Search results (tags) for: "littleputbooks"

A Beginner's Guide to Starting a Shop on Etsy

2008-05-02T10:49:00-05:00

Want to get a shop started on Etsy? Don't know where to start? This guide will help you find the help you need to get your shop up and running!

What to Sell
First things first: you need items to sell! Make sure your items follow the Do's and Don'ts on what can be sold on Etsy before you get started. Need some inspiration? Check out this great article on Finding Your Etsy Niche by tortillagirl. Littleputbooks (one of our top sellers) has a great blog post about Making a Great Product.

Coming up with a Name
Piddix has a great blog post on Picking Your Etsy Name. And our own MaryMary has a great Storque article on deciding on a shop name here. I have one more tip for you: Make sure it's "Google-able!" Sure the name "FriedChicken" might be memorable, but if you go to Google and search "Fried Chicken," your shop will be a needle in a greasy (yet delicious) haystack!

Banner and Avatar
Your banner and avatar can help you brand your shop, so try to make them beautiful! Here's a how-to on Making A Banner that I wrote a while back. If you are just getting started with photo editing you might want to try our magical Bannerator! You can do an Alchemy request for a custom banner. Or search "banner" on Etsy to find a talented seller to make you a banner!

Your avatar should be eye-catching and clear. (This is sometimes difficult because of the size of an avatar, so keep it simple!) Try showcasing your most beautifully photographed product!

Need more help? Try the Help guides here and here.

Your Profile
Buyers on Etsy want to know about who they are buying from. Make sure you tell them a bit about yourself in your profile, as connecting this way with a buyer will encourage them to support you and your craft, so don't be shy! SarasTextureCrafts has a detailed article on Crafting Your Profile Page, so read up! The profile is also a great place to share your shop policies (soon Etsy will have a separate spot for your policies). The EtsyWiki has a whole section devoted to shop policies.

Listing Your First Item
Listing an item is an easy four step process. This help guide will take you through each one. Here are some articles that can also help you with this process:

Photography
Photography is the most important part of your shop (in my opinion!). If you don't have crisp, clear and eye-catching photos, your sales will reflect this. The more professional and cohesive your photos look, the more confidence buyers will have in your shop. You may think you need a super-duper-top-of-the-line camera, but believe me, you don't. Images on the internet must be 72dpi (i.e. not top printable quality!), so even a $150 digital camera will be just perfect! Photography takes a lot of practice, time and research, but once you get it right you will see your shop really blossom! Here are some articles to get you started:

Your First Sale
Now what? First things first, celebrate. The first sale is so exciting! Now once you have calmed down, check out the transaction page and make sure your buyer has paid. Package up your item and get it ready to ship (a hand written thank you note is always good customer service!). Send your buyer a quick little convo (or conversation) thanking them for their purchase and letting them know when you are going to ship. Ship your item, tick off the checkbox by your sold item, leave your buyer feedback and you're done!

Promoting Your Shop
Once you have your shop set up with at least a page of items, now is the time to promote! Here's great article to start with: Pimp Your Shop for 2008. Don't forget to try some offline promotions, too! Here are some more links to help you get started:

Need More Help?
You're not exhausted yet? Well, OK! Here are some more great resources from the forums:

In addition, the Etsy Success Stories are always filled with inspirational tales and tips galore from prosperous sellers.

I hope this guide helps you get started! If you have questions or want advice make sure you join our Newbie Chats in the Virtual Labs (usually Tuesdays at 5:30pm EDT).

Experience sellers, leave our newbies some more words of wisdom in the comments below! What's your most important piece of advice?

Etsy Success Stories: littleputbooks

2008-04-07T11:22:00-05:00

You've seen those big sellers on Etsy who seem to be making sales left and right. You have to wonder how they've made it to where they are: can they actually be FOR REAL? What's their recipe for success? And just how do they do it?

This week's installment of our Etsy Success Stories series features Ryan of littleputbooks. Ryan lives in Portland, OR and in little under 2 years of selling on Etsy, she is quickly approaching 8,000 sales! It all started for Ryan with her passion for paper and the making of her accordian books back in 2001 (this predates Etsy's existence)! Back in September, Ryan authored an article for the Storque outlining how she was able to quit her day job and continues to outline how it can be done in the article below.

