Where Is Your Etsy Traffic From?

It is a great thing to analyze your stats. Though sometimes you are not sure what to make of it. I have found that traffic from Search tends to lead to sells more than any other source. That means that someone was searching for something that you make and they found your listing.

On Etsy, the Search field, is comprised of searches done on Etsy, Google and then everything else. Be sure to look at your key words to see where the search comes from. Looking at your key words is also a good indication of what keywords you should use on your products. Note how many of the key words are actually phrases rather than single key words.

Being found in search is very important. Sure, any traffic can lead to a sale but you want to always try and stack the odds in your favor. Make sure your keywords are relevant and you should have no problem. For more on relevancy check out some of my other Etsy Relevancy Posts.

I hope you all have a great weekend. I'll be back on Monday with another post so be sure to stop back by. If you have any questions or comments feel free to leave them in the comments section or send me an email: MarketMyShop@gmail.com

Share The Love!

I have a show today so I thought it might be nice to do another Share Your Shop! So, share any and all shops you have in the comments. If you have time visit the other shops and Favorite them, Add them to your circle, Favorite an item, etc. This helps build a network.

Here are my shops:
http://MarketMyShop.etsy.com The shop for this blog.

http://TangledMetal.etsy.com Where I sell my handmade jewelry. Mostly chainmaille.

http://SteampunkOddities.etsy.com This is my new shop split off from Tangled Metal.


I hope you all have a great day! Thanks for being a reader!

Opening An Etsy Shop

Whether you are new to Etsy or just thinking about opening a second shop there are a few things to think about. My first shop is about 1 1/2 years old now. I can ignore it for a day or two and still receive 100+ views a day. The shop I opened last week, if I don't add a product and Tweet it and Facebook it, I do not get any views.

My point here is that it will be almost like it was when you first opened your shop. You really need to be aware of the amount of time a new shop or second shop will take from you. It isn't just you build it and they come. You have to get your product in front of those who will want to buy it.

Be prepared to put in a lot of work on a new shop. Just remember it does get easier. It does get to a manageable point. It will eventually be something that will pay you back.

Over the next few weeks I will be talking about some of the things needed for starting a new shop. The ideas also work well for existing shops. If you have any questions please feel free to send me an email to MarketMyShop@gmail.com

Fine Tune Your Etsy Listing

Some of you may have already noticed that when you preview a listing before publishing you now have the ability to tweak your listing photo. You can now crop the image so that you have control over how it looks in the search view as well as anywhere else that the image is shown on Etsy.

As you can see above, it only changes the small block view. It does not change any of your photos in your listing. This is really great for making sure your image is "Treasury Worthy." It also gives you the ability to make sure your image shows the important details of your listing.

Etsy is always looking to improve your chance to sell an item. Sometimes it may not seem like it, but then one of these little changes comes along that makes everyone's life a little easier.

Thanks for reading. If you think this blog is helpful share it on Twitter or send a link to a friend through email. If you have any questions please email me at MarketMyShop@gmail.com

More Etsy Shipping Updates

Etsy recently changed the requirements for their direct shipping. You used to have a bill under $25 to pay and print shipping. They have extended that so if you have an Etsy bill of less than $50 you can now pay for postage and it will be added to your bill.

That helps out some, though I am sure there are plenty of shops that can easily hit the $50 mark and beyond. Fortunately, Etsy has announced that if you have Direct Checkout in your shop you will soon be able to pay for postage out of your Etsy Payment Account. That is good news for many of us! I will keep you updated!

As always, I am looking to help you out in any way that I can, so please feel free to email me questions: MarketMyShop@gmail.com

Etsy Checkout Update

After being under the weather for a bit, I got super busy. Things have finally slowed down a bit so here I am, back writing about Etsy and such. Etsy recently changed their Direct Checkout from a three day wait to just a one day wait before they deposit your money. That is great news for some of you who need the money for materials and the like. Of course, sometimes you still have to go in and manually schedule your deposit. But it is a start.

Another thing in the works is Etsy Gift Certificates. You have to have Etsy Checkout in your shop to accept them but it might just be worth it to you. One other thing to note, I got a message from Etsy that coming soon, hopefully in October, you'll be able to pay for your shipping out of the Direct Sale. That means that you'll be able to pay with money already owed to you rather than money you may not yet have. This should help those of you on a tight budget.

I will have more info on these topics as my research allows...

In the meantime, while I was under the weather, I managed to meet a couple of exciting goals. First goal was to add 10 new shops to my wholesale accounts. So, while I was sitting on the couch going through Kleenex like there was no tomorrow, I contacted a lot of shops via email. I even set up a "New Shop Special" on my website with a "Buy It Now" button courtesy of PayPal. I ended up with 13 new shops! I always love it when I can exceed my goals!

This week I finally bit the bullet and opened another Etsy shop. http://SteampunkOddities.etsy.com I am finally attempting to separate my chainmail from my steampunk to give two much cleaner looking shops. If you have time, click on the above link, check out the shop, favorite and or add me to your circle. I have been contemplating the split for quite some time. Next week I'll share my trials and tribulations in hopes that if you open a second shop you can learn from some of my mistakes ahead of time.

That is all for today. I hope each and every one of you have a wonderfully profitable and happy weekend.

Under The Weather

The weather took a change last week. We went from highs in the 90s and lows in the 70s to highs in the lower 80s and lows in the 50s. During this time I developed a bit of a summer cold and I just cannot seem to shake it. Fortunately it is in my head and has not made it down to my lungs.

I do not get sick very often. In fact maybe once or twice a year I feel bad enough to consider myself as sick. Hopefully this will pass soon and I will feel more like sitting in front of the computer. I just wanted to let all of you know I am still here.

