Starting an Etsy Business For Dummies E-Book

Kate Gatski

• Herausgeber: John Wiley & Sons
• Kategorie: Lebensstil
• Sprache: Englisch

Seitenzahl: 407

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2013

Beschreibung

The easy way to build an online craft business from scratch Starting an Etsy Business For Dummies offers expert advice for artists and entrepreneurs looking to build an online craft business from scratch. You'll get invaluable information on how to set up an Etsy shop, write compelling item descriptions, photograph your work, engage the Etsy community, understand fees, and find your muse when it takes a holiday. In the last couple of years, the DIY movement has transcended the big-box hardware stores, and has taken on a new format in the savvy crafting arena. Starting an Etsy Business For Dummies shows you how to create, manage, and successfully sell handmade wares, vintage goods, and DIY supplies using the world's largest online handmade marketplace. * Coverage new to this edition includes the latest in flash sale partners; best practices for applying SEO to your shop and listings; new tools for sellers; and much more * Includes tips for increasing local sales by connecting with other local vendors through seller communities * Covers harnessing the power of Pinterest to promote (and protect) your business If DIY is your domain, Starting an Etsy Business For Dummies gives you the skills, knowledge, and know-how to create a successful business that pays.

Leseprobe

Starting an Etsy® Business For Dummies®, 2nd Edition

Published by: John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 111 River Street, Hoboken, NJ 07030-5774, www.wiley.com

Copyright © 2013 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Hoboken, New Jersey

Published simultaneously in Canada

No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning or otherwise, except as permitted under Sections 107 or 108 of the 1976 United States Copyright Act, without the prior written permission of the Publisher. Requests to the Publisher for permission should be addressed to the Permissions Department, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 111 River Street, Hoboken, NJ 07030, [phone], fax [phone], or online at http://www.wiley.com/go/permissions.

Trademarks: Wiley, For Dummies, the Dummies Man logo, Dummies.com, Making Everything Easier, and related trade dress are trademarks or registered trademarks of John Wiley & Sons, Inc., and may not be used without written permission. The term “Etsy” is a registered trademark of Etsy, Inc. This publication has not been prepared, approved, or licensed by Etsy, Inc. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. John Wiley & Sons, Inc., is not associated with any product or vendor mentioned in this book.

Limit of Liability/Disclaimer of Warranty: while the publisher and author have used their best efforts in preparing this book, they make no representations or warranties with respect to the accuracy or completeness of the contents of this book and specifically disclaim any implied warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose. no warranty may be created or extended by sales representatives or written sales materials. The advise and strategies contained herein may not be suitable for your situation. you should consult with a professional where appropriate. neither the publisher nor the author shall be liable for damages arising herefrom.

For general information on our other products and services, please contact our Customer Care Department within the U.S. at 877-762-2974, outside the U.S. at 317-572-3993, or fax [phone]. For technical support, please visit www.wiley.com/techsupport.

Wiley publishes in a variety of print and electronic formats and by print-on-demand. Some material included with standard print versions of this book may not be included in e-books or in print-on-demand. If this book refers to media such as a CD or DVD that is not included in the version you purchased, you may download this material at http://booksupport.wiley.com. For more information about Wiley products, visit www.wiley.com.

Library of Congress Control Number: 2013942767

ISBN 978-1-118-59024-9 (pbk); ISBN 978-1-118-59009-6 (ebk); ISBN 978-1-118-59013-3 (ebk); ISBN 978-1-118-59021-8 (ebk)

Manufactured in the United States of America

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2

Starting an Etsy® Business For Dummies®, 2nd Edition

Visit www.dummies.com/cheatsheet/startinganetsybusiness to view this book's cheat sheet.

