How to pick products to sell in your Etsy shop
At first glance, it would seem that there’s no end to the creativity you can bring to an Etsy shop. With so many categories to choose from and so many products within those categories, there must be endless ways to showcase your artisanal interests.
But as much as we love all things
handcrafted, not every business idea actually fits well within the world of Etsy. You need to
think about the type of work you’re willing to spend time doing on a regular
basis, the resources you have available for creating those products, and
whether or not people are really going to connect with what you have to sell. Not to mention, whether or not it's profitable.
To help you get started in creating your own Etsy shop, here are some top tips for picking the best products to sell in your own eCommerce store.
Research the market
Even before you decide which products to sell, you need to get an idea for the market you’re operating within. You don’t want to be just another seller in a niche that’s already saturated, but on the other hand, you don’t want to choose a product that no one’s buying.
You can start off your research with some simple Google searches to learn more about the product industry you are interested in. Look at what's popular, how diverse the product range currently is, the popularity of certain products and how broad the customer base is. You want to get a feel for what is going on with the chosen industry and drill down into specific niches.
For example, if you are interested in making pottery, the industry is pretty massive with a high volume of sales, so there is good opportunity to build a strong customer base. Now get specific, what kind of pottery, for whom, what style? Looking at a particular niche, is there anything missing? Can you do something new or different? You want to identify something that is popular but then add your own spin to it.
You want to do this is in the wider market and not just on Etsy. But it's important to do the exact same research on Etsy as well. You want to look for a product type that you have a keen interest in, will enjoy making long term, has good potential to sell well and then you need to create your own special versions.
You might also look at Etsy’s top sellers in different niche's to research what’s selling, and try to figure out why. Looking at the top sellers should give you an idea of what is required to setup a store for success. Study and understand what their doing right and why they are selling so well. Can you come up with your own unique product offering and sell as successfully?
And finally, think about the products you already own and have in your home. What’s missing from the market? What do people not realize they need? Is there some value you can add to an existing product to make it better, or a new product that doesn't exist yet? These insights can help you recognize gaps in the market and pick a product that’s well-positioned to succeed.
Find your niche
If you’re new to running your own business, the concept of niche marketing might not be second nature to you. But it’s something every entrepreneur needs to take into account. In fact, not only does it help you decide which products to sell on your Etsy shop, it helps you decide how to run your business as a whole.
When you pick a niche, you’re focusing your marketing efforts on a specific group of people. You might decide to cater to families, people who work from home, stay-at-home parents, or any number of other groups.
You can find your niche by first looking at what you want from a business. You can ask yourself questions like: Who do I want to work with? What kind of lifestyle do I want to have? What are my goals? Who will my product be most useful to?
If this feels like a waste of time, remember that in order to actually sell your products you need to know who you are actually selling to. Otherwise you'll have the same results as standing on a street corner hustling to random passersby.
Ask yourself some important questions
Once you’ve got an idea of the type of business you want to run, it’s time to dig a little deeper into the products you can sell. When picking products to sell on your Etsy shop, you have to keep a few things in mind:
How popular is the product? What’s the price range? How unique is the product? Are there patents or trademarks on the product? Is the product easy to source? Can you customize it? How big is the market for the products you want to sell? Are there enough people who want to buy what you have to offer? Are there already tons of people selling this product? Is the product something you can stand behind? Will customers understand the benefits you’re aiming to provide them?
That's a lot of questions! But it's important to have those answers otherwise your products and marketing are likely to fall flat and miss their target entirely. If you want to be successful with your Etsy shop venture you can't just randomly throw products out there and hope for the best, it takes a strategic and targeted approach to get the best results.
Decide on a product and its viability
Once you’ve narrowed down your product options, you then need to decide which one you should sell in your Etsy shop. You can’t sell everything, so you need to evaluate each product and decide if it suits the business you want to build.
You'll need to look at the market and decide if there’s room for your product in it. You don't want your hard work to drown in a sea of sameness and being a copycat rarely brings true success. You should be looking to see if your product fulfills a need or gap that isn’t being met.
You also need to take into account your own motivation to sell the product. Why do you want to sell this product? Does the product align with your values? Does the product have a strong aesthetic appeal? Does the product solve a problem for customers? Does the product have a clear and easy-to-understand branding? Is the product something you know enough about to communicate with customers?
Taking these considerations into account will help you choose the best product
for YOU to sell in your Etsy shop. And it makes the job of selling it so much easier!
Take into account your skills and resources
Once you’ve decided on a product, look at your own personal resources and skills. How much time do you have each week, will you be able to fulfill orders, and how many can you feasibly handle at once?
Think about your source of income and how much you have to invest in your business. Is this doable?
And then, how much income do you need from your business to break even?
You also need to consider your personal strengths and weaknesses. Are you good at communicating with customers? Are you a good problem-solver? Do you pick up new skills quickly? Are there other skills you’re lacking? You can’t be great at everything, but you can definitely be good at something.
Now is the time to identify any areas you are weak on or lacking in knowledge so you can spend some time improving or learning in order to make up for anything lacking.
Summing up
An Etsy shop can be a great way to earn some extra cash from a hobby you love. But before you dive into creating your storefront, you need to think about the type of product you want to sell and how viable the product is. The most important step that most Etsy sellers fail to do up front is the MATH.
The numbers are so important. If your dream is to quit your day job, the product you sell has to be able to scale up to the point where you can earn an income. Some products or methods or selling simply won't offer that and are destined to always be pocket change income.
When you’ve got your product line in mind, it’s time to pick a name and create a storefront that’s as engaging as possible. You have to convince customers to spend their hard-earned money on your products. You have to prove that what you are selling is worth investing in.
Happy creating
Shawnna