Girl, I'm going to Change your Life!

This is what my friend Crystal of the All Natural Face kept saying to me a few weekends ago. We were discussing ways to improve efficiency in our Etsy shops. She turned me on to bulk shipping in paypal and it did change my life. The c and v on my new mac just might be visible for a while longer.

So now I'm going to change yours, maybe. If you haven't heard of the Etsy Hacks, you are going to love me. (I accept cookies) You've been following all my sage advice and become a busy Etsy shop. I'll bet you could use some great tools to speed up your listing and day to day activities on Etsy. Let me share Greasemonkey Hacks with you.

First you will need to have Firefox. I know, I know, for some of you it's another browser and you don't want to relearn. I get it. But it is worth downloading even if you only use it for Etsy. I'm telling you, these hacks are going to change your life ;)

Download Greasemonkey and then each hack that appeals to you. The link above will give you a complete list of what is available, but let me highlight why you should even click.

Bulk Feedback - Submit feedback for an entire page by entering the text once and hitting submit

Fast Tags - Type all 14 tags in one box and hit enter once

Bulk Uploading - Upload all 5 pictures at once

Notes from Buyer - See the any notes from your buyers on the order page at a glance.

Copy, edit and delete a listing - My personal favorite. Click on a listing and have the ability to copy, edit or delete it right there instead of searching your 20 something pages for the listing in your Etsy.

Now that I've changed your life, you'll have a bit more time to create. Go make something cool!

Google Analytics and You

I love stats. I was trying to write a post about Google Analytics and realized there is really no need for me to reinvent the wheel. I've posted great links for you instead.

The first thing one must do is set it up. For Etsy, here is a video on setting up Google Analytics from Timothy Adam. Artfire has it set up and working for you but you will still need to go to google and create your analytics page to read the statistics. You will also see some other links on Tim's page and they are worth reading.


Now you are set and up thinking, now what? Here is video on understanding Google Analytics:


And finally here are more advanced things you can do with Google Analytics from Blog Handmade.

Ahhh the world of numbers, don't you just love it?

The Hidden Value of Shows

Art and Craft shows have seen a steady decline in sales and attendance over the last decade. While we could mull over the many reasons, I think it is safe to say internet shopping is a huge factor. Many artisans are dropping shows and selling on the internet instead. But I caution you not to give up on shows completely.

The one thing you get at a show is real personal interaction. It's powerful. Try as we might, the physical connection of touch, the tiny nuances of body language and sensation of a voice just can't be duplicated in your online shop. Now I do realize most of us are learning to shop without these luxuries in exchange for convenience. And quite frankly, shows are more likely than not to be a poor return on your financial investment. But they don't have to be. It's all in how you work it.

The key is to integrate shows into your marketing plan. What can a show do for you to help the overall picture? Below I have a list of benefits to consider:

1. A reason to send out a newsletter.
2. Test out a new design and get feedback on its appeal.
3. Connect with local retailers and wholesale client leads.
4. Meet local customers and solidify the personal connection.
5. Network with like artisans.
6. Pick up internet wary customers by offering to walk them through the online process over the phone.
7. Get your work into the hands of potential customers that may not have been attracted to you online.
8. Advertise your internet venues with a coupon on the back of your business card.
9. Advertise your business by being listed on the shows site as an exhibitor.
10. Is the show really local? A reason to send a pr kit to your local newspaper.
11. Get new names on your mailing list.

Getting back into doing shows has been financially rewarding for me. I have gained new customers, great new contacts and even a small following of show going customers visiting me at different locations to see what's new. I hope you consider adding shows to your business plan.


Have anything to add? Please leave a comment and share your great ideas.

The Mermaids are Here

They have been a long time coming, I know. I started working on these last Fall, but I ran into creative road blocks, life got in the way and I just didn't get the design finalized. It took a little nudge from an old friend to get me back on track. He has requested the Mermaids have nipples and I was happy to comply. But my 11 year old daughter refused to wear one on her neck. I decided she wouldn't be the only one desiring a more modest version. I have created some with hair flowing strategically and some without.
I hope you like them!

Etsy - How To Make It Work For You

I do well on Etsy. I often get asked by other sellers, "How do I do it?" After numerous emails and convos I decided it would be easier to post this to my blog.

What works for me may not work for you. It took me about 6 months to figure out a strategy for selling my beads. While I will tell you what I do, it is not a magic foolproof plan. Take pieces of what I do and spend time figuring out how it can work for you.

Research your category. Find and monitor the successful sellers. Figure out what are they doing that seems to work. How can you do similar things with your Etsy shop?

