Etsy’s gross merchandise sales reached $4.97 billion in 2019. Significantly, only 18% of these sellers were full-time entrepreneurs. Artists, hobbyists, and even suppliers can have a thriving business on the platform with careful planning.
Whether you’re already selling on Etsy, or just starting out, having reliable, user-friendly, and cost-effective payment processing is critical for any Etsy seller. Etsy has a partnership with Square to offer sellers low-cost payment processing and access to multichannel sales. Visit Square to create a free account.
It’s easy for any business-minded person to open a store on Etsy, but before you start uploading products, it would be a good idea to know what you can and can’t sell. This will help protect you, your buyer, and the platform from legal issues, particularly against intellectual property. It also helps you understand the best way to categorize your product to make it more visible to potential buyers.
What You Can Sell on Etsy
- Products you have created and have the rights to sell
- Vintage items over 20 years old
- Digital materials written or designed by you
- Products you created with a production partner
- Craft supplies
1. Understand the Difference Between Copying and Inspiration
- Never use the name of an artist who inspired your work as the artist may claim that your sales are a result of their brand.
- Avoid tagging your items with a specific luxury brand in an effort to describe the quality of your product.
- Using the brand name in the title, tags, and description of vintage products is allowed, but avoid guessing if you’re not sure.
- Always check for copyright when using someone else’s photos even if the product on the image is generic.
- Avoid purchasing licensed images from stores with a poor reputation.
2.Choose the Right Shop Name for Your Store
- What kind of feeling do you want your store name to convey?
- Did it evoke that same feeling when you mentioned your store name to friends and family?
- Is your store name easy to spell and read?
- Does the name look good on your business card?
- Does it have an alternative meaning in other languages?
- Have you tried to search for similar names on Google?
3.Add Multiple Payment Options
- Debit/bank cards
- Etsy Gift Cards and Etsy Credits
- PayPal
- Apple Pay
- Google Pay
- Redit cards
4.Write an Impressive “About” Page
- Use a personal tone to easily connect with your reader.
- Talk about your inspiration behind your designs.
- Introduce any partners you work with to develop your products.
- Keep your paragraphs short.
- Include links to any publication that features you or your designs.
- Include links to your social media.
5.Optimize Your Etsy Shop Profile
- Opt for a cover photo instead of a banner image, while it requires a bigger image (ideal size is 3360 x 840 pixels), cover photos are displayed on both desktop and mobile versions of your Etsy store.
- Shop banners don’t show up on mobile. It needs to be exactly 760 x 100 pixels in size and no larger than 2MB.
- Use a shop icon that’s consistent to your business brand and logo.
- Research and use keywords for your shop title.
- Use a short, compelling copy on your shop announcement section to let buyers know of your promotions and discounts.
- Use the Shop Members section to briefly introduce your team.