handbags: Etsy Success: Distinguish Yourself

11.2.10

Etsy Success: Distinguish Yourself

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February 11, 2010

How to Distinguish Yourself From the Mass Market
As part of Etsy's Speaker Series, Douglas Rushkoff, author of Life Inc., a manifesto of changing our culture of corporate-run consumption, spoke at Etsy headquarters recently. Rushkoff had a few tips for helping to connect with buyers and encourage them to support independant makers. In the blog post about this event, written by Stacey Brook, two basic principals are highlighted: Displaying Your Value and Making It Personal. In today's Etsy Success I'll share tips to help you do both. (I also encourage you to read the though-provoking recap of this event.)

Display Your Value
Selling online allows you to reach a wide and varied global audience. But it does come with drawbacks. A buyer can't pick up your item, so you must get creative in order to convince them of the item's value. Photos and descriptions are of course key - but how else can you display value? Here are a few ideas:

Highlight great feedback. New Etsy seller, esmeraldadesigns, recently convo'd me with a simple tip: quote your latest buyer feedback in your shop announcement. Listing a similar design? Link to your feedback in the item listing.

Share the process. What kind of skills and time went into this piece? Consider blogging about your process and linking to this blog post right in your item listing. Using one of your item photos to display the work-in-progress is another a great way to display value.

Visit How to Distinguish Yourself from the Mass Market for more suggestions.

Making It Personal
The item's in your Etsy shop have more value than meet's the eye. There's merit in the great customer service you, the artist, can provide. There's worth in the real conversations the buyer can have with you before and after a purchase. There's value in the way you hand package each item. Finally, there's value in the unique story that you can tell that a mass-produced item can't. Spread these reminders in gracious ways through your item listings, Facebook Fan Pages, Twitter feeds and anywhere else your buyers might be browsing. (More tips along these lines here.)

Stay warm,

Danielle

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