Selling Crafts Online:
Introducing Etsy

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Selling Crafts Online: Introducing Etsy

By R. L. Judge

You've put the finishing touches on a batch of handmade ornaments. Maybe you've just finished a pattern for a dress you think others would like to make. Whatever your craft, there will hopefully come a time when you are ready to sell some of the projects you've worked on. Selling in the offline world can be difficult -- shop space, advertising and staffing all get in the way of what you really want to do: create arts and crafts.

Luckily, the online world offers rich opportunities for artisans to sell their wares across the globe without ever having to leave the house. All too often, though, handmade arts and crafts take a back seat to other consumer goods on large sites like eBay or Craigslist. While it's possible to sell crafts through these sites, it can take a lot more work and patience, since most visitors are likely not looking for handmade treasures, they're looking for good deals on digital cameras and car stereos.

Enter Etsy.com. Etsy bills itself as an online marketplace through which artisans can buy and sell handmade crafts and crafting supplies. Etsy is also a community of artists and artisans who do not jostle for attention but communicate and share information, making Etsy a more comfortable place to hang a shingle.

Announcing "Your place to buy and sell all things handmade," Etsy invites the shopper to browse objects from categories as diverse as clothing, accessories, art, music, candy, baked goods, and patterns. Everything in between, too. A search function allows shoppers to zero in on the perfect object or service. Some sellers on Etsy will custom-craft just about anything from handbags to jewelry for a customer with a specific fabric or gem in hand.

For artisans who wish to sell their crafts, Etsy presents a unique online experience: a dedicated pool of customers who are specifically shopping for handmade goods. Signing up with Etsy is easy: just register with a username (be careful -- usernames cannot be changed once registered and they represent the name of your Etsy "shop"!) and valid personal information, including a credit card (for paying Etsy's fees) and email address. Once you're signed up, you're ready to start listing items for your Etsy store.

Etsy allows you to list for sale handmade items for a $0.20 fee, but there is no setup or monthly fees. Listed items stay on the site for four months. You can upload a picture of your item, and it's important that you provide good descriptions for your items so they can be found easily by shoppers using the site's search function. Selling items on Etsy is done on a personal level -- Etsy does not act as an agent in the purchasing process. As an Etsy seller, you have to provide your shoppers with purchase options, like PayPal or Google Checkout. When you sell an item, the buyer pays you directly and Etsy applies a 3.5% commission to your account, which is periodically charged to the credit card you used to sign up.

Selling crafts anywhere can be a complicated and frustrating process, but Etsy.com makes selling crafts online about as easy as it could be. With a community of other artisans to connect with and learn from, you'll never bother with the consignment shop down the street again.

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