That is already a small success! I'm also tired of these exaggerated success videos. I like such realistic videos like yours much better. Sorry for my English. Best regards from Berlin.
I've been running my shop seriously for 4 months now, (my shop has been open for a whole year but I didn't do any work) and right now I'm on 29 sales and I couldn't have been happier! Thsi month I had my first money transfer from etsy! It is not much but it gives me hope
I've been an Etsy seller since 2008 and I got so much out of this video! I have a successful vintage clothing shop and I just opened a new shop selling printables. Starting from scratch after all these years has been challenging. Thank you so much, this really helped me and I know it will help others as well.
Hey Dina. This video was really helpful. I've realized that most videos related to this topic is where new sellers make thousands in their first month. This on the other hand offers a more realistic side of selling on Etsy as a beginner. I highly enjoyed this video
Hi Soraine!!! YAY I am SO happy to hear that because I honestly was debating if I should make a video like this or not!! (Like... who's going to listen to someone with 10 sales if there are people making hundreds of sales in their first month?) But I'm so happy you (and other people) have enjoyed this. I will make a 2nd month update soon :)
Congrats on your new shop. I started mine in June, also digital downloads and it was slow at the beginning but I now have over 50 products in my shop and making new things all the time. So refreshing to watch someone with realistic numbers.
@@DinaLu Thank you. It's going fantastic. I am in a small niche but the competition is low and for the last six months I have been doing very little other than working on my shop, so long hours, but it's been super rewarding. In the first month I had different items but the competition was too much and I decided to find a niche market and create some great quality products that woukd be so useful to that small audience. It worked and now I am branching out more and getting a bunch of custom work too. So exciting. Wishing you much success too. Love your video.
I started my 1st ever Etsy shop, and this is how it went! I hope you enjoyed hearing my process and hope you can use some of the tips ❤ Let me know what your thoughts are and if you have any questions! 2nd month update is up! Watch here 👉 linktw.in/bQ9NVc
@@shandrealasco6568 like a bonus page, or a 2-page guide with tips, or a video explaining how to use the template! Just something that is useful to your buyers that makes them want to buy the product even more and helps them. There could be a lot of things you can make for a "bonus gift" depending on your niche
I rarely make comments, but one thing is for sure. You are doing well enough for a beginner, and that makes it already a success. You were able to manifest the opposite of this saying: "if you fail to plan, you plan to fail" because you prepared! everything, from researching, designing and selling. This is proof that one don't need to be a master of something. You just have to PREPARE & START. You showed that success is not equal to perfection! I want contents as imperfect & raw & wholesome & realistic as like this. More power to your Etsy business! PIN ME IF YOU NOTICE THIS! Kidding! 😘
Aww thank you SO MUCH!! And yeah I think for a digital downloads shop on etsy, it is so important to research and plan it beforehand, because once you start on the niche, it's kind of hard to switch. I would love to pin your comment, but I actually pin my own comment on all videos 😅
Thank you for sharing. Don't be fooled by those loads of other youtubers that tell you they're making 10k in their first month. While it's actually possible, most of them don't mention they already have a HUGE following/purchase base from other platforms and/or paying thousands in marketing. 300$ is a great starting point and an honest one.
Awww thanks!! Yeah that's what I thought, either they have already been doing Etsy for a long time, or they have other means of getting sales other than solely Etsy SEO
Hi Dini! This video popped up on my feed and I love it! I have had an etsy shop for 2 years and at first when I didn't have sales I felt like I was doing something wrong since the videos I before said they made a lot of money. It's refreshing to see a realistic video of how etsy works and how much work it actually takes to run a shop.
Keep up the hard work. I also saw my first couple dozen sales as a major success, and that motivation kept me going and I never thought I’d be where I’m at now. Keep it up!
The people that make hundreds usually have other shops and experience don’t worry. 10 sales in one month is epic. So many people don’t get a sale for months
I think a lot of people are lying Etsy is difficult it is a grind I have opened 7 shops since 2017 in different niches my experience is about like yours. Thanks for being authentic.
Brad thank you for sharing that! Wow 7 shops, that's amazing. And how are they going so far? I'm glad I could share a more realistic side of starting an Etsy shop, thanks for watching!
Girl, thank you for an honest video on Etsy sells. Other videos of this topic feel like they are unique cases of success impossible for others to reach. I appreciate all the tips you gave and how motivational they are. I agree that it is better not to share the info of your store yet. Looking forward to seeing your progress with the Etsy shop.
