Category: side hustles

How to Make Etsy Work for You

Etsy is becoming one of the most-used platforms when it comes to handmade and digital products.

Has another week really gone by already? I could have sworn I just wrote my last post a couple of days ago. I guess what they say is true: the older you get the faster time passes.

Etsy is becoming one of the most-used platforms when it comes to handmade and digital products. More and more people are turning to the Etsy search bar to find the gifts they want and the products they want. If you are considering a shop or just getting started, this post has some advice on how to make Etsy work for you.

Disclaimer: Links within this post are either to my own products, or products I endorse. I may receive a small commission should you make a purchase through an affiliate link, at no extra cost to you. My blog is supported through commissions and sales of my products. Plus, if you like what you read you can show your support by pinning this post, sharing on social media, or buy me a coffee.  Thank you for your continued support.

In my last post I talked about cutting out my Etsy Shops, but after some careful consideration I have decided to keep at least one going. It’s an easy platform to list my digital products and it doesn’t require daily maintenance. However, more regular updates are beneficial from what I understand, as Etsy rewards shop owners that are more active. Not monetary rewards, but in how often the shops show up in searches. (I do suppose if there’s a sale generated then that does become a monetary reward.)

I have been practicing my copywriting skills in my product descriptions as well, which has attracted a bit more attention. I don’t make a sale every time someone clicks on my shop but my conversion rates vary from less than 1% to 10%, depending on the product. Some months are better than others but I believe that’s the case for most businesses, whether they’re on or offline.

Product Analytics

Something I have started using to see which products are popular on Etsy is Everbee. It has helped me ditch several ideas which I thought were great, but the demand (or even interest in some cases) just wasn’t there. It has essentially saved me from spending time and money on a listing that isn’t going to get any visibility because there’s no one searching for it.

This is a fraction of the listings shown for the search term “bookmark”. See the numbers and the potential?

The search pictured above is showing mostly physical bookmarks, which is probably as good or better than digital downloads. Bookmarks are light and fit into a regular size envelope, which is also inexpensive to mail. (If shipping physical bookmarks be sure to work the cost of shipping into your price. Shoppers like free shipping.)

Everbee has helped thousands of shop owners earn hundreds of thousands of dollars per year, simply by using the analytics tool to see what’s popular. That said, don’t just create an item because it’s popular. The point is also to enjoy the creation process so it should be something you’re interested in. Believe me when I say it’s more of a chore to create something you don’t like.

Templates

I added a set of bookmarks to my shop today, as well as a Canva template so other shop owners can create their own bookmarks or product inserts for physical products. The demand for bookmarks is still high even with a lot of people reading ebooks. (I don’t know about you, but I still enjoy reading a hardcopy book. They’re easier on the eyes and there aren’t any batteries to need charging.)

With the increase of digital products being created many are turning to templates to make that creation faster. I have purchased templates in the past for planners and journals with commercial rights, and have had some small successes with certain ones. Now that I have created my own on Canva I foresee myself adding more templates to my shop to help others create their own products.

The templates are not restricted to digital products though either. It’s relatively simple to use a template, print out the product you created, and sell it as a tangible item. There is always someone out there that would like to get a physical product as opposed to a digital one. besides, physical products are much nicer for gift-giving.

One thing to keep in mind when using a template is whether or not you can sell the finished product you create from it. Some shop owners will allow the sale of the items created, while others specify it’s for personal use only. No matter the end-use of the product created, the templates are generally not allowed to be sold by others. This can cause hiccups so be sure you’re clear on the end-use policies.

My sales for 2023. They’re not spectacular but they have increased since I started using Everbee.

As the picture above shows, my sales haven’t been spectacular this year. But, they are better than last year. My total sales for this shop were $86.oo in 2022, and I have already surpassed that and there are still 4 months to go in 2023. I think with the addition of templates my numbers will continue to rise.

Advertising

If you can afford it, I also recommend advertising your products on Etsy. The daily budget is from $1.00 – $25.00. I suggest starting at $1.00/day for no more than 3 or 4 listings. I just increased my daily budget to $1.50 for 5 listings, so will see how that works out for me. You can choose to spend your daily budget on one listing or several, but I have found the sweet spot to be around 3. It may not immediately translate into sales, but it could translate into a new shop follower. That in itself can lead to sales when you list new products.

Wrapping It Up

There are entire courses and ebooks on how to make Etsy work for you, but this post is based on my experience with the platform. As I said in the beginning, I was contemplating cutting my shops but have decided to utilize the resources I have instead. I’ll be able to either write my own case study by year-end or throw in the towel. Either way, spending time using Everbee, Canva, and Etsy ads will help me create the products I enjoy. And most of all, I’ll be able to do a follow-up in Q1 of 2024 and let you know what worked (or didn’t) for me.

Have you spent much time on Etsy as a shopper, or do you have a shop of your own? Let me know in the comments below.

Save Time by Buying Designs with a Commercial Rights License

I honestly don’t know where the time goes. Why is it that the older we get the faster time seems to fly? I wish Social Studies class would have gone by as fast back in high school.

I’ve been working on adding items to my Etsy Shop, with the latest being a set of colouring pages for Valentine’s Day. What makes the colouring pages fun is picking and choosing clip art I downloaded from Creative Fabrica, and using Affinity Designer to arrange it. No matter how many people have downloaded the clip art bundle I did, no two projects will be the same. That’s the beauty of mixing and matching.

