How to make $10K A MONTH on Etsy // what no one tells you
Summary
TLDRIn this video, Taylor shares her journey of making $10,000 on Etsy with her business, Boardwalk Beads, which she started at 13. She offers in-depth tips for success on Etsy, emphasizing the importance of quality photos, effective use of hashtags, and cohesive branding on both Etsy and Instagram. Taylor also discusses the value of customer reviews, the potential of advertising, and the psychology behind aesthetic appeal. She advises against begging for sales and stresses the importance of tracking expenses and focusing on quality over quantity for long-term business growth.
Takeaways
- 💼 Taylor started her business 'Boardwalk Beads' at 13 and has made significant sales on Etsy.
- 📈 Etsy is appreciated for its ease of use in managing shop statistics and orders.
- 💸 Etsy charges listing fees and transaction fees, but provides a platform that can drive traffic to your shop.
- 📸 High-quality product photos are crucial for sales; editing skills can compensate for less advanced equipment.
- 💡 Look at what works for other successful Etsy shops to get ideas without copying them.
- 🔍 Research and use relevant keywords in product listings to improve visibility in Etsy searches.
- 🏷️ Use specific and relevant hashtags when listing products on Etsy to attract the right audience.
- 📢 Positive reviews build trust; incentivize buyers to leave reviews through methods like raffles.
- 📱 A cohesive and aesthetically pleasing Instagram account can significantly boost your Etsy shop's visibility.
- 🎨 Consider investing in packaging to encourage repeat purchases and enhance customer experience.
- 🚫 Avoid aggressive marketing tactics such as begging for sales or following/DMing potential customers.
Q & A
What was the speaker's first tip for being successful on Etsy?
-The speaker's first tip was to make sure to take quality photos of your products. Good product photos can make a significant difference in sales.
How much does Etsy charge for each listing?
-Etsy charges 20 cents for each different item listing.
What percentage of transaction fee does Etsy take?
-Etsy takes a 3.5 percent transaction fee.
Why does the speaker recommend starting a business on Etsy?
-The speaker recommends Etsy because it's easy to manage everything, and it's free unless you want to update your Etsy subscription. It also helps generate traffic to your shop.
What is the importance of using good lighting in product photography according to the speaker?
-The speaker emphasizes that good lighting is probably the biggest thing in product photography. If you have good lighting, the rest is easier.
What does the speaker suggest doing to get noticed on Etsy?
-The speaker suggests doing good research of products, using keywords in descriptions and titles, and utilizing the 13 hashtags option when making a listing.
How does the speaker encourage buyers to leave reviews?
-The speaker entices buyers to leave reviews by doing review raffles every month, where each review gives the buyer an entry to win a prize.
Why is having a good Instagram account important for an Etsy shop?
-Having a good Instagram account is important because it helps with marketing the Etsy shop, especially if you have good product photography that can attract followers.
What is the speaker's opinion on collaborations with influencers for small accounts?
-The speaker suggests that collaborations with influencers might not be beneficial for small accounts as it can be costly and may not necessarily lead to increased sales.
How does the speaker feel about focusing on the numbers when running an Etsy shop?
-The speaker advises not to focus on the numbers such as followers or sales, but rather on the quality of what you're doing, as quality will eventually lead to quantity in sales and followers.
What is one thing the speaker regrets not doing from the start of their business?
-The speaker regrets not keeping track of their spending from the start of their business.
Outlines
💰 Starting an Etsy Business: Tips for Success
Taylor, the founder of Boardwalk Beads, shares her journey of starting her Etsy business at the age of 13 and achieving significant sales and followers. She emphasizes the importance of Etsy's user-friendly platform, which simplifies order management and provides free tools, despite the transaction fees. Taylor highlights the necessity of high-quality product photos, suggesting that good lighting is key. She also stresses the value of Etsy in driving traffic to shops and offers a teaser for an upcoming video on photo and editing techniques. Taylor advises on researching and incorporating relevant keywords to improve visibility and suggests using Etsy's platform to its full advantage by understanding what works for other successful shops.
📸 Enhancing Etsy Shop Visibility and Customer Trust
In this segment, Taylor discusses strategies to increase an Etsy shop's visibility, such as utilizing hashtags effectively and ensuring high-quality listings. She underscores the importance of product photography and descriptions in attracting customers. Taylor also talks about the significance of customer reviews, suggesting a 'review raffle' as a method to encourage reviews and build trust. She shares her experience with social media marketing, particularly Instagram, and the impact of aesthetic cohesion on customer engagement. Taylor also touches on the potential of advertising and the importance of learning from other successful businesses without directly copying their strategies.
