Tuesday, January 28, 2014

Can Etsy Help You Quit Your Day Job?

So, you hate your day job. Can selling on Etsy really help you quit your day job? The simple answer is YES! Unfortunately it is a bit more complicated than that. The real answer is that Etsy can REPLACE your day job. You might want to consider how much time you have to put towards your new 'Day Job' of Etsy.

I generally spend 10 hours a day between working on my Etsy shop, social networking and making products for my shop. I am in a hard market- Jewelry. It is often times difficult to put myself out there above everyone else. Of course I do have a small advantage since I have been a jewelry maker for over 25 years.

Running an Etsy shop is a full time job. In fact it is 1 1/2 to 2 full time JOBS! At least until you get a good rhythm going. What is your typical Etsy day? What do you do? How long do you spend on each part? I want to know what you do with your time. Share with everyone here. Tell me about your Etsy day.

Yes, I said I was going to continue the Etsy Shop Makeover Challenge but it seemed that no one was participating so, I am putting that on the back burner. Just to let you know though, I have tripled the amout of daily treasuries I am in from just rewriting a few of my listings. If you wish to have me continue that series just let me know.

4 comments:

  1. I would love to hear how you spend your Etsy day too! I check my 2 teams I captain and the BNS all day long. I check in on all my other teams too. I finally have a chance to craft around 8:30 at night and only get a couple of hours in. I need to find more time to craft.

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  2. Hi Brenda - you are right - an Etsy day is a long day - but it allows you to work from home. I get to hang out with my chickens and cats beside the wood stove, you can't beat that! My day begins getting the animals sorted, breakfast, then Etsy - team work, photographing (probably 4 hrs 2 days a week), listing (I try to keep items current by listing throughout the day 2 - 4 items), tweeting, pinning, facebook posting, tumbling, blogging, SHIPPING -- it's a JOB - anyone that thinks they can just stick their items on Etsy and they will sell is not thinking clearly. It takes a lot of social media to get those eyes on your items. In between tasks I can make dinner, garden, coupon, and BE ME. I'm a lover of all things around my house! My day ends doing a bit of team work and organizing. http://ForsythiaHill.etsy.com

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    1. Rebecca, your day sounds as busy as mine! That's great that you list 2-4 a day. I usually list 1. I need to work more on my social media, but I don't always know what to post. I like to coupon too. I'm going to go check out your shop.

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  3. My day starts with checking for expired items and renewing any. Then I check my daily, weekly and yearly stats. I try to see if any of my tags are not performing and replace them. If I have new items I photograph them and put them up as draft listings so that I can publish them at peak hours for Etsy.

    I spend 15 to 20 minutes checking on my teams and moderating the ones I am lead or captain on. If I posted anything new I list in the teams. I then check to see what is trending on Etsy and see if I have any similar items. I check the trending item tags to see what is making them trend and change a few of my tags for better results.

    I spend the afternoon creating items either for stock or as new items for shop or show. I keep my laptop close and answer every message and email as soon as they come in. Evenings are much the same.

    I also look for new leads for wholesale accounts during the day and compose new contact messages sending them out during the business hours of the day.

    I do a lot more each day including maintaining 3 blogs and keeping up with current social media campaigns. I put in around 18 hours a day 5 days a week and 4 to 5 hours a day on weekends.

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