Whenever we’re starting something new, there’s a lot to learn. Therefore, if you’re considering starting an Etsy shop, take a look at the ten most expensive mistakes new Etsy sellers make.
Some of these mistakes will immediately impact your store’s performance from the start, while others will cost you dearly in the long run.
Read on to figure them out and prevent them from happening to you!
1. Bad Product Photos
Photos are the first thing a potential buyer is going to see on a listing. The seller’s goal is to ensure that the photo is clear and represents the product from multiple angles.
Use all of the photo slots that Etsy provides. The more product images you have, the better.
Some general tips to follow:
- Shoot photos on a white background. It’ll make your product stand out.
- Invest a bit in quality lighting.
- Take product photos from several angles.
- Place your product next to another standard product, so its size is easier to perceive.
- If it’s jewelry or clothes, get a model to wear them and take a photo.
If you want to learn more about product photography, take a look at our guide. Taking this step will help any seller receive more views on their listings.
2. No Optimization Effort
You can expect your listings to rank well if you don’t optimize them. Make sure that you take all the necessary steps to optimize them for search engines. Some tips to follow:
- Write a compelling listing title.
- Use all the tags to make a listing that’ll rank better.
- Mention all the relevant keywords in the product description.
High-quality photos are also essential for good listing performance and ranking, but we’ve already covered their importance.
To make sure that you’ve got everything right, use Alura’s Listing Helper to analyze your product listing.
3. No Marketing on Social Media
Advertising on social media is essential for any business growth, especially if we’re talking about eCommerce. Without a social media presence, you can’t expect to build a community of returning customers.
Without putting in more effort in social media, a seller can lose out on targeting a broad range of audiences that are interested in their products.
Besides organic growth, social media sites are a great way to run PPC campaigns to ramp up sales figures.
4. Low Number of Product Listings
If you think you’re doing great with only five listings, it’s time to think again. Always work on increasing the number of listings you’re running.
That way, you’re set on the path to success. If you only stick with the listings going well, it’s only a matter of time before that market is saturated and buyers shift to another product from a competitor.
Run more listings to open up your options. Doing anything else will turn into a loss.
5. Skipping the Competition Research Part
Starting your Etsy shop sounds like a great idea, and it’s true. However, hit the pause button before you’re well aware of what you’re doing. Do your market research and explore what your competitors are doing.
For example, use the Alura Extension to see which product listings are ranking for different keywords, sales numbers, and potential revenue.
Having an insight into such data will help you streamline your future growth.
Most importantly, repeat this process from time to time to always know what your competitors are doing.
6. No Effort in Building a Community
Many Etsy shops fail to achieve this milestone. Building a community of followers can propel your shop growth. From the day you start running your Etsy shop, get the people to join your email list and follow you on social media.
When you build up an audience over time, you can receive feedback on what the customers would like to see. You can create sales and special discounts for all the returning buyers. Doing that is an additional boost to your revenue.
7. Not Knowing Store Policies
Before you start selling on Etsy, it’s crucial to go over all the Seller Policies. Taking this step is essential, as you might end up losing your account due to a policy breach.
That can be a tremendous loss for your business, so make sure that you’re always up to date with these policies.
8. Using Wrong Categories
Categories are a potent tool for listing your products in the right way. While many browse Etsy via search, many people browse different categories with specific attributes.
Therefore, make sure that all your listings are in the correct categories. If that’s not the case, the audience you’re targeting won’t be able to find your listings.
9. Not Improving
Don’t put your store on autopilot and hope for the best. The platform comes with Etsy Analytics included. Use it to your advantage to learn more about your customer’s behavior. Look for patterns, check repeating trends, and always make sure to learn something from them.
Doing that takes only a couple of hours every week. Make notes, monitor your progress, and improve on your mistakes.
10. Giving Up Early
Like with many things in life, persistence is the key. The road to growing a successful Etsy shop is a bumpy one. There are plenty of challenges and setbacks. It takes plenty of time, and growth is slow.
However, if you put in enough effort and persist over an extended period, your Etsy shop will become a significant revenue source.
The most significant loss you can make is to give up early.
Concluding Thoughts
We’re well aware that the vast majority of sellers make these repeating mistakes. That’s why we’ve created Alura, an Etsy Tool that’ll help you lose less on your Etsy journey.
If you want to learn more, simply reach out to us. We look forward to hearing from you.
