When I browse Etsy, one thing seems certain. Shops with more sales have more items available and shops with less sales have fewer items available.
Sometimes sellers have the opinion of “look, if I can’t get any action on these twenty items, then I’m not wasting time and money on listing more”. I think that’s a mistake.
I think it works the other way around. List more, then sell more.
This is especially true now that Etsy has really made the number of items in a given shop so prominent on the product display page. This is the first page a visitor sees when they click on a picture of your item anywhere on the site, or from your Etsy-Mini. (see highlighted area of photo above)
Imagine Etsy as a giant building full of sellers and buyers. You can rent a room in this building for super-cheap. The only catch is, the door to your shop is usually closed. Some people will just happen to drop by, and every once in awhile you might get a little display table in the front lobby (akin to being on the front page), but for the most part it is up to you to get people into your shop.
Imagine being the buyer and walking into a shop and only seeing a dozen or so items for sale. Imagine seeing only two or three items! Now imagine opening a door to a shop and seeing in jam packed with stuff from floor to ceiling. So much stuff, you just have to dig to see what’s hidden there!
It’s the same thing with an Etsy shop. The more you have in your shop, the more time visitors will spend browsing, and the more likely you’ll be to get a sale.
My number one goal for my shops over the next week or so is to get my item count up. It’s hard enough to get people in the door, I want them to want to stay.
~ Kim
Other posts you might be interested in for your Etsy business…
Thanks for the good advice–I’m sewing as fast as I can to make more stuff so I can list more stuff. If it is not in there to sell, I sure as heck ain’t gonna sell it!
.-= Karen´s last blog ..OH- Check It Out! =-.
Great advice! I’m franticly creating and trying to fit in time to take photos, which I swear takes longer than creating the item, lol. My darn “real” job is really getting in the way of my Etsy!
.-= Alyssabeths´s last blog ..Byzantine Amber Rhinestone Filigree Earrings =-.
Great advice – can’t stop drilling!
What a great post, Kim and so true. I struggled with sales and then I noticed that as soon as I had at least 30 items in my shop, the sales started coming. Thanks so much for reminding all of us to keep creating and the sales will come!
Great advice and I definitely think that is true!! I am trying! Up to 80!! 🙂
.-= Angie @ The Country Chic Cottage´s last blog ..Pumpkin Mantle =-.
I have to agree with this 100%! Only when I started having more to choose from did my sales increase. Problem now is that the more I list, the more I sell, then the more I get behind! But hey, not complaining…that’s a nice problem to have! 😉 Great article!
.-= Teri´s last blog ..Candy Cane White and Red Baby Mary Janes 3-6 Months =-.
Awesome point! I really need to work on getting more added in. Thanks for the push.
.-= Angie @ Many Little Blessings´s last blog ..Many Little Links- November 7- 2010 =-.
Excellent advice! I *really* need to get some new items listed… and quick!
.-= Wired Whimsy´s last blog ..Bright- Multicolored Agate and Sterling Silver Bracelet – Rainbow =-.
I wholeheartedly agree! I try to list or relist at least one thing every day, sometimes several. It means I have a LOT of mulitples in my shop, but it also keeps my items fresh in the search listings and serves as a visual reminder that “HEY, I’m STILL HERE and so is my awesome art!”
If you don’t want to have a lot of multiples in your shop, you can renew an existing listing before it expires, which will bump it up in the search listings.
I think browsers who see your items frequently are more likely to remember your items. It’s more challenging when you sell items that are one of a kind and take a lot of time and effort to create, verses someone like me who sells prints of my artwork. If that’s the case, find something small and sweet that you think will draw people in, list them often, and that will gain exposure to your other items.
With Etsy listing fees only being 20 cents per item, listing once per day in a 30 day month costs a whole whopping $6 bucks. Not too shabby.
.-= Erin Rippy´s last blog ..Alphabet Animals – Safari – 11×14 Archival Giclee Print =-.
I absolutely agree! When I first started on Etsy, I was frustrated with not being noticed. I’ve had a tough time convincing my hubby to keep working on things for our shop when there aren’t many sales. Once we got a good number of items in our shop, the sales picked up a little. We still have a long way to go, but having a fuller shop made a big difference. I love your analogy!
.-= Karen T´s last blog ..Is Your Etsy Shop Breaking the Law =-.
Thanks for this post. I need these little pep talks every once in awhile. My shop is new and sometimes it’s hard to keep adding things when what’s there isn’t moving. Your analogy (and the pic of the beautiful moroccan lamps) really helps me to see the bigger picture.
Makes sense to me! Thanks for explaining it. 🙂
I’m working on building up my inventory {hopefully} in time for Black Friday.
.-= Lana´s last blog ..BOUNTIFULLY Thanksgiving Vintage Song Book Hymnal Wreath =-.
I agree! But I also think it is important to keep the number of items in your shop at an appropriate level. I’m very wary of sellers that have over…oh, about 150 -200 items. Past that, I often wonder how one person could possibly make each of those items by him/herself. I usually see it as a red-flag that it could be a resale shop. Not to mention, when I’m shopping for supplies, I get SO overwhelmed by shops with hundreds of items- I usually just leave the shop. So a balance is important! It’s all about what fits your shop vibe.
Great ideas! I noticed that listing new items all the time gets you into the “newly listed” category on the front page – this gets you views right away.
I read this article a few weeks ago and keep telling myself more items leads to more sales. However, I can’t help but think if I could get a sale I’d be more motivated to make more items.
Thank you for putting this into words for me! I think a part of it is that you want to make one payment, one shipping price, one package to watch for getting there on time. When you do one big project and try ordering a single item from several people you will run into more issues.