I hope you are all having a better week than I am. On an up note, at least we have some beautiful weather here where I live.  :)

Etsy To Offer Gift Certificates

Etsy recently announced that they will be offering Gift Cards. Anyone that has Etsy Direct Checkout is already good to go. It is a code that is going to be entered at the time of checkout. So, we still get paid, just like normal. It will be just like someone paid with a credit card.

The only thing you have to do to be eligible is to have Direct Checkout enabled for your shop. As a way to entice more users to switch, Etsy is paying all the transaction fees for the month of September. That is actually kind of cool in my opinion. I have been using Direct Checkout for a while and my sales have increased dramatically. Sure you have to wait a few days to get paid but you get more sales which means more money.

It has been a busy couple of weeks and it does not look to be letting up for me anytime soon. I will continue to write posts as often as I can manage. In the meantime, let me know what you'd like to learn more about by sending me an email to MarketMyShop@gmail.com

All Work And No Play

As many of you know I have a lot of irons in the fire. I own multiple Etsy shops, have a brick and mortar, I sale wholesale, run multiple websites and blogs, and I am a stone mason. Many times there are not enough hours in the day to get what needs to be done accomplished. I imagine many of you feel the same way.

I have written a couple of articles on time management. But it seems no matter how hard I try, something always falls through the cracks. Sometimes I have to weigh the options on what gets done and what doesn't. Many times, this blog is what gets sacrificed.

For the last two weeks I have been trying to get multiple orders done for one of my shops. During that time I had to drop writing here. I am going to try and start writing articles and scheduling them to be published each day so that this won't happen again. I would really like t5o know what you want to know. That would give me a better starting point for the next few articles.

Leave a comment or send me an email to MarketMyShop@gmail.com and let me know what you'd like to see me write about.

Busy Is As Busy Does...

Hello, everyone. I got super busy again. Sometimes it seems like feast or famine. I just got done with three very large orders and today I am starting a waterfall job. I am also a stone mason along with all the other things I do. So, I will try and write some useful information for you tomorrow.

In the meantime, I would like to know how your summer is going. Do your Etsy sales drop off in the summertime? When do you usually see sales picking back up? Leave a comment or drop me an email MarketMyShop@gmail.com

Share Your Etsy Shop!

Word of mouth is the best form of advertising. It always has been and always will be. We have not had a share your shop day in a while so let's do that today. If you have time, visit the shops and favorite them and add them to your circle.

Mine:

Market My Shop on Etsy Currently all I have is my nifty Facebook Advertising Guide but I am still working on several other items that will be added as soon as I have time to finish them.

Tangled Metal Shop on Etsy This is my shop where I sell chainmaille and steampunk jewelry, accessories and home decor.

Magpie Lane Supplies Here is where I sell a few supplies. Not a lot in here but a few findings,  chainmail rings and scrapbooking supplies.

At the time of writing this Etsy seems to be down. So, you may not be able to visit any stores. Keep trying, Etsy is working on it.

List your shop in the comments with a brief description and have a GREAT weekend!

Etsy Direct Shipping

Yesterday I went to my sold items to mark them as shipped after creating the labels from PayPal. Low and behold I noticed something I had not seen before. There is now an option for creating shipping labels directly from Etsy! Now, apparently not everyone has this option yet and I never received a notification about it.

This is their answer to shipping with Etsy Direct Checkout. I had already made my labels so I have no idea what the pricing is and if it is comparable to PayPal or the USPS site. Hopefully Etsy won't be trying to make money off the shipping any more than they already do with your final fees.

Here is how it looks to work. You create the postage and the cost gets added to your Etsy bill. I can see this being a huge problem for some people. Your Etsy bill could get pretty hefty. Though it should come in pretty handy for those orders made through Etsy Direct Checkout. Well, it saves a short amount of time anyway. I guess as with all things, only time will tell.

If you already have this feature and are using it,  I would like to hear what your experiences are. Leave a comment or send me an email to MarketMyShop@gmail.com

The Myth Of Overnight Success

Success does not usually happen overnight. In fact, it can often times take years to reach. The hardest part about success is measuring what you think is successful. For some it is one sale a week and for others it is multiple sales per day. What is it for you?

For me, a sale a day is my daily goal. It does not happen every day, but it does often times average out to a sale a day when looked at over a month or two. There are days that I do not make a sale and there are days when I make multiple sales.

You have to look at the big picture. Where do you want to be in six months, a year, five years, etc. Then you need to come up with a road map to each of your goals. If your goal is to double your shop inventory in six months and you have 100 items in your shop, it is unlikely that you will meet that goal overnight. You'll probably want to set goals of adding 10 to 20 items a month for the next six months.

The harder you work, the luckier you'll get! Do you have a success story that you'd like to share? Leave a comment or send me an email to MarketMyShop@gmail.com

Better Customer Service

A few years ago I was the Director of Operations for a software training firm. Part of my job was to train our trainers to be the best that they could be. Another part of my job was to come up with new subjects to train outside of just software use. The one subject that I was most happy with was a four hour course on better customer service.

I wish I still had a copy of the training manual because not much has changed over the years when it comes to customer service. The customer is not always right contrary to the old saying. The customer is always the customer though. Sometimes you have to go the extra mile to turn your customer into a repeat customer.

Here are a few tips that can help convert them into long time customers:

1. Be prompt in all replies whether it be in email or phone. Nothing says you car like replying to an email within minutes or hours of the initial contact. Worst case scenario don't let more than 24 hours go by.

2. Be polite NO MATTER the customer's attitude. Some people wait until they have stewed for hours or days before contacting you. They may not be very nice in their email or phone call. It is your job to remain calm and polite.

3. Listen to what they have to say. Sometimes there isn't really anything you can do but listen to their problem. Listening to them will let you know what their problems actually are. This goes for reading the entire email a couple of times before hitting reply.

4. Always respond in the positive. You want to do your best to not add to the negativity. You want to always try and put a positive spin on everything.

