does anyone else 'etsy'? [Archive]

handmadeheaven.biz

13-12-2006, 12:52 PM

does anyone else use etsy.com?

i just thought i'd give etsy another go and see how things fare on there (tried some jewellery aaages ago and not a bite - lots of jewellers but not too many glassies so we'll see). can't hurt for 10p a go. it's quite fun watching the numbers on each listing - it's like a popularity contest! ...no big surprise that the rainbow coasters are in the lead!!

(http://www.handmadeheavendotbiz.etsy.com/)

Katianne

31-01-2007, 07:19 PM

Hi - sorry, can't respond to your thread as don't even know what it is? I have seen etsy mentioned a few times and wondered if anyone can explain it to me? Is it a website you have to pay for? I haven't sold any of my mosaics yet due to not really having an outlet. Have thought about ebay but waiting for a 10p listing day to keep down costs so any other ways of selling would be worth looking into. Sorry for invading your thread!

Also, if it is an online shop is it a uk one or USA?

Peter

31-01-2007, 07:46 PM

It's like an e bay for handcrafted goods. I think it's an acquired taste though - I got a shop and it takes me ages to even find it! I'll have another look when I get time.:pc:

Apple Tree Crafts

01-02-2007, 09:31 AM

.....but haven't listed anything to sell yet. I'm just not sure my stuff would sell, not that there is very much competition. I'm very undecided about it.

I read the forums frequently and it's fairly cliquey. But sellers actually post threads saying they've made a sale, yippee, yeehaw, whooppee doo! it's like they are amazed to sell something, which doesn't seem quite right to me.Surely the point is that you expect to sell your craft/art?

I think UK sellers are having a hard time cracking the etsy nut.

Jules

handmadeheaven.biz

01-02-2007, 11:17 AM

i've found it pretty slow but it's an extra tool to get your name & products out there. it only costs 20 cents to list each item so it's not making me out of pocket! things are on for 6 months so it's understandable things sit about. i've bought some cool things from it & would like to hope people who buy from me think the same

Katianne

01-02-2007, 01:00 PM

I registered last night after having a quick look. I agree it did seem that the crafts on there don't sell in the same way that ebay would, but as its only about 10p to list I may list a few things. Is it like ebay in that there is a set time or does it stay on until someone buys?

soup4ever

01-03-2007, 09:16 PM

ayeyet

17-04-2007, 10:01 AM

I registered on January but posted my work on first of April
I love hearts and flowers and hope to keep creating & selling

Have a beautiful spring time

ayelet♥

i can't publish my shop here yet....so...
ayeyet.etsy

Donster

08-08-2007, 08:23 PM

Ah I knew if I looked around I'd find an etsy thread. :) I was going to ask if many people used it and had much success using it. A friend recommended it to me and I think it's a cool site but I wish you could list in £ as well. I know that puts me off. Was just wondering if people had much success selling on it?

Oh for an English equivalent! :)

Peter

08-08-2007, 08:36 PM

Donster

08-08-2007, 08:38 PM

Well it's not so much the listing in dollars, more the fact that I'm guessing it's mostly Americans that use it and with the postage costs you probably can't compete with selling items? Or I could be totally wrong. :sm:

Peter

08-08-2007, 08:40 PM

Donster

08-08-2007, 08:41 PM

So does that mean you know that people in other countries do have success with etsy? That's cool to hear. :)

Peter

08-08-2007, 08:57 PM

It's a global village out there, a lot of us order from the US, europe, japan, thailand, and anywhere else that has what we want! It's usually in US Dollars for payment. :)

swirlyarts

08-08-2007, 09:44 PM

I've sent several items that I have sold over to the US so it's not just us buying from the US - the Americans like us too! Unless you have an instant winner product (which all of us want!) then you will have to work hard at getting your name out there as it's such a big market. If you want an Etsy tips thread then let me know and I'll start one - not that I'm an expert but I lurk around the forums on Etsy too (forgive me Mr M!)

