Be An Expert - Forward Thinking - Wholesale For Christmas

Etsy recently published this Seller Handbook guide to Wholesale Christmas Prep: https://www.etsy.com/uk/seller-handbook/article/wholesale-christmas-preparation/159623538888. Even if you don't sell wholesale yet it's an interesting read to give you ideas for the future!

Could you dip your toe into wholesale this Christmas by asking a local gift shop if they will stock a few of your items? It could be the start of something big! If you want to look into wholesale more you can check out the Indie Retail Academy website for some more advice: https://www.indieretailacademy.com/

Even if you never want to sell wholesale, you can still take some useful tips from the Seller Handbook article to apply to your own shop:

- Change pitching stockists to pitching you mailing list - get you Christmas Gift Ideas emails ready

-Focus on packaging - think about offering gift packaging to your customers during the Christmas season

- Set up order deadlines - have a think now about what you will do if you get busy, and when people need to order by to get their item for Christmas

- Stock up to snag last minute orders - make sure you have enough 'blank' product in to keep making new things as your items sell, whether it's balls of wool or vintage spoons - make sure you have enough to see you through November!

If we get ready now then Christmas will be easy!

Be An Expert - Forward Thinking - Autumn Trends

We are marching towards the end of summer, and things will be starting to gear up for the Autumn and Winter seasons - Christmas is only 124 days away! Before Christmas we do have lots of other things to look forward to - pulling on our comfy cosy woolly jumpers, kids going back to school, watching fireworks, trick-or-treaters at Halloween, watching movies tucked up inside when it's stormy weather. Is your shop going to be ready for the change in season?

If your shop sells knitted or crochet items your hooks have probably already been flying to get ready for the cooler weather, but make sure you take a minute to check your inventory so you know how much you have to sell. For other shops - how can you aim for the Autumn? If you sell prints or mugs can you use some 'cosy nights in' phrases on them? If you sell jewellery have a think about the colours and shapes people will be wanting to wear. If you sell ceramic pots can you photograph them with pens and pencils in for a back-to-school (or back-to-uni) idea?

If you aren't able to change your actual stock, can you change the way you style it? Create an Autumnal Instagram photo or two, using Autumnal colours with a pine cone or other suitable prop. If you can get these ready now then you'll be able to hit the ground running when the time comes!

If you'd like to see what trends are on the way, then a couple of places to look are here for a brief look at expected fashions: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/fashion/style/autumn-2017-fashion-trends-aw17-styles-women/ or you can look at the SpringAutumnFair Instagram page to see what they are sharing from their upcoming trade show: https://www.instagram.com/springautumnfair/ 

Have fun getting ready for Autumn (and make sure you start thinking about Christmas too!).

Be An Expert - Product Promotion - Videos

Using videos to promote your products can really help your items stand out from the crowd.

Here's a recent Etsy Seller Handbook article on How To Market Your Business With Video: https://www.etsy.com/uk/seller-handbook/article/how-to-market-your-business-with-video/137667391868

Videos on YouTube can be great to include lots of detail, and it's easy to share them from there to Facebook  (lots of potential customers out there are browsing videos on Facebook!).

However your videos don't have to be long or complicated to help your items stand out. You can try using apps like Hyperlapse (an app that speeds up your video) or Boomerang (this takes bursts of photos and stitches them together) to show glimpses of your work-in-progress or finished products. If you are sharing your finished products then show them in use or just turn them around to show the item from different angles. See more about these 2 apps here: https://blog.hootsuite.com/instagram-apps-boomerang-hyperlapse-layout/ 

You can use these short videos in your main Instagram (or FB) feeds. You can also use them in Instagram stories. Instagram stories is a collection of videos which you can add to throughout your day - but they disappear after 24 hours. If you are recording the video directly in Instagram make sure you download it before it disappears! Stories are good to use because the accounts you follow with recent stories will appear at the top of your instagram feed, so you are more likely to be spotted by your followers. Here's some info on Stories from the Instagram blog: http://blog.instagram.com/post/148348940287/160802-stories

Another fun idea you could try is to make a product photography turntable like this one: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cFPJqtcWNSU and use it to show your items from all sides!

You don't have to start sharing lots and lots of videos, but the occasional one will help your customers to get a better view of your items and your shop.

Be An Expert - Product Promotion - Brand Reps

Do you find it hard to take enough great photos of your products so that you can fill up the photo slots on Etsy AND share great images on social media? You might want to think about getting a Brand Representative - Brand Rep for short.