Danerys, I'm so happy to hear you enjoyed the video. Yes, I wanted to show a more realistic side of starting an Etsy shop because I've seen those videos too haha.
Dina was the first Etsy video I ran into. Honestly, the other videos seem like con artists trying to build a reputation in hopes that you buy their courses.
Etsy is so hard! It took me a whole year to sell my first physical product! So I've been researching digital products and will hopefully have some up in my shop soon
Hi Catherine! I have my own Etsy shop that sells physical products. And yes it does take a while especially since shipping cost is ridiculous. Don't give up on it. You can always do both physical and digital products.
Hi Dina. Can someone please help me? I'm stuck on the create listing. I went to Canva to create something and got an error message when I put it in the create list. Please help me.
Any laptop works, as long as you can design stuff and upload to Etsy / manage your Etsy store. Personally I use a Macbook Air M1 (mainly for video editing).... but you can use any basic laptop!
I really needed this, I've been watching all those other creators that showed up and I know I want to take smaller steps like you, just seeing your timeline made me feel so much better
Dory, I'm so glad to hear that you found my video helpful! Yes, even for me too it was discouraging seeing other people achieve "unrealistic" Etsy results in the first month. Good luck on your Etsy shop! 💪
you mean have your friends review your shop. So people feel safe of purchase and it's not a scam. LOLs. I always treat them out to food or something or beg them. Please please please haha!
I just want to say THANK YOU for being honest about how hard it was to start. I am so tired of seeing these "make $$$$ your first month" and they act like it is sooooooooo easy. LOL.
Finally! Someone mentioning how long it actually takes to create digital downloads! I tried to create something. Converting the art into actual downloadable products takes soooo freaking long.
Hey Priyanka! So I am actually not converting art into digital downloads - mine are more like templates which I just create on the computer. But I've digitized calligraphy before and yes it takes a while hahaha! Are you selling prints?
I do download Sketching . But how hard I'm thinking to deliver to buyer in a good condition quality 🥺. I have try to scan my sketches on phone scanner and go to printing store and try to print out my sketches in some type of paper that work well hahah. I just want the best for the client. I wish I had found my answer and solution sooner ! 😂
I would say yes! I started off with $2/day, then switched to $5/day, and now I'm doing $1/day. So far the revenue from ads has been approx double the amount I spent
Congratulations! This is so awesome seriously we're ALL just over these people taking about how they are making 500k a week selling one garbage design and working 10 hours a week. Thank you for this and keep going!!
Thank you so much! Yeah I haven't seen a lot of realistic videos either. But I'm happy for those people who really really made Etsy work for them. This friday, I'll have my second month update video published 😁
Hii lovely!! I just wanted some guidance about advertising please. Where do you advertise? How do you market your listings? Please pleaseeeeee let me know xxx
I have a question. Why do people atleast to what i have seen? Tend to not tell what they sell? I mean how does telling what they sell make them lose anything? Like if u get what i mean 👍, im genuinely curious about this. So i will be more then happy if someone can answer this question ive had for a while
On my first month I had only 8 visitors and 0$. Four months later I had 56 new visits and still 0$ income. Ahaha 😅 I still upload products on my shop, I’ll not give up! 💪
I am new in all this and i am considering to open my own etzy shop but i dont understand something so if someone could please help me with this, i dont understand how you can sell for example digital illustrations and printebals because anyone can just for example screenshot an image of art that you are trying to sell? I dont know if that makes sence what am trying to ask.
is it really a bad idea to have your etsy shop linked on different platforms? i can see how it can mess up the algorithm but i've also seen a lot of people use instagram to promote their shops and it seems to be working quite well for them. so isn't it a loss of potential/sales? you're obviously being successful without doing so, but it might not be that easy for people who have chosen a large niche with a lot of competition, so i'm genuinely curious. i've also seen people who sell their etsy products on a separate website and promote that website instead of their etsy shop. i'm really lost as to what path i should follow, the niche that i've chosen is quite small too.
I think it's a great idea to sell your products on multiple platforms, like using Instagram and also Pinterest to link to your Etsy shop. For me, I just don't really want to manage another Instagram account. I do plan on trying Pinterest though!