Donster

08-08-2007, 10:08 PM

I think an "etsy tips thread" could be interesting if you have the time. :) Unfortunately the friend who recommended it to me hadn't actually used it themselves but I looked around the site with interest. A lot of good stuff on there.

JBJB

08-08-2007, 10:08 PM

If you want an Etsy tips thread then let me know and I'll start one - (forgive me Mr M!)

Yes please

http://www.clicksmilies.com/s1106/party/party-smiley-027.gif

swirlyarts

08-08-2007, 10:31 PM

Right I'll do it tomorrow - bedtime now!! :sleep:

OGDesigns

08-08-2007, 11:26 PM

I registered on etsy but havent sold anything yet - i think the way the dollar is against the pound at the minute might put some of buying as it just works out too expensive :(

deezkatz

09-08-2007, 06:17 AM

Hia
I've been looking at Etsy as they have some very wierd and wonderful products on there, was thinking for the cost of it possibly advertising on there, may give it a go.
Would defo be interested to see the etsy help thread though.

candles by lisa

09-08-2007, 07:45 AM

woodtattoos

04-10-2007, 09:22 PM

I've made three sales on Etsy since I joined. The first buyer was Canadian but visiting family in the UK. The next two were to American customers buying personalised room/house signs.

It's good to have somewhere that does list your work and is cheaper than eBay.

Here's to some more customers soon!!

Si.

Half-an-acre

31-05-2008, 08:57 PM

Yes! I have an etsy shop!
i've had it for two weeks and just sold my first two items! i'm thrilled .....I really enjoy the forums there - the whole place is a lot of fun.

Donster

01-06-2008, 08:59 AM

Heehee, quite funny reading back this thread as it's an old one before I had given etsy a go. :) I had some concerns but glad I tried as I enjoy it there now. :)

cloudhopping

02-06-2008, 10:05 AM

Glad I joined Etsy too - wish I'd joined earlier!

sunshine

26-08-2008, 04:26 PM

I have 'Etsy' shop too, sold one gift set :)

AniccaJewellery

29-09-2008, 05:46 PM

I have started an Etsy shop as well. Still no sales, but am finding my way round it all. There do seem to be quite a few sellers from the UK listed.

At least it is cheap to list!

GreenPlover

29-09-2008, 06:59 PM

Could not resist adding that I am a BIG Etsy fan and have spent ... GULP... a small fortune, buying stacks of goodies from handbags, jewelery and reusable menstruation pads.

I LOVE IT!!!

Roseberry Crafts

01-10-2008, 08:35 PM

I've not been on here for a few weeks (home improvement issues!) but I couldn't resist popping in to respond to this thread.

I opened my Etsy shop in February and have had 3 sales in 7 months (all to US customers). I opened a Folksy shop in July and have sold 2 items in 2 months (both to UK customers). I thought Etsy was fantastic when I first joined up but I have recently changed my mind and emptied both shops (I opened another in July to seperate my cards from my other crafts) and I am now considering closing them altogether. Although there are Uk sellers on Etsy there are very few UK shoppers and whilst I've nothing against selling overseas, I really would prefer to keep it national.
When I discovered Folksy (set to become the UK's own answer to Etsy?) I felt as if I'd found the perfect online selling venue (for me anyway).
Etsy looks the part but does it really live up to it? Have a look at the section on the site that showcases the "items just sold". More often than not it's supplies that are selling and not the handmade stuff!

I just wanted to share my views and experiences of Etsy just so you get as broad a picture as possible, I'm not suggesting that anyone should give Etsy a miss, just don't get wowed by the shiny bright front pages and stay realistic about whether it can offer what you want.

GreenPlover

01-10-2008, 10:04 PM

Hey that sounds great, to be honest I would prefer to spend my money on UK products, lets face it they are the best :D

I had never heard of Folksy but you can guarantee I will be signing up and buying some nice goodies.

Also for what it is worth I have never come accross anyone who has heard of Etsy, which is a bit of shame.

Roseberry Crafts

02-10-2008, 10:24 AM

Also for what it is worth I have never come accross anyone who has heard of Etsy, which is a bit of shame.