5. Offer solutions that work for all parties involved. The solution may very well be a full refund. It might also mean a redesign of a product. If you need time to process and respond, don't be afraid to let your customer know that you need time to figure it out. Just do not let time get away from you.

I hope that will help you a little. Let me know what your experiences are with your customers. Leave a comment or send me an email to MarketMyShop@gmail.com

What Brought You To Etsy?

I have been on Etsy for just a little over a year now (16 months to be exact) with my Tangled Metal Chainmail and Steampunk Jewelry and Accessories. I was introduced to Etsy by my girlfriend who had just started selling there. She had been a long time eBay seller and was looking for something a little different.

I was working as the Special Events Director for an advertising company. I had all but quit the life of Renaissance Faires and Art shows to settle into a day job. Little did I know I was destined to pick the pliers back up! After being laid off due to changes in management I decided I did not want to continue with the 9 to 5 (for me it was more like 7 to 7) and I started making chainmail again.

I had sold online before with my own website and was not excited about trying all of that out again but I took the plunge. I read everything I could find about Etsy. I experimented with all kinds of SEO. Many experiments were great failures in what NOT to do. I had a couple of arguments with staff members at Etsy. I even had a hand in changing the relevancy search. Etsy used to only want single word tags but I and others helped convince them that was NOT the way people searched for items on Etsy.

I have been enjoying a lifestyle of not working for the man. Though, my 9 to 5 has become 24/7. At least I really enjoy what I do. Out of a desire to help people not make the same mistakes I have made, I decided to start this blog. The rest, as they say, is history.

What is your story? How did you come to Etsy? I would really like to know. Leave a comment with your story or send me an email to MarketMyShop@gmail.com

Etsy Back To School Sales

It seems school starts earlier and earlier each year. I remember when I was a kid it started in September. Now it seems that most schools start in Mid-August. Now is the time to start your Back To School Sales! Remember that it isn't just elementary and high school about to start back up, it is also college.

I generally offer a percentage discount though an Etsy coupon code. Some people offer free shipping on their orders. The choice is up to you but be sure to take advantage of it. Put "Back To School" in your tags and titles on items that are specifically for school.

Oh, and don't forget the teachers! They are going back to school as well! So, if you have items that would look great on a classroom wall or a teacher's desk, there is another opportunity for you. I hope your Back To School Sales are the best they have ever been. Don't forget Halloween is just around the corner so you may want to dust off a few of your items...

Leave a comment or send me an email to MarketMyShop@gmail.com I would love to hear what you have to say.

As always, my blog is 100% free. People ask me all the time why I do this. When I started Etsy there just wasn't all that much info out there to help me figure it all our. Etsy tends to make their instructions difficult to follow. I wanted to be able to help others by making things easier to understand.

People also ask how I make enough money doing this. The honest answer is I don't. I do sell a Facebook Advertising Guide in my Market My Shop Etsy Shop. I also do a little consulting on a one one one basis. If you are getting something out of this blog and you'd like to 'buy me a drink' or say 'thank you' you can send a gift through PayPal using my email: MarketMyShop@gmail.com

Meeting Your Goals

Early last month I set a goal for myself. My goal was to have 400 items in my Tangled Metal Etsy Shop. Yesterday at 3:30pm I listed item number 400. It wasn't easy but I made it happen. You have to have a 'make it happen' attitude if you want to meet your goals.

When setting your goals be sure to make your goals reasonable. Do not set a goal that you cannot reach. It will only bring disappointments. Make sure to make your goals specific. Saying 'my goal is to make a lot of money' is very vague and hard to track. A goal of making $500 in the month of August is a specific goal that can be measured.

I have a new goal to have 650 items in my shop by October 1st. I think it is a reasonable goal. I would like to hear about your goals and how you managed to meet them or why you didn't. Leave a comment or send me an email to MarketMyShop@gmail.com

As always, my blog is 100% free. People ask me all the time why I do this. When I started Etsy there just wasn't all that much info out there to help me figure it all our. Etsy tends to make their instructions difficult to follow. I wanted to be able to help others by making things easier to understand.

People also ask how I make enough money doing this. The honest answer is I don't. I do sell a Facebook Advertising Guide in my Market My Shop Etsy Shop. I also do a little consulting on a one one one basis. If you are getting something out of this blog and you'd like to 'buy me a drink' or say 'thank you' you can send a gift through PayPal using my email: MarketMyShop@gmail.com

Tips For Making More Sales On Etsy

It has been a while since I did a post of tips and tricks so here you go!

1. Reply to every email or message - Every email is important. Well, maybe not spam, but that isn't what I am talking about. When someone emails you a question, reply to them a.s.a.p. Whether it is a question or a comment, reply. It will build customer confidence if nothing else.

2. Always be polite and understanding - Let's face it, over any amount of time you will have a customer that is unhappy for some reason or another. The customer may not always be right but it is your job to make them happy. Sometimes it means going above and beyond. Sometimes it means loosing money. Sometimes it means a repeat customer.

3. The answer is yes - When someone asks if you can do something for them, a custom order, a modification, the answer is yes. It may mean working outside your normal realm of expertise. It might mean calling in help from a friend to get something done. The minute the answer is no, the sale is gone.

4. Mark your items as shipped - Even if it is after hours or on the weekend print a label and mark your item as shipped. You'll be amazed at your feedback about shipping fast! The only exception is for custom orders. There you should send a message letting the customer know you have their order and you're working on it.

That is it for the week. I hope you all have a great weekend! Feel free to add to the list here by leaving a comment. You can also email me at MarketMyShop@gmail.com

The Art Of Buying In Bulk

Some of you are no doubt savvy to buying in bulk for your art/craft/jewelry supplies. Though I bet some of you still buy at Walmart and Hobby Lobby. Sure, if I need just one of something I might run down to the store to buy it but over all I buy in bulk. It is so much more cost effective in the long run.