A Brand Rep is someone who you give FREE products to, in exchange for them to take stylish photos of those products for you to use on your Instagram and other social media accounts. There are also Brand Enthusiasts, who will buy products at a discount from you, again to provide you with photos - but obviously an enthusiast would have to be someone really keen on your products, as you are expecting them to part with their money as well as their time. For more information on Reps & Enthusiasts see this post here: http://cuttingforbusiness.com/2015/10/21/what-are-instagram-brand-reps-enthusiasts/

Instagram is the best place to find Brand Reps - create a 'Brand Rep Search' image with some text, making sure to include the Instagram handle for your shop (so people can find you once the image has been shared). Use the #brandrepsearch hashtag and other appropriate hashtags to get found. Ask applicants to share the image to increase your reach. Have a deadline for when to apply (keep the application open for a few weeks at least to give people time to share and apply). You can also find Brand Reps by joining Facebook Groups like 'Let's Rep Together': https://www.facebook.com/groups/letsrep/

Make sure you are clear on what country you are happy to post items to (a lot of Brand Reps are in the US), what you expect from a Brand Rep, and how long the term will be (a good initial term is 3 months). Once you've chosen a Rep or Reps make sure to have an agreement or contract in place setting out time-frames for delivery of items and how long the photos will take, what the photos will be used for, and other points. Here's an example of an artist licensing agreement: https://artlawjournal.com/download-artists-licensing-agreement-free/ or search 'Brand Rep Terms & Conditions' in google to see what terms other brands have set out for their reps. Remember these are all just for guidance, and if you want an in-depth legally-binding contract you should pay for a contract lawyer to draw one up.

Here's some more advice on working with Brand Reps: http://mumswithhustle.com/blog/lucky-7-tips-for-working-with-brand-reps/

Be An Expert - Back To Basics - Teamwork

For our final Back To Basics post let's look at teamwork and the many ways it can help you with your business!

Dorset Team: Obviously the Dorset Team is a great resource to help you with your shop. Check out the team forum and post your own queries if you have them here: https://www.etsy.com/uk/teams/14319/dorset-etsy-team you can also join the Facebook group for team members here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1514236692123255/, look at old and current posts on the blog here: http://dorsetteam.blogspot.co.uk/, join in the Twitter chat on Tuesdays from 7.30pm - 8.30pm using the #DorsetTeam hashtag, or use that hashtag at any time to reach out to our social media team and other members who might answer your questions, or re-tweet / re-gram your posts!

Other Online Assistance: You an join multiple Facebook Groups as well as the Dorset Team one for Etsy help if you want to, here's one for example, called the 'Etsy EK Sellers Help Group': https://www.facebook.com/groups/1099520500108154/ or the 'Handmade Hour' on twitter is another good place to network with like-minded sellers: https://twitter.com/HandmadeHour. You can join a few things and work out what works best for you to feel like you are supported and part of a team - find your tribe!

Business Helpers / Employees: When you have a rush of orders make sure you ask friends and family if they are able to help you out. Sometimes you can ask for help even if you aren't busy - send a message saying - 'I need help thinking of new product ideas' or 'anyone want to come and help me re-vamp my crafting room' you never know who will be able to help if you don't ask. One day you might need to hire an employee (or more!). Here's an article on taking your first steps towards hiring: https://www.etsy.com/seller-handbook/article/how-to-take-first-steps-toward-hiring/22819321220 and here's one about PAYE: https://www.gov.uk/topic/business-tax/paye - sole traders can hire employees but you'll probably need to tell HMRC you are doing so, and you'll definitely need to make sure you are following regulations like paying them the minimum wage!

Collaborations: Another way to network and work with another Etsy shop owner is to have a collaboration. Find someone who makes something you like, but which you could put your own twist on, then ask them if they'd like to work with you! Here's an Etsy article on collaborations: https://www.etsy.com/seller-handbook/article/expand-your-product-line-with-a/22850675416

Remember there are thousands of shop owners just like you. We are all part of one great big team, and if we work together to raise each other's profiles then it will help the handmade / vintage market to grow and grow!

Be An Expert - Back To Basics - Shipping Settings

Have you made full use of the shipping settings in your shop, to make sure the buyer is getting charged the right amount, and to make it easy for you to update your shipping costs when you need to?

Shipping Profiles: You can create shipping profiles under the 'shipping settings' option from your shop manager. Create a different shipping profile for things depending on how long they take you to make and dispatch, and how much they will cost for post and packaging. For example if you sell prints which only take a day to print and package, and can be sent in a flat envelope, you'd create one shipping profile for that - name it 'Prints'. But if you also sell a handmade wooden trinket box, which takes a week to make and would need to go as a parcel, that would need a separate shipping profile - name it 'Trinket Boxes'. 