A very good point! I've never met anyone (offline) who has heard of Etsy either, not even my American sister-in-law! Most people I mention it to are put off by the fact that everything is listed in dollars and can't get past that. We (the online craft sellers) tend not to think twice about purchasing from overseas or in a different currency because a lot of us are fluent in Paypal, currency conversion etc and have come to know and trust the global postal service. For the ordinary Uk shopper who still does the majority of their shopping in the real world and only pops onto the net for special occassions the online experience is still daunting and ordering from a Uk seller in GBP is a must for many of them. I have asked my family and friends about this issue and most of them say they won't order from overseas. I asked a friend, if she'd come accross Etsy herself (rather than me telling her about it) what would her first impression be? Her answer was; "eveything appears to be listed in the US so it's not for me"!
The other thing I feel worthy of pointing out is that this particular friend of mine is a lover of all things unique, eclectic, handmade, quirky etc and is usually the one telling me about something new she's found on the web, yet she has never heard of Etsy!

craftsensations

02-10-2008, 02:34 PM

I tend to join a little bit of everything! So am signed up to etsy and to daWanda and will to folksy when I get round to it......

My aim is not necessarily to sell on these (though that would be good fo course!) but all to help drive people to my site and drive my name up the google listings etc.

The problwm is the time! There are just not enough hours in the day! I'm hoping once I've got my website sorted and live with everything on it, then I can focus on getting my head round places like etsy a bit more. Just wish I had more time and am hoping my plan will work in time!!

GreenPlover

03-10-2008, 05:38 PM

I just made my 1st Foksy purchase. I will be the proud new owner of 2 necklaces :p

kerryw

08-10-2008, 06:07 PM

I love both Folksy and Etsy for different reasons. Folksy at the moment isn't flooded with jewellery so my pieces are easy to find and appear on the front page every so often. I also know a lot of the sellers!

Etsy has treat me well and I get regular sales, though I do struggle to compete with the American pricing on similar items. I have been in the Storque and on the Front Page of Etsy yesterday ahich has generated over 60 hearts so far, so I can't complain. No nice sales as a result yet though!

My sister has just got her Etsy buying account as she loves everything on there, perhaps I shall convert her to Folksy too :D

goldieab

03-11-2008, 11:41 AM

Yippee - I've just opened an Etsy shop:

http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=6370100

I have only updated 5 items so far, but will add some more over the next few days.

Let me know what you think.

autumn rose

03-11-2008, 11:46 AM

I love etsy.... so many lovely things there! Keep meaning to become a seller! :)

onlyme

03-11-2008, 12:04 PM

Lol....I have an etsy shop, just haven't got anything in it! :D

allibongo

03-11-2008, 01:44 PM

Sold my first item on Etsy yesterday. Yippee!!!
Funky Monkey has just left for North Carolina :)

onlyme

03-11-2008, 03:34 PM

Very well done! How long did it take for your *first* sale? I came across some funky monkeys yesterday when I was browsing etsy (I love that place!) Wonder if they were yours...

allibongo

03-11-2008, 03:46 PM

I joined in June and listed some jewellery but nothing! Then listed the monkeys beginning of October. I've sold 3 this month one on Etsy, one on Ebay and one on Misi so who knows ?????

craftyslb

30-11-2008, 07:54 PM

I joined Etsy in Aug, sold a bracelet to a friend via the site so not sure if that counts? But had my first 'proper' sale today, I'm so chuffed.
Etsy is good and I've bought some great things, but I also find UK people are daunted by the currency thing, but as started to sell think I'll keep going and see what happens, also, a lot of jewellery sellers on there, so not sure how many other sales I'll get, but we'll see. (Ever the optomist, lol).
Folksy looks good so may check this one out too. Thanks to those who recommended this one.

hipgirl

11-01-2009, 04:04 PM

I don't sell on etsy but buy something there almost every week.

nikkisnoveltygifts

13-01-2009, 09:56 AM

I etsy and have sold a few bits recently. Was a bit alarmed when I realised the price I was actually getting in sterling after conversion from US Dollars. Will have to push price up a bit until exchange rates get better. Others may want to consider that also? :)

Works-in-Wood

13-01-2009, 06:54 PM

I am also on Etsy and the currency thing is a nightmare + in April (?) postage rates go up.

