Etsy Seller Interview with Máirín of AranAccessories

How AranAccessories got started

Introduce your Etsy shop and tell us your story. How did you begin and decide on what to sell on Etsy, and how do you create your products?

I did my very first Christmas craft fair as a seller in 2015, and it was not a big success! I had knitted several things for the stall, and I didn’t know where I could sell them after the craft fair. I looked at Etsy and thought it seemed like the easiest way to sell them online. I set up my shop, and really, I pretty much forgot about it for several months! Things changed for me after I got my first sale. I decided to put some time and effort into the shop and learn more about how to sell successfully online. Of course, I went on to make another mistake nearly straight away. I thought that the first item that sold was a sign of what would be popular, and I made a lot more of that item, but these did not become big sellers.

I had already been knitting some hats for my relative to sell in her craft shop on the Aran Islands, mostly from existing patterns, but I knew that I wanted to sell completely original work in my Etsy shop. I began to make up my own knitting designs and initially just sold the completed hats and headbands online. Very gradually, I started publishing my knitting patterns online, and I started getting great feedback, including being asked to create a pattern for an online magazine (for free); I was happy to do so for the learning experience and exposure. And it worked! I was contacted by a new Irish yarn company to create some exclusive designs for them, and as I was writing more patterns, I was on the learning curve to becoming an actual knitting pattern designer!

Now I sell in my Etsy shop a mixture of my patterns (which are available as digital downloads) and actual knitted items. When I write a new knitting pattern, I usually knit at least three of the items, so I can offer different sizes and photograph them nicely. Then I list the items in my shop!

Favorite items

What are your favorite items? What makes these so special? Why do you think these items might be selling well?

My favorite items in my shop are my knitting patterns; since these are digital downloads, I don’t have to visit the post office to ship them! I currently have 43 different patterns available, and I keep adding more as I create them. My best seller is the Simple Cable Beanie, which, ironically, I nearly didn’t even write up as I thought it was too simple! The feedback from this pattern has been so rewarding for me. Many people have said that it was their first cable knitting project and that they loved the results!

Two other knitting patterns have also really picked up in sales recently: the Renmore Beanie and the Salthill Beanie. Most of my designs are unisex, and I think that a lot of knitters have been looking for hats to gift to men in particular; these designs have a really classic feel and hopefully are easy to knit!

Getting sales on Etsy

How long did it take for you to earn your first sale and how do you currently attract customers to your Etsy shop?

I took seven months to make my first sale, so I would like to offer encouragement to any Etsy sellers that are discouraged after a tough start—it can turn around for you too! But you need to put in an effort to get results, particularly by having good photos of your item. I don’t think you need to have an expensive camera for this; I just use my smartphone, which is never the most up-to-date model! I did take photography as a subject in college, so I did have some background knowledge, but really, it’s a case of keeping it simple and well-lit.

The other thing that can get overlooked when you’re starting out is the importance of reviews. When I made my first sales (which were before I had digital items), I used to include a handwritten note with each order, thanking the customer for the purchase and asking them (in a nice way) to leave a review. A lot of people might not know the difference that good reviews make, so telling them that it makes a big difference is often enough incentive for customers to take a minute or two to leave a positive review.

Currently, I attract new customers to my shop through social media: I’m active on Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, and Pinterest; and while less active on these, I maintain a presence on Twitter and Tumblr. Pinterest in particular has been really instrumental in drawing customers to my shop, so I would encourage sellers to take a good look there. I knew so little about social media when I started, but the advice I received was to start with one or two and add more as you become more confident in what you’re doing. The Etsy Sellers Handbook has a great primer on the various platforms (although they change frequently!) and Etsy provides helpful online training too (I started on TikTok after they hosted a webinar with Etsy for sellers).

Etsy also attracts a lot of customers to my shop. I know some sellers dislike the offsite advertising program, but it has brought a lot of new customers to my shop, so my experience of it has been very positive. Remember that you are paying Etsy to bring you, customers, so don’t be nervous if you see that they are bringing you a lot compared to your own social media or website—that’s why you’re paying them!

Managing AranAccessories

How do you manage your shop? Are you running solo or do you have any team members? What tools or services do you use to run your shop and how do you handle fulfillment?

I’m the only one here. The shop is currently at a nice stage for me; it’s easy enough for one person to handle. The advantage of selling digital products is that there is a lot less physical time needed to fulfill orders. I do get messages from time to time from people who are having download problems, but usually, it just takes a few minutes to sort out. I am probably in a different time zone from most of my customers though (I’m in Ireland), so sometimes it’s tricky when you wake up and see several messages from someone who is getting increasingly frustrated at their computer. It’s important to remember that each customer should be thanked for their purchase and that most problems can be ironed out.

The only apps I use to run the store are the Etsy Seller apps. I do find these useful, although sometimes I wish they did things in a different way. Marmalead is also a good tool; you have the option of trying the basic level for free, and it is very useful even if you never commit to the paid version. When I ship items, I make sure to package them nicely; I received great advice from a fellow Irish seller in this regard, who did a shop critique for me.  It was rewarding when I saw a customer tag me on Pinterest when she unboxed her hat; I knew I had done a satisfactory job when she was happy to share it!

The future of AranAccessories

What goals do you have for your shop in the future?

I would like to further increase sales (like most sellers, I guess!). What I sell can be very seasonal, with summer being a quieter time, so I would love to get a better balance year-round too.

Advice for new sellers

What’s your advice for a new seller starting an Etsy shop?

I would say to learn by doing! You can research a lot before you open it, but nothing will be more valuable than applying your ideas in real life. For example, SEO (Search Engine Optimisation) was completely new to me when I started, but having an Etsy shop up and running meant that I was able to direct what I learned about it specifically to my own shop as I went along. It’s also so useful to be part of a group, whether that is a chat group on Facebook, an Etsy team, or some other group.

Pricing is also very important. I had gotten myself into the mindset that I had to have my prices a little lower than others to compete with them (imposter syndrome!). Doing a business course with my Local Enterprise Office opened my eyes to the fact that so many new businesses set their prices too low and eventually run into cash flow problems. I increased my pattern price from 3 euros to 4 euros that night; there was no impact at all on sales, and I increased my revenue by 33%!

I would also advise patience, on many levels: with yourself, when sales can be low for no good reason that you can see; with your potential customers, if they are taking a lot of your time with questions and potentially not buying anything; and with shipping services, when items are taking longer than usual to deliver. Always read over your email responses before you send them, and think carefully about how they will be received if they are read several hours after you have sent them (those time zone differences again!). And celebrate the small victories! I remember being so thrilled when I hit 10 sales; in my Etsy team at the time another seller had just hit 10,000 sales and I could not possibly imagine reaching that level, but I should hit 7,000 sales this month and the 10,000 looks more achievable than ever!

Some sellers really get inspired by hearing numbers. Feel free to share these if you like.

Question: What is your shop’s conversion rate?
Answer: My all-time conversion rate is 4.3%