You’ve dedicated time and effort perfecting your jewellery craft and are now in a position to start selling your hand-crafted jewellery pieces online. One of the online channels where you can easily start selling your products is Etsy. Here you’ll find a global online marketplace of like-minded craftspeople who are selling their products online. Find out how to sell on Etsy and make a success of your online jewellery shop.
Already selling jewellery on Etsy and wondering how to improve your sales? Read our top tips to explore a number of different ways you can increase Etsy sales.
Here are our tips for starting your jewellery business on Etsy:
1. The Basics: How to start an Etsy business
How do I sell on Etsy? Potentially one of the trickiest parts of selling jewellery on Etsy is getting started. This is the point at which you’ll need to come up with your jewellery brand name and logo, and although piecing together the overall feel of your jewellery brand is important, you do have the chance to rename your Etsy shop at a later date (it’s worth noting however that you’re only allowed to rename your shop once after it’s been opened on Etsy). So don’t dwell too much over your shop name at this stage. Instead, get the ball rolling with a name that fits for now and create a strong but simple logo. As your online shop grows, your brand identity will grow with you.
Etsy registration is fairly straightforward. You’ll need to supply them with some personal details such as your name and email contact before you can set up your shop. Once you’ve created your account, Etsy will then send you a confirmation email and you’ll be able to get to grips with building the aesthetic of your Etsy shop as well as how exactly you want to accept payment from customers and pay your Etsy fees (more on these later).
2. Establish your objectives – hobby or livelihood?
Are you selling on Etsy as an outlet for your hobby? Or are you seriously working towards building a business? Establishing your objectives from the outset and working towards manageable goals will mean that you stay on track and gain ground, especially from a financial perspective. Lay out a number of small manageable goals such as ‘I want to make my first sale within the first two months of opening my Etsy shop’ or ‘I want to have a finalised brand logo designed after six months’. That way you are taking small steps towards building a successful online shop and selling jewellery on Etsy.
If you are serious about making your online jewellery shop your livelihood, then working on a detailed business plan and tracking your goals will help you to think about your business’s growth. And if you don’t hit your goals? Your business plan will help you to forge a plan to improve sales and to reach your targets next time around.
3. Managing fees and costs
How much does it cost to sell on Etsy? There is no initial charge for opening your own Etsy shop, but you will need to factor in fees for listing and selling items. Etsy charges a flat fee of 16p per listing over four months and a 3.5% fee on any sale made. You may also incur currency conversion fees when shipping from outside of the US. This is so that your customers can view the products in the currency which they have been priced at. There are other costs from Etsy which may be applicable to you such as advertising costs, wholesale fees and payment processing fees. Take costs into consideration when setting prices and make sure you keep an accurate record of all expenses to help you keep track of all outgoings as your micro-business grows.
4. Listing Items
When it comes to listing your jewellery items on Etsy, the most important thing to ask yourself is ‘which words would a consumer use in the search bar to look for my product?’ Accurately describe your product in as much detail as possible using all the tags available to get the most out of your product listing. These include title, category, price, quantity, type of item, description, shipping details and tags.
Fill out these fields in detail to ensure that your products will be found by users searching on Etsy. It’s also worth remembering that the more detail you provide to consumers, the less likely it is they will have unanswered questions about your product and ultimately they’ll feel much more confident buying from you.
5. Use good quality product photos
High quality photos of your product will make all the difference to selling handmade jewellery on Etsy. Your product images will essentially make or break a sale, so ensuring that they are high quality images and that they show your jewellery pieces in the best possible way is one of the most important aspects of making sales on Etsy.
Remember that neutral backgrounds tend to work better than busy backgrounds as they will make your product the focal point of the image. Having said that, using props can be an effective way of making your jewellery pieces stand out amongst other jewellery Etsy shops. The limitations of an online shop means that users will not be able to handle your jewellery so your product images have to show every angle– once they’ve swiped through every image of your latest jewellery piece they should feel as if they have carefully looked it over, convincing them of its high quality and, ultimately, convincing them to buy.
6. Get the pricing right
As Etsy is the home of hand-crafted items and vintage pieces, it’s important not to price yourself out of the online market. But it’s also important to make sure you don’t sell yourself short – getting the pricing balance right is important when selling handmade jewellery on Etsy. Here are some questions you’ll need to ask to calculate the cost of your jewellery pieces in a logical way:
- What is the cost of materials used to make the item?
- How much time did you take to make the item?
- How much does it costs to list the item on Etsy?
- How are your competitors pricing similar items?
- What profit margin do you want to make on each item?
Pricing is dependent on a lot of factors and should always reflect the quality of your work. Make sure you put a value to your time. Has a particular item taken you longer to finish due to the intricate work carried out? Place it at a higher price than those items that have taken less time to complete. Add the cost of materials to the value of your time to ensure you have a profitable product, and consider whether you can or should sell at a slightly lower price than your competitors. Once you’ve built up your brand awareness, you’ll be able to increase your prices slightly.
7. Make sure your customer service is on point
Your customers are the one and only reason you’re able to make a success of selling on Etsy. That’s why it’s vital that you’re as accommodating as possible when special shipping requests come your way or if you’re faced with some difficult feedback on your products.
Etsy allows users to leave feedback on your products which can be a really positive factor for your business. When a consumer leaves positive feedback for your product, this is proof that your jewellery collection is worth the price point and can encourage others to buy.
However, negative feedback can make people wary of your product. The solution? It’s all about how you respond. If you’re left with a negative review, respond swiftly and professionally and try to resolve the situation by offering them a refund or replacement. Make sure you make good use of the Etsy Seller’s App too. Even when you’re not able to reach a computer you can still respond to questions swiftly with your phone, ensuring that your customers get the best possible service.
Need to stock up on vital jewellery tools supplies for your online business? Order from Cooksongold for industry standard supplies today.
Cooksongold