Creating your own products for your digital store is much simpler when you’re able to get graphics and clip art with commercial rights licensing. Plus you can also use the designs on physical products. So far I have only used a fraction of what I downloaded for digital products, but I also intend to create a few products for my Zazzle Shop.

Disclaimer: Links within this post are either to my own products, or products I endorse. I may receive a small commission should you make a purchase through an affiliate link, at no extra cost to you. My blog is supported through commissions and sales of my products. Plus, if you like what you read you can show your support by pinning this post, sharing on social media, or buy me a coffee.  Thank you for your continued support.

And let’s face it, some of us just can’t draw worth a crap. I have tried time and again to draw something more than a simple flower, but I just did not inherit my mom’s artistic talent. Thankfully I did inherit a love of writing from her though.

By investing a few dollars in designs with commercial licensing you can save time and get your products into your Etsy Shop or website sooner. I use a few resources when it comes to creating my own products, and I do have to say it has been a good thing. Yes, I’ve spent some money along the way but I’ve also created products I wouldn’t have otherwise.

If you’re new to creating printables, check out the Printables by Number link over on my Tools & Resources page. I have learned so much from John & Suzi. Plus they keep updating their courses as they learn new strategies, shortcuts, and ways of doing things. My favourite part about what they sell and teach is they created the tools for themselves first.

The image above is one of the colouring pages I added to my Etsy Shop earlier today. It’s part of the 5-page PDF, and it’s ideal for kids or adults to colour. The images are taken from a few different files and arranged to make this cute colouring page.

I bought the annual membership for Creative Fabrica which gives me access to tens of thousands of designs. If you’re not into designing colouring pages, there are also KDP Ready files available for low-content books. I have taken pages from a few to make my own printable and digital planners, but the files are available to use as-is.

And while we’re on the topic of commercial use files, I have a few sets of digital paper with commercial use rights over on Gumroad. Unlike a lot of other platforms, I’m limiting downloads of these packages to 100 worldwide.

They were created using Affinity and other software I invested in. There has been a learning curve, as there is with everything new. If you’re a planner or journal creator, these are great used as backgrounds and covers. And if you have a Zazzle Store you can use the designs on mugs, playing cards, blankets, tote bags, etc. There are so many options.

Have you bought designs with commercial use rights? Or do you sell your creations on platforms such as Creative Market, Creative Fabrica, or Gumroad? Let me know in the comments below.

Become an affiliate and earn 50% commissions promoting my digital paper packs (which come with commercial use licenses). For more details please visit https://takeonlifeafter50.gumroad.com/affiliates.

How to Spread Your Digital Wings for More Earning Potential

Designing products is so much fun!

Now that the community history book project is on its way to the publisher I can once again concentrate on my own work. Had I known it was going to be so time consuming I never would have agreed to being a part of it in the first place. But for what it’s worth, it was a learning experience for me.

I invested in another program that makes repeat patterns from a simple design or graphic. I really like the look of the black and white made from a simple mandala. I think it’s so neat that I added a mug to my Zazzle store. I can honestly say, there isn’t a mug exactly like this one anywhere.

Disclaimer: Links within this post are either to my own products, or products I endorse. I may receive a small commission should you make a purchase through an affiliate link, at no extra cost to you. My blog is supported through commissions and sales of my products. Plus, if you like what you read you can show your support by pinning this post, sharing on social media, or buy me a coffee.  Thank you for your continued support.

I am a firm believer we should all have eggs in a few baskets. There’s no guarantee that one source of income will always be there. Life happens, online platforms change their policies, and businesses close. And sometimes, those we rely on are suddenly no longer with us.

As you know (especially if you’ve been reading this blog from the beginning) I have a few things on the go at any given time. I can honestly say none of them have made me millions yet, but what I do earn helps pay my bills each month.

5 ways to spread your digital wings.
  1. If you’re a digital product designer, you can sell your designs as printables, or incorporate them on physical products through a POD platform (such as Amazon or Zazzle).
  2. Another way is to create designs and sell them with commercial rights. (I listed my first in my Etsy Shop last night.) This opens up new avenues because you can charge more for your designs. On Creative Market there is an application form you’ll have to fill out to open a shop, but it appears quite simple. I haven’t opened my own shop but continue to buy elements from others. You’ll have options as a seller because you can sell your designs for personal use, commercial use, or extended commercial use. Each level commands more fees, which you set.
  3. Create and sell templates. This is not something I’ve done (yet) but have purchased a few over the years, so I know there’s money to be made. You can sell these with personal or commercial use licenses.
  4. Create low-content books such as journals, planners, notebooks, etc for POD platforms such as Amazon. This is something I’ve mentioned before, and the numbers show some people do really well with it.
  5. Sell PLR which you create. This could be articles, templates, planners, journals, colouring pages, motivational cards, etc. This is especially nice if you enjoy writing but don’t want to submit your articles to different platforms. You do the work and give the buyer the rights to use the materials however they see fit. Oftentimes a limited number of the same package is available, so higher prices can be commanded.
A screenshot of my mug on Zazzle.

As you can see, the digital world offers unlimited potential. As much as I enjoy creating physical products for sale (crocheted items), the digital creations offer much more profit potential. I can create the product once and sell many copies of it. Plus, by uploading my designs to be incorporated into physical products I can increase both my visibility and revenue.

What are your thoughts on creating digital products to be incorporated on tangible items? Let me know in the comments below.

Become an affiliate and earn 50% commissions promoting my digital paper packs (which come with commercial use licenses). For more details please visit https://takeonlifeafter50.gumroad.com/affiliates.

%d bloggers like this: