i heart handmade » etsy

Selling online: a quick venue guide for indie businesses

indiehandmade — Wed, 19 May 2010 18:06:00 +0000

There are lots of venues out there for indie business selling their goods online. Perhaps too many to count! If you’re curious about your options, check out this handy reference guide, which provides a brief overview (including an honest look at the fees) of some of the top sites out there. (Please note: you can scroll and zoom in/out on the document below or download your own copy from the bottom of this post.)

I’m sure a lot of you were instantly intrigued about the venues who let you sell with no fees. However, in all fairness, you should consider more than just the fee structure when choosing a venue — or two or three or more. For example:

What kind of traffic does the site get? (Do the increased fees justify the traffic?)
Who shops there?
What items are selling?
Do your products appear to fit in with the site?
How much in fees can you afford while still making your indie business profitable?

These aren’t always easy questions to answer, but browse around the sites. See what items are selling. Check the FAQ and About sections for answers on demographics. Get involved in the forums (if they have them) and look for existing topics or start your own. Make an honest assessment of how much you can afford in monthly marketing/advertising fees to help boost traffic if site traffic is slow. The great thing about being a part of the indie world is that lots of people genuinely want to be helpful.

And keep in mind, what works for one person may not work for another. It’s up to you to figure that out.

And finally, if you don’t like any of these options, you always have the option of managing your own e-commerce store. Stay tuned for some helpful information on that…

Download the PDF of this file: OnlineSellingVenues

New Etsy shop look for?

indiehandmade — Sun, 28 Mar 2010 03:45:09 +0000

Thanks to everyone who entered to win an Etsy shop makeover from Atomic Creative Design. I’m sure you’re all curious who won, so without further ado…

… the winner is: BareSockCrafts. Congratulations! You get to work with Michele of Amotic Creative on a new custom design for your Etsy shop.

And for those who didn’t win, don’t fret! You can still get your own custom shop design from Atomic Creative’s own shop or check out the other giveaways going on right now.

Chewlry giveaway (this jewelry has bite!)

indiehandmade — Wed, 24 Mar 2010 14:30:04 +0000

Wondering why I said this jewelry has bite? Take a look for yourself:

Bold, colorful and chunky. There’s some major attitude in these pieces by Chewlry and they are definitely not for the faint of heart! If this sounds like you, you’ll be glad to hear that you can win your own chunky charm bracelet from Chewlry. Here’s how:

Stop by Chewlry on Etsy and browse around. Pick out your favorite item and tell us what it is for 1 entry.
After looking through the shop, suggest what other bold color combos you’d be interested in seeing (bracelets or earrings) for 1 entry. Leave a separate comment.
Tweet about this giveaway on Twitter and leave a separate comment with your twitter ID for 1 more entry. (An easy way to do this is by clicking on the Twitter bird button on the bottom of this post.)

One lucky winner will be selected at random and announced here on March 30, 2010. Winner will get to select their choice of charm bracelet from Chewlry’s shop.

Good luck!

Mini art print giveaway with Jen Kiaba

indiehandmade — Mon, 22 Mar 2010 16:00:59 +0000

What better way to start off the work week than with yet another giveaway? Today, it’s a giveaway with Jen of Jen Kiaba Photography for a set of 4 5×5 art prints from her Etsy shop. The winner chooses which 4 prints! How fabulous is that?!

Jen’s style is whimsical with vintage styling. They’re really great mood pieces that invite you in to a story. And if you’re an Alice in Wonderland fan, you’ll find lots of Alice inspired prints here. Take a look at just a few of the prints available:

Here’s how to enter to win your choice of four 5×5 mini art prints:

Stop by Jen’s shop on Etsy and browse around. Come back here and tell us what your favorite photo is for 1 entry.
Tweet about this giveaway on Twitter for 1 more entry. Leave a separate comment with your Twitter ID. (An easy way to do this is by clicking on the Twitter bird button at the bottom of this post.)
Become a fan of Jen Kiaba Photography on Facebook for 1 more entry. Leave a separate comment letting us know.

One lucky winner will be selected at random and announced right here on March 28, 2010.

Win a custom Etsy shop design set from Atomic Creative

indiehandmade — Sun, 21 Mar 2010 14:45:29 +0000

Now here is one giveaway you cannot afford to miss! It’s a custom Etsy shop design set from Shelly at Atomic Creative Design and is jam packed full of everything your business needs to be taken seriously — like banners, avatars, a business card design and more.

Here’s a sampling of Shelly’s work:

One lucky winner will work with Shelly to come up with a custom design for your Etsy shop and other business essentials. Here’s how to enter:

Stop by Atomic Creative Design on Etsy and look through the pre-made designs and pick out the one you like the best. Come back here and tell us what it is for 1 entry.
Tweet about this giveaway on Twitter for 1 more entry. Leave a separate comment with your username. (A quick way to do this is by clicking on the Twitter bird button at the bottom of this post.)
For 1 more entry, briefly tell us why you need this Etsy shop makeover. Leave a separate comment.
Follow this blog on Google Friend Connect for 1 more entry. Leave a separate comment letting me know.

That’s 4 easy ways to enter to win! Remember to leave a separate comment for each entry. One lucky winner will be selected at random and announced here on March 27th.