How did you hear about Etsy, and what made you decide to open a shop on the site?
I heard about it through a retail shop I was selling to in Portland. The owner told me she found a lot of her merchandise on Etsy. I signed up and started listing items that day, without really looking at the site. It took me a month to click the “see who hearts this shop link” and I found it just in time; Etsy was very slow at first and I was about to quit but then I saw that 13 people had me in their favorites and I got all excited and stayed.

What do you think your key to success for selling on Etsy has been?
I put in a lot of time here. I list frequently throughout the day, when I don’t have new items to list I renew them. I enjoy the forums and spend time there when I can. I also work a lot on my photography, good pictures go very far online. Aside from that I think my price point has helped a lot with the volume of sales and I have really good customer service ethics; word of mouth about my work has been kind to me :)

What are the best and most effective ways you have promoted your shop?
Listing and renewing brings in the most daily business, being seen on Etsy is key, most of my customers find me here. When things are slow, I’ve been known to talk about my work on CraigsList and I’ve invested in blog advertisements. I also write my own blog Littleput.typepad.com which may or may not be a great marketing tool but I love doing it.

How do you handle such a large volume of sales in your shop? What systems have you created to manage the orders?
Shipping is still kind of chaotic, especially when people need changes and such, but I have a system that seems to work. First, I try really hard not to sell things I need to make; having the items in hand when it is time to mail them is pretty important. Second, I always ship twice a week, this ensures I get enough studio time but still keep my orders moving out quickly. When it is time to mail, I print out the receipts for each order. If I am somewhat organized that week, I tag my conversations so I can keep track of special requests; then I write down any notes on the receipts while I am printing them. I no longer use Paypal shipping; it is too slow. I use a paid shipping service called Endicia which is 10 times faster and prints cute little labels with a photo of my work on them. I mark each item as shipped as I print the label and send my customers an email letting them know their package is on its way. I also make sure to get everything packed up before the mailman arrives so I don’t have to go to the post office; on the days that I miss him I pout a lot. During the busy seasons I hire help too. (Hi Becky, Hi Lea!) They take over shipping for me so I can keep up with making stuff, convos, emails and general shop stuff.

Are your orders mostly from repeat buyers or new buyers...what do you do to gain repeat buyers?
I’d say a good percentage of my buyers come back, easily more than half. I have really stellar customer service policies; I do what I can to make sure people shopping with me are glad they did. I also send out a cute package, I have little stars and a handwritten thank you note that go out with every order. I think a lot of online shoppers are not used to the personal touch, they respond really well to thoughtful packaging.

How do you stay motivated? Does it come naturally?
I am pretty driven to do well. I like the feel of making a sale (don’t we all?).
I also really enjoy creating. I love having new lines and new prints and new ideas, the fact that I get to play creative all day is great motivation in itself, it is pretty hard to not want my job.

Do you "Etsy" full time or do you have another job too?
I “Etsy”, “Wholesale” and “Mom” full time. My wholesale business has picked up a lot of steam since joining here, it is a real benefit to have such wide spread exposure. I’d say I make pretty good use of my time, though sometimes it is hard to balance work with my family life, one is always interrupting the other.

If you "Etsy" full time, were you able to quit your day job due to your success selling on Etsy?
I was a struggling crafter when I joined Etsy. Selling here allowed me to move out of the rainy Portland Craft circuit and into a more full time job; now I can sell things 24 hours a day instead of just on the weekends. Etsy has taken my “almost a job” craft gig and turned it into a real business, which is weird, but good, but still, weird.

What is your favorite current Etsy Feature?
Pounce. Pounce. Pounce. Pounce. Pounce. It’s so fun to shop through Pounce!

What features do you use most on Etsy?
I spend a lot of time in the forums and try to catch an occasional treasury, they are so much fun to make. Of course the list/relist/renew features are ones that make my shop go :).