Table of Contents

Introduction

About This Book

Foolish Assumptions

Icons Used in This Book

Beyond the Book

Where to Go from Here

Part I: Getting Started with Etsy

Chapter 1: Handmade for Each Other: Falling in Love with Etsy

Handmade Crusade: Understanding Etsy’s Purpose and Business Model

World Up: Introducing the World of Etsy

Upper register: Registering with Etsy

Homeward bound: Navigating the Etsy home page

Let us account the ways: Understanding Your Account and Your Shop

For sale by artist: Discovering what’s for sale on Etsy

Safety first: Ensuring your safety on Etsy

Storefront and Center: Setting Up Your Storefront

Sell’s Angels: Surveying the Etsy Selling Process

Takin’ Care of Business: Handling Business Matters

Community Collage: Engaging in the Etsy Community

Chapter 2: Let’s Get This Party Started: Signing Up

Sign Me Up! Becoming a Registered User

All about you: Submitting necessary info and confirming your account

Signing away your firstborn: Reviewing the Terms of Use

It’s a Sign: Signing In

Chapter 3: There’s No Place Like Home: Discovering Etsy’s Home Page

Home Sweet Home: Viewing Etsy’s Home Page

Hitting the Links: Exploring the Links at the Top of the Page

Tonight’s Headerliner: Exploring the Header Bar

Just Browsing: Browsing Etsy

Pick Me! Pick Me! Checking Out Handpicked Items

Finders, Keepers: Signing Up for Daily Finds

How Do I Love Thee? Let Me Count the Ways: Exploring More Ways to Shop

Categories

Gift Cards

Colors

Treasury

Shop Local

People Search

Prototypes

Baby, You’re a Star: Checking Out the Featured Shop

The Velvet Blog: Reading Recent Blog Posts

Ooh, I Want That! And That! And That! Viewing Recently Listed Items

Go Mobile: Exploring Etsy Mobile

Chapter 4: Account Trackula: Navigating Your Etsy Account and Shop Settings

Total Access: Accessing Your Account

Final Accountdown: Checking Out Options under Your Account

Buy crazy: Tracking your Etsy purchases

Public eye: Viewing your public profile

Revision quest: Revising your account settings

Appy ending: Tracking your Etsy apps

Go proto: Exploring Etsy Prototypes

Head case: Viewing reported cases

Shop Girl: Familiarizing Yourself with Your Etsy Shop Settings

Listful thinking: Managing item listings

Order up: Handling sold items

I’m just a bill: Viewing your Etsy bill

Bump, setting, spike: Changing shop settings

Go through the promotions: Promoting your shop

Chapter 5: Buy and Buy: Finding and Purchasing Items on Etsy

Gimme One Reason: Understanding Why You Should Buy on Etsy

Go Fish: Using Etsy’s Search Tool

Transactions Speak Louder Than Words: Delving into Transaction Details

Affairs of the cart: Adding an item to your cart and checking out

Pays of our lives: Paying for your item

Submissionary position: Submitting your order

Feedback Is Forever: Leaving Feedback After You Buy

Case in Point: Lodging a Case Against a Seller

Chapter 6: Safe Word: Maintaining Privacy and Safety on Etsy

Oh, Behave! Adhering to Etsy’s Do’s and Don’ts

Private Party: Guarding Your Privacy on Etsy

Privacy, please: Understanding Etsy’s Privacy Policy

Leave me alone! Changing your privacy settings

Close sesame: Choosing a strong password

Safe Passage: Keeping Yourself Safe on Etsy

Scam I am: Avoiding scams on Etsy

Safety dance: Staying safe in Etsy’s public places

Security guard: Making your account more secure

Always use protection! Using Etsy’s Seller Protection program

Brooklyn, We Have a Problem: Reporting Issues to Etsy

Part II: If You Build It, They Will Come: Setting Up Your Etsy Shop

Chapter 7: Sell Coverage: Understanding What You Can and Can’t Sell on Etsy

Yes, We Can! Figuring Out What You Can Sell on Etsy

The handmaid’s tale: Selling handmade items

Oldies but goodies: Offering vintage items

Supplies and demand: Selling supplies

Just Say No! Understanding What’s Not Allowed on Etsy

Achtung, baby: Knowing what items are prohibited

Service says: Selling only certain services

Off with Their Heads! Knowing What Happens If You Break a Rule

Chapter 8: Come on In! Creating an Eye-Catching Storefront

On Your Mark: Getting Started

Mind Your Banners: Adding a Banner to Your Shop Page

Title Wave: Adding a Shop Title and Announcement

Section Leader: Setting Up Sections

Money Talks: Setting Up Payment Options

Exam cram: Examining your options

Preferential treatment: Specifying your preferences

Bill Me: Setting Up Your Credit Card

High Profile: Setting Up Your Public Profile

All About Me: Adding an About Page

Biohazard: Writing a Winning Bio or Shop Story

Quiz show: Starting with a few essential questions

The tweak shall inherit the Earth: Tweaking your first draft

Extra! Extra! Adding a few extras

Team Edit-ward: Editing Your Shop Settings

Chapter 9: Policy Academy: Establishing Your Shop’s Policies

Fair and Square: General Policy Tips

Financial Matters: Establishing Payment-Related Policies

Ship Shape: Establishing Your Shipping Policies

Return to Sender: Handling Returns and Exchanges

Policy Wonk: Setting Up Your Shop Policies Page

Introductory offer: Introducing the sections

Population control: Populating the page

Chapter 10: Come on Down, the Price Is Right! Pricing Your Work

Formulaic Plot: Breaking Down Your Pricing Formulas

Material girl: Calculating the cost of materials

Labor pains: Figuring labor costs

Heads up: Adding up overhead

Two-timer: Understanding the “times 2”