There have been times when I was pricing material that I could buy 2 dozen clasps for the same price as a gross(144) of clasps. I love to shop around. I also have a resell tax id which means I can actually order direct from manufacturers on many items cutting out ALL of the middle men. You'd be surprised the difference in price from retail to manufacturer direct.

The more money you can save on materials, the higher your bottom line profits will be. Do a search for wholesale materials. Check eBay before you commit to buy. See what the price difference is between a dozen and a gross is. You'll save money and add to your profits.

Feel free to leave a comment with your best deal ever, or questions, or whatever. You can also email me at MarketMyShop@gmail.com

How Are Your July Sales?

I ended up having a great June in my Tangled Metal Etsy Shop. I averaged one sale per day. Then July hit. My average so far for the month is one sale every two days. July is traditionally a slow month on Etsy. Part of the reason is that so many families vacation in July. So, you must come up with cleaver ideas and tactics to make some sales.

Christmas in July is a great way to make a few extra sales during the month. I do not usually do a sale in my shop in July but next year I do plan to. There is a lot of marketing going into Christmas in July and that means that with a few well placed tags and titles you can let someone else pay for the advertising, namely Etsy.

July is also a good month to get into gear for Back to School. Having a back to school sale is always a great idea. Here again, you are able to, with some well placed tags and titles, allow someone else to put out the advertising dollars for you. The best form of advertising is the free stuff!

I am always looking for new ideas to help increase sales in traditionally slow times. I would love to hear what you have done to increase your sales. I run a brick and mortar in addition to wholesaling and having an Etsy shop. I am very fortunate that when one area is slow is sales another area usually picks up the slack. Feel free to leave a comment or send me an email to MarketMyShop@gmail.com

Engaging Your Audience On Facebook

Last week I talked about what NOT to do on business Facebook page. Basically, avoid anything that invokes a very strong emotion such as Politics or Religion. That is, unless you are selling Political or Religious items, then it may be alright. Today I would like to try and give you some ideas of what is good to post on your page.

On my Tangled Metal Facebook Page I try and post a mix of different things. I post a lot of pictures of my products. It is a business page after all. In addition to that I generally post pictures that are related to my genre of jewelry, fashion and accessories. I usually do not post links to my competition. Since I make chainmaille and steampunk items there are plenty of places to find cool images or stories to pass on to my fans.

Another thing I post is quotes from famous people that inspire me and hopefully will inspire others. Then there is the "fluffy bunny" stuff that I post. This usually consists of baby animals, babies and other things that anyone would consider cute. This usually gets the most shares and comments and likes.

The main point is, you should be posting a wide range of things. Things that are not inflammatory topics or images. You want to entice your fans to be active on your page so when you do post images and links from your shop you will get a better reaction.

I hope this helps. I welcome additional tips from you. I also welcome questions. Leave a comment or send me an email: MarketMyShop@gmail.com

What Not To Talk About On Facebook And Twitter

There are a couple of things you need to avoid when it comes to Facebook and Twitter for your business. Religion and politics. These are huge topics that can alienate your audience. Stay away from them at all cost. That is, unless your business is selling religious or political art!

If you run out of interesting topics I have come up with a few for you:

Baby animals.

Mamma and baby Otter

Baby Hedgehog

Landscapes.

Beautiful Marsh

Very Old English Wall

Of course there are many other things you can post. Witty quotes, funny pictures, and the like. Just shy away from anything that might offend someone. That is it for today. I hope you all have a great weekend!

Etsy Treasury vs Favorites vs Circles

Yesterday a reader posed the question of: What is the difference between Treasury vs Favorites vs Circles? So I thought it would be a great topic for today's blog.

Treasury:
A Treasury is a Etsy member curated list of items. There are 16 items featured in a Treasury, or at least there should be. The one that creates the treasury generally has some type of theme in mind. Treasuries are a great way to share otherwise unseen items with people. Normally at least the 16 people in the Treasury will see the other 15 products. There is always a chance that a Treasury will be picked by an Etsy staff member to appear on the front page for one hour of the day, giving hundreds if not thousands of views.

Favorites:
Favorites come in two different ways. You can favorite an item and it is much like bookmarking it. Favoriting a shop will add them to your feed on the right side of your activity feed as in the picture at the top of this article. When you favorite an item or a shop it will show up in the feed of anyone in your circle. If someone in your circle favorites an item or shop it will show up in your feed.

Circles:
Circles are the "social" aspect of Etsy. When you add someone to your circle, you will see what they favorite in your feed. When someone adds you to their circle, they will see when you favorite an item or a shop. Using circles are good for a couple of reasons. First, it is free advertising. Second, it is a great way to see items you'd never see otherwise.

That is the basics of Treasuries, Favorites and Circles. Let me know if you have any questions by making a comment here or emailing me at MarketMyShop@gmail.com

Branding In Bushiness - Your Name Matters

Jeep has been around since 1941. Though they were not always called Jeep. They used to be Willys-Overland GP(General Purpose). They started being manufactured during the time of the Second World War. GP eventually became jeep which eventually became Jeep. Since they began being called a Jeep they have not changed their name and have become an American Icon.

Over the years I have had several businesses. One of those businesses has been the same type of business for almost 27 years. I started out as Chainmaille By Eric. Over the years I have partnered up with several other chainmaillers and changed my company name several times. Had I kept my original name I would have been much better established. Tangled Metal started 2 years ago by the looks of it, but I started the company 27 years ago.

Too many people change the name of their business over time. And by doing this they never really get established. What if eBay had decided that their name was just stupid and changed it to something like Online Auctions a year after they started. They would have lost a lot of creditably. Fortunately they kept the name and are now the largest online auction site on the web.

