Etsy Closed My Shop Part 200

OK, that's an exaggeration, but apparently Etsy did another big Friday sweep and once again I received emails from sellers wanting to know what to do. So again I post my piece of mind.

Etsy TOU's or Terms of Use are so all encompassing that every seller is probably in violation of something. For instance, if you have collaborative work with any other Etsy seller and you don't have the link to that shop on you shop, If you say ANYTHING negative about Etsy on a public venue (believe me, they are watching), and of course if your items are in handmade and don't look handmade. One of the most common reason's for having a shop shut down is copyright infringement. If you want to sell on Etsy, only sell "fan art" that is "inspired by" the genre you are representing. The don't seem to understand the law on reconstructing materials either via the First Sale Doctrine. But that's another long story.

Point is, they can find a number of valid reason's to close your shop. Sometimes you can get it reopened, sometimes not. I think it depends on how penitent you are. Do you grovel, or are you snippy and snide? And I also think it helps to have had white backgrounds. The have a preference for shops that display works on white backgrounds. Look at the front page, right now, go.

Do they need your shop? No, not anymore, they have thousands of shops. Your 3.5% doesn't mean much to them anymore. Even if your sales mean food on the table for your family. That's what happened to my daughter, because she was supporting her family on the money she made on Etsy. Her 3.5% was about $90 a month, she was doing very well and they still didn't care.There is no Heart in Etsy.

The first thing I suggest to anyone selling online at any venue is to get a web page. You can get free ones. weebly.com has free sites. Buy your domain name someplace cheap and buy a site if you can. Put that address on your business cards and link your "shop" page directly to your selling site. That way if anything happens to your site, your buyers will ALWAYS know where to find you.

Don't think you're immune either. I've had friends who have had their images stolen by off shore factories and posted online. These are honest shops who have had their copyright infringed on, and Etsy forced them to prove that their merchandise was handmade. DO NOT think that a watermark will save you. They are easily removed with Photoshop. I've seen the images that prove it.

And remember, if you do get your shop closed, you can contact me through this blog. At least I can hold your hand and lend a shoulder.

Bizz Buzz - Oh My Handmade Goodness

I have so many things on my plate right now I can Hardly find which Fork or Spoon to eat with and don't we eat the peas with the Butter knife? (the butter helps keep the peas on, yes?)

I love to share tips with you, but sometimes I just don't have the time to share my advice, so I wanted to share with you a truly wonderful site, if you haven't already started reading it. Sellers please subscribe to the Oh My Handmade Goodness daily emails, you will not be sorry.

The Blog is the work of a loving and sharing team and it is just full of wonderful ideas to make your business more successful. Please stop by and give it a look today.

Putting it Together - Prepping for the Rush

November to Mid December is the Busiest time of the Year for many of us! I hope you are ready.

With busy lives shoppers turn to the internet to complete their Holiday shopping. Be prepared for the rush.

Business Cards: I always include a few business cards so buyers can share. I include a card from my less visited shop with a coupon code printed on the back as a Thank You for shopping in my primary shop. Business Cards are a Great way to promote you business.

Never think they are unimportant, because buyers might stick them in their wallet or purse and pull out to share with friends. I buy from Vistaprint because they are very reasonable and I can afford to give away a few with each purchase. Many sellers buy Moo Cards and I have bought from Overnight Prints too, and their quality is very good.

You don't have to be all business either. This is my business card for My Flower Jewelry Shop.

Packaging: Make sure you have enough materials for packaging in stock. You don't want to be caught short handed, especially if you order packaging on line. Remember, your supplier will be busy too.

I like to combine local and internet materials. I buy my jewelry boxes from Paper Mart, my packaging supplies on eBay, because most sellers deliver quickly, and my tissue and ribbon at a local dollar store.


I put my jewelry in hand stamped boxes made of post consumer recycled paper. My Aprons and Housewares are Wrapped in Colorful Tissue with Ribbon Ties.

Newspaper makes a Great wrapping, but not for fabric or anything else that can transfer the ink onto. Don't be afraid to recycle, especially if your items are eco friendly. Scrap or clearance Fabric makes nice wrapping too, especially with pinked edges. Walmart is bringing back fabric and even has 5 yd bolts for $5 that's a lot of wrapping material.

Gifts: It's nice to include a little gift. Many people include candy, but I prefer not to eat candy that has been shipped with a gift myself, so I'm not sure that that is the greatest thing so send.

I sometimes make refrigerator magnets of my Jewelry Business Card. That's why I made a quote that they might like to keep. I also have pencils printed with my shop address. I get them made at Oriental Trading. They are reasonable and a practical gift that keeps reminding the buyer where they shopped. Oriental Trading also has lots of other reasonable fun gifts.

There are also a LOT of neat things on Etsy, Artfire and even eBay that can be bought in bulk and used as gifts or packaging. That way you can support other sellers too. I use envelopes that I bought from Piping Hot Papers for business cards for special purchases.

This shop also has little matchbook notepads and other great little gifties.

