Should You Open an Etsy Shop in 2022?
Selling handmade goods on Etsy is an excellent way to earn some extra income while embracing your creative side. With so many possibilities and countless ways to make money online as a creative, selling your own products might be high on your list too.
However, just because it’s a good idea doesn’t mean you should necessarily rush into it straight away. There are quite a few important considerations to take into account, many of which will likely determine if you are successful or not in your endeavors. Taking the time to figure that out may we’ll set you up for greater success.
So are you actually ready to start an Etsy shop? We'll cover the initial considerations you should take as well as some of the key steps to take when first starting a online shop.
If you are questioning whether now is a good time, as in, is 2022 a good climate to sell in - there is no time like the present to get started, the road is long and you simply can't predict what is ahead of you!
So - Is Selling on Etsy Right for You?
Before you dive in, you’ll want to make sure that this
particular business choice is right for you. If you’re still sitting on the
fence, here are a few questions to ask yourself to see if Etsy is the perfect
fit for you.
1. How Many Hours a Week can You Spend on your Etsy business?
You’ll need to make sure that you have enough hours in your
week to dedicate to an Etsy shop. You’ll probably ending up spending on average
about 30 hours a week doing research, promoting, selling and taking care of
other business-related tasks as well as making and shipping products.
If you’re struggling to find the extra time, you might want to reconsider the idea of opening a shop as a side hustle because it WILL require some sort of time investment to make it work. It will end up costing you and you won’t get very far with it.
So then you might be thinking you’ll start a digital product or print on demand style shop instead - which is passive income after you’ve created the listings. Right?
Sorry to burst that bubble, but Etsy shops are simply not a form of “passive” income regardless of what you sell. There are other platforms that would be a much better choice if you’re looking for less involvement, as those platforms do all the marketing and selling for you, taking a great deal of responsibility off your shoulders. An Etsy shop, unfortunately, is fully your own responsibility and is a lot of work to maintain no matter your product type.
That said, a digital or POD shop uses automated shipping and
products only need to be made once, so they can be significantly easier to
manage from a time spent perspective.
2. Do You Have Any Experience Selling Online?
If you have no experience with this kind of work, you might want to do some research before diving in. Even if it sounds like a great idea, it could turn into a frustrating experience if you just don’t have the skills.
There are so many components to running an online retail store all by yourself and you’ll have to wear all the different hats unless you can afford outside help. Photography, writing, seo, marketing, selling, social media, taxes, legal aspects, shipping and customer service are just the top level tasks you’ll need to master. And that’s after you’ve come up with your amazing product.
Experience and existing knowledge is very much
underestimated by new sellers to Etsy, largely because it’s so easy and
accessible to get started in the first place And with so many info marketers
touting Etsy as easy money and talking about the vast sums they’ve earned, it’s
not hard to understand why so many people fall for the ‘hook’ of their own
successful shop.
While you certainly can build a successful shop on Etsy, the
number of failures staggeringly outnumber the true success stories. Keeping
realistic expectations, while understanding how business and retail actually
work will help keep you grounded in your decisions.
Investing in your own personal business education is going
to be a constant theme throughout the course of running any business
successfully.
3. What Is Your Financial Situation?
Just like any other business, Etsy comes with a set of financial obligations. It’s not free. You’ll have to cover the cost of supplies and overhead if you go with physical products and costs can quickly add up. Deciding whether a particular side hustle is worth the time and money will depend on how the math stacks up and what risks you’re able to take.
Just to be clear, business is a risk. For anyone. No one is
immune to the whims of the markets. Even seasoned professionals in top
performing international brands will have product failures.
Understanding the risks and mitigating those with good research, a solid business plan and some financial acumen is probably a good idea if you are laying out significant funds to start your Etsy shop.
One of the bigger mistakes new Etsy sellers make is in the
assumption that thing they want to sell - will actually sell. Just because
you make it, doesn't mean someone will buy it. Market research and thorough
product testing are truly helpful in figuring out if you have a winner.
If you can start an Etsy shop with very little financial investment, and most people do, the risks are obviously much lower and your investment becomes 'time spent'.
You Must do Some Research Before You Start Selling
Selling things online can be a really exciting and
fulfilling experience, but you have to do it right. Before even considering
opening an Etsy store, you’ll want to do some research and learn as much as you
can about your targeted industry.