The point I am trying to make is that once you have a name, keep it. Don't end up with a 2 year old business that has been in business for 27 years, like me. This is branding at its best. Get a name, use the name, brand the name and don't change it.

That is all for today. I am easing back into the routine of blogging and would love some suggestions for future blog posts. Please feel free to leave a comment or send me an email to MarketMyShop@gmail.com

Time Management Or Lack There Of

Time, it would seem, tends to slip by if you're not careful. Here is my dilemma. My brick and mortar shop is open Wednesday through Sunday. So, my weekend falls on Monday and Tuesday. I am usually pretty tired after running the shop all week and just want to relax on my weekend.

Unfortunately, as many of you know, having a relaxing weekend when you are self employed is oftentimes just a dream. On my weekend,  I usually end up restocking all that has sold in the shop and Etsy along with filling orders for my wholesale accounts and distributor.

All of this gives me little time to write these days. I have written more than once about how to organize your time so I should have this down, right? Well, it would seem I need to start taking my own advice and make a list for each day.

I have one eBook done and for sale in my shop: Facebook Ad Guide For Etsy Shop Owners and I have 5 more eBooks waiting to be finished with another 3 or 4 being bounced around in my mind. Hopefully if I can manage to get on a better schedule I can make all of them happen.

This just goes to show, I am human, too. I procrastinate. I don't always make the best use of my time. I have a lot of unfinished products, both with Market My Shop and with Tangled Metal and with The Curious Crow. All that I can do is take my own advice and try to do a little better each and every day.

How do you find time to make everything happen? What tricks have you come up with not to fall behind. I would really like your input on this topic. So, leave a comment here or send me an email: MarketMyShop@gmail.com

Trying To Get Caught Up

Hello, everyone. As you probably guessed I have been quite busy. I am trying to get all caught up so that I can do some more blogging. Please keep checking back.

Etsy About Page

Etsy added a way to expand what you can show your customers about yourself. I stumbled across it purely by accident. It is in the Info &Appearance section. You can add a photo of yourself, multiple product photos, more info on you and your company and EXTERNAL links!

The portrait photo is one you can have of yourself. This will allow you to keep your avatar photo whatever you wish and still have a photo of yourself. This is pretty nice because I have found I get more people looking at my profile through clicking on my avatar when it is a product photo rather than one of me. If you have multiple employees you can also set up profiles for each of them.  Of course you have to set up yourself as the owner before you can do that.


After you set up a short bio, much like your profile bio, you can set a full story and add pictures. You are able to upload 5 pics with captions. These do not have to be current products. They can be just about anything. You can have pics of your work area, past projects, etc. On the about section they are a slideshow.

At the end of the info you are allowed to add 3 external links. They are for Facebook, Twitter, your website or blog. These links are GREAT for SEO because of the weight an Etsy link carries. This is the first time Etsy has ever allowed external links. The links open in a new tab and for you SEO nerds, there is not a "no follow" attached to the link so it will help your SEO on your pages that you link to.

Anyway, I suggest you go and fill out the info as it is a great way to get your customer more familiar with you. I have been very busy the last couple of weeks but things are slowing down again and I should be able to blog. If you need some one on one consulting please send me an email for details on what I do. I do not advertise my consulting because I do not have time to take on many clients at any given time. But if you need the help I can discuss what I can do.

As always, if you have any questions please feel free to leave a comment or send me an email to MarketMyShop@gmail.com

Important Changes To Facebook Fan Pages

Recently Facebook added something to pages that you might have noticed. They put a "Promote" button on each of your posts. If you click on it you will see that if you pay Facebook about $10 per every 1000 fans you have they will put the post in their feed even if they are not subscribed to you. I, along with many others, am not too happy about this change.

Facebook already charges me to get more fans and now they want to charge me to share posts with them? I don't think so. This change came about the same time as Facebook going public. It looks like just another way to increase the profits of the owners at the expense of small business owners. I am working on some work arounds for this for all of you and will get back to you when I have a viable solution.

In the meantime, please feel free to take the above image and save it to your computer and post it on your Facebook page. Let your fans know that they may be missing out on specials and sales.

More About Etsy Titles And Tags

It has come to my attention that some people still do not understand keywords in general. That is okay, this is a very difficult concept to get. Keywords are used in your TITLE, TAGS and DESCRIPTION. The more important the keyword is the more prominent it should be. You should use your most important keywords in the first three words of your TITLE.

Let's use one of my items as an example: http://www.etsy.com/listing/99617992/facebook-ad-guide-for-etsy-shop-owners?ref=ss_listing

The title of the item is: "Facebook Ad Guide For Etsy Shop Owners" It is short, concise and to the poit and describes exactly what the item is. Anyone typing "Facebook Ad Guide" into Etsy will find my eBook. Typing "Facebook Guide" also brings my item up in search as the very first item after paid search.

Here are my Tags: Everything Else - Educational - facebook guide - facebook ads - fan page - facebook marketing - market my shop - advertising - facebook how to - facebook - social media - tutorial eBook - etsy shop guide - marketing

Here is my description:
Facebook Ad Guide For Etsy Shop Owners - Tutorials by Market My Shop
This easy to use guide will help you to understand and implement a successful Facebook Advertising Campaign. The guide is 10 pages long and has handy images and detailed instructions on how to set up your first Facebook Ad. Start gaining more Facebook Fans immediately.

The PDF eBook will be delivered to your email address associated with Etsy within 24 hours of your purchase. I you would like it emailed to a different address please list it in the notes at time of purchase.


What questions my title may not answer I answer in the description. What keywords I don't use in my title get put in my tags. Anyone searching for exactly what I typed in the title and tags will eventually find me. 