So stock up your supplies. It's going to be a long and fruitful Holiday Season. People will be so tired of tightening their belts that they are going to want to let loose a little and have some fun.  So sit back and enjoy the ride.

Putting it Together - Failure

“I have not failed. I’ve just found 10,000 ways that don’t work.” ― Thomas Edison

I saw this quote this week and remembered how much I love it. I'm sure you all can relate, sellers and buyers alike. I know just recently in trying to remember how to make these lovely Halloween Cat charms, I just couldn't get the process right and I made them just last year.

I guess what I'm trying to say, and Edison was trying to say, is that there is no success without some failure.  Sometime it can be so frustrating, when you spend a day taking photographs and none of them turn out right, or you follow a recipe to the letter and your cake falls flat. I remember my first Angel Food cake from scratch. It was about 1 inch high.

Don't be afraid to experiment, that's where great ideas are born. Don't be afraid to fail that's where the genius lies. Don't you just know I fail at something EVERY day, but I still go on, because every day I succeed at something too.

Biz Buzz - Web Selling and Monitor Color Variation

"This merchandise is not at all the color I thought it would be"

How many times has this happened to you? Have you ever walked into the Library, or classroom and see a bank of computers that all have slightly different colors, or brightness settings. I'm sure you know that all monitors show color variations, but do your buyers?

Every one of the three monitors we have in our house show my product differently and my laptop even varies brightness by tilting the screen at a different angle.

What's a seller to do?

I have two FANTASTIC ideas to help.

COLOR DESCRIPTION:

Make sure that you describe the color as accurately as possible. Not just Orange but Light Burnt Orange. Not just Blue, but Robins Egg Blue, of whatever description can help your buyer identify the color correctly. If you say that the color is Robin's Egg Blue and they see Navy, they may realize that their monitor color is off.

COLOR DISCLAIMER:

This disclaimer was borrowed from a very wise seller. It is on every listing. You can add a similar note to your listings to help prevent problems.

"Real colors may slightly differ from their appearance on your display, as it depends on your monitor settings and is not under our control."


Both suggestions are great ideas, but the real trick is for you to get your buyer to actually READ the descriptions. If they didn't, you at least have the description to show them when they contact you to say that their purchase isn't the right color.

Biz Buzz - Ch-ch-ch-ch-changes

Seems like there are a lot of Changes out there in the Handmade and Vintage retail world lately. I guess like the rest of us, our seller sites want to make money too. Thank goodness they are coming to their senses and are finally responding to seller needs and wants.

Maybe it's because the competition gets better Google and Bing result,s that Etsy is finally switching to Relevancy for search. Every time I search for something, I get Artfire and even Groove Press results, but rarely Etsy, except results for closed shops or expired items. I know it's a lot of work to re-tag, but I think everyone will be happy with the results. It would be nice, though, if they didn't give conflicting and confusing instructions.

Artfire is going MAD with changes. New shop looks, better SEO search result,s and no more free seller shops. Lots of complaints on the Forums that new banners have to be made, even though shops were given plenty of advance notice. I guess those Etsy sellers don't remember when their Etsy page format was changed not long ago. I had to redo ALL my banners to look right with the new pages. I do love what Artfire is doing though and boy have my sales increased.

Even eBay is finally responding to sellers. Usually focused on the buyer, eBay is now offering 50 free auction listings a month, and soon they will have additional 25 title characters and no negative marks if a buyer files dispute BEFORE contacting seller. WOW that is a big deal. Buyers should always try to work with seller first. Most of the changes don't require too much work, except for the occasional item specifications that they now require in certain categories.

The changes may be a bit of a pain, but I can guarantee you that they are being done to help improve your sales, because when you sell, your site benefits. Even Artfire, who charges a flat fee will get more customers if their sales increase. More sellers, more money.

Personally I think Etsy is making enough money that they should drop their listing fee too. They will get even more sellers if they do, and more listings. But maybe they don't care, they have a lot.

Well have fun making your changes All!

Photo Editing on a Budget Revisited

Getting good photos first is always best, but, if your images are a little less than perfect, there are several things you can do to improve them. Photo editing is a wonderful way to improve your images, even if they are not quite perfect.

Of course Photoshop is the best program to use, but it can be very expensive. Here is a link listing several free image editing programs and the pros and cons.

I always get my free software from downloads.com I find their rating system to be helpful and they are pretty safe. Although nothing is free, just make sure you have a good spyware and adware removal program running on your PC. Picnik Is also a great online editor for the novice.

Now that you have a photo editing program, play with it. Your less than perfect photo CAN be improved on. I always take my photos with a fairly high resolution. This will make a crisper picture. You can always reduce your resolution later.

Here is an example of an edited image:

The first picture is too light, not enough contrast and definition, and the composition could be more interesting.

First: adjust levels. Play with these settings until you get a look you like. This can add definition and contrast.

Second adjust brightness and contrast. In this case I would make darker and raise contrast.

Your photo editing program may not have a levels setting but they all have brightness and contrast.

