Want a New Side Hustle?

You may think Etsy is only for craftspeople but think again. Etsy is a diverse marketplace that offers a little bit of everything. Chances are you have a service or product that can fit on Etsy, earning a side income is doable on Etsy. I did it and it turned into a modest full-time income after a year.

What is Esty?

Etsy is a marketplace, it's like a virtual mall with a lot of little shops within it. Etsy started out by showcasing sellers who sold crafts, but it has grown a lot since then. Although, those craft roots are always going to be a part of Etsy. There are people who sell physical products to digital products and even services as long as there is a tangible item to give to the buyer. 

Being a marketplace Etsy comes with built-in traffic. This means your shop is going to be seen, although whether people click on your shop will be up to what you sell and how you present it. Just like in a mall, people can always walk right by your store! 

The downside to a marketplace is competition, but with some effort, you can make your shop shine and get all the traffic you ever wanted.

What can you sell on Etsy?

Crafters- Do you make art out of sand, candles, wood, or any other material? Do you make hats for snakes? Or sweaters for dogs or babies? Etsy will likely have a shop for it, and if not, you can create one. 

Writers- I have seen ads offering writing services such as, poems, research papers, essays, blogs, as well as to proofread, edit or revise work. There are many options for writers, but not a ton of competition from what I can see.

Readers- Intuitive (psychic) and astrology readers are very popular on Etsy. This is how I was able to make a full-time living doing intuitive readings. I had built in traffic that helped my business grow steadily.

Artists- Pastels, paintings, digital, there is a large array of art on Etsy. Consider teaching art, maybe an ebook or a session where you share art techniques. This alongside your actual art pieces can give you a leg up on your competition. 

Vintage clothes- Want to clear out your closet? Or maybe make it a more regular thing and pick up clothes from yard sales for your Etsy shop? It's a good way to repurpose clothes and make some extra money. 

These are only a few of the many, many things people are selling on Etsy, a quick search can give you more ideas.

Setting up a shop is easy

You don't have to have a lot of tech skills to open an Etsy shop. It's very straightforward, and if you ever get stuck, google your questions. There are tons of forums, articles, and threads out there.

Your shop mainly consists of listings, each one showcasing an item that you sell or a service that you offer. There are some other boxes to fill out that are important your announcement, shop policies and the messages buyers get when they make a purchase. You dont have to fill out everything in one day. Day one, focus on the name of your shop and your first few items that you will be listing. Each day add a little more to your shop, whether that be a banner, adding more information or most importantly, new listings. 

When building your Etsy shop some things to keep in mind

Images are everything

If you are offering a service make sure to use images that are eye-catching.

If you are selling items, use a high-quality camera. Take images of every angle of the item. People like to see what they are buying. Show the size of an item. If it is a crystal, for example, take a picture of it next to a ruler, or of someone holding it. We all know how disappointing it is to get an online item that is smaller, larger or a different color than we expected. 

The title is important

It's what Etsy's search engine will use to bring your item up in a search so make sure it is descriptive and conveys what you are selling.

The description box

This is your chance to pitch your item. It is where you can expand on what you are selling beyond the title. Tell prospective buyers why they should choose your service. Or why this item you are selling is unique. If applicable tell them a little bit about the item, to show you have a good understanding of it. Talk about what it is made of, or what your technique is.

Pricing is crucial

Not sure what to charge? Do a search on Etsy and see what sellers offering similar services or products are selling and what they charge. Price a little lower than your competition to start and gradually raise your prices after you have more experience and business. 

Etsy fees

Speaking of financials this is a good time to mention Etsy charges 20 cents per listing and they take a small commission out of every sale. They charge a renewal fee of 20 cents, after several months, for each listing. 

There is no monthly fee to have a shop on Etsy. 

When you are starting out you will barely notice the fees. This gives you the chance to try Etsy out without having to pay a monthly fee up front like a lot of other places. 

Marketing is a must

Consider starting a newsletter so you can let clients/customers know what you are selling and when you put on sales or add something new to your shop. As an incentive to signup offer some sort of gift. A short guide/ebook on your topic of choice is an easy thing to create and email when you get a new subscriber.

Have a social media presence. Pick at least one of the biggies (Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter) and make it your focus. It's easier to build a presence in one place rather than all three. You can always keep a presence on more than one but choose your favorite and focus on it. 

Etsy fans like Pinterest and you can drive more traffic to your shop by creating a business Pinterest account, this brought in a lot of traffic for me. 

Use Etsy promo codes and run a sale

People love a good sale, you can opt to offer free shipping or 10% off certain items in your shop for a weekend sale. Tie this in with a newsletter announcement and you will drive traffic to your shop. Etsy will help and get some internal traffic going as well.

Reviews make a huge difference

One of the reasons my shop on Etsy was successful is that I had a lot of five-star reviews. I only sell a few meditations on Etsy now, but my shop shows stats for all time, I made 3227 sales and have 971 reviews that were almost all five stars. I cannot say enough how grateful I am to all those people for leaving such positive reviews. It was always hard for me to read reviews and Esty has this habit of placing the reviews close to the top of a shop page, which made me cringe. From a business perspective, it's a smart tactic. If you get good reviews people are more likely to buy from you. 

In order to assure you get good reviews say something like, 

My shop relies on good reviews to succeed, if you have any issue with your order please contact me at, (email or shop link) and I will do my very best to resolve the issue.

The few times people did contact me and I worked with them directly and I'm sure saved a bad review. Still, out of over 3000 sales, I only had a handful of people have any problem at all. You should be fine as long as you do the best you can with each buyer, it will show. 

The bottom line with an Etsy shop is, it all depends on how well you market. I have seen sellers with a lot of talent and beautiful items not do well because they weren't willing to market their shop. Social media, newsletters, and checking into your shop frequently all make a huge difference. 

If you update a listing on Etsy, it will put that listing higher in its search engine so make little tweaks here and there often. 

Take it seriously, this can be your business if you are willing to take the steps to make it happen. I did it and I really didn't know what to expect or what would happen, and you can too!