Etsy - Wifey's new thing

goldy6660

goldy6660

goldy6660

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Bit of a random one, my wife's recently started an Etsy shop selling jewellery she makes (she's an amateur silversmith) currently she has beadwork on there and soon she'll start putting more substantial silver work on it.

It doesn't get much traffic/sales on it but I see loads of people getting traffic and sales, question for the people on here who have sold on Etsy what's your secret to success? Guessing just loads of marketing at every opportunity?

link removed, feel free to ask questions but not to advertise
 
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goldy6660 said:
Guessing just loads of marketing at every opportunity?
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I'm not experienced in this sort of thing, but I think that's the key for any fledgling business in a competitive market. If you rely on people coming across the site by chance then it will remain a fledgling business, unless you're extremely lucky.
 
Likewise my wife has begun selling a Skincare range and using Facebook groups. She has to set up about 8 messages a day every day to try and get the best out of the group. Relying on members to join up and then join their friends up. She's doing well so far in the 2 months she's been active but there is probably a limit to the number of people buying at any time as either they're all stocked up or no birthdays/gifts at the time.
 
R.P.L said:
I'm not experienced in this sort of thing, but I think that's the key for any fledgling business in a competitive market. If you rely on people coming across the site by chance then it will remain a fledgling business, unless you're extremely lucky.
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Figured as much, at the moment it's a case of adding more pieces, trying to price fairly, hers are fairly cheap imho but I think she's after some sales to kind of bring in more sales. If it were a covid free time she'd be able to get out to places and take orders. I think at the moment it's basically making the switch from a hobby to a business too.
 
A unique promotional prize (ie. Run a contest to win it) might help. Plus a 2-level affiliate or commission program for online marketers to drive traffic to her site usually gets the numbers up.

A 1-off handmade artistic silver coin silversmithed with the contest winners face on it, would be appealing.
 
goldy6660 said:
Figured as much, at the moment it's a case of adding more pieces, trying to price fairly, hers are fairly cheap imho but I think she's after some sales to kind of bring in more sales. If it were a covid free time she'd be able to get out to places and take orders. I think at the moment it's basically making the switch from a hobby to a business too.
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Make sure she isn't a busy fool. Selling too cheaply can have an impact on the overall brand and direction. If it is bespoke she could do well to charge a premium but perhaps offer custom elements.
 
RxR said:
the contest winners face on it, would be appealing.
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Contest thing could be interesting and maybe affiliate thing with not sure how that would work entirely

SideWinder said:
@goldy6660 I am not an expert but i am aware it is a very crowded market and you have to find your niché. What makes the product stand out and different to others?
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As for the niche all her items are handmade there are loads of mass market things on there so she's focusing on the small handmade element.

dLockers said:
Make sure she isn't a busy fool. Selling too cheaply can have an impact on the overall brand and direction. If it is bespoke she could do well to charge a premium but perhaps offer custom elements.
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Yeah agreed, she's not doing them cheap where she's not making a profit but I feel like they could sell if they were more expensive. The bespoke thing is definitely where it'll hopefully get to, we've just got her kiln and workbench set up (recently moved house) so she'll now be able to get her head stuck in to some more solid pieces and do bead work as a side from the solid silver rings and such.
 
Problem with jewellery is that are so many sellers doing it making it hard to stick out, etsy is big on personalisation so is she able to add personal touches to things (Names, birth dates etc)?

Etsy have started a new ad campaign option now where they will promote your products outside of Etsy but take a larger commission from each sale, she'll need to be making a decent profit on each one to make that work though. Being honest with how much time each piece takes and what you need to charge to make it work is key, people are so used to buying cheap stuff now that the cost of bespoke handmade products (in the uk) can come as a shock.

Then you have all the people just selling bits they do as a hobby bringing prices down and people that are bored at home who will spend hours making stuff and sell it for £10. Some sellers have found its better to price high to get away from all that stuff. If you go on the Etsy forums you can ask for shop critique and they have groups you can join to support each other with advice.
 
I think bespoke things are really the ideal for a small "cottage industry" type set up... in the past when I've tried to have things made by larger companies the minimum orders are just too big and expensive because they aren't set up that way. Small unique one offs are a perfect setup for the home business.

The wife is in the slow process of getting a little business together making custom stuff, she already does it somewhat informally selling to mates' mates and on recommendation. Recently she's had some success in using the local facebook groups, again people like to support local small enterprises so it's a good fit.