Its easier to toss a couple small dollar items in if your really interested in them and they usually compliment each other as a gift, just because the same person created them.
I agree with shelby.. It is so hard to keep working on all the ideas and make things and to feel like you are the only one who likes what you make. But I do know the more I make the more chances there are in someone finding something I made that they like and buying it. As with any store you need lots of stock and items to make it. So off I go to pour more resin and glue Swarovski flatbacks 🙂
.-= JenniferRay´s last blog ..Lonely Flower Ring – Swarovski Blue or White Silver Round Ring =-.
This is SO true! I didn’t start getting daily sales until I had around 100 items in my shop. Then, I started noticing multiple daily sales shortly after that. I’m hovering around 200, but am working hard to make it up to 300 items listed by the end of the month. It really does help!
Thank you for all the wonderful information. I am very new to etsy and only 17 items posted at the moment. Reading this has made me encouraged to get busy and to posting. I agree that it seems like it takes more time to post then to create. If anyone has advice on the best way to quickly and effectively post, please share.
.-= Jennifer´s last blog ..Work in progress Soft and silky =-.
I hadn’t thought of it that way, great advice!
Thanks. I learned something today. Need to get more products in my teniamariecreations store. I only have about 24 at the moment and made only two sales thus far.
Just discovered your blog through a FB link ! WONDERFUL place to visit ! Will be back for more ! Thanks for the handful of tips !
So true! Thanks for sharing with all! Better get back to listing….
Thanks for all your great advice. I too, will return for another dose!
I pushed through Feb, aiming for 50 items by March 1st……….and made it. Life is intervening this month, and I’m managing a new item a week so far. Thinking I’ll do another marathon in April and aim for 70 items by May 1st.
Wish I could figure out how to knit & sew while reading blogs & browsing Etsy! 🙂
Quickly moving my way to 100 items, but it’s not as easy as it may seem. More than halfway there, though. I’m also realistic that there is no magic bullet and 100 items might be good indicator of a successful shop, but it’s not a sure thing. I still need to keep my other marketing plans in check as well.
Oh, one thing I did have a question about, do you think it matters if you have multiples of similar items or not? I have my prints indifferent sizes. The listing is essentially the same, but duplicated for 11×14, 8×10 and 5×7. Please tell me that doesn’t mean I need 300 products instead. I think I might die if that’s the case.
You are so right! Taking that extra time and just adding adding adding stock is sooo important! not to mention the creating is soo fun and relaxing.
Great advice! It’s always nice to know that you’re not alone & other people are having the same challenges. I only have 19 items and have made 4 sales being open 1 month. Working hard to increase my inventory!
Trinkets2Treasure1.etsy.com
I try to keep a good balance of items..
As a buyer myself… TONS of pages to look thru and i get bored..
As a seller ..over 200 items means huge fee’s and not everything sells.
I try to keep around 150 items at all times in my stores. That seems to work out in the balance for me. Not huge fees and not alot of pages for buyers to sort thru.
I’m always worried about renewing listings and having too many duplicates. I think that theres a fine balance. If I take a look at a shop plum full of the same image/product I don’t spend much time browsing. Maybe switching up the thumbnail image will help keep things fresh looking.
http://www.etsy.trashn2tees.com
I agree…and must get back to work creating new items to list and sell..thanks for the encouragement!
.-= Marie´s last blog ..Artisan silver pendant with lavendar cubic zirconia – SPRING SPECIAL FREE earrings with purchase =-.
So here is my only problem with that. I am so squeeky tight on my money like there is none, not that I’m not willing to spend it, I can’t afford to “list more” It make my bill more. Then when I don’t sell them I still have to pay that bill. I can make a thousand of what I’m selling I just don’t have the money to front etsy. I am a paycheck to paycheck chic and sometimes it doesn’t stretch THAt far. Any suggestions?
~ Nikki
.-= Nikki´s last blog ..Animal Print Pendant =-.
I’m looking forward to adding all your tips to my site to see what happens, I will be sure to keep you updated. Thank you! Christina
It’s so great to hear that others have a hard time keeping things full in their shop as well. We do custom and already made cards and sometimes find it can be hard to balance both when a lot of time is devoted to the former. We have had decent sales, but we’ll stick to it and post more items to hopefully yield more exposure. Thanks for the tip & best wishes to everyone’s shops this holiday season!
Having a lot of jewelry or crafts on etsy is good. I did have more than 200 jewelry now only 126, yes, I design and create all are handmade I do spend a lot of time to do it. I do have more but they are not on etsy. My problem I do sales more, doing crafts show than on etsy maybe I don’t do enought publicity or people can not believed that they are handmade. Well I decided to open an other store to see how is going to do. I do a lot of jewelry when I doing crafts show and I was showing that all my jewelry are really handmade.
I will love to here any comments or any suggestions how to sales more
I’ve just found this site and I must say I’m in love! I’m a newbie to Etsy… Thanks for all the awesome tips I’ve found so far!
I totally agree with this article! I have increased my sales dramatically since I added more items to my shop, although I have been implementing Pinterest a lot more regularily I still notice that items I put on at the last minute sell fairly quickly because there is always going to be someone looking for what you have, even the most simple of things!!
I sell CV templates and it has taken me two months to get everything perfect and open my first Etsy shop with just six items… https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/introDuice
It is very exciting, however traffic is very slow at the moment, so am hoping to build it with more items after reading this blog post…
Thanks for sharing and I would love some feedback on my new etsy shop 🙂
I notice a huge difference in sales after the 40 listing mark. I’m working toward more. Thank you for the tips.
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