Then you can select the 'Prints' shipping profile EVERY time you list a print, and the 'Trinket Boxes' shipping profile EVERY time you list a trinket box (as long as they weigh about the same and are roughly the same size - if not you might need a different postage cost). 

By using shipping profiles instead of entering the processing time and postage cost individually on each listing it will save you TONS of time when you need to update them. For example if at Christmas if you need 3 extra days to make the prints, you can just go in and change the processing time on the 'Prints' shipping profile, rather than to change it on each print - if you have 30 different prints listed in your shop you'd be there forever changing each one! It's also handy for when Royal Mail put their prices up, as they did recently.

Here's the Etsy link for more on Shipping Profiles: https://www.etsy.com/uk/help/article/190

Shipping With Another Item: When you add a shipping profile it will ask you for a price for shipping 'One Item' and a price for 'Each Additional Item'. Buyers will always pay the 'One Item' price. Then if they choose to purchase another item from your shop they will ALSO pay the 'Each Additional Item' fee. So this fee should only be the difference in price between the 2, not the same postage fee again. Try weighing a few combinations and working out how much more it's going to cost you. WHEREVER POSSIBLE you should make the 'Each Additional Item' cost FREE. People are more likely to buy more items if it doesn't cost them any more to ship it. This isn't always possible with heavy items, but make it work where you can!

Here's the Etsy link to discounted shipping for multiple items: https://www.etsy.com/uk/help/article/191

Shipping Upgrades: Finally, you can offer a 'shipping upgrade' option for your customers. For example they might want to pay more for one day delivery. You probably shouldn't add this on items which take a week or more to process though - if customers see the option for one day delivery they probably think it's going to arrive super fast, and not read the processing time correctly. It is great to add it onto items that you have in stock or can process quickly though. Also if you sell to the USA, and normally send by International Standard Post, you might want to add a shipping upgrade in case the customer would like their item to be tracked. See here for more info on Shipping Upgrades: https://www.etsy.com/uk/help/article/4414

Be An Expert - Back To Basics - Focus On Photos

This week for 'Back To Basics' were looking at photography. Do your photos show your products in the best possible way?

READ THIS: A great book to read if you feel like you need an in-depth refresh of your photos is this 'The Crafter's Guide To Taking Great Photos' book by Heidi Adnum: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Crafters-Guide-Taking-Great-Photos/dp/1844487512 with A LOT of tips on background, props, lighting, and more. 

LIGHTING ISSUES: If your main issue is light, you could try making a DIY lightbox: http://www.wikihow.com/Create-an-Inexpensive-Photography-Lightbox If your products are too big to fit in a lightbox then consider asking a friend with big windows whether you can take some photos there (you might need to tape white tissue paper to the windows to diffuse the light). 

FIX THE SHARPNESS: If your photos need to be sharper, try these tips from the Etsy Seller Handbook: https://www.etsy.com/uk/seller-handbook/article/6-steps-to-creating-sharper-product/23125317730

LIFESTYLE SHOTS: Do you take 'lifestyle' photos as well as plain ones? Lifestyle photos means you show how the item might be used, or place some props around it to give it a sense of scale or to invoke an emotion. For example if you make jewellery you don't HAVE to show it on a model (though this could be good) but you could show it draped across a jewellery dish - a modern neon stripe dish with bright white lighting if your jewellery is for the young fashionista, or a vintage saucer dish with warm lighting if your jewellery is for the more mature or softer-styled lady.

Here's 2 good posts with tips on lifestyle photography: https://photography.tutsplus.com/tutorials/how-to-create-compelling-lifestyle-product-photographs--cms-23076 and http://www.hollybooth.com/blog/how-to-style-your-product-photos

5 LISTING PHOTOS: Finally - do you use all 5 photo spaces whenever you can? Here's some Etsy ideas on 4 different photos to use: https://www.etsy.com/uk/seller-handbook/article/4-essential-product-shots-for-your-etsy/22504064051 and the 5th photo could be a photo of your product packaging if that's something special!

Be An Expert - Back To Basics - Starting From Scratch

During May we are focusing on going back to the basics and making sure everything in your shop is as good as it can be. You may have been having so much fun uploading new products that you've forgotten that your 'about' page still talks about products you no longer make, for example. Making sure everything is up-to-scratch will help your customers trust you and make you appear in the relevant searches!