Hi Dina, your Etsy videos are super useful!!!! You just gave me the biggest motivation to start selling my dream digital products and I already started to research and brainstorming!! 🎉🎉 BIG thank you!!❤ One question to you: I have an Etsy shop already (I guess🤔😅) from many years ago but didn't use it at much and had no success at all...shall I open a total new shop to my digital products? What u think? :)
I love how you made a video on your first month, and I love even more that it was a huge amount - its far more relatable (I've been doing myself but been hesitant as all the videos claim quick success) so thankyou ❤️ I also feel you're super genuine and give really helpful tips xx
I think I need help with the Etsy reserve! I make sales but I feel like Etsy isn't paying me correctly. I know they retain the 75% for the reserve however do you know when they pay out the 25%? Is there any way I can actually see like a full break down of what's going into my bank account?
Thank you so much for doing a realistic month by month from the begining, I've only just started watching the video but had to comment on that already, so I imagine it's only going to get better. :) I'm hoping to start a digital download esty shop soon, and seeing the slower but realistic starting progress makes me feel better about actually starting it. Cheers :)
Should I use my personal bank account if I’m just trying to make some money on the side. Not planning on taking it serious or if I want to start a business, should I use a different bank account to keep money there for tax stuff too? Or what.
I would recommend talking to an accountant! The rules about using personal bank accounts or business bank accounts might differ depending on where you live!
thank you!! I'm still taking my time with my first product and I've been feeling so guilty that the listing photos and videos are taking too long to finish!
Hey Angel, I totally relate to you! Sometimes it's the perfectionism that takes up SO much of the time, so I try to let it go sometimes. I hope that helps!
Thank you for sharing your experience!! I’d like to add an observation though - you mentioned not consuming that many resources, and from how you’ve described your process, you didn’t follow a lot of the generic advice here on youtube - was that intentional because you don’t agree with some of the advice? What i mean is the typical starting with at least a few listing and adding more pretty quickly (or trying out the same with different product pictures) to boost your products showing up in searches, etc
Hey Z.K.! I think most of the videos I watched at the beginning were about how to do Etsy market research, but even then, I feel like the tools (like erank) weren't super duper useful. The niche for my Etsy shop is something I came across organically and even when I tried to use all the market research tools, I couldn't really come to a conclusion. So I just made 2 listings first to see what would happen, and then I got like 2 sales and then started making more. I also think that because I'm familiar with blogging SEO and TH-cam SEO, I didn't need to watch so many SEO videos because I naturally kind of understand it. It's not that I didn't agree with any of the advice - it's more that I think there's SOOO much advice out there and if you try to listen to all of it, you might get nothing done. And there's always more you can "research." So I just spent the time instead working on my listings. Right now I have 19 listings but I do make different variations of the same thing (like just change colours and fonts) so if it's a variation, it might take 1-2 days to make. Geez I didn't realize I typed so much haha! Hope this helps!!!
Ayo, I have an important question should I pay to upload my stuff online (to sell, I mean) when I asked Google it said I must pay 0.20usd for every item I list and then these listing expires after 4months and can/will be renewed for 0.20 usd per item??? This is confusing..
Wow!!! Good for you! I love your attitude and agree, ‘when you rise I rise, when I rise you rise.’ I have a long way to go with 110 subscribers and your message encourages me. Thank you!!❤
Hi Dina, new subscriber here. I appreciate that you made this video despite the lower sales because it's more realistic for first timers like me, glad you pushed through! Thank you for your advice
Well finally a video that looks realistic than "i made 900k a day" you're doing great I just have a question i am thinking of "print on demand" I've read about it a little but the problem that am not good at drawing so how could i include a picture in my design a drawing where can i find a no copyright pics for example that i can use any advice from you ?
I'm glad you enjoyed the video! I'm not quite sure I understand your question. I know what print on demand is, but I thought that print on demand websites usually provide the photos? Or maybe not. There are also websites where you can do mockups, like smartmockups.com. I'm not too familiar with the entire process of marketing for print on demand, sorry!
Thank you so much for making this video! Its so encouraging and its making me want to go ahead with actually opening a store . Do you create all your templates on canva itself?
How do you do a video for a digital download? I just listed my first printable but didnt do a video. Not sure how to make a video of a non-physical product. Lol
Hey Catargiu, I've actually decided not to share my Etsy shop because I don't want people to click into it and not purchase anything (and affect the Etsy algorithm). The niche is digital downloads (Canva templates) for a certain kind of business owner.