It really is a game of what phrase would you use to find my item. Sit down and think about it for a bit. Write down four or five phrases that you think someone would use to find your item. Type those phrases into the Etsy search and Google and see what you come up with. Also, remember to look at the title and tags of what you find when you search on Etsy, someone else may have a better title and tags!

Hope this clears things up a bit and doesn't confuse further. I will be back tomorrow to talk about photography. Until then please feel free to comment, leave questions or email me: MarketMyShop@gmail.com

Etsy And The Art Of Networking

Who is in your circle? Adding people to your circle can help spread your product. When people add you to their circle they are updated when you add something new or renew an old item or re-list a sold item. When someone favorites one of your items, add the to your circle. About half the time, they will add you back.

Grow your network on Etsy by growing your circle. If you add me to your circle, I will add you to mine. This will help everyone grow! Here is my shop: http://MarketMyShop.etsy.com Feel free to comment with your shop. Let's build a huge network!

Etsy: Less Views Can Mean More Sales!

I have discussed Bounce Rate before but I wanted to revisit it after talking about Etsy's search algorithm. Sometimes when you tighten up your relevancy you actually experience a drop in views, sometimes it is a significant drop in views. Don't panic!

A drop in views means very little unless you have a drop in sales accompanying it. If so, you might need to revisit relevancy in general. If your drop in views does not seem to change your sales rate then you have actually done well. You have dropped your bounce rate. Meaning, those who just click on a listing and leave within seconds because it isn't what they are looking for. Those people rarely buy anyhow. Sure, someone might buy because they randomly landed on one of your products, but the customer you actually want is one that sought out your product because that is what they were looking for.

The better your relevancy the better chance you have at connecting with a customer. So, before you start to panic after making a change, look at the big picture. Give it a little bit of time. If your sales are not dropping you are probably doing okay. You might want to revisit some of my articles on Bounce Rate by clicking on the tag cloud to the right.

Hope this helps a little. Let me know if you have any questions by leaving them in the comments or sending me an email to MarketMyShop@gmail.com

Etsy Search Optimization

Over the weekend I answered someone's question on one of the forums at Etsy. They wanted to know how Etsy's search algorithm worked. So I wrote this up for them. I thought it would be good to share it here with all of you.

Etsy Search algorithm (the formula used to determine relevancy) is said to function like this:
First Etsy looks at the title for EXACT word phrase matches and lists those items as most relevant.
Second it looks for EXACT word phrases in the tags section and lists those matches.
Now, you have probably noticed that most of the listings in a relevant search DO NOT have EXACT keyword phrase matches in their title and maybe not even their tags and here is why:

Etsy also uses USER INPUT to determine relevancy. So, if someone searches for "crochet baby bib" and looks at 3 pages and clicks on a listing from page 3, that listing just got a huge bump in relevancy because someone found it relevant. Though the other listings previous to it were also relevant the one that got clicked became more relevant and jumped up to maybe page 2. It might have been what the user was looking for.

Now, the relevancy of being clicked does not just get a bump in a relevancy search. It gains relevancy if it is clicked on from any spot. If it is clicked on for a treasury or in the Newly listed section of the front page or clicked on from anywhere inside Etsy it gains relevancy based on its title and tags.

Renewing gives your item a small chance of being clicked on from different areas on Etsy. Renewing does not guarantee you a bump in relevancy just by renewing.

There are other aspects of the Etsy Search algorithm that they have not released and probably never will. The best thing to do is to make sure you have a very relevant title (mainly the first 3 words) and relevant tags. The better you are at describing the item in the title and guessing how a customer will search for your item the better chance you have of being found, clicked on and sold.

Lastly, it is far better to work within a niche rather than in the general category. Example:
It is better to optimize for Crochet Baby Bib than Baby Bib. You'll find far less competition the more specific you get with your title and tags.


You may experience a DROP in views but also a DROP in bounce rate. Being more relevant actually keeps those who are not interested in your items off your page and gains the ones that are looking for your items.


I hope you all had a great long weekend. Let me know if you have any questions by leaving a comment or sending me an email to MarketMyShop@gmail.com

A Change To Facebook You Should Be Aware Of

Facebook recently made a change to the way people see the pages they like. You now need to have pages listed in either "Show in News Feed" or under a list. To make sure your fans see you it might be a good idea to snag the above and post it to your Facebook Page.

Just right click over the image above and "Save As" then log into your Facebook page and upload it to your page. Social media pages like Facebook and Twitter make these changes and don't usually tell anyone about it. I guess they expect us to just notice it. Whatever the case, it is important to know about these changes and do what you can to share them with your fans or followers.

Short blog today. I am very busy these days with the new brick and mortar shop and life in general. If you have any questions put them in the comments or send me an email to MarketMyShop@gmail.com I hope you all have a wonderful weekend!

Etsy Change To Multiple Quantity Listings

As of May 21st, Etsy changed the way you are charged when listing multiple quantities of a single item. Before the changes you were charged $.20 for each item. So, if you listed a quantity of 10 you were charged a listing fee of $1.00 when you listed or renewed.

The new changes allow you to list as many in the quantity as you like with a single $.20 fee. When you renew you are just charged $.20 as well. The way it works is when you sell one of your quantity you are charged $.20 for the next item in the listing. Or if you sell more than one at a time you are charged the fees on the items sold minus the first one which is already paid for plus a fee for the renewal of the next one if you still have it in stock.

Example:

List 10 of the exact same necklace. Pay $.20 for the entire listing
If 1 sales you are charged $.20 to "auto renew" your listing. You now have 9 necklaces.
Then if 5 sale you are charged $.1.0 ($.20 for the 4 not yet paid for plus $.20 for the next one)
You now have 4 necklaces, of which one already has the listing price paid.

It all reads like an elaborate math word problem but it boils down to this: Etsy has made it easy for people to sell multiple quantities of one item without having to renew it every time one is sold. What is unclear is whether the "auto renew" aspect actually works like an auto renew posting it as a new item to the "What's new in your favorite shop" feed. I will look into that and let you know. If you already have that answer please feel free to share.