We considered etsy, but the problem is you are definitely crowded out even if the site as a whole gets much more traffic. Just clicking on your product will give a list of recommended products from other sellers which isn't great for you lol.

Next step will be setting up a dedicated instagram page, she can hashtag the crap out of it and get her friends to follow her etc... she has a couple of friends with their own businesses and they will crosslink somewhat. She has also reached out to a couple of more established local shops/home businesses to see if they have any interest in using/selling her stuff.

I really need to get around to setting up a website for her but I've got no clue what I'm doing there so will have to learn.
 
Puzzled said:
Problem with jewellery is that are so many sellers doing it making it hard to stick out, etsy is big on personalisation so is she able to add personal touches to things (Names, birth dates etc)?

Etsy have started a new ad campaign option now where they will promote your products outside of Etsy but take a larger commission from each sale, she'll need to be making a decent profit on each one to make that work though. Being honest with how much time each piece takes and what you need to charge to make it work is key, people are so used to buying cheap now that the cost of bespoke handmade products (in the uk) can come as a shock.
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Thanks, the personalisation part is a good point, she's can do letters and numbers and is looking in to some other options too.
 
I wouldn't see the etsy as the main source of sales, but instead get a market stall for sales and print the etsy on the bag or something so people can tell their friends.
 
billysielu said:
I wouldn't see the etsy as the main source of sales, but instead get a market stall for sales and print the etsy on the bag or something so people can tell their friends.
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Yeah fair, tbh Etsy take quite the cut from any sales anyway so in person orders work out far better
 
I'd definitely say a blog would help as well. Look at the boutique watch companies (micro brands) and they all have heart, passion and a story to tell. Really helps people get behind the brand if they can say 'its blah from blah and she does this for blah'.

Lifestyle blogs like Urban Gentry and such like are good sources of inspiration.
 
@goldy6660 Saw your reply to my comment about being homemade but as there are LOADS of homemade jewellery sellers..again it would be finding that niché. Is it metal? Wood? Is there a story to the brand? Etc.

Just trying to make you/your wife think of what can make you different. :)
 
Goldy, does your wife have a presence on any forums for jewellery crafting? Reddit might be a good starting point. She might be able to discuss tools of the trade and learning about getting exposure. The forum(s) might let her plug her Etsy shop too if it's allowed in their forum policy.

Etsy itself is kinda like deviantART, but as well as selling prints and digital art, you can sell all things custom. It's worlds apart from the pyramid scheme MLM (multi level marketing) bots and so-called social media influencers (again "bots") that are over Facebook and Instagram like a rash.
 
SideWinder said:
@goldy6660 Saw your reply to my comment about being homemade but as there are LOADS of homemade jewellery sellers..again it would be finding that niché. Is it metal? Wood? Is there a story to the brand? Etc.

Just trying to make you/your wife think of what can make you different. :)
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Just seen your comment, the story is she's always wanted to set up a shop doing jewellery, particularly silver, she went to uni did a silver smithing HND finished that and went back and took a marketing and business degree. We've now finally got somewhere she can work indoors and out (recent move) so we're getting the garage done up with place for the kiln and indoors she's got her indoor work area for the beading.

In terms of niche it'll be using techniques she picked up on bigger pieces but doing smaller versions for her beading and then when we're all set up she'll be doing heavier solid pieces like rings, commission pieces and silver boxes but needs to get properly set up with tooling before she can do the bigger pieces.
 
Pawnless Endgame said:
Goldy, does your wife have a presence on any forums for jewellery crafting? Reddit might be a good starting point. She might be able to discuss tools of the trade and learning about getting exposure. The forum(s) might let her plug her Etsy shop too if it's allowed in their forum policy.

Etsy itself is kinda like deviantART, but as well as selling prints and digital art, you can sell all things custom. It's worlds apart from the pyramid scheme MLM (multi level marketing) bots and so-called social media influencers (again "bots") that are over Facebook and Instagram like a rash.
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Cheers for the nudge, other forums, not really yet. She's on Reddit a fair bit along with all the learning pages and groups like the jewellery schools and metal working places. The forums are a good shout but I don't actually think she's aware of them (will ask). The tools of the trade she has or is aquiring but the actual driving traffic to a place put of nothing is the hard part I think even with the marketing background she has. She's got the Etsy but I'm also looking at a standalone website for her too but then it's drawing the line between Etsy and own website and the maintenance of them.

And agreed on the influencers that occupy the whole of insta FB and everywhere else that don't really influence anyone.
 
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