Pictures are your strongest selling point. You cannot simply have average pictures. You need stellar ones. If you want to be the pictures people notice, you have no choice but to make them be as eye catching as possible. Make your first one jump out on a big page full of thumbnails. Be somewhat artsy and interesting. Give the buyer a reason to pick you over every other picture on that page.

Shoppers on Etsy are very visual. Tell your story with your pictures. In your five pictures show the important things people want to see. Watch someone pick up your product at a show. What do they do? Do they turn it over and look at the back? Then make sure you show that in a photograph. Show the necklace clasp, or the back of a pair of earrings. Show the inside of a vase, or how it looks with flowers. Show me the zipper on a bag and how it looks on a body. Be as creative as you can and try to use all 5 pictures. But don't waste people's time with 5 pictures of the front of the item.

List and renew often. Once I decided to get serious about Etsy I budgeted $2 a day to list or renew items. I spread it out over the day when I get a chance to pop on the computer. As sales started to come I upped it to $3. Amazingly my sales doubled. I'm sure some of that had to do with my complete revamping of all my pictures. It was a monumental task, but it was worth it. Now I try to do a minimum of $2 a day and renew or re-list above and beyond by the number of sales I make that day. My goal is to have my total fees (including final value) be less than 10% of my sales. I use the previous months numbers as a budget and monitor my sales by the week to stay on track. Right now I sit at about 7%.

Make treasuries and work on making them good ones. Browse other treasuries and notice the little things that make the good ones stand out. Look at the front page and note what the trends and current look are. The lessons you learn about good pictures and tags will help you be easier to use in other's treasuries. Making treasuries also gets you noticed. People want to be in good ones and if they think you do well, they heart you and start to comment on your treasuries.

You want to be in treasuries for the exposure. If you have a very good first picture you'll get in them. If the picture is better than good you have a decent chance of being on the Front Page. This is huge. It gets on average 500 people an hour in your shop. While I have never sold the item from the Front Page I always see a surge in sales the few days after I am on the Front Page. Plus it gets you noticed by the Admin. I was in a Storque article within months of hitting the Front Page on a regular basis. I'm no Admin darling, but I do get in the Admin curated treasuries from time to time.

Stuff that store as full as you can. List absolutely everything you can. The more you have the more you will get seen. Don't be afraid to list made to orders. If you are willing to do custom work, it's a great way to advertise. If you make multiples of something it's a great way to list without having to have the excess inventory. Each item is a tiny seed within the pages of Etsy and it can blossom into a sale if you are found.

Do tags well. I am in a constant state of looking for new tags to put in listings. You get 14. The first is the category you will be listed in if someone searches categories. If you can, try to spread out among categories instead of staying in just one. Do add all categories you fit in after the first to be found in a site wide search too. Make sure to use color as a tag. Not just red but cherry, lipstick or tomato. People search theme words for their treasuries. Help them out.

Join a team. Not just any team, but one that is serious. I belong to a glass team that is a cooperative marketing effort. Everything we do is about promoting glass and ourselves.

The one thing I do that makes or breaks you. I CHECK INTO ETSY FREQUENTLY. People want instant gratification and if they wait more than 12 hours for a reply to a convo they move on. I have never worked harder at communicating than at Etsy. But it works. Not every buyer wants to chit chat with you, but many really do. Embrace it, you're building a relationship 21st century style.

Here is my shop if you would like to see how I do things:
susansheehan.etsy.com

Want to explore getting on the Front Page a bit further? Here is a great blog post about doing just that by Handcrafters Studio.

An excellent guide to tagging by House of Mouse.

Take your pictures to the next level with advice from Kelly J Callahan. I linked the one I like best, but she has a few and they are all worth reading.

Do You Love to Shop Handmade?

I just found a great blog that features handmade artists and gorgeous items. Rebecca of Rebecca's Soap Delicatessen has great taste ;) Check out her Bright and Sunny Summer Finds

And how's this for a summer treat you just have to have?

Iphone Apps You Have to Have

About a year ago I got an iphone. My neighbor kindly showed me all the important apps I MUST have. Milk so I could glug and burp, the lighter for all those school concerts I attend and vicinity because well... he knows I get lost. My daughter has added a few very important ones like Moop for sound effects and bubble pack just because. And now my brother has an iphone. He just had to share with me Paper Toss. Great, because now I can't stop! It's a balled up piece of paper you "throw" into a trash can. Complete with a fan for an added degree of difficulty, this app has me addicted.

So tell me. What are your favorite iphone apps? Because I'm bound to need another diversion sometime soon.