ArtFire recently had a face lift and went through some changes. The redesign has made it much easier for customers to find their way around the site. I have to say I think it is going to help them to grow. While they may never reach the same prestige as Etsy, they will continue to be a great place to consider as a second selling location.
I have an ArtFire Studio and I make a few sales there every month. There are several things I like about those guys. They do not charge you every time you list an item, nor do they charge you every time you sell an item. They charge you a flat fee every month. It is only $11.95
Artfire also has a great Referral Program. For every person who signs up through you, you get one month free with no limits. The person who signs up through you also gets a free month (their 3rd month). So, you could actually have every month free if you have people sign up through you.
Now, ArtFire is a little different than Etsy in a few ways. They do not have the community traffic that Etsy has. However, every account will have their items added to Google Shopping, Bing Shopping, The Find and many more places on the web where people shop. Artfire also gets your listings into Google Search Engine and other search engines making it easier for people to find you.
Artfire also allows you to link to your Etsy shop, your blog, your Twitter, your Facebook and more. They feel that you should be able to sell wherever you want to sell. The Holiday Season is fast approaching and it might be a good idea to have a secondary site to sell your products. If you do decide to sign up for ArtFire please consider signing up through me, that way we will both enjoy a free month. Sign up for ArtFire Here.
If you sell on other online market places I would like to hear about it. Write a comment about it or send me an email marketmyshop@gmail.com
Thanks for the tip! I just added my shop and the market on artfire seems a lot less saturated than etsy. I like their easy interface, too!
ReplyDeleteI had an ArtFire shop for a couple of years. The only sales I ever made there were 3 items to one lady who had seen the same items in my Etsy shop, but she didn't want to open an account on Etsy to buy them. I could have sold them to her directly, but I already had the ArtFire shop set up and wanted to get some sales & feedback there, so I just added those items to my AF shop and she bought them. Unfortunately, she didn't bother to leave me feedback! :-(
ReplyDeleteLast year when ArtFire was having their $5.95/month special I signed up for a Pro account on the site. ArtFire was claiming at the time that something like 80% of the sales on their site went to sellers with Pro accounts. I kept the Pro account until February of this year, and listed quite a few items during the holidays and kept it updated, etc. but didn't make a single sale. Several of my Etsy friends took advantage of the same $5.95 deal and also left the site about the same time I did.
I know more people who haven't had ANY luck on ArtFire than people who have made even one sale there. May your luck be different!
Prairie Primitive Folk Art,
ReplyDeleteThank you for your perspective. It is always a good thing to see the other side of the coin. I am sorry that you did not have great luck with ArtFire.
There are many differences between ArtFire and Etsy that make it so that you have to do all the hard work that you did for Etsy again for ArtFire. It isn't a "if you build it.." type situation. I am by no means saying that you didn't put the work in. Many people expect to just mirror their Etsy shop and make the same kind of money.
I have done pretty good with ArtFire. Of course, the months that I really worked the shop, tweak the titles, descriptions and tags were the better months. It is a difficult job trying to maintain two very different shops.
I too know many people who have had no luck selling on ArtFire but I know just as many if not more that have had no luck on Etsy. Both have their ups and downs. A lot of what ArtFire has done lately has greatly increased exposure and ease of use to the buyers. I suspect that they will be around for a long time. I plan to stay with them.