What goals do you have for your Etsy shop 1 year from now?
Wow, goals for my shop… I am working on a new line of pendants with lots of shiny metal in them. It would be really fun to have those be perfected and selling well by this time next year.

What piece of advice would you give to a new seller on Etsy who might be feeling discouraged?
Etsy success doesn’t happen overnight. If you truly love what you are doing your enthusiasm will be contagious, and other people will love it too. As long as you feel giddy every time you set down to make stuff, keep at it, at the very least you will be using your time doing something that makes you happy.

Anything else you want to add?
Hi Mom :)

Read our previous Etsy Success Stories. See some of Ryan's top picks on Etsy in the gallery below, as well as a couple examples of her work:

Podcasting, Anyone? Craftypod interviews LittleputBooks

2008-03-04T11:36:00-05:00

This past installment of Craftypod with Sister Diane features Ryan LittleputBooks. Click here to listen.

Craftypod is a series of audio interviews, tutorials, and other crafty content with crafty person Sister Diane, who lives in Portland, Oregon and also runs a chapter of the Church of Craft. It comes out biweekly and she's been consistently posting since 2005. She focuses this interview on marketing, using Ryan's advice and real life experiences. She asks the question, "Why are we afraid of marketing?" And Ryan feels that this is a fear of failure, which cuts doubly deep when you've made the product yourself and put yourself into it.

Sister Diane also asks useful questions about photography and listing descriptions, to which Ryan gives insightful answers. The two also discuss Etsy's drawbacks (the site hasn't reached a mainstream market yet and it can be difficult to get noticed amongst all the sellers).

See LittleputBooks' articles on the Storque, including some tips about keeping up with the holiday rush and a Success Story. Check out more posts in our Podcasting Series.

LittleputBooks Top 10: Keeping up with the Holiday Rush

2007-11-30T11:18:00-05:00

Ryan aka Littleputbooks was one of our first Etsy Sucess Stories profiled here on the Storque. She's also taught a class and offered much useful advice on how to promote your shop. We asked Ryan to give us some hardcore useful info for sellers as we head into a busy December. Here's what she came up with.

Last year at this time I was knee deep in orders and drowning in chaos. I learned a swift lesson about planning ahead and staying organized. Here are a few of the techniques I’ve employed this season. Since I actually have time to sit down and write this out I can tell you, for the most part, they are working.

Plan ahead. If you’re headed out to buy craft supplies or printer ink bring enough money to buy twice what you need. Create an inventory sheet of office and craft materials and be sure you check it before heading out. Running out of anything mid-workday is huge waste of time.
Work in batches. If your product allows, make multiples of each item. This is a time saver twice: it allows you to re-list a sold item without new photos/descriptions and working on multiple items at once can speed along the creation process.
Clean your desk. Having an organized workspace can make life a lot easier. Keep your tools where you need them, your supplies ready and waiting and remember to put everything back when you’re done. When I am disorganized it feels like I lose more time looking for my scissors than I do making product.
Slow days don’t last. If your business has been steady you will experience a few down days, maybe even multiple down days. Keep in mind people are looking and preparing to buy, and they will probably come back all at once. Use the down time to restock or shoot photos of new stock. Don’t let your customers catch you off guard, be prepared for business well into January.
Keep a notepad with you. Often buyers will have an after thought about something they’d like changed or rearranged after purchase. Keeping notes off Etsy for special requests saves time and can help you keep track of who wanted what.
Stock up. I know it is a bit late in the season for some of you experiencing your first holiday rush but if possible use your free time to make more. Having a lot of stock this season has been a lifesaver for me. If I hadn’t been planning for Christmas since August, I would be sold out by now.
Stay one step ahead of your orders. Don’t sell items you haven’t made yet. If at all possible have the items in stock before you list them. If you do custom work put your time frame in your shop announcement. Communicating your time frame with customers will keep them happy and help you keep track of their needs as well.
Keep up with your shipping. You may be inclined to take a few days off (like I did over Thanksgiving) but not shipping regularly can really add up fast. I send items out 4 days a week. This keeps me ahead of the game and it also gives my customers the chance to order more if needed for the holidays. Letting your shipping get behind can be a nightmare and will snowball into insanity if you can’t get caught up.
Avoid the PayPal/Etsy address mess. Most top sellers have a system, here is mine: A. I cut/paste the receipt into text edit and print it out. This gives me a visual of each order plus the address and email. B. I ship only to the Etsy listed address, I no longer bother with the address PayPal lists since 1 out of 3 addresses seems to be wrong. C. I use a shipping service www.endicia.com and avoid PayPal shipping completely. Endicia is much faster & it tracks your package just like PayPal. They’re offering a free trial right now so it is a good time to check it out. D. I mark all ordera shipped so I can make sure no one has been skipped. Shipping is still a pain but this year it is 100 times easier than last.
And lastly, hire help. Don’t be afraid to have someone come help you get caught up. There are always tons of things to be done that don’t require actually making your products. Last year just before the season ended, I hired someone to help me with shipping. This year, knowing I was going to be featured in Parents Magazine, I hired two people. Becky aka daisychains and Lea aka leakarts. They come in and help me a few days a week. Lea packs up my orders and keeps track of what is selling out; she keeps my shipping smooth. Becky adds bales to pendants, organizes my wholesale and keeps me up to date on what else is needed. I could not survive this holiday season without them. Having them here has helped me stay creative and sane despite all the chaos. Thanks girls!

