How to Start an Etsy Shop pt 1 Why should you open an Etsy store

One question I get asked ALL the time is 'How do I start a shop on Etsy? Can you show us step by step?'
And although I think its a great idea it has been 11 years since I opened my Etsy shop
Things will totally have changed in that time, I dont really actually know how to open an Etsy shop in 2019
And I didnt want to just create advice in general 'Do this, this is good practise'
I wanted to be able to give the best advice I could
So I decided to create a roadmap of the step by steps that go into creating a shop, all the thought process, all the fails, all the wins
And what better way to do that than putting my 'money where my mouth is' by creating a brand new shop and then documenting the process

So this is the start of my series

The very first step in starting to think of selling online with Etsy is to consider WHY you want to open an Etsy store

It sounds a very basic question but when you nail this down it  helps answer so many questions about pricing and if you even should open an Etsy shop

So why do you want to open and Etsy shop??

To free up space so you can create more
To make a little extra money
To build up to a part time or full time future business
To make a little money right now?


so starting at the end :D

To make money right now 

If your reason for opening a Etsy shop is you genuinely need money RIGHT NOW then simply

Dont

If money is urgent right now then opening an Etsy shop is not the best way to make money quickly. Etsy is a massive learning curve and unless you have a great background in marketing and photography and all the things then it is very unlikely you will be making a steady income for quite a while.
Look into getting some kind of steady work then potentially have an eye to opening your shop and slowly building it up so in the future it becomes that business you dream of

To Build a potential business 

Think of finances here, how much money do you need to make, how many hours are you able to put into working on your Etsy business? What can you make?
Research how long it takes to make what you make - then double that figure for all the time for marketing and dealing with  customers, see if there is a market for it and how much the top and average items sell for
Can you add extra value with extra skill or more quality materials.
If you go for items that can be mass produced then someone else will be able to make them cheaper. Stand out and make something unique that you can be proud of

To make a little extra 

If you have extra time and just want to make a little extra there is less pressure for you. You still need to make sure you get fair money for your time but you dont need a living wage from it. So what things do you enjoy creating that are low stress?

To Clear up space 

If your art or craft is your love but you dont have a real need to make money then congratulations,  that really is so awesome. Even so it is still important to take time to learn SEO and other research on what you are wanting to sell. Just putting items up sadly will not likely sell on Etsy, you need to work to get sales. So if you are not up for that then perhaps selling on Etsy is not right for you




So for me
I decided obviously to open a new shop for research but also because I have thought for a while that my digital art does not belong in my felting store

And it is not something I am very experienced with so I feel the skill level does not quite match my felting skill


So I thought that building up a shop based on my digital work - likely digital stamps, but we will see how the research goes - could be a fun challenge

 I have a long way to go to get good at this but I enjoy it, but also creating digital items that I do not have to do anything when I sell, people just download them. So its passive income, even if I am ill and cant needle felt hopefully a doodle I created months or years ago could make me some money


So really my 'why' is to hopefully build slowly up to a supplemental income


 I know that likely I am not going to get many sales in the beginning but hopefully it will be interesting to document the wins, the failures and all the steps of creating this new shop






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