📦 Focusing on Packaging and Customer Retention
Taylor emphasizes the role of packaging in customer retention, suggesting that while it may not directly drive sales, it can encourage repeat business. She shares insights from her marketing class about the importance of repeat customers and offers tips on how to maintain a balance between attractive packaging and cost-effectiveness. Taylor also talks about the use of coupons and sales as effective marketing tools to boost sales and customer loyalty. She advises against aggressive marketing tactics that may undermine a brand's image and stresses the importance of confidence in one's products. Taylor also discusses the importance of tracking business expenses and adjusting pricing strategies to ensure profitability.
🔢 Prioritizing Quality Over Quantity in Business Growth
In the final paragraph, Taylor advises new business owners not to get disheartened by numbers like followers or sales but to focus on the quality of their work. She believes that by concentrating on quality, quantity will follow. Taylor encourages viewers to reach out for questions and suggests that while she enjoys making business-related videos, she is open to more ideas. She also reminds viewers to subscribe for more content and shares her contact information for direct inquiries.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Etsy
💡Quality Photos
💡Product Photography
💡Hashtags
💡Reviews
💡Social Media Marketing
💡Collaborations
💡Packaging
💡Coupons and Sales
💡Business Expenses
Highlights
Taylor shares tips on selling on Etsy and achieving business success.
Started Boardwalk Beads at 13 and made $7,713 with 57.1k Instagram followers.
Etsy's ease of use and management is praised, despite transaction fees.
Etsy generates customer traffic for free, aiding business growth.
Quality product photos are crucial for sales, and editing skills can compensate for less expensive equipment.
Good lighting is key in product photography.
Observing successful Etsy shops can provide ideas without copying.
Researching popular products and keywords can increase visibility on Etsy.
Utilizing Etsy's 13 optional hashtags effectively can boost product discoverability.
Encouraging reviews through incentives like raffles can build trust with potential customers.
A strong Instagram presence with aesthetically pleasing photos is essential for marketing.
Cohesive branding on Etsy and Instagram enhances legitimacy and customer interest.
Etsy ads and social media advertisements can boost sales when organic growth stalls.
Collaborations with influencers can be beneficial but are not necessary for small businesses.
Investing in packaging can improve customer retention.
Offering coupons and sales can incentivize repeat purchases.
Avoid aggressive marketing tactics that undermine product confidence.
Maintaining financial records is crucial for managing business expenses and profits.
Focus on quality over quantity to naturally attract more sales and followers.
Transcripts
so a lot of you have been asking me for
tips to sell on etsy and like how to be
successful in your business and i know i
made like a video
already but a lot of you want some more
in-depth stuff
and more related to etsy so this video
is gonna
how i made my first ten thousand dollars
on etsy if i were to tell you
tips this is what i would tell you
[Music]
so for those of you that don't know me
i'm taylor i started boardwalk beads
about a year ago in july 2019 when i was
13.
i'm now 14 and i've managed to make 7713
sales as of right now on etsy
and build 57.1 000 followers on
we're gonna ignore the fact that i
literally looked dead because this was
after school so i was like really tired
okay
thanks so obviously etsy takes a lot of
fees
which kind of sucks but the thing that i
like etsy and why i still use etsy is
because they make it so
easy to like manage everything
everything is super easy like look at
your statistics and like print orders
out
they make it so easy and it's free
unless you like
want to update your like etsy
subscription but it's free
so they take 20 cents for each listing
so each different item like different
type of item you put it's 20 cents they
charge you
and i know they take a 5 or 10 percent
charge like transaction fee i'll look it
up yeah i was really wrong it's 3.5
percent
but so at the end of the day they take a
lot i know i've definitely
lost a good amount of money i honestly
really like etsy because they just make
it so easy and for me i'm
lazy if you're starting a business etsy
is such a good place to start
um another thing i like etsy for is they
generate people to your shop like people
go on etsy looking for things and that's
how a lot of people will find out about
your shop so
etsy basically gets you customers for
free
so i definitely like it for that reason
because
you not only can push your shop like
through social medias but you can also
use
etsy like themselves so that's
definitely really good if you want to
start off because that's how a lot of
people end up finding your shop
my first tip which is this is probably
like the biggest one i'm just gonna like
first one biggest one is make sure you
take
quality photos if your product photos
aren't good
then you're not going to sell anything
and i know cameras and stuff are
expensive but you can use your phone you
just have to know how to edit them right
because if you can edit your photos in a
way that makes them look super high-end
and nice then people will click on your
stuff and they will buy it
i'm gonna be making a whole separate
video on like
photo techniques and like editing
techniques and how i do my product
photos
in case anyone's wondering so that video
will be up probably
in the next week or two some sometime
around there
but make sure the lighting is good i
feel like key lighting is probably
the biggest thing in like product
photography so if you have good lighting
then it's the rest is easy another thing
that's really good on etsy
is what was going to say
okay yeah so another really good thing
about etsy is that
you can see what a lot of other people
are doing and kind of don't copy them
obviously but use them
as like an idea of what works well for
other people
and maybe that'll work well for you like
if you see like certain product photos
with like super good lighting are