While the holidays may seem like a lot of work, chaos and mess, remember this doesn’t last. It is easier to push myself through the 10-14 hour days knowing I’ll have some much needed play time after the winter season. This is what we have been waiting for and I am so glad it has arrived!

Happy Holidays!

Ryan *girl* Littleput Books

Online Workshop: How to promote yourself on Etsy

2007-10-26T09:00:00-05:00

Littleputbooks will be holding an informal chat in the Business room of the Virtual Labs. She'll be talking about ways to promote your shop, tips for making your shop look eye-catching, and otherwise answering follow-up questions to the class she held yesterday at Etsy Labs in Brooklyn.

When:

Saturday, October 27, 12:30pm Eastern time

Where:

Virtual Labs, the Business Room

How to Promote Your Shop - Portland

2007-09-24T07:30:00-05:00

Trillium Artisans, a nonprofit organization in Portland, Oregon, USA, will be hosting a special workshop on Wednesday, September 26, for artisans in the community, including members of our group and of the PDX Etsy Street Team.

Our guest speaker will be Ryan McAbery of Littleput Books. This will be Ryan's "dry run" for the class she is teaching at the Etsy Labs in October - "How to Promote Yourself on Etsy - Tips, Tricks, and Secrets from a Successful Etsy Seller."

Trillium Artisans is a community economic development program that empowers low-income artisans by actively connecting them to markets and supporting them in growing their "green" crafts businesses. We offer consignment opportunities through our gallery, our website, and our Etsy shop, as well as credit card processing services, contracting opportunities, small business counseling, and help with product development. The products that we carry are all made from a minimum of 50% recycled, reclaimed, salvaged, found, and "trashion" materials. Our product lines include gifts, women's accessories, home decor, garden, and pets. We promote a triple bottom line of people, planet, and profit for all.

Trillium falls under Etsy's description of a "collective" - "A Collective is a group of people who know each other personally and make things together: either sharing a studio space and/or sharing knowledge." Our artisans do not share studio space but we do have a collective gallery where our work is sold, and one of the ways we share knowledge is through our monthly artisan meetings such as this one.

This project is funded by a grant from the Oregon Arts Commission and the National Endowment for the Arts, which awarded us an Arts Builds Communities grant to maintain our monthly artisan meetings. The meetings are used to educate our artisans on a variety of business related subjects, and to facilitate peer networking.

Past meetings have included field trips to galleries, presentations by bankers, artists' representatives, and boutique owners, and speakers from Portland Supercrafty, Lov.li, and Craftypod.

Selling art and crafts online through Etsy.com is a very hot topic right now, and our artisans are hungry for information and assistance about how to use Etsy and market their work on the site.