Double or nothing: Pricing for wholesale and retail

Some assembly required: Putting it all together

Eyes on the Price: Evaluating Your Prices

Know thy enemy: Assessing your competition’s pricing

Here’s looking at you, kid: Studying your target market

Floor it: Figuring out how to lower your prices

Up the ante: Knowing when to raise your prices

Something Old: Special Considerations for Pricing Vintage Items

How Low Can You Go? Pricing for Sales

Part III: She Sells Seashells (and More): Understanding the Etsy Selling Process

Chapter 11: Say Cheese! Photographing Your Wares

I’ll Take That-a-One! Choosing a Camera with the Right Features

Key club: Identifying key camera features

Feature story: Considering extra features

In Style: Styling Your Photos

Background check: Using backgrounds

Prop it like it’s hot: Working with props

Model citizens: Using live models

Lighting Bug: Lighting Your Shot

She’s a natural! Using natural light

Dark matter: Avoiding the dark

SPF 50: Avoiding direct sunlight

Time to reflect: Using reflectors

Compose Yourself: Composing Your Shot

For starters: Trying basic composition principles

Third’s-eye view: Applying the rule of thirds

Focus, People! Focusing Your Image

Shoot, Shoot, and Shoot Some More: Taking Lots of Pictures

Clean-up on Image Five: Tidying Up Your Photos with Image-Editing Software

Expose yourself: Adjusting your photo’s exposure and color

Crop circles: Cropping your photo

Chapter 12: Word Up: Composing Engaging Titles and Descriptions

Headline Muse: Writing Titillating Item Titles

Story Time: Telling a Story with Your Item Description

Likely story: Uncovering your item’s story

Description prescription: Describing your item

Write away: Composing your item description

SEO Speedwagon: Using Search Engine Optimization to Drive Traffic

Keyword to your mother: Choosing the best keywords

What you key is what you get: Using SEO with your item title and description

Tag, you’re it! Understanding tags

Proofread, Please! Proofreading Your Item Title and Listing

Chapter 13: Selling Like (Burning Hot) Hotcakes: Listing Your Items

Lister, Lister: Listing a New Item

Ready, set, go! Starting the listing process

About face: Filling in item information

Vary cool: Adding listing variations

Picture this: Uploading images of your item

Description prescription: Describing your item

Getting specific: Adding the recipient, occasion, and style

It’s in the tag: Tagging your item

Sales figures: Adding selling information for your item

The reviews are in! Reviewing your listing

Ch-Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes: Editing a Listing

Copycat: Copying a Listing

Renewable Resources: Renewing a Listing

Don’t be a sellout: Renewing a sold listing

Stay active: Renewing an active listing

Expiration mark: Renewing an expired listing

Pull the Plug: Deactivating a Listing

Rearrange Your Face: Rearranging Your Etsy Shop

Be an enabler: Enabling the Rearrange Your Shop feature

Get moving! Moving your listings

Feature comforts: Featuring an item in your Etsy shop

Chapter 14: Wrap It Up: Closing the Deal

You’ve Got Sale: Finding Out You Have a Sale

Baby Got Track: Keeping Track of Sales in Your Account

Guided by Invoices: Handling Invoices

Show Me the Money: Receiving Payment

Chapter 15: The Ship Hits the Fan: Shipping Your Items

The Right (Packaging) Stuff: Obtaining Shipping Supplies