working well for other people
then you know that you know you have to
take some better product photos or
if you see that someone is just doing
something whether it's like
making their descriptions really nice or
making the names of their items really
nice
sorry my dog's literally barking as an
example to grow your own brand
because look what works for people and
what doesn't work for people
if that makes any sense so a lot of you
already have an etsy shop and you're
wondering okay how do i get noticed on
etsy
so you're going to want to do some good
research of products like
what is coming up on your recommended
page you know what keywords are people
using
that get the searches and that get
people to look at your shop there's not
like an example of this that i can think
off
of like the top of my head but
definitely do some research you know see
what the
top like searches are and then include
that somehow in your description or your
title
so when people search for that thing
let's say
boho gold necklace or something like
that if you include some of those key
words
in your thing when people search that up
your products will come up and that's
what you want
and another super super good one um
when you go to make a listing on etsy
they'll give you an option of
listing 13 hashtags you have to do it
i know it's like optional or whatever
but you really should do it
and don't make it like random hashtags
if you're selling jewelry why would you
make a hashtag like hashtag keychain
make it like specific to your product
let's say you're selling a golden chain
necklace or something like that
you want your hashtags to be like
hashtag gold jewelry
gold necklace you know things that
relate to your product which will also
help people find your shop in the
searches
people don't know about your shop
they're not going to search up your
shop's name they're just going to go
looking for items that they might like
so what you're going to have to rely on
is what you use in the listing
so this all kind of wraps up to be to
basically say that
the quality of your listing is the most
important thing
how you name it the description um the
photos
so the listings that you do are probably
the most important things
well something else that's super good is
when you get reviews on your shop
you're obviously going to want reviews
and you know you're going to get
positive and negative reviews over the
time it's just how it is
so don't be bummed if you get one bad
review and you want to cry just
i know it's it's tough but like you have
to focus on the good
but what you want to do is you want to
get people reviewing your items
so the more reviews you have people look
and they think okay this is a
trustworthy brand
so what i do and what you guys can do is
you have to
entice the buyer to do a review so
for me i do review raffles every month
and
for each review someone writes they get
one entry and then
i just draw out of everybody that's
reviewed that month so
it's kind of me giving buyers that
little push
to add reviews to my items so that's why
i have so many reviews i think i have
850 right now or something like that
the more reviews the better because
people see that you're reliable and
you're real and you're not a scam which
you definitely don't want them to think
you're a scam
another really good thing to have in
your back pocket is a good social media
account i definitely recommend having an
instagram account
but another thing with an instagram
account you have to have good pictures
if you don't have good product
photography then you're not going to get
followers and no one's going to care so
don't just go
to your carpet and like slap the jewelry
on the floor or the stickers or whatever
you're selling on the floor
and take a picture of it you have to
take photos into consideration people
love cute instagram feeds
my main way of marketing my etsy shop is
through instagram
so of course i want to have pretty good
pictures i mean i think i have pretty
good pictures obviously they're not
perfect
nothing has to be perfect but you're
going to want to really focus on your
and the quality of that too though make
it cohesive make it look nice
same with your etsy shop you want to
have a nice logo and maybe make an
etsy banner which are like the little
things on top of the etsy shop
but the more cohesive it looks the more
people will look and say whoa this looks
really legit i kind of and
it just gets them interested and it's
kind of like a psychology trick in a way
because
people see like aesthetic looking feeds
and this and that
and they just get more interested which
eventually leads to buyers
so definitely pay attention to your
instagram and
the aesthetic you have going on because
that could play a good part in it
now if you've had an etsy shop for a
while and you're still not seeing sales
and you've done all this stuff and you
still really don't know what to do
look into etsy ads and instagram
advertisement pinterest advertisement
i know it can get pretty costly but you
don't have to spend a lot of money on
ads
so i i personally haven't done it
because
i just haven't gotten around to it but
if you're really
struggling with sales and you know
you've got good photos you've got good
listings you think your instagram is
pretty put together
then you can resort to like
advertisements and
you know make them look nice because if
they don't look nice again no one's
going to buy them
you want people to look at your products
and think whoa
those are pretty you know there's one
business i follow acs.aesthetics i'll
link her
right here her feed is so
gorgeous so take her as an example her
feed is so put together it is
so pretty the colors go together and
just for her photography in general is
gorgeous there's a bunch of businesses
that you can look and you can see their
feeds and you can kind of say okay
they've got something really nice going
on here so don't
copy them obviously but just see what
they're doing like
is there lighting outside inside um
are there layouts unique just definitely
use that to your advantage
now when it comes to collabs with
influencers
i've done a couple i'm personally not
doing them right now
they're a good way to get your stuff out
to people and get some like cute product
photos
but if you're a small account i would
not recommend it
it's okay like you can get some good