The meetings are free to our artisan members and $5 for other community members who are interested in joining us. When we announced the workshop to the PDX Etsy team, the response was overwhelming - it filled up within about 8 hours!

We have approximately 30 people attending the workshop, 18 of whom are Etsy sellers. The remaining twelve are Trillium Artisan members who are interested in starting Etsy shops and will most likely do so after the workshop.

This is going to be an amazing class. We are so grateful to Ryan for donating her time and skills toward helping us meet our goals by showing our artisans and team members new ways to grow their sustainable micro-enterprises.

Quit Your Day-job: LittleputBooks

2007-09-18T08:00:00-05:00

No one was more surprised then I when my little shop littleputbooks.etsy.com took off like a rocket in December of 2006. I have run this struggling little craft business since 2002 with very little recognition and even less wage. I was and still am unprepared for the success I have found with Etsy. It has been an interesting ride, trying to be an artist and run a business all at once. I'm still stumbling along and learning a lot along the way.

I can’t explain my success or tell you the magic formula. There was luck involved. Imagination, creativity, a good camera, a strong sense of cute, good timing and a lot of trial and error played a big part, too. When I first started using Etsy, I was so enamored with the site that I set out to make and create new products just to impress the other sellers. Every little heart and every treasury star was encouragement that fueled my creativity and my desire for visibility. Each sale still feels like its own mini success. I list frequently, try new ideas often, post in the forums (Hi forums!), renew to stay visible and work hard on improving my photos. The more I work at it, the more I seem to be rewarded, which inspires me to work even more. All top sellers put in many, many hours. It isn't easy, but it's an amazing way to earn a living.

There are basic ideas that apply to anyone who wants to make a living as a craft artist and as an Etsy seller. I've made a lot of foolish items in the past five years, and I must say selling starts with a good product — and even better, a unique product. New and well-executed ideas stand out: they get you into treasuries, attract hearts and can even land you on the front page. If you are not sure about your talents, take classes of interest and really hone your skills. If you aren't sure about your products, hit the art markets in your area. Selling in the real world is a great way to test market your imagination and craft-abilities. After four years of selling paper in the rain at Portland's Saturday market, I can tell you what sells well and what I should never make again.

Because Etsy is an online venue, you need to take interesting, good quality photos of your work. Your photos should be the focus of your listings; your work should speak through them. Words are good for adding character, giving dimension, material and pertinent information. Long, wordy listings are not a good way make up for lack of pictures. It is hard to convince people to buy poorly photographed work, even if you write a lot.

Additionally, you need to find a good price for your item and a fair rate for shipping. Your price can make or break the sale. A lot of Etsy artists price their work too low, undervaluing their product: cheap does not equal quality. If your price is too high, your work will be coveted, but rarely owned. When I am thinking of price increases I poll the forums. Etsy users are honest, helpful and capable of giving experienced and unbiased opinions.

Lastly, make the right impression with your customers. If something breaks, gets lost or just isn’t right, do all you can to fix it. Even if the transaction is flawless, don’t forget to say thank you. Your customer is your biggest asset: the fact that they chose your work out of the billions of retail options is something to be recognized, respected and treated with gratitude.

Ultimately, Etsy is an art unto itself. This site's designers approached it as an artist making a piece. It is limitless and continually being re-invented for the better of all. Etsy's tools, workshops and search functions are an amazing source of inspiration and an incredible way to showcase your work. This site is built to reward the artist; if you have interesting, unique, colorful, playful or beautiful products, people will notice. They will share it with others and drive traffic to your shop. I cherish this about Etsy and find myself challenged to come up with new ideas all the time. I am incredibly thankful that Rob, Chris, Jared and Haim (and everyone else on the About Page) created this venue. Here, artists and crafters can put their imaginations to the test and be rewarded for it, and that is something worth mailing pie for :O)

I have a top ten list of selling tips on my blog www.littleput.blogspot.com, and to all those in or near New York on October 25th please come to my marketing workshop at the Etsy Labs or just stop by and say hi. If you’re in the Portland, Oregon area, please check the teams forum for weekly teas and skill shares. Come on by!

Ryan aka Littleput Books