Package Deal: Showing Your Love and Care with Packaging

Wrapper’s delight: Wrapping any kind of item safely

Nice package! Using attractive, brand-friendly packaging

Goody-goody: Including extras in your parcel

Ship Shop: Choosing a Shipping Carrier

Stay First Classy: Surveying Shipping Options

Crafters without Borders: Shipping Internationally

Ship Happens: Creating a Shipping Profile

Insure Thing: Insuring Your Parcel

Print It to Win It: Printing Shipping Labels on Etsy

Deliverance: Sending Your Package on Its Merry Way

Marky Mark: Marking the Item As Shipped in Etsy

Part IV: All Up in Your Bidness: Handling Business Matters

Chapter 16: High Exposure: Marketing Your Etsy Business

Brandy, You’re a Fine Girl: Building Your Brand

Tag lady: Composing a tagline

Loco for logos: Creating a logo

Integrate expectations: Working your brand into all you do

Poetry in Promotion: Using Etsy Tools to Promote Your Shop

Search party: Using Etsy Search Ads

Coupon d’état: Creating coupons

Badge to the bone: Creating an Etsy shop badge and hosting an Etsy Mini

Save Facebook: Promoting your Etsy shop on social media

Go Postal: Sending an E-mail Newsletter

Chapter 17: You’ve Been Served: Providing Excellent Customer Service

Let’s Talk: Communicating with a Buyer Before, During, and After a Transaction

Questionable behavior: Answering customer questions

Mind your manners: Giving thanks

Ship happens: Double-checking the shipping address

Get a clue: Finding out how they found you

Lost in translation: Communicating with foreign buyers

Sample shout-out: Covering all the bases in one short, pleasant message

Speed Is of the Essence: Shipping It Quickly

Feedback Is Good: Leaving Feedback Promptly and Prompting for It

Bungle Fever: Handling a Bungled Transaction and Other Tough Issues

Hand it over: Prompting a buyer to pay up

Lost Etsy: Dealing with lost shipments

Case study: Dealing with a reported case

Refundsal, Refundsal, give back your fare: Issuing refunds

Tropic of cancel: Canceling an order

The customer is usually right(ish): Dealing with a difficult customer

No shirt, no shoes, no service: Refusing service to a buyer

Chapter 18: Business as Usual: Managing Your Etsy Store

I’m Just a Bill: Paying Your Etsy Bill

Taxing Matters: Appeasing Uncle Sam

To tax or not to tax: Collecting sales tax

Drawn and quartered: Paying quarterly income tax

Write this off: Determining tax deductions

Recording Artist: Keeping Accurate Records

Don’t Be a Tool: Using Etsy Tools to Manage Your Shop

We need those numbers, stat! Viewing Shop Stats

Statistically speaking: Viewing Customer Service Stats

An app a day: Using Etsy apps to run your store

Too Legit to Quit: Making Your Business Legit

O sole mio: Understanding sole proprietorships

Grab your partner, do-sell-do! Getting a handle on partnerships

LLC Cool J: Looking at limited liability companies

Go corporate: Considering corporations

Sweet Charity: Handling Charitable Giving

The Artist Is Out: Switching to Vacation Mode

Hanging It Up: Closing Your Etsy Shop

Part V: Commune System: Exploring the Etsy Community

Chapter 19: Community Building: Joining the Etsy Community

Talk amongst Yourselves: Using Etsy Forums

Forum letter: Accessing Etsy forums

Postess with the mostess: Viewing and responding to posts in a thread

Thread Zeppelin: Starting a new thread