photos out of it but
if you're a super small account can't
like afford to like give stuff out i
i wouldn't stress over it just get your
friends to model and get your friends to
take some pictures with it you know
use the resources you have around you
before you go and send things all across
the country
another tip i'd have is definitely focus
on your packaging because
although it's not something that will
get people like necessarily to buy it
it'll get them to possibly come back so
i'm actually taking a marketing class at
my high school right now
and i've actually been paying attention
in that class for the first time
and um one thing the textbook said which
actually really like kind of it kind of
just opened my eyes and it said
a business needs to rely on the
customers that keep coming back
so if you can get people to keep coming
back for more to your shop
then that's just you know customers
that'll keep coming back that's what you
want to aim for
that's um like investing in your
packaging like i have a packaging
packaging video if you want to go watch
that i say where everything's from
and i've heard from a lot of people that
my packaging's pretty cute and it's it's
not that expensive
because what you definitely don't want
to do is over invest in packaging
and over investing an example would be
like spending a hundred dollars on
packaging when you've only had like
20 or so orders you have to be realistic
with your expectations another thing you
could do
um again if you're aiming for those
returning customers that just keep
coming back
is something that i started doing about
like a week ago
and give them coupons coupons and sales
are definitely a great way to get
actual sales because people are like oh
they see that 20 off sign or 25 offside
and they're like okay
i want it because it's on sale so let's
say
someone buys from your shop and you send
them over a message on etsy
thanks so much for your order here's a
coupon if you ever want to order again
want them to just keep coming back
because loyal customers are the best
type of customers
something you definitely don't want to
do is
go around and like go to other
businesses and stuff
and not try to steal their customers
that's like that's not the right wording
i'm trying to use here but
how do i say this i'm going to use an
example there have been a couple
businesses that i know of
they kind of just go around and follow
people and dm them hey i don't have any
sales can you
can you buy from me i really just
haven't sold anything
do not do that that is the worst way to
market
because what you're telling the buyer or
the
maybe future customer is that you're not
confident in the products you sell and
no one wants them so you're basically
going to a potential customer saying
no one wants to buy my products can you
feel bad for me
you don't want that image you don't want
to be cocky of course
and be like everybody loves me but you
want to be confident
don't reach out to people and beg for
orders and beg for sales you have to
earn that on your own otherwise people
are just going to think
you're another small brand you know just
trying to get pity sales
um another good tip in order this is not
really etsy related or just this is just
business related in general
one thing you'll probably want to do is
keep track of your spending which i have
done a
horrible horrible job when it comes to
keeping track of how much money i spend
on things
which i regret i regret from day one
that i haven't like
kept track of things but keep track of
how much you're spending
so then you can compare it to how much
you're making and
if you're not making like any profit
then you need to reconsider your pricing
or reconsider
how much you're spending because you
obviously want to make profit but you
don't want to over price your products
either
but also you don't want to under price
your products if you're putting
time in and money in to make these
things
do some research on etsy and see what
things are selling for
you know how much money could i make off
of this
without necessarily over pricing it so
that's definitely something you can use
other shops for
i suck at this oh my god i can't even
english
and probably the last thing i have to
say for this video
don't focus on like the numbers it can
be so easy to let the numbers get to
your head whether you're gaining
followers losing followers
getting sales and stuff really you just
have to focus on the quality over
quantity
so if you can stop for a second and
focus on the quality of what you're
doing
you'll end up getting quantity in sales
and followers and all that
but first you kind of have to sit back
and just clean everything up
make sure you're doing the best you can
um yeah so
those are all of the tips that i can
come up with off the top of my head
right now
um i definitely want to make more
business videos like this because i
love them and i know i'm not the best
speaker when it comes to things but i
try
my best so hopefully you found something
in this video helpful
and you can learn and grow
if you have any if you ever have any
questions for me feel free to message me
on etsy um
don't ever damn me on instagram if you
have like an urgent question because i
get
so many dms i like physically cannot
answer them all
so if you ever really need to get in
touch with me you can email me
at boardwalkbeadsco gmail.com or you can
message me on that
those are my tips so if you guys found
this helpful or if you want more videos
again i want to do like a photography
tip video
and just other business related videos
because i like making them probably
best out of anything so comment down
below some more ideas
because i i really need some ideas and
make sure you subscribe because
literally hitting the subscribe button
is free it costs you nothing but it
really helps me
so please subscribe and i don't care if
you like this video or not but just
hit the subscribe button and you can
always subscribe when you want to so
it's literally not even a hassle you
just if you don't want to turn your
notifications on don't turn
notifications on just subscribe it's not
that big of a deal
but yeah make sure to watch my other um
business videos i know i'm literally
rambling okay i'm gonna shut up now i'm
so sorry
you
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