I've had a few embarassing moments over the last month or so - a lot of my stuff was listed when the $:£ was 2:1 so I have been overcharging, but people have paid it, the latest being a Canadian who wanted a Table lamp, supposedly priced at £19 = $38, which turned out to be nearer to £26 now !

She then asked - '....could I make another at the same price?'

Suffice to say, the parcel went this am.

Chris

Bex

18-01-2009, 01:42 PM

I tried Etsy a while ago to sell my cards, i sold a few, but haven't put any more up.

GlamGlass

18-01-2009, 01:47 PM

I Have an etsy shop and a folksy shop that sell the same things, but I have had to guess with the prices for etsy!!

I think if you list an item or 2 every day or so, your shop will be more visable!

Only had one sale from folksy so far, but then I didn't have much listed either!!

Works-in-Wood

19-01-2009, 05:09 PM

Whatever you do - Don't guess at prices for Etsy !

Open up google or whatever you use, type in mioplanet and download their currency converter - it just sits on the desktop and waits for you to click on it to get your £'s converted to $'s. Keep a mental note of what the conversion rate is, today is $1.45 or so to the £, and every so often type ' sterling dollar' into google and that will give you the exact current rate.

If the £ starts to buy more dollars, you'll start to loose money, not only on the sale but also when Paypal does the conversion.

Chris.

AmyE

17-02-2009, 08:59 PM

a useful website is xe.com - i think you can even sign up to a daily email telling you what the exchange rate is so you have no excuse to price incorrectly!

I love etsy - i havent made loads of sales but I find it so inspiring - could spend a fortune on there!

cosmic grammie

20-02-2009, 05:18 AM

I have an etsy shop and I just said that I ship only to the US. I was afraid that some kind of international tax guy would come and get me.

I've had my shop for a while, but only just started posting items...my daughter has sold a fair number of items - even to other countries! She has no fear.

I have not had any sales yet, but it sure is fun now that I am getting the hang of it, and I am getting visitors. Hopefully someone will buy something some day. I have only three regular customers at my website - so my husband just bought me a google ad - I now owe $8.00! So at least I'm getting clicks/visits...but still no sales! Sigh. I do sell a lot at craft and holiday markets, though.

warin

20-02-2009, 04:33 PM

I have esty store, and luckily I made my first sale for 'a shark tooth necklack' I made myself from coconut shell, fish bone and complete with a real shark tooth as the pendent in few days after listing. Then I made another sale for $100 for 'Thai wedding string light' brough by a canadian bride to be!

I love esty!

autumn rose

20-02-2009, 05:00 PM

It's like an e bay for handcrafted goods. I think it's an acquired taste though - I got a shop and it takes me ages to even find it! I'll have another look when I get time.:pc:

I have a shop...and keep forgetting about it! Must see if I can track it down! There are some gorgeous pieces on Etsy though, just the fact that the pieces are hand crafted thrills me! :D

HungryDesigns

20-02-2009, 05:12 PM

I have an Etsy store and it's my only way of selling my items. I like it, it's not too costly and seems to get people viewing my jewellery. I have had a few sales from it but not too many, i seem to sell my designs in person. I don't really have anything bad to say about Etsy though, it's simple and effective! ^_^

warin

25-02-2009, 06:31 AM

Oh HungryDesigns, I like your jewellery; they're unique! Good luck!

C Hupfield Ceramics

25-02-2009, 09:56 AM

deezkatz

04-03-2009, 10:17 AM

I love Etsy alot, I love to buy off there as its just so unique, I always look for UK crafters on there too especially my local ones to see whats on offer.
I have a little shop on there which I've recently opened and I know from reading their forums that you need to upload everyday really to get the hits to your shop. So rather than list everything at once I list a one or two items daily :)

Hope that helps :)

cloudhopping

06-03-2009, 08:57 PM

I signed up to Folksy yesterday and created my shop but haven't listed any items for sale as yet. Is the only difference that Folksy is available within the UK only, and Etsy is available to buy from worldwide? How do you know how much to list the postage cost per item for other countries?