Go Team! Exploring Etsy Teams

Finders, keepers: Searching for an Etsy team

Sign me up! Joining an Etsy team

Start me up: Starting your own Etsy team

Lab Partner: Exploring Etsy’s Online Labs

Event Horizon: Staying Apprised of Etsy Events

Miss Manners: Respecting Community Etiquette

Chapter 20: OMG, Did You Hear? Keeping Up with Etsy News

All the News That’s Fit to Print: Exploring Etsy Blogs

Mail Bonding: Signing Up for Etsy E-mail Newsletters

Red-letter day: Sifting through different types of e-mail newsletters

Subscription prescription: Subscribing to e-mail newsletters

Social Skills: Staying in Touch Using Social Media

Proto Baggins: Joining Etsy Prototypes

Chapter 21: A Love-Love Relationship: Showing Your Love for Other Etsy Sellers

Heart and Sold: Hearting on Etsy

A piece of my heart: Hearting items and shops

Turn on your heart light: Viewing hearted items and shops

A private matter: Being a secret admirer

Follow Me! Following Others on Etsy

Where you lead, I will follow: Following another Etsy member

Circle up: Viewing your Etsy “circle”

Active ingredient: Checking your activity feed

Treasure Island: Creating a Treasury

Chapter 22: Help! Getting It When You Need It

Search and Rescue: Searching for Help on Etsy

That’s a FAQ Jack: Accessing Etsy FAQs

Getting Personalized Help from the People at Etsy

Forum letter: Using the Etsy Help forum

Life support: Contacting Etsy Support

Part VI: The Part of Tens

Chapter 23: Ten Terrific Tips for Etsy Sellers

Have a Place for Everything

Save Time with Twosies

Organize Your Paperwork

Use What You Discover from Other Shops

Offer Service with a Smile

Network, Network, Network

Keep a Blog

Learn to Say No

Never Give In

Have Fun!

Chapter 24: Ten Strategies for Marketing Your Etsy Shop

Offer Tiered Pricing

Understand That Giving Begets Giving

Provide a Guarantee

Consider a Loyalty Program

Impose a Deadline

Create a Great E-mail Signature

Connect with Social Media

Make Google Your Best Friend

Use Your Items in the Real World

Help Your Community

About the Authors

Cheat Sheet

Connect with Dummies

Introduction

Does this sound like you? You hate your day job. You trained as a teacher, but what you really want to do all day is knit. Or maybe you’re busy waiting tables, but you dream of starting your own jewelry-making business. Or maybe your background is in law, but what you really love is constructing handbags out of gum wrappers. The problem? You’ve got bills to pay. It’s not like people can just ditch their jobs to hand-craft Juicy Fruit purses all day, right?

Wrong. Thanks to Etsy (www.etsy.com), plenty of people have done just that: ditched their day jobs to start their own craft businesses, or supplemented their existing incomes by selling their own crafts. And armed with the information in Starting an Etsy Business For Dummies, 2nd Edition, you can become one of them!

What’s Etsy? Etsy was created in 2005 to help artists and craftspeople sell their handmade wares online. (Since then, Etsy has evolved to allow the sale of vintage items and craft supplies.) Etsy’s mission, in its own words, is “to reimagine commerce in ways that build a more fulfilling and lasting world.” More precisely, Etsy allows creative types to channel their passion for their craft into their life’s work. If your dream is to “make a living making things,” then Etsy is for you!