Here's 3 things to go and check right now, and some links to articles to find out more if you need help. Whether you are a new seller or an old-hand, it's worth making sure these are current, and fit with your branding:

About Page: https://www.etsy.com/seller-handbook/article/how-to-craft-a-killer-about-section/22636178725

Shop Policies: https://www.etsy.com/uk/help/article/38745785811

Cover Photo & Shop Icon: https://www.etsy.com/uk/help/article/160 (if you refresh your cover photo regularly with new products then returning customers will immediately see what's new in store as soon as they land at your shop. You can create photo collages in PicMonkey or Canva to fit the right dimensions!)

Finally here's a top tip which is good for new sellers, or long-time sellers who didn't know about this -

Top Tip: Your listing titles are essential for Search Engine Optimisation. Fill up as much of the title space as you can, using 2-3 word phrases separated by commas. If you are selling artwork don't put the name of the artwork in the title, put it in the description, as no one is likely to search for that artwork by title. Instead use phrases people are likely to search for. For example, a title SHOULD NOT say:

'Beautiful unicorn wandering through a wood A4 painting'

It SHOULD say something like:

'Unicorn Painting, Unicorn Art, Unicorn Gift, Fantasy Art, Fantasy Art Gift, Girls Bedroom Decor, Daughter's Birthday Gift, Original Art'

Go and make sure your titles are working for you!

Be An Expert - What To Sell - Product Possibilities

If you still need some ideas for new products then have a think outside of your usual product lines. Do you know on Etsy you can sell Vintage Items, Handmade Products, or Craft Supplies? With the launch of the New Etsy Studio Craft Supplies Website (https://www.etsy.com/seller-news/introducing-etsy-studio) now might be a good time to think if you can add any craft kits or items to your store!

See here for some suggestions for what to sell in your Etsy shop: https://www.etsy.com/seller-handbook/article/what-to-sell-on-etsy/67553338536. If you're worried that you are going to end up with too many craft supplies to store, or too many things to post, then what about considering digital downloads? Click here for some tips on how to get started and what kind of things you might be able to sell digitally: https://www.etsy.com/uk/seller-handbook/article/how-to-sell-digital-downloads-on-etsy/47330319230. 

In the EU customers have to pay 20% VAT on digital goods, but Etsy very helpfully collect it and pay it for us - they add 20% onto whatever price you say you'd like to receive and then collect that 20% to pay the government. Here's more information on that: https://www.etsy.com/uk/seller-handbook/article/etsys-new-collection-process-for-value/26557870596

What ever new items you add, make sure they fit with your brand (or open a new shop with a new brand if you can't get the idea out of your head!). And make sure it's something people will want to buy!

Be An Expert - What To Sell - New Product Ideas

Now you've had a good chance to have a spring clean of your Etsy workspace, and you've made lots of fresh space, what can you fill it with?! New stock of course! If now is your quiet time of year then it's a good time to build up on items to sell. You can just make more of the stock you usually do well with, but what about looking into new products?

Check out this Etsy Seller Handbook guide to 6 Tips For Generating Fresh Product Ideas: https://www.etsy.com/uk/seller-handbook/article/6-tips-for-generating-fresh-product/74918103154 

One more tip I'd add to tie in with the article is 'what key words will people search to find this item?'. This extends the 'do people want or need this' tip, to also think about how they will actually find it. What SEO will you be able to use to make sure the item is found?

While you are still in the planning stages of your product write down some key words that you could use in the item listing details and tags. And remember it's best to have 2 or 3 words together as a phrase rather than single words - 'Father's Day Gift' rather than just 'Dad'.

Adding some fresh products to your shop will give regular customers new things to be tempted by, or catch the eye of some new customers. Enjoy creating!

Be An Expert - Pricing - Diverse Products = A Varied Price Range

It's our last week looking at pricing your products. This one is a quicker tip - to make sure you diversify products in your shop - but to include a range of prices as well as a range of products!

If you make sure you have a range of prices in your shop then this will appeal to customers with different budgets, or encourage them to add cheaper items to their purchase. But don't cheapen the items you have by selling similar items much cheaper. For example, if you currently sell necklaces costing £20 - £30 each, don't start selling other necklaces for £5 each too, or it will make customers think the more expensive ones are over-priced. Instead think of things that could compliment your stock rather than competing with it. Could you sell stud earrings which would go with your necklaces and sell for £15 ish? Perhaps you could design a few greetings cards that suit your style which could sell for £3 - £5? 

Varying your items and prices will encourage add-on sales, where a customer comes to your shop for one item but ends up purchasing more. Also if someone loves that £30 necklace, but can't afford it right now, they might buy the £15 earrings right now, rather than just bookmarking your necklace and possibly never coming back to it again.

