Bravo!You've decided to take the leap of faith & open up your own Etsy shop. But before you list that first item here's a round-up of the 10 most important things I believe you can do in order to prepare yourself for a successful on-line experience:
Read, Read, Read
Knowledge is power. There is no such thing as too much reading when it comes to running your own shop. There is a wealth of information available to you on the internet. Use it! Prior to opening
Delightfully Noted I spent three months reading anything & everything related to Etsy & the handmade world. You'll be amazed at the knowledge you will gain from sites such as the
Etsy blog &
forums,
Handmadeolgy,
Handmade Success, &
Oh My! Handmade Goodness....to just name a few.
Create A Name For Yourself
Choosing a shop name is fun but it's also probally one of the most important things you'll do for your business. You want something that reflects your shop's style, is memorable, easy to pronounce, & most importantly can be picked up by the search engines. However, before you settle on a monikor make sure to check for any legalities such as trademarked words or stores with similar shop names. You can research trademarked words & phrases by visiting the
United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) website.
Check'em Out
Whether you plan on selling handmade cards, jewelry, or vintage purses I recommend perusing the shops of other sellers in the same category. Find out what's hot? What is & isn't selling?Are your item's prices going to be competitive? This exercise isn't for you to copy other sellers because let's face it as Ingrid Bergman once said "Be yourself. The world worships the original". You may find after browsing other similiar shops that there's a niche that isn't being filled. Maybe you sell soap. There are a TON of soap sellers in the world but maybe you notice no one is marketing to the individuals with sensitive skin. There you go, now your inspired!
Make it Legit
Don't let the legal issues behind selling online intimidate you! In most cases the paperwork required to obtain a business license & sales tax ID is really quite simple to fill out. The laws & sales taxes vary from state to state so I encourage you to contact your state & local officials to find out what is required of you. This site,
Go to Great Panes, has some very helpful basic info regarding registering your business & there is also this
wonderfully informative article from the Etsy blog regarding sales taxes. Before you even think about listing your first item make sure your shop is legit!
A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words
One of the most determing factors of how well you'll do on Etsy will be based on the quality of your product's photos. The truth is good pictures lead to sales. Good news! You don't need to have a fancy schmancy camera to take great, professional looking pictures. Dig out your camera's manual & read it {gasp!}. Learn how to use your macro setting, practice styling your photos, take pictures from different angles, & experiment with light. The best photos are taken during the day {crying out loud turn off your flash!} in a place where there is a lot of natural light. Lastly, learn how to edit your photos. Most cameras come with basic photo editing software or you can always find free services on-line. Cropping, brightness, & contrast are about the only three words that exist in my photo editing vocabulary.
Bookkeep Like Your Life Depends on It
I get it. Bookkeeping is boring but you will thank yourself later {especially when it comes to tax time!} if you start off financially organized. Plus, how else will you know if you're turning a profit if you aren't keeping accurate records on your biz? Designate a folder or envelope for all of your paper receipts. I also find that it is efficiant to create a "folder" in your business email account to store all of your on-line invoices from places like Etsy & Paypal. Lastly, you'll want to select a bookkeeping software program {unless you're old school & choose to use a paper ledger} for tracking income & expenses. Programs such as
Outright,
Microsoft Excel, &
Quickbooks are favorites among Etisians.
Got to Keep it Seperated
I highly recommend having a seperate bank account for your business money. Mixing biz & personal finances in one account can become hairy & disorganized. Personally, I've been very satisfied with my
ING Orange account. There are no fees or minimums required in order to open an account with them. Even better, I can connect it to my store's Paypal account & easily transfer money between the two.
Ship Shape Shipping
Figuring out shipping for my shop was probably one of the most overwhelming parts of getting started. Ugh, & international shipping! I practically peed my pants everytime I thought about it. I finally saw the light when I came across this article full of basic shipping tips over on
Go to Great Panes. I have to also note that purchasing my own postal scale was seriously the best $30 I have invested into my business.
Show Me the Money
After registering & upgrading your Etsy account to "seller status"you are going to have set up your payment methods. There are four options in which a customer can pay you; Paypal, check, money order or "other" {typically used for gift certificate purposes}.The step-by-step guide on how to set up your payment methods can be found
here in the
Etsy Seller Handbook.
Stellar Store Front
So you've read until your blue in the face, you've picked a store name you love, your business is registered with the state & now you're ready to let the world see what you have to offer! It's time to set up shop & list your goodies! Make sure to create a store front that is warm, inviting, & informative. You can accomplish this by designing an
avatar & banner relective of your shop's style, filling out all of your shop's sections, writing clear & concise item descriptions, & appropriately tagging all your products. Most importantly prepare to provide your customer's with a great on-line shopping experience!
There you have it the top 10 things you should know to prepare yourself before opening your own Etsy biz! Is this all you need to know to run a successful shop? Heck no! But I believe once you have a good basic foundation other factors such as promoting, improving your tags, & search optimization are things you can learn along the way.
Are you a fellow Etisian? Anything you'd like to add? Was there anything you felt was important to know before setting up shop that I may have missed {I'm writing this while a neurotic dog has been whining at my feet for the past hour so pardon me if my brain isn't functioning at its normal level of intelligence {which is like genius level by the way} And now she's trying to smoosh herself between an armoire & the wall. Any body want her? Annnybody? Bueller? Bueller?}?
Daydreaming about selling things on Etsy? Questions?
Feel free to comment below or
email me if you'd like!
