How to Get Your FIRST 100 Etsy Sales in 2024
Summary
TLDRStarla Moore, Gründerin der Handmade Alpha Academy und Managerin bei eRank.com, teilt ihre Erfahrungen beim Aufbau eines neuen Etsy-Shops im Fantasy-Buch-Nischen. Sie dokumentierte Schritt für Schritt, wie sie von null auf 100 Verkäufe kam und welche Strategien sie einsetzte: von der Bedeutung der Leidenschaft für das Produkt über das Testen von Warenmustern, die Produktfotografie, die Nutzung von Keywords und die Kommunikation mit Kunden bis hin zur Suche nach neuen Lizenzierungsmöglichkeiten. Sie betont, dass Erfolg auf Etsy erreichbar ist, erfordert jedoch Realismus bei Zielsetzungen und harte Arbeit.
Takeaways
- 🌟 Start with a niche you're passionate about to build a strong brand identity.
- 📚 Research and obtain legal licensing for products to avoid copyright issues.
- 🔍 Test products before listing to ensure quality matches customer expectations.
- 📸 Invest in good product photography to make products stand out.
- 🎨 Limit product choices to avoid overwhelming customers and simplify decision-making.
- 🌐 Secure domain names and social media accounts to establish a professional online presence.
- 📢 Engage with your target audience on social media before launching products.
- 💌 Build an email list and offer incentives to grow your customer base.
- 🔑 Complete all shop sections on Etsy to improve search visibility and professionalism.
- 🔍 Focus on specific keywords related to your niche for effective SEO.
- 📈 Monitor which listings bring the most traffic and adapt your offerings accordingly.
- 💬 Communicate with customers throughout the buying process to build trust and brand loyalty.
- 📝 Respond to reviews to show appreciation and engage with customers publicly.
- 🚀 Seek opportunities like licensing deals or partnerships to grow your business.
- 💪 Success requires persistence, hard work, and continuous effort.
Q & A
Wie lange hat es gedauert, bis die neue Etsy-Shop 100 Verkäufe erreicht hat?
-Es hat 9 Monate gedauert, bis die neue Etsy-Shop 100 Verkäufe erreicht hat, bis zum 21. Mai.
Was war das Hauptmotiv für Starla und Michelle, eine neue Etsy-Shop zu eröffnen?
-Das Hauptmotiv war die Leidenschaft für Fantasybücher und die Bereitschaft, Produkte zu erstellen, die den Bedürfnissen ihrer idealen Kunden entsprechen.
Warum haben Starla und Michelle für ihre Produkte Lizenzen benötigt?
-Sie haben Lizenzen benötigt, um legale Merchandise rund um hoch profilierte Fantasyautoren zu verkaufen, ohne Angst vor Schopfsuspensions oder Klagen.
Warum haben sie Muster bestellt, bevor sie ihre Produkte in den Shop aufgenommen haben?
-Sie haben Muster bestellt, um die Qualität der Produkte zu bewerten, die sie verkauften, und um sicherzustellen, dass sie den Kunden keine schlechten Produkte anbieten würden.
Wie wichtig ist eine gute Produktfotografie für Etsy-Shops?
-Gute Produktfotos sind sehr wichtig, da sie das Produktleben einfügen und das Interesse der Kunden wecken. Starla hat ihre Fähigkeiten in der Produktfotografie verbessert, um die Produkte attraktiver zu präsentieren.
Warum haben sie beschlossen, eine begrenzte Farbpalette für ihre Produkte anzubieten?
-Sie haben eine begrenzte Farbpalette gewählt, um die Auswahlüberlastung für Kunden zu reduzieren und ihnen nur die besten Optionen zu präsentieren, die zu den Modetrends in ihrer Nische passen.
Wie haben sie ihre Social-Media-Präsenz vor der Veröffentlichung ihrer Produkte aufgebaut?
-Sie haben Teaservideos, Fotos und Stories auf Social Media gepostet und mit den Accounts von Menschen in der Bookstagram-Community interagiert, um ein Interesse für ihre Produkte zu wecken, bevor sie sie verkauften.
Warum ist es wichtig, alle Abschnitte des Etsy-Shops zu vervollständigen, wie z.B. die 'Über'-Seiten und Richtlinien?
-Etsy ist eher geneigt, Shops in der Suche zu ranken, die ihre 'Über'-Abschnitte und Richtlinien vervollständigt haben, was zeigt, dass der Shop professionell und ernst genommen wird.