Re postage overseas - royal mail have a handy chart here
http://www.royalmail.com/portal/rm/content1?mediaId=53800712&catId=400036
so if you have some kitchen scales handy you can work out postage costs per item.

The differences between Folksy and Etsy are that on Folksy you can list your items in the good old £, but on Etsy you list your pices in $.
Folksy is planning on going international in the future.

onlyme

06-03-2009, 09:22 PM

Daft question coming up: When you 'shop local' on Etsy, only the most recent 100 shops come up. There just have to be more than 100 uk shops, but how do I get to view them all? :confused:

MuranoSilver

06-03-2009, 09:44 PM

Try putting UK in the general search box,
I know a lot of Uk sellers put Uk as a searchable Tag
(me included now) :D
Nic xx

onlyme

07-03-2009, 08:37 AM

Now I know how to locate more uk etsy shops, I may start using my shop, lol! I do love etsy, but I sooo wish you could use £££'s instead of $$$'s. Only because I'm mathematically challenged (read that as thick!) :D

wendy

09-05-2009, 09:57 AM

Oh, I understand being mathematically challenged alright.

I just downloaded this:
http://www.mioplanet.com/products/currencyconverter/index.htm
on the recommendation of a previous poster (sorry, can't remember name, but I repped you! - thanks:))

It is so easy, a fabulous little thing that works out the exchange rate almost before you've typed it in!!! It is brill!:):):) and may even convince me to have a go at etsy!

C Hupfield Ceramics

09-05-2009, 10:58 AM

I don't have a shop on Etsy as it told me i had to have a credit card to be able to sell stuff, for security purposes?

KathySwartz

13-05-2009, 08:01 PM

I browse Etsy lots during my lunch break:mf: Bought quite a few items last year but tried to keep my spending down so far this year. Some great shops on there though.

Must track down folksy to see what the fuss is about.

handcrafted

13-05-2009, 10:42 PM

Iv just reopened my etsy account. Thought id give it another go :)

http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5989024

tipsylipsy

22-05-2009, 09:42 AM

I'd love an Etsy shop but there are so many people making childrens clothes I'm sure it would get lost. Obviously would love to try Folksy but few weeks ago I was lurking in the forum trying to decide what to do and get an idea of what the sellers were like and there were some catty comments about another seller which really put me off. Not really sure what to do next need to get my skates on though cos hubby is grumbling about how much fabric I've bought and how much I've spent with next to no income so far - ooops!

Karen x

rainbowcentral

22-05-2009, 09:52 AM

Does anyone know of a desktop converter that's compatible with a mac? Also, when sending parcels abroad and selling abroad is there anything I need to do tax or otherwise?

Valmade

09-06-2009, 02:22 AM

I used to etsy, but have given up over there. I now use Artfire, would recommend a look as a great alternative :)

onlyme

09-06-2009, 08:04 AM

Just had a quick peek at Artfire and it seems you can list in uk £'s as well as dollars? But like all the rest....it's a slow process getting noticed! Oh....and it's $12 per month.

loukr

09-06-2009, 01:05 PM

for anyone using etsy, I'd recommend this site, I can't post links yet, but it's mega useful for working out how much money you'll get after etsy fees, paypal fees shipping etc :) just google 'etsy hacks'

I've got an etsy store, but I haven't listed anything yet as I'm waiting until I have enough stock to make it seem like a real shop, as oppose to just a couple of items. I want enough variety in there to attract different customers and so they want to return :)

popeye

28-07-2009, 11:48 PM

I discovered Etsy and Dawanda a couple of months ago - and whilst I have not listed any crafts, I think they are both very user friendly - crisp and professional which is exactly what is needed to encourage buyers. The photos are clear and detailed.

I do feel the UK sites Folksy and one other (can't remember the name) are a little cluttered and not as user friendly.

Just my opinion, Also it seems every craft blog has a link to Etsy - they have a great exposure on the web world.