and people would buy. How wrong was I? I never sold my first item until December 11, 2010. What a shock that was! I actually forgot that I even had items for sale on Etsy.
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| Photo of my first item sold. My photos have improved! |
All of a sudden one day I'm reading an email stating that I have money waiting for me at Paypal. In the times of desperation when you're wondering how you are going to make enough money to pay your bills, money falls into your lap just like that. What a feeling! From that point on, I vowed that I would work harder on making more out of what I loved. It hasn't paid for all of my bills yet, but a couple are better than none.
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| Makin' sure my babies get to eat plenty! |
In the past 6 months, I have learned more than I could imagine about how to sell through Etsy and online. It involves so many elements, the whole time I've had to tell myself the work will pay off. Plus I love learning new things! Once I started subscribing to the Etsy Success newsletters, and blog, the knowledge became endless. I spend 10-12 hours a day, sometimes, just updating, taking photographs and notes, reading and typing, watching videos, all to understand just how you get people to notice my idea on the internet, as well as in person.
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| Braving the rapids in life. |
I believe that after all I have learned, the most important component of owning a jewelry business involves networking. If you don't have a well-structured social network, you will have a hard time selling items. I've been given some excellent advice from other Etsians just because I asked for it. That is a big step; just being able to ask for help when you need it. I'm always willing to share what I have learned so far. Anyone feel free to leave a comment if you ever have questions about Etsy and upcycling.
Thanks everyone!
Stephanie
Stephanie, thanks for sharing! I think it is easy to get discouraged, since at first many people think like you said that all you have to do on Etsy is post the item with a good photo and BOOM! you get a sell. I definitely thought that at first. I'm glad Etsy has such a spirit of cooperation and networking, because I too have learned so much from other sellers. Now it's just a matter of implementing the tips and creating.
ReplyDeleteCute kitty by the way :)
This is a super late response, but thank you so much for your comment. It slipped away from me, and I actually branched out into vintage items to bring more attraction to my store. But I didn't have the time for so many unfortunate reasons and I hope to be able to change that this summer. My kitty is all grown up now and has one of her own now. Life changes so fast in three years.
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