Wie haben sie ihre SEO-Strategie für ihre Etsy-Shop genutzt?
-Sie haben sich auf Keywords fokussiert, die sich auf bestimmte Bücher, Charaktere und ihre Zielgruppe beziehen, um Etsy genau zu zeigen, worum es in ihrem Geschäft geht: Merchandising rund um Fantasy- und Romantikbücher.
Warum ist es wichtig, Kunden während des gesamten Kaufprozesses zu informieren?
-Durch die Kommunikation mit Kunden während des Kaufprozesses können sie ihre Marke personalisieren und eine bessere Kundenzufriedenheit erzielen, was zu mehr Bewertungen und wiederkehrenden Kunden führen kann.
Outlines
😀 Erfolg auf Etsy durch Passion und Zielgerichtetheit
Der Text beschreibt die Erfahrungen von Starla Moore, Gründerin der Handmade Alpha Academy und Managerin bei eRank.com, mit dem Aufbau einer neuen Etsy-Filialen im September letzten Jahres. Sie dokumentierte alle Schritte, die sie unternommen hat, um von null bis zu 100 Verkäufen zu kommen. Ihr Hauptaugenmerk lag darauf, zu zeigen, dass Erfolg auf Etsy immer noch möglich ist, aber mit realistischen Zielen und der Anerkennung der erforderlichen Zeit und Arbeit. Sie wollte auch zeigen, wie Print-on-Demand (POD) korrekt umgesetzt werden kann, und wie erfüllend und spaßig es sein kann, ein Geschäft aufzubauen, wenn man leidenschaftlich von dem ist, was man herstellt. Die Auswahl des Nischenbereichs, der um ein Thema rankt, für das beide Beteiligten bereits eine Leidenschaft haben - Fantasybücher - war entscheidend. Sie betonten die Notwendigkeit, sich auf ein spezifisches Publikum und Produkte zu konzentrieren, die diesen Kunden gefallen.
📸 Produktion und Marketingstrategien für Etsy-Verkäufer
Der zweite Absatz konzentriert sich auf die Produktions- und Marketingstrategien, die für den Erfolg der Etsy-Filiale entscheidend waren. Dazu gehörten die rechtliche Seite des Verkaufs von Merchandise rund um bekannte Fantasyautoren, für die eine lizenzierte Nutzung erforderlich ist. Die Produkttests waren wichtig, um die Qualität der Waren zu bewerten und Preise festzulegen. Die Autorin betont die Notwendigkeit, eigene Produktfotos zu erstellen, anstatt Mock-ups zu verwenden, was zu einer besseren Produktpräsentation führt. Sie empfiehlt, die Farben der Produktvarianten auf ein Minimum zu reduzieren, um die Entscheidungsfindung für den Kunden zu erleichtern. Des Weiteren wurden alle Social-Media-Konten und Domain-E-Mail-Adressen unter dem Geschäftsnamen beansprucht, um ein professionelles Erscheinungsbild zu wahren. Ein Vor-Marketing-Kampagne vor dem Start der Produkte half, ein Interesse an den Produkten zu wecken, bevor sie überhaupt erhältlich waren.
🔍 SEO und Kundenkommunikation - Schlüssel zu mehr Verkäufen auf Etsy
Der dritte Absatz deckt die SEO-Strategie ab, die darauf abzielt, sich für spezifische Keywords im Buchbereich zu ranken, anstatt versucht zu werden, für alle möglichen Keywords zu ranken. Die Verwendung von Keywords im gesamten Shop, um Etsy zu zeigen, worum es in dem Geschäft geht, ist ein wichtiger Aspekt. Die Beobachtung der Listings, die den meisten Traffic generierten, half, die Produktauswahl anzupassen und auf neue Trends einzugehen. Die Kommunikation mit Kunden während des gesamten Transaktionsprozesses wurde als wesentlich für die Kundenzufriedenheit und die Schaffung von Wiederholungskäufern betrachtet. Die Reaktion auf Bewertungen und die Suche nach neuen Gelegenheiten, wie das Abschließen von Lizenzvereinbarungen mit Autoren, um immer auf dem neuesten Stand der beliebtesten Bücher zu sein, sind weitere Schlüsselelemente für den Erfolg im Etsy-Geschäft.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Etsy
💡Nischengeschäft
💡SEO-Tool
💡Print on Demand (POD)
💡Produktfotografie
💡Domain
💡E-Mail-Marketing
💡Schlüsselwörter
💡Kundenkommunikation
💡Bewertungsreaktionen
💡Chancensuche
Highlights
Etsy平台的变化使得成功不再像以前那样容易,但仍然有可能。
创建新Etsy店铺时,作者强调了目标明确和记录过程的重要性。
作者在5月21日达到了100笔销售的里程碑。
作者Starla Moore介绍了自己的背景和资源。
成功在Etsy上不是被动的,需要时间和努力。
作者想要证明在Etsy上仍然可以成功,并展示了正确的目标设定和工作量。
作者展示了如何以正确的方式进行按需打印(POD)销售。
作者强调了对所销售产品的热情对于建立店铺的重要性。
店铺的创建基于作者和合伙人共同的热情——奇幻书籍。
为了销售基于知名奇幻作家的商品,作者和合伙人获得了法律许可。
作者强调了样品测试的重要性,以确保产品质量。
作者通过学习专业产品摄影技巧,提高了产品照片的质量。
作者提到了提供有限选择可以帮助买家做出决策。
作者强调了拥有自己的域名和社交媒体账户对于专业形象的重要性。
在产品上市前,作者通过社交媒体进行预热,建立了一群感兴趣的追随者。
作者建立了电子邮件列表,并提供了自动折扣码来吸引顾客。
作者强调了完成Etsy店铺的各个部分,如关于我们、政策等,对于搜索排名的重要性。
作者专注于与书籍、角色和目标人群相关的关键词,以提高SEO效果。
作者使用eRank工具监控店铺中带来最多流量的列表。
作者强调了与买家沟通的重要性,并分享了他们如何在整个交易过程中与买家保持联系。
作者提到了对好评的回应可以锁定评价,并展示未来的购物者卖家的响应性。
作者鼓励寻找机会,如与新作者联系、获取许可协议,以保持在目标客户阅读的最热门书籍的顶端。
作者提醒新卖家,细分市场、需求和质量决定了店铺的成功,并且需要持之以恒和努力工作。
Transcripts
I’ve been selling on Etsy since the golden days, back when the platform was easy to master,
the algorithm was easy to conquer, and success was as easy as listing a great product.
But unfortunately, times have changed. So when I created a brand new Etsy shop with
a VERY defined niche last September, I made it a point to document everything I did along the way.
And as of May 21st, I’ve officially hit 100 sales. Which means it’s time
to share the steps I took to get from zero to 100,
and what new Etsy sellers should expect when it comes to growth on the platform.
If you’re new here, my name is Starla Moore - founder of the Handmade Alpha
Academy for Etsy sellers, and manager at eRank.com, Etsy’s most popular SEO tool.
Which is why last year, when my assistant Michelle and I, decided to start a new shop together,
I was pretty darn confident. I mean, let’s be real for a second.
Success on Etsy isn’t as easy as listing 1,000 random items and letting them go.
Despite what many YouTuber preach right now, Etsy isn’t passive - and it never has been.
So when starting a new shop from the ground up, I wanted to prove three things to my audience.
The first, was that success IS still possible on Etsy. You just have to
be realistic with your goals and the amount of time and work it’ll take.
Second, I wanted to show POD sellers how to do Print on Demand the “right way”. And this is
coming from me - someone who ran a six figure handmade jewelry shop for over 10 years. To be
clear, this isn’t a POD video. But I’ve gotta point out the glaring facts when it comes to
POD saturation on the platform. Hopefully this video helps, no matter what you sell.
And lastly - I wanted to show sellers how fun and
rewarding building a shop can be when you’re actually passionate about what you’re making.
So, let’s run through everything I’ve done to grow
our shop over the last 9 months. Almost like our own little baby.
transition
Selling Passion
When Michelle and I first discussed the creation of a new Etsy shop,
we didn’t lead our discussion with “money” or “trends”. We weren’t googling lists of
the top selling items on Etsy, nor were we concerned with how many items we’d make.
Because focusing on those things first is like putting your cart before the horse.
Instead, we started discussing a shop based around something we were both already passionate about…
Fantasy books. This was a niche that we already loved and were invested in.
With Michelle already being the editor for my own book and us having a mutual love of many of
the same fantasy novels, coming up with a brand was easy - because we already knew the industry,
the target audience, and the types of items that these buyers loved.
We knew the niche inside and out. We were already passionate about the industry. All we needed to do
was make the items that our ideal customers wanted based on the books that were already trending.
The Legal Side
I saw you typing that comment about copyright violations. You were doing it, weren’t cha?
