Etsy Advice!!!

Ok, I found this smattering of FABULOUS Etsy advice from another Etsyian, ChristineRenee. I'm copying it & pasting it here, but you should totally hop on over to her blog and say "hello!" (And maybe "Thanks!" too. =*^.^*=). Here's a direct link to the original blog post. *grins*

I got a message from someone on Etsy today, asking me for some advice about how to promote her shop. I was surprised to be asked, because I certainly don’t consider myself to be an expert. But the more I thought about it I realized that I HAVE learned a lot over the last 2 years on Etsy.

Here is what I told her:
1) The most obvious thing is to list on a regular basis. At least one thing per day if you can. The way the categories are set up and the searches work you’ll be viewed by more people if you have recently listed items.

2) If you don’t have enough stuff to list something new every day then renew a listing that has been up for a while. It will cost you another 20¢ to do it, but that item will show up as if you just listed it and you’ll get the same benefits of having a newly listed item.

3) Diversify the stuff that you make so that you can list in more categories. The more your stuff is spread out across Etsy the better chance someone is going to find you.

4) Be part of the Etsy community. Post in the forums, visit the chat rooms, put together a treasury. Most sellers are buyers too, so make sure they know who you are (in a positive way).

5) Offer really great service so you’ll get repeat customers and they will recommend you to others. Also, they’ll mention how awesome you are in your feedback and that will result in more sales in the long run.

6) Promote yourself outside of Etsy. If you can afford it, take out some ads. But be very careful about where you spend your money. For me the top three crafty magazines are Adorn, Craft and Readymade. (So far I’ve only been in ReadyMade, but I’m hoping to advertise in the other two soon.) Also, carry business cards with you at all times so you’ll be prepared if someone asks you about your work. If possible, carry examples of your work with you. Leave flyers all over town in places where potential buyers shop and hang out.

7) Participate in the Sampler: http://www.homeofthesampler.com/ !! This may be the only truly valuable piece of advice. The way the sampler works is this: You send in samples of your work. Make it something small and inexpensive, but representative of what you do. Then all the samples that are sent in get divided into packages and sent out to other contributers and people who pay to get one.

All of that is great for getting your name out there, but what is REALLY amazing is there is a Media Only option. For $25 you can get your some of you samples sent to people in the media. Marie, the woman behind the Sampler, has tons of connections in the media. Basically, it’s like working with a crafty PR agency. And the more regular samples you send in the more samples she’ll send to the media for you. It is absolutely worth the $25.

8) Have a blog and try to get mentioned on other people’s blogs. It all comes up in google searches and you can lead people to your shop. (Plus it’s fun.)

9) Be part of the crafty community in general. Participate in the forums on sites like Craftster.org and GetCrafty.com. And try to get involved locally if there are any groups that get together in your town. Or start one. Also, participate in local craft shows. A lot of people who don’t buy from you at the show will visit your shop online if you hand out cards, and will buy from you later.

10) Join a street team (or two or three). This is something I have been meaning to do but haven’t yet…