About This Book

Above all, Starting an Etsy Business For Dummies is a reference tool. You don’t have to read it from beginning to end; instead, you can turn to any part of the book that gives you the information you need when you need it. And you can keep coming back to the book over and over. If you prefer to read things in order, you’ll find that the information is presented in a natural, logical progression.

Sometimes we have information that we want to share with you, but it relates only tangentially to the topic at hand. When that happens, we either mark that information with a Technical Stuff icon or place that information in a sidebar (a shaded gray box). Even though it may not be mission critical, we think you’ll find it worth knowing. But you don’t have to read it if you don’t want to.

Within this book, you may note that some web addresses break across two lines of text. If you’re reading this book in print and want to visit one of these web pages, simply key in the web address exactly as it’s noted in the text, pretending as though the line break doesn’t exist. If you’re reading this as an e-book, you’ve got it easy — just click the web address to be taken directly to the web page.

Foolish Assumptions

When writing this book, we assumed that you want to run your Etsy shop as a proper business. Sure, it’s possible to build and manage an Etsy shop with minimal effort, but that will yield only minimal results. We assume here that you’re serious about making your Etsy shop a success and that you’re willing to invest the time and energy to make that happen.

We also generally assume that you reside in the United States. Although most of the information discussed applies regardless of your geographic location, certain tidbits — such as matters related to taxation — are specific to U.S. residents.

Icons Used in This Book

Icons are those little pictures you see in the margins throughout this book, and they’re meant to draw your attention to key points that can help you along the way. Here’s a list of the icons we use and what they signify.

When you see this icon in the margin, the paragraph next to it contains valuable information on making your life as an Etsy seller easier.

Some information is so important that it needs to be set apart for emphasis. This icon — like a string tied around your finger — is a friendly reminder of info that you’ll want to commit to memory and use over the long haul.

This icon highlights common mistakes that Etsy sellers make and pitfalls to avoid. An important part of achieving success is simply eliminating the mistakes; the information marked by this icon helps you do just that.

This icon highlights information that’s interesting but not completely crucial to your life as an Etsy shop owner. If you’re crunched for time, feel free to skip information marked with this icon.

Beyond the Book

In addition to the material in the print or e-book you're reading right now, this product comes with some access-anywhere goodies on the web. Check out the free Cheat Sheet at www.dummies.com/cheatsheet/startinganetsybusiness for tips on creating an eye-catching Etsy ­storefront, pricing your work, taking beautiful product photos, and more.

Where to Go from Here

Glance through the Table of Contents and find the part, chapter, or section that flips your switch. That’s the best place to begin. If you’re just trying to get a sense of what’s available on Etsy, turn straight to Chapter 5. If you’re itching to launch your own Etsy shop, Chapter 8 steps you through the process of building it from scratch. If your shop is up and running but you’re not sure how to handle business matters — say, paying taxes or choosing the right structure for your business — then you’ll want to flip right to Chapter 18.

When you're finished reading this book, invest some time reading the Etsy Blog (www.etsy.com/blog), reading the Seller Handbook (www.etsy.com/sellerhandbook), and interacting with the larger Etsy community (get started at www.etsy.com/community). As your business grows, you'll undoubtedly encounter issues that this book doesn't discuss; when that happens, you're sure to appreciate these incredible resources.

Part I

Getting Started with Etsy

For Dummies can help you get started with lots of subjects. Visit www.dummies.com to learn more and do more with For Dummies.

In this part . . .

Sign up for an Etsy account so you can get started buying and selling.

Explore the Etsy home page, where everything starts.

Discover the tools available to you for keeping track of your Etsy account and shop.

Check out what Etsy has for sale so you can satisfy your inner shopaholic.

Get the scoop on staying safe on Etsy and save yourself a whopper of a headache.