REALISTIC advice for someone who wants to start an Etsy shop

Here's my honest advice for anyone wanting to start an Etsy shop for their handmade business right now.
It's not all pretty and you might not want to hear some of it, but after selling on the platform for more than 17 years, this would be my advice to you if you're looking to get started on the platform.

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[mishti]

Fantastic advice! I've been a handmade seller on etsy for a very long time...but due to the recent bots im finally just thinking of selling directly via social media. One thing that really erks me as a seller is that when you sell on a platform like this, buyers will usually always tell ppl that they 'bought it on etsy' NOT.."I got it from (shop name/artist)". As an artist, I want recognition for my brand. You won't get that on etsy.

[CreativeStitchingwithAnn]

Best advice I've heard online is, "forget the BS and focus on your goals and what works best for you". Awesome!!

[sharonhill]

I have been on Etsy 4 years doing handmade cards 100% handmade lol I’m not very computer literate, I’m now on 3, 200 sales, the average is 5 sales per day at the moment, I’m never going to be a millionaire but love making the cards coming up with new designs, my new baby cards are my niche and even have a couple of bestsellers 😊 it’s very satisfying to hear that ca ching still gives me a buzz 😊 like you say it does take time to build up your shop and find what customers want, build up your ratings so customers can trust you, a it’s hard but rewarding to know someone out there actually likes your work enough to buy it ☺️good video Kim, thank you ❤

[ptarlow]

I so appreciate your honesty. I’ve been on Etsy since 2010. I won’t get rich with my shop but I stick with it because there are times in between the frustration, it can be very rewarding. Yes, change is always happening, so you have to try to keep adapting.

[evanurulfianty]

her eyes really match with her sweater...so gorgous...

[awlthatwoodcrafts]

While it is easy to say that Etsy is "saturated", it is not as simple as that. Saturation, I believe, is more niche-centric. I don't believe that my niche (bird feeders) is saturated at all. Yes, there are a lot of feeders out there when you do a search, but I don't think it is a tough nut to crack. Not like if one decided to open a shop selling earrings, for example.

If I were to advise someone wanting to sell on Etsy, I would have one word: passion. Whatever it is you're trying to do/make/sell/yada, you better have a passion for it. It's that passion that gets you through those bad days and keeps you going.

[stevenfoulger]

The frustrating thing about trying to drive traffic via social media is that nobody likes or shares anything anymore. I've had people contact me about something I made that they saw on my page, but THEY DIDN'T EVEN BOTHER TO LIKE THE POST! Incredibly frustrating!

[reannarudey]

Hi Kim,
I have been working on an Etsy jewelry shop since November of last year. I have made 2 sales but I am still pushing forward with the shop since I love making jewelry. I love watching your videos while I am working on stuff. They are straight forward and I love your honesty.

[belindaroadley]

Gurus have a lot to answer for regarding setting up false expectations. You're a lot kinder to them than I am, 😅 I believe that the vast majority know they're peddling bull💩 hopes and dreams, but they know it gets views.

I have an artist friend who wanted to sell their painted artworks as digital downloads on Etsy. They thought, WOOHOO, passive income! Once I explained to them the work involved in gaining traction, they immediately quit. Like... for starters, passive income as a phrase is misleading anyway, coz you're really just doing the work up front for later gains. It's not like you can just fling a turd onto etsy and do nothing and suddenly you're a bazillionaire. Secondly, you have to keep doing the work! Like you rightly said, things change. And even if you're not trend-hopping, you still gotta make things people want to buy right now.

Oh dear, I'm wall-of-texting your comment section, I'll shut up now. 😂 Thanks for the video Kim!

[kitnkatshopcanda]

Thank you. Thank you so much. Even though we have finally made the transition from our direct shop being the main "breadwinner" from Etsy - we STILL have our Etsy shop. I also follow Etsy Seller boards, etc. I get so tired of the posts of folks wondering WHY they aren't making 6 figures selling stickers with "purchased digital art", etc. Or folks trying to tell them they just haven't gotten the most effective SEO (ours stinks, but we still manage to make sales?!?!) or they need to give Etsy even more money for ads when Etsy doesn't have the traffic to support it. I keep thinking of the phrase "a fool and his money are soon parted".

[sueburton]

Thanks for the honest advice I'm currently sat on this decision your timing was spot on

[meltedfire]

Thank you for posting this. So many creators make videos that feel far too good to be true, or suggest how to take the "easiest" way to sell something and it usually makes me feel uneasy.

[gillianmcmurray]

Thanks Kim. The ability to adapt and change - the best advice ever for selling on Etsy 😁

[Cuterate]

You are so true ! thank you for sharing for newbies ❤

[Kuhreenuh]

Love the transparency and authenticity! I just opened my Etsy shop over a week ago and I mostly did it to accomplish the goal of, just start. I definitely know I won’t become a millionaire or get 100s of sales in a day. Super unrealistic. My goal was to start my own businesses and get myself out there. I thought I would only do online, but my hairstylist invited me to be apart of her first market she hosted and it went way better than I expected for myself! And made me realize, I have different avenues I can take with this. Mostly though, I’m just proud of myself for starting and pursuing this creative dream I’ve always had. This alone, is successful for me❤

[alexisedwards]

Thank you for the honest advice- it was extremely helpful

[AmanahLyfeGifts]

I love listening you your videos while I clean my house. Just opened my Etsy shop and my own shopify store. As I get orders on Etsy, I make content with it and send traffic to my shop through Pinterest and IG. That’s my strategy. I’m definitely not relying on Etsy and hope to leave it soon. Hoping to start a YouTube channel too and make content and community that I can send to my website.

[falcieridesigns]

I much prefer channels that are honest about the struggle, the good and the bad. Channels that are always telling me how amazing everything is, just make me feel worse about myself. Knowing that the struggles I face are the same as people similar to me, is what keeps me focused and moving forward.

[renecasteel]

Finally, an honest video. Thank you.

[janneoksanen]

Great video again! My Etsy store got suspended last week, over something I have little clue about but I have a hunch it was because I logged into my account from different computer in different town, just to switch my store's Vacation mode off. I submitted an appeal, but got a more or less automated denial rather quickly. Still not explaining WHY my store got suspended. This is the kind of wanton gangsterism Etsy does, not to mention their technical support is downright hostile.
I was quite bummed by this for the first couple of days, but now it's starting to feel oddly liberated. Mostly thanks to your videos, I had already started preparing for things to go awry with Etsy, and building a website/Online store of my own (as it was already built-in to my web hosting service). I was hoping the two to co-exist for a while, but now I'm not missing the pressure from Etsy anymore, and I can focus on actual products and more exclusive, but more committed customer base.