Diversifying stock will also mean you get found in more Etsy searches (now you'll appear in earrings as well as necklaces!). Just make sure you keep your shop looking cohesive, for tips on that see here: https://www.etsy.com/uk/seller-handbook/article/how-to-create-a-cohesive-shop/22797014088 Have fun thinking of new things to sell!

Be An Expert - Pricing - Wholesale

Last week we looked at why you need to add labour AND profit into your pricing formula. This week we're going to look at why wholesale needs to approx 50% off the retail price. (Here's a link to the pricing formula if you missed it before: https://www.etsy.com/uk/seller-handbook/article/a-simple-formula-for-pricing-your-work/26192517008)

Even if you don't want to sell wholesale at the moment - maybe you are just setting up an Etsy shop as a hobby - you should still use it in your formula, and double it for the retail price. You might think of your shop as a hobby now, but what if it really takes off and someone wants to stock it in their shop? What if you realise you could quit the day-job and run your shop as a business full time? If you haven't worked out the pricing right then you'll be stuck if a shop wants to buy your items for 50% off, but you will lose money selling them that cheaply because you didn't price it right. So start as you mean to go on and think about this pricing from the start.

Why do shops want approx 50% off the retail price? They have costs to pay too! One big one is tax. Shops are likely to be registered for VAT and they will have to pay the government 20% of your item which they've sold. To work out what a shop will receive after they've paid the tax, divide your retail price by 1.2. For example a necklace with a retail price of £12 divided by 1.2 = £10. If the shop has paid you a wholesale price of £6 for that necklace, they now have £4 left to help pay the rent for the premises, the bills for the shop like electricity and gas, the wages for their staff, shop fittings, advertising costs for their shop (which help bring customers in to buy your items), and of course make some profit to help their business grow too. It doesn't sound like much now does it?!

Of course you could try offering a sliding scale of wholesale prices depending on how much is ordered. You could offer less discount to an online shop which may have less premises costs (but remember they may have storage costs still), and you should certainly offer less discount if it's a bulk-buy customer rather than a retail customer (someone who is buying in bulk eg. 100 items, but to use themselves rather than sell on to someone else) - here you could offer 20% - 30% off the retail price.

If your retail prices don't currently reflect this formula, then don't panic. Creep your prices up bit-by-bit and accept you will earn less labour & profit for yourself if you suddenly get a wholesale order. Or close your shop for a while and re-launch with new prices, but also think about a social media campaign and maybe a discount code for the first month after you've re-opened, so past customers don't get scared away!

Be An Expert - Looking Ahead - Targeting Special Occasions

We're all pretty good at thinking about Christmas when planning ahead for our Etsy shops, right? What about the other key dates and special occasions during the year? Valentine's Day has just passed, but there's still plenty of other occasions you can be planning for. You may think of Mother's Day, Father's Day, Easter... but what about all the other key dates?

Make sure you investigate events that could be important to your target market. Is your ideal customer a mum with school-age kids? Make sure you think about teacher's gifts at the end of the school year, or back-to-school items in September. If your customers are festival-lovers don't forget about Glastonbury.

Think of seasonal activities - summer is Wedding Season so people will be searching for favours, decorations, gifts, and more. In the autumn customers will start shopping for more cosy, homely items, and you can target Halloween if it suits your shop.

Take a moment to sit down and work out what dates you should be targeting in 2017. You can check this World First key dates for business list here: https://www.worldfirst.com/…/i…/32-key-retail-dates-of-2017/ and for some more wacky ideas check out this Time & Date list of funny dates: https://www.timeanddate.com/holidays/fun/

'Chocolate and Mint Day' or 'World Juggling Day', anyone?

Decide whether you need to design new products for your key dates, or whether you just need to tweak your tags and re-arrange your shop in advance of the event. Work out how far in advance you need to do those things (a couple of months at least) and mark them on your calendar now!

Be an Expert - Achieve your goals!

Photo Credit - Lindsay from SlumberMonkey who is a Dorset Team member

Happy New Year!

This week our 'Be an Expert' post is all about goal setting for 2016 and achieving your goals. Setting goals is a great way to keep motivated throughout the year and keep track of your progress.

There is a fantastic resources on how to set your own goals for this year here:
https://www.etsy.com/uk/seller-handbook/article/ready-for-etsy-success-start-with-an/22665600045

 https://www.etsy.com/uk/seller-handbook/article/how-4-sellers-achieved-their-goals-in/36568397091 

This article from Etsy also goes through different goals and share resources for how to achieve those goals. There is something from Etsy sellers of different expertise from total newbies to those more established.

What are your goals for 2016? We would love to hear.

Please share them by adding a comment below or by sharing on #DorsetTeam