I got really busy yesterday and didn't make time to post. Sorry about that. It would seem no matter how much time you budget, sometimes something happens to rearrange your schedule! I will be back tomorrow with more on my series of 'The Magic Numbers Of Etsy.'  Until then, let me know if you have any questions or comments either here on the blog or through email at MarketMyShop@gmail.com

Etsy Labor Pricing Magic Numbers

Yesterday I talked about the number of items in your shop. Today I would like to talk about another magic number, price. One of the more difficult things to do is price your work. If you are selling vintage items it is a bit easier but for those of us who make our products it is a pain coming up with pricing.

First off, let me say your prices are probably too low. You are probably not paying yourself a fair wage. What is a fair wage? Let's look at it as if you were getting paid by someone else. When you first start a job with no experience you usually get paid a minimum wage. Let's say today minimum wage is $8/hr. So, everything you make when you start out, should have a labor price of $8/hr straight across the board. One item takes you an hour to make has an $8 labor price.

After working at a job for 6 months or a year you should be up for a raise. Your raise should be based on how far you have come. Let's say that item that used to take you an hour to create now only takes you 30 minutes. You have doubled your efficiency in a year. Does this mean that your labor for the original items is now $4? Of course not. You are not going to drop your price just because you are better at it now, that would be counter productive! Nope, your new labor cost for an item is $4 but you are still going to pay yourself the original $8 for it. You just got a $4 an hour raise, congrats!

You won't always be able to give yourself a 50% increase in your hourly wage. At some point you will eventually level out on the time you spend on an item. That is why it is important to give yourself a yearly raise and/or a cost of living wage. The cost of living is always going up, always.

What? You say you are not even making minimum wage? What is wrong with you? When you pay yourself less than minimum wage you are saying you are not as good as the kids working a summer job flipping burgers. Give yourself a raise right now! You are worth it! Period. End of discussion! Seriously, if you are not paying yourself a reasonable wage what is the point of doing what you are doing? You can offer a million excuses but the bottom line is you are worth it.

I look forward to the comments on this one so bring them on. Got a question? Email me MarketMyShop@gmail.com

P.S. The Fibonacci Sequence is one of my favorite 'magic numbers' an that is why I put the picture up, it has nothing to do with Etsy and everything to do with me being a nerd.

Etsy Shop Magic Number Of Items

I am sure you have all heard that there is a magic number of items you need in your shop to start making sales on a regular basis. The exact number will vary from shop to shop. For me, the first magic number was 50 items. When I hit that number I started getting sales almost every week.

The second magic number was 100 items. When I hit that goal I started making sales every week without fail. Okay, maybe there was a week or two in there that I did not make a sale but the average was pretty good. Once I hit 200 items I was making a sale every four days on average.

Finally when I managed to get 300 items in my shop my sales average went to a sale every other day on average. I have maintained that average for about four months now. My new goal is to have 400 items in the shop by the end of June. Hopefully that will bring me close to my current goal for the year which is a sale a day on average.

The reasoning behind the magic number theory is simple. If you have a lot to choose from you will make more sales. I get a lot of requests to critique shops for people. I am pretty busy but I do try and at least glance at a shop and give what feedback I can. (I also offer paid consulting at a very reasonable rate which will guarantee my attention)The number one thing I notice the most is shops with only one page of products. You cannot expect to make 20 sales a day if your shop only has 20 items.

The more variety you can offer your customers the better chance you have of getting that sale from them. Now, of course, there are a lot more variables that come into play like photo quality, tags, titles, descriptions, etc. Those are all things that need to be in place as well. There is a wealth of knowledge on all those subjects in this blog. Have a look at the Tag Cloud to the right. Clicking on a word will bring up articles about that subject.

I will talk more on magic numbers tomorrow. Please let me know if you have any questions or comments. Leave them here or send me an email at MarketMyShop@gmail.com

10 Tips For Branding Your Etsy Shop

One of the best ways to get more business on Etsy is to stand out int the crowd. Chances are, what you make is not exclusively made by you. There are thousands of crocheters, jewelry designers and people selling vintage goods. Each day that number grows. I have talked a little this week on branding your shop. Today I want to give some tips for you. Some you may think common sense but they might just be the key that puts you in front of the right customer.

1. Put your name somewhere in your description. Google will pick it up. That way if someone can remember your name but not your web address they can find you.

2. Put a signature on your email. Put your business name and a link to all your sites including Etsy, website, Facebook, Twitter and blog.

3. Sing your Etsy convos with "your name from your business." I sign all of my convos with "Eric from Market My Shop" because this builds name recognition and name association. It may seem redundant but that is the point!

4. Once you have a logo, don't change it. It is okay to modify it for the times but make sure it is always recognized as your logo. Over time this will build your customer recognition.

5. Use your shop name as your login id on all social networks. This means Facebook, Twitter, blogs, forums, pinterest, everything! You want people to see your business name at every turn!

6. If you are a member of a newsgroup or forum where you can have a signature USE IT! Put your shop name and a link to your shop.

7. Put your business name on your Etsy banner. You have no idea how many Etsy banners I see with no text on it at all.

8. Be active! That means be active on Etsy, Etsy forums, Facebook, Twitter, blogs, Pinterest and anywhere that you can put your name.

9. Comment on blogs and Facebook posts. Make sure you are logged into your business name when you want to post on a blog. It is simple advertising and brand building.

10. Don't be afraid to try something new. If a new social media site opens up, join it. You never know what the next Facebook or Twitter will be. Getting your name in early on can be huge.

That is it for today. I hope you all have a great weekend! Let me know if you have any questions by emailing MarketMyShop@gmail.com or leave a comment.

Branding Your Business Name

Recently I was asked a question how to get your business name branded. A logo is one thing but name recognition is very powerful. if you were to type your name into Google what would you see? I tried this experiment today and here are my results for searching Tangled Metal: 6 out of 10 results on page 1 are me. My website, my blog, my twitter, my Facebook, my Etsy shop and a couple more that are related to my products. I also put Market My Shop into Google and 6 of the 10 results again are me. How many of the listings are you when you type your business name into Google?

I have been branding the Tangled Metal name for over 2 years and the Market My Shop for about a year. Part of the success is due to having the same username on all major social media outlets. That builds consistency and recognition. Will Tangled Metal or Market My Shop ever be a household name? Probably not. But when someone forgets my web address and Googles one of my names, they will be directed to one of my web pages.

Another way that I brand my business name is that I have it in every single description on all of my Etsy listings. Every listing I have has this as the first line of my description: "product type - product category by Tangled Metal"

Etsy all but ignores your description but Google loves it! So, I am able to brand my product in Google and in the eyes of anyone who looks at one of my listings. This is just one of many ways to start branding your business name. I'll be back tomorrow with more. In the meantime if you have any questions feel free to leave a comment or send me an email via MarketMyShop@gmail.com

A Slight Delay In Blogging

Yesterday I drove over 600 miles round trip to pick up my 17 year old daughter. Her mom is moving about 1200 miles away and my daughter decided to move in with me rather than make the move. So, that is why no post yesterday and today I am just taking it easy. I will be back tomorrow for sure with more helpful tips and tricks to make your Etsy shop better and more productive.

In the meantime, in case you missed it, I just released my first of many eBooks designed to make your life easier. This one is written to help you create and maintain a successful Facebook Ad campaign:

The next eBook is in the works and is about how to successfully use Twitter to gain more customers. It should be ready early next week. I am looking for suggestions on what you want written next. SEO? Relevancy? You tell me.

Facebook Ads eBook Now available

I just added the Facebook Advertising Guide to the Market My Shop Etsy Store. The concise and easy to understand guide is only $7.50 and will save you time and energy. I will be adding more guides very soon and as always I am open to suggestions. Thanks!

It is Follow Friday

I am super busy today and do not have time for a long blog. I just wanted to remind all of you that is Friday and you can still #followfriday #ff on Twitter. Many people still play. Help keep the tradition alive! You can follow me here: @MarketMyShop but I do not post much other than updates to the blog. My other Twitter account is @TangledMetal where I do tweet a lot!

I hope you all have a great weekend! See you on Monday. I will be continuing the series on branding.

Your Brand Logo

One thing that all the major brands have in common is some type of logo. Whether it be the Coke Wave, the Pepsi Ball, the Playboy Bunny or any range of car emblem logos, they all have something that sets them apart from everyone else. Now, I am not saying go out and get a logo for your business. Okay, I am saying that, but you do not have to spend a ton of money on a logo.

You can make your own logo. It could be as simple as the font you use for your business name. It could be the color scheme you use. Your logo can even be your catch phrase. Just like your name is your brand so to is your logo. Once you have a logo it is best to not change it. If you have a simple logo now it can evolve with the times. As long as your customers can still tell it is you.

Consistency and repetition is the key to branding and a logo can help you along with that. If you can attach an image to your email signature, put your logo in with it. Make stickers or stamps for your mailing labels. Make a bumper sticker for your car with your logo on it. You want your logo to be synonymous with your business name.

That is all for today. Join me again tomorrow for more on Branding your business. Until then, let me know if you have any questions by email at MarketMyShop@gmail.com or leave them here as a comment.

Branding Your Business

One of these things is not like the others. That is what branding does for you. It helps you to stick out in the crowd. Branding is much easier to do from day one, but that does not mean you can't start branding in the middle of the game. You want to be remembered when someone is looking for what you do.

Your shop/business name is your brand. If you have a name like "sallyanne43" as your shop name I would strongly consider changing it now. Stop reading and go do it! You want your shop/business name to be short, concise, easy to read, easy to spell and easy to remember. "Sally Anne Sews" is a good example of a shop/business name that is short, concise, easy to read, spell and remember. It does one other thing, it says what you do.

If you already have a good name, make sure you register it in every place you can. G-mail, Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, Blogger, Photobucket, Flickr and any forum you are a member of. This is who you are. You are your business name. Please note that your new persona has no ties to religion, politics and is 100% neutral on any controversial topics. You have your personal accounts for that or you should.

That is all for today. I will be back tomorrow with more on branding. If you have any questions let me know via email at MarketMyShop@gmail.com or leave a comment.

Spruce Up Your Etsy Shop And More

I know I have talked about it before but I wanted to bring it back to your attention. Your shop banner on Etsy says a lot about your shop. Let's hope it says the right thing. Your banner is one of the first things people see when they come to your shop. You never get a second chance to make a first impression.

Curious Crow Creative has been making and selling Etsy banners for some time now. She has spent a great deal of time researching what people like and expect to see when they go to an Etsy shop. Not even being open a year yet, she has already made just under 700 sales and has 100% positive feedback. So, she is certainly doing something right.

Perhaps your shop banner needs a face lift or you just want to try something different. Maybe you just don't have the time any more to create your own banners and graphics. Whatever the case, maybe you should check out Curious Crow Creative and see what she has to offer for you.

The one thing she does offer that might be the most helpful to some of you is her package deals. She creates an Etsy Banner, Avatar, Sale Avatar, Facebook Timeline Pic and Avatar and a business card. She can do other graphics for other social networks as well. The great thing is all the graphics will have a similar theme which helps you with your branding.

This week I will be talking more about branding. So, come back tomorrow and see what I have to say. Send me your questions to MarketMyShop@gmail.com or leave them as a comment here. See you all tomorrow!