Yes, in order to sell merchandise based around some of fantasy’s highest profile authors,
Michelle and I had to obtain legal licensing. This also means that we
pay out a small percentage to these authors after every sale.
You can find a full playlist about copyright laws on Etsy up here, but to keep it short and sweet,
products themed around large video games, TV shows, movies, celebrities, song lyrics,
and brands are not realistic licensing targets for small sellers like us. It's
just too expensive to obtain licensing, and the risks are too high. As I always say,
unless your lawyer can beat their lawyers, it's better to play it safe.
But this small step allowed us to create products based around our favorite stories like A Court of
Thorns and Roses and From Blood and Ash without fear of our shop being suspended - or worse.
Being sued. And it allowed us to legally create items that were in high demand.
Product Testing
Okay, this part is for the POD sellers - but handmade folks, stick with me because I’m going
to keep it short. After developing our products, we didn’t just list those suckers right in our
shop. We ordered samples. And yes, trust me. It was expensive. But it was also necessary.
For one, we were able to determine the quality of each item vs what we’d need
to charge. Some of our samples were bad. Like. Embarrassingly bad. And without ordering samples,
we never would have known how mad the items ended up being. Definitely not something we would have
wanted our customers to experience. You can check out our sample review video up here.
Second. These sample orders were tax deductible. They were necessary purchases for our business,
which left us with a nice big write-off at the end of the year.
And lastly, having those samples on hand allowed us to take our own product photos
without the use of mockups. Let’s talk a little more about product photography.
Product Photos
You still with me handmade folks? Because this topic is a bit of a fusion.
For my POD peep, mock-up are boring. I mean seriously guys,
if I have to see this exact mockup one more time, I’m going to turn into a pumpkin.
Mock-ups are necessary sometimes, but I promise you - taking your own product
photos will give your products so much more life.
And let me be clear. I wasn't the best photographer when we started. Especially
when it came to shiny reflective items. So, I started buckling down on my product photography
skills by learning from a professional product photography coach, Kristina Nicole. The difference
was night and day and I learned so much about light and staging props in a meaningful way.
You can check out her YouTube channel up here to learn amazing tips that
will transform the way you photograph your products. No matter what you sell.
Limited Choices
A few years ago, I read a book called The Paradox of Choice by Barry Swartz,
which taught me a lot about choice overload. And through these lessons,
I realized that offering every color option under the sun wasn’t necessary - nor was it helpful
to buyers. So instead, I started paying close attention to the colors of clothing that large
influencers in my niche were offering. And what I found was that, in the bookish niche, most of
our target customer gravitated toward trendy neutrals like white, cream, gray, and black.
By offering a limited number of choices within our variations,
we’re helping indecisive buyers by narrowing their focus on only a few of the best options.
Owning Domains
Another step we took right away was claiming all social media accounts associated with our business
name, as well as the domain and domain email address. When communicating with authors, a domain
email address looks way more professional and established than a standard gmail address, plus
it ensures email delivery for our email marketing campaigns. More on that part in a few minutes.
Getting Social
Before our products were even available for sale, I immediately started posting teaser photos,
videos, and stories on social media. And I began engaging with the accounts of people
already in the Bookstagram community. By building a solid pre-marketing campaign before our launch,
we were able to establish a small group of followers who were interested in
buying our products - even before we’d launched them!
Unfortunately over the last few months, I haven’t been super consistent with our
social media accounts because I’ve been super busy. But with autumn being a busy season for
our niche, we plan to get back into more content scheduling in the coming weeks.
Funnel Building
Another early step that we put into place was an email list, because in my first Etsy shop,
my email list was the number one traffic driver that grew my business to six figures.
We also set up an automatic discount code that sends to customers right when they join,
and we listed the email list in our shop announcement.
For mailing list set-up, my personal favorite platform is Mailchimp for sooo many reasons.
It's free up to 500 subscribers. You can build awesome sign-up pages. The whole thing is drag
and drop and is super easy to use. And it's easy to make your list GDPR compliant because Mailchimp
takes care of all privacy aspects for you. And they’ve made the process of setting up your Dmarc,
SPF and Dkim super easy to ensure your emails are actually received by your subscribers.
Now - full disclaimer. I personally don't teach mailing list set-up and detailed funnel building
here on my channel due to the legalities that come with setting up your list correctly. But,
I do teach a step-by-step funnel strategy in my Etsy coaching program. That'll be open on June
14th so if you're interested in learning more about it, be sure to click the link up here.