Congrats on opening an Etsy shop! I have had a OOAK type of Etsy shop for 6 years and I highly recommend to check out "Kara Buntin" on youtube. She has 2 different channels. A beginners and an intermediate channel. She's been teaching Etsy for about 15 years. You don't have to buy any of her courses etc. (she doesn't push that either like some etsy folks on youtube) because she literally gives away the best information for FREE. She's been around for a while. She's honest & straight to the point. She has 3 different etsy shops so she knows about Vintage, product and digital downloads. Seriously check her out. She gives great free info, strategy and tips.
That's awesome! I've been on Etsy for 2 months and haven't made a single sale. Making sure it's. I just subbed your channel wish you the best of success.
Most of the people doing digital downloads and Etsy stores always say you need 100-200 products in your store to start gaining momentum but like howwww if it takes soo long to create the products! Taking the mock-ups photos and writing the description is another 2 separate jobs on its own !!
Hey Ava! I've seen some stores with 10, 20, 50 products that are doing really well, so I actually don't know. I think it really depends on the niche. Haha but I've also seen stores with like 300 products. So far, I've got 19 (2 months into it). For some of them, I make slight variations but it's still a different product altogether. I don't take photos actually - I use the free version of Smartmockups to make "mock up photos" The description actually doesn't take me very long, because I have a format I use for all of them and just need to change a few tings. Do you have an Etsy store?
I'm not an accountant, but this is my understanding. There are different business structures that you can consider like sole proprietorship or corporation (I have a corporation), and yes you need to report your Etsy business income whether it's as a sole proprietor or corporation. I would ask an accountant about the details! If you want a DBA (doing business as) name, you'll have to register as sole proprietorship. If you want to register a social proprietorship or corporation in Canada, I have an affiliate link for Ownr, the service I used to register my business and I highly recommend it. The link is in most of my video descriptions
Hey Dina, I opened a digital products Etsy Shop a month back and so far I have 70ish views and got my first sale only a couple of days back. But before the sale, I was very much disheartened seeing myself put so much effort and getting no outcome! The sale encouraged me a bit, that a added a few more listings and optimised my listing titles a little more. But I would really love to know where I m lacking as I m giving it my best. Is there anyway to contact you take your suggestions on my shop? P.S I dont want to take a course just yet
Congratulations on your first sale, that's amazing! Celebrate that! Unfortunately, at this point I don't help people for free via email or Instagram DM. There are a lot of etsy Facebook groups you can check out. Maybe you can get the support you need there for now!
Marketing is very important. Set up a pinterest account and post some pics of your products. Also watch some youtube videos about how to promote your etsy store with pinterest. Doing some marketing will make such a difference! :)
This is amazing! Congratulations! I just signed up on Etsy and within a few hours got suspended. Still waiting for a response from Etsy as I made a digital download which I created from scratch and had not broken any rules. :(
Phew!! Just saw my listing go active. The suspension has been removed but I am worried as I have no idea why my account was suspended in the first place. I did not receive any communication from ETSY. For now I will take this as a win and get back to working on the shop. Thank you for sharing your experience as it feels good to have someone to look up to for guidance.
Hahahah! YES! Love a vertical mouse! Except after I switched to a Macbook Air, I stopped using the wireless vertical mouse and switched to a regular bluetooth one since the wireless connection with the vertical mouse wasn't the greatest for some weird reason
Time to make some videos for my Etsy products It's been almost a month and I only did one sale for my printables I'm a bit disappointed but I've never been lucky lol
I'm specifically here because you're talking about actually starting your store, rather than "you can make millions a month doing this". I wanted to see how many sales can realistically be expected with digital downloads, so thank you! I've had two etsy stores in the past, bespoke costumes, cosplay print store, but this is a new area for me 😊
So happy you posted this!! :) Actually, I prefer to see this than those typical videos about making $10k or whatever unrealistic expectations. Thanks for taking the time to make this video!! Have a great day and best of luck to you in your etsy shop.
Sorry also, do you have any advice on selling products created from canva? Not sure if that is what you are using to create your products, but I am getting so confused with using canva pro vs free and if you can sell products from canva pro?
Hey Julia! Glad you're enjoying the content! Yes, I try to be as transparent as possible! My entire etsy shop is canva templates! You can create them with free or pro, but I would suggest NOT using pro elements or else your customers also need to have a pro account. In my 2nd month update video which I uploaded 4 days ago, I talk a little bit more about using Canva free vs. pro
I really appreciate that you uploaded this and is was so real and honest. Sometimes it’s overwhelming watching videos of people that have just started Etsy shops and are making insane amounts of money. I really want to start and Etsy shop and do digital downloads since I’m in highschool and don’t want to be totally overwhelmed with school and a job making physical products. Thank you for the realistic video , it really helped motivate me!