Third step is color balance. Have your item in front of you and adjust the color on your screen to match what is in your hand. This will not be perfect, as all monitors do not have the same color settings. You can get complaints about your color, but it is impossible to have your color match every screen in the world. The best you can do is match yours and add a disclaimer on your site.

Once your photo is perfect, crop your image. Try a few different compositions, until you get the one that looks the most interesting and shows off your art. Remember, your first image is a teaser to make a buyer want to see more. Your remaining pictures should show your complete item with as much clear detail as possible.

I take my pictures in a rectangular format that Etsy uses for Treasuries.  Try to imagine a square window. See example. This way you will have a nice composition in either the square or rectangular format.

Finally reduce your resolution to your sites specifications.

Now look at your pictures. Would you buy from this shop? Would you add these pictures to a treasury or collection? If yes, you have done a great job. Congrats!!!

Newsletters

I really needed to start sending out newsletters. I made a few myself that I designed through my personal email. That was pretty easy. Collecting and keeping track of email addresses, however was not.

I got advice from a few other sellers about this service called MailChimp. Looks like a great one, and unless you have a huge mailing list, it's free. They help you with signups (widgets and links), save your data and help you design and send your newsletters.

 See, I have a signup over there ------>

Not very pretty yet, but I haven't figured out the whole design thing. Come back and see if I can make it any prettier. I'm going to try. I hear it is pretty easy to use, but I haven't figured out the whole thing yet. I'll let you know if I figure it out. I have heard from many sellers that it is really easy.

So here's the deal. I've been moving around a lot, so you need to be on my email list to find me. I'll be posting here, but I will also be opening a web site. YAY! And I'm going to bribe you a little. If you sign up for my newsletter, you'll automatically be entered to win this sweet Pink Anemone Trio Necklace. Don't worry about getting too many newsletters though, because I could barely figure out the widget. It will take me a while to figure out the newsletter, and I have a website to build.

Is Your Head Spinning From all the Changes at Etsy?

Change is good.

I don't know about you, but my head is spinning with all the new changes at Etsy. Here are a few changes and how you can "adjust"

FORUMS -  Forums are now in Teams. How do you find a team that's right for you? You have to spend days wading through all the teams that have been set up now, like Mom's Basement, Team Bacon, or My Cat Controls Me or maybe you can just go to Team Finder to help you find teams.

WHERE ARE ETSY ANNOUNCEMENTS? they are now in the Team Announcements. Look, they've even announced that they are making free shipping codes. Guess thy realized that they get more money if you give away free shipping than if you give a discount an merchandise. They're might be a little slow sometimes, but they're not dumb.

POSTER SKETCH - Crud, now how am I supposed to make my Treasuries ahead of time. Just click Privacy "only you" instead of for "everyone" at the top of the page. Save if you have to leave. When you come back click edit. When you're ready to share, select "everyone" and save. Voila! A little getting used to, but when hasn't Etsy been a little getting used to.


TREASURY - Well, it's just that that new page is hard to get used to. And WHERE is my big create a list button. Darn, now I have to make the first 4 images look so good that people will want to click on them. Come on guys, make the WHOLE treasury look good will ya? If you want to get on the Front Page you need to make consistently lovely treasuries anyhow. But then again, will treasuries be on the Front Page when Etsy makes their new FP format? Coming Soon!

And those are just a few of the recent changes. Etsy could keep me in new posting tips for quite a while I think. Next Week? Who knows?

Thank You Gifts

Do you give a little Thank you with every purchase? It's such a nice idea. I'm never really sure what to give. I have an Apron shop, but to give away something sewn is a lot of work for a small thank you. To make a piece of Jewelry for my jewelry shop is a bit much too.

I see some sellers give pieces of candy, that's nice, but not everyone eats candy. I used to give those magnetic business cards, but I never really felt comfortable with people wanting to put a magnetic version of my business card on their refrigerator. Not so pretty.

Thanks to a team members suggestion, I finally got a great idea. There's that team thing again. I can't begin to stress how helpful they can be. I decided to make a nice magnet with a nice saying, instead of just my business card. I have a few of my flowers from my jewelry, a saying that relates to my product and my web address subtly added to the bottom. Voila! something my buyer might want to keep. I got them made at Vista Print for a reasonable price too.

I searched around for something nice and inexpensive for my Apron shop too. I decided to get printed pencils made with my web address. Cute, practical and purchased from Oriental Trading at about $.25 each. They printed and shipped in ONE DAY! Now I am all set to give nice little Thank Yous.

Handmade Thank Yous are very nice. I like the tiny refrigerator magnets, or make up samples. But when that is not practical for your shop, consider a nice alternative.

Craftcult Widgets

Did you know you can get Etsy widgets at craftcult? Well you can. You can get shop widgets just like the ones I have on my sidebar, or you can get Treasury widgets like the one I have here. They are really easy to get and pretty easy to install on your blog. Here are some instructions on installation. http://www.craftcultwidget.blogspot.com/ Have fun and spread the Treasury Love.