But if you want to wing it on your own,
Mailchimp has tons of videos and articles on their page to help you get started. Just
be sure to do your research on GDPR and the CAN-SPAM act... so you don't break any laws.
The Small Details
Etsy is more likely to rank shops in search that have completed about sections and policies. So
when setting up our shop, if there was an area to fill something out - we filled it
out. I know this sounds like a super basic step, but during our shop critique sessions,
I see so many sellers who neglect these little details like About section photos,
a high resolution cover photo, FAQs, shop members, shop announcements…
the point is, we took advantage of every single
field that Etsy allowed us to fill out and customize.
Owning Keywords
When it comes to our SEO strategy, our goal isn’t to rank for every possible keyword under
the sun. That’s like comparing the brightness of a flashlight to the brightness of a laser.
While a flashlight may have a larger radius, the light itself is dimmer and unfocused. Whereas a
laser is bright and precise on it’s target. And for us, our target was the bookish community.
We buckled down on keywords related to specific books, characters, and our target demographic
which is fantasy and romantasy readers. And we use keywords related to the bookish community
nearly everywhere in our shop in order to show Etsy exactly what our business is all about:
merch themed around booktok and bookstagram famous fantasy and romantasy books.
Monitoring Listings
Using the eRank Track Changes tool, we also spent a lot of time observing the listings in our shop
that were bringing the most traffic. During the holiday season, this ornament listing was our best
selling design. But because it was seasonal, sales dropped after the holidays. Then in February,
the author of this book released another book in a parallel series. So we immediately began making
merchandise for this new release, and launched a tapestry that incorporated elements from all of
her popular series. Now, nearly 5 months later, this tapestry has become our new best seller.
And it’s probably not surprising that these two trending items share many of the same keywords.
Customer Communication
Most sellers talk about how much they hate when sellers message them. Which is fine.
It’s understandable for those maintaining star seller badges and response rates. But
that’s speaking from a seller perspective. In our shop, we make it a point to message our
buyers throughout the transaction process in order to keep them informed. And this
practice is backed by exclusive data that we collected at eRank from a panel of over
1,000 Etsy customers, where a majority of panelists stated that they’d prefer to be
updated when their order was received, shipped, and if there were any delays.
By messaging our orders throughout the transaction process, we’ve been able to humanize our brand,
which has resulted in 30 reviews. Which is pretty darn spectacular
after 100 orders. If you want a copy of the exact messages we send to our customers,
you can click up here or visit AlphaSugar.com for the free PDF.
Review Responses
Another small practice we’ve put in place are review responses. When you respond publicly to a
review, that review is locked in and the customer can no longer change it. It also shows future
shoppers how responsive you are - so for each of our good reviews, we always take time to thank our
buyers. And we even make specific book references based on the item the customer purchased.
Opportunity Seeking
Our niche is a little different than most others, but opportunity-seeking isn’t a niche-exclusive
concept. For our shop, we are constantly reaching out to new authors and collecting licensing deals
in order to stay on top of the most popular books that our target customers are reading.
But nearly any niche has the ability to seek opportunities through influencer marketing,
press releases, business partnerships, giveaways…. the list goes on. Right now,
I’m currently helping my mom with a new business venture where she’s crocheting
life-sized “perfect boyfriend” dolls. And over the last two weeks,
she’s already been featured by DailyMail and a podcast. And all of these opportunities
came from posting in niche adjacent facebook groups and posting consistent Instagram Reels.
Look, if my mom can go viral selling perfect boyfriend dolls, you can do it too.
It’s so important for new sellers to understand that niche, demand, and quality are what dictates
the success of a shop. When developing our new brand, we know that we were fishing from
a small bucket, rather than attempting to create everything for everyone. And with a small niche,
success takes a bit more time - but the power of a small niche allows for stronger customer
connections and repeat buyers, which can help brands maintain longevity. If you’re
one of those sellers who is still chugging along, definitely don’t give up - but also,
don’t sit and twiddle your thumbs, waiting around for success to find you.
Opportunities come from persistence and hard work, and when it comes to business,
your work will never truly be done because there’s always something to do. But when you build a brand
that you love and you’re selling within a niche that you’re passionate about, the work feels less
like work, and you’ll find yourself enjoying the time you spend building your business.
And hey, for some people, this stuff is second nature. But for others,
sometimes it takes a little a little help.
And if you currently feel like you’re flying solo without a roadmap, consider checking
out my own self paced Etsy coaching program, which opens on June 14th for public enrollment.
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