Start by reading online forums and blogs that are dedicated to Etsy sellers. Browse through articles on every topic you can think of related to selling online and on Etsy specifically.
You’ll also want to familiarize yourself with the different requirements for selling on Etsy and the requirements for your products. So many new sellers don't do this basic research before listing products, they run foul of the rules and either get their products revoked or worse get their shop shut down completely. It's absolutely essential to know the rules and applicable laws.
You simply have to read and understand the different rules, regulations, and legalities of running a business and understand how those affect your own product niche. This isn't optional.
You Have to Know Your Market
The hardest part of starting a business is getting it off the ground. You have to convince potential customers to buy your products. But how do you even find potential customers if you’re not sure of your target market?
This is where market research comes in. You’ll want to conduct research to find out what your potential customers want and need. You can do this by speaking to potential customers and by doing industry research.
It's therefore helpful if you're looking to sell a product that you already know a lot about or have a passion for and have contacts you can share that with.
If you're struggling to figure out who would buy the product
you want to make try thinking about it the other way around. What sort of
customer do you want to cater for and what products do the
need/want/like.
This is an often difficult hurdle. But once you’ve figured it out marketing your product will be so much easier.
Logistics of Setting Up an Account
Etsy is one of the most popular marketplaces for selling handmade products online mainly because it’s easy to use, easy to get started and users can earn a lot of money by selling their own goods.
Before you can get started selling on Etsy, you’ll need to
open an account. Initially your account will be in buyer mode. I would suggest
getting familiar with the site, how it works, how it's organized and most
importantly, review all the information Etsy provides about seller accounts and
their house rules.
Unfortunately Etsy has a rather strange way of creating the seller portion of your account. In order to become a 'seller' and have access to the backend seller dashboard you have to first create a product listing. Personally I find this very backwards but it's always been setup this way.
My way around this has been to create a fake placeholder
listing, filling out the minimum amount of information, and then immediately
(like a nano-second after publishing) deactivate that listing. This gives you
breathing room to familiarize yourself with the dashboard and get the
bones of your shop setup before launching your products.
This is the most sensible way to open a new shop and the way
you would do it on any other platform.
A lot of Etsy sellers will start very tentatively with that first single listing or even a few products and completely disregard the rest of the shop structure initially. This is not the most successful way to launch a business but is fine if your expectations match the effort you start out with.
Stay Active and Promote Often for Momentum
Once you’ve opened an account on Etsy, you’ll want to stay
active. You’ll want to post new listings regularly and promote your items in
some way.
If you are starting out with an audience of zero, joining
social media groups or forums might be a good way to start gaining
traction. Pinterest is also a great way to start promoting your products
for free.
Social media platforms provide a great way to connect with potential customers and to get feedback on your products. Start with just one or two options though so you don't spread yourself too thin.
What you don't want to do is list your products on Etsy and then sit back and do nothing. While this might work if you have a product that quickly goes viral or is sought after with no competition most products and shops require a certain amount of marketing. Etsy will not do all the work for you.
Keep Track of Reviews and Measure Success
If you want to make money on Etsy, you’ll want to keep track of your sales, reviews and other metrics to measure your success. Keep track of your sales by logging them. You’ll want to track the number of items sold, the average price and the number of customers who buy your products. Learn from what works and what doesn't.
You can also use Etsy’s metrics to view sales, clicks,
favorites and other metrics on your account. These metrics will help you keep
track of your success. Repeat the things that work best and improve on areas
that aren't.
Keyword SEO is probably the most important aspect to track on a new shop. You'll want to review how your chosen words are performing over time and change things up that aren't working well.
Conclusion
Reading this you might think that I'm trying to talk you out of starting an Etsy shop! That's not true at all, but you DO need to be realistic and I'm not going to sugar coat it for you. Anyone can start an Etsy shop, but not everyone will be successful with it. And that’s the plain truth.
While Etsy is a great way to make a little extra money online, or even a full time income, you’ll want to spend a good amount of time researching your market, testing your products and perfecting your selling techniques.
Running a shop is hard work. There's a lot to know and a lot
to do. Constantly.
If the above points haven't scared you off, you just might be ready to start an Etsy shop in 2022. Plan well, be confident in knowledge and take your time!
Happy creating!
Shawnna