Thank you for your kind words! I'm glad you enjoyed the video ♥️ wow, I wish I started my business in high school hahaha, you are so ahead of so many people!
Yes I did and I just posted my 2nd month update video which explains the results of my $1/day, $2/day, and $5/day ad spend experiment! You can check it out by clicking to my channel and finding the video I just posted
WOW!!! Thanks so much for posting this video Dina. You addressed all the basics of my concerns (especially mindset and action vs motion). I've actually had huge success as an illustrator many years ago and Etsy/online sales of my work is the best next step for me. And for resurrecting my massive archive of artworks! So thanks again and am subscribing to you!
@@deveshreven5682 yes just use the free one for now! They offer a 30-day free trial for the premium version, so when you need it, you can try it out first
Yeah, I am just watching about this, but I am not taking any action about this so this video is very helpful for me after this I am going to open my Etsy shop fast as possible as it is.
Aww Aushanai, I'm so glad you enjoyed this video! I was debating whether or not to make this video but with all the great feedback I guess I'll have to make a 2nd month update now 😝
Hahaha thanks!! I don't think I'm the only one sharing this knowledge haha (also sometimes I am not even sure if my strategies are the best, just guessing at a lot of things right now but with common sense.)
That is already a small success! I'm also tired of these exaggerated success videos. I like such realistic videos like yours much better. Sorry for my English. Best regards from Berlin.
Hey Ramona! Thank you so much! I'm glad I could share my realistic results 😊 Do you have an etsy shop too?
@@DinaLu Yes I sell candles and I want to sell digital products for candle makers soon.
@@somegreenlife249 oh nice!! How long have you had the Etsy shop and how's it going?
@some green life... Your English is very good! Love from London 💕
P.S. I love your ombré hair coloring
I've been running my shop seriously for 4 months now, (my shop has been open for a whole year but I didn't do any work) and right now I'm on 29 sales and I couldn't have been happier! Thsi month I had my first money transfer from etsy! It is not much but it gives me hope
Woohoo! Congratulations Emem, that's great news 🥳 Continue on with what you think is working for you and your sales may even get better!
PURRRR
@@patriciuh queen shit
Any tips? I just started my shop , has a few digital products and some physical, am getting views but not converting into any sales?
I've been an Etsy seller since 2008 and I got so much out of this video! I have a successful vintage clothing shop and I just opened a new shop selling printables. Starting from scratch after all these years has been challenging. Thank you so much, this really helped me and I know it will help others as well.
Thank you, Tonya! I'm glad this was helpful to you. And congratulations on both of your shops, that sounds awesome!
Hiiiiiiiii
I'm just a beginner in this and u would like if you can list some tips out 😅
Thanks
Hey Dina. This video was really helpful. I've realized that most videos related to this topic is where new sellers make thousands in their first month. This on the other hand offers a more realistic side of selling on Etsy as a beginner. I highly enjoyed this video
Hi Soraine!!! YAY I am SO happy to hear that because I honestly was debating if I should make a video like this or not!! (Like... who's going to listen to someone with 10 sales if there are people making hundreds of sales in their first month?) But I'm so happy you (and other people) have enjoyed this. I will make a 2nd month update soon :)
Congrats on your new shop. I started mine in June, also digital downloads and it was slow at the beginning but I now have over 50 products in my shop and making new things all the time. So refreshing to watch someone with realistic numbers.
Thank you! Wow 50 products is amazing! How are your sales going so far?
@@DinaLu Thank you. It's going fantastic. I am in a small niche but the competition is low and for the last six months I have been doing very little other than working on my shop, so long hours, but it's been super rewarding. In the first month I had different items but the competition was too much and I decided to find a niche market and create some great quality products that woukd be so useful to that small audience. It worked and now I am branching out more and getting a bunch of custom work too. So exciting. Wishing you much success too. Love your video.
Oh that's awesome! Congratulations on your success!
I started my 1st ever Etsy shop, and this is how it went! I hope you enjoyed hearing my process and hope you can use some of the tips ❤ Let me know what your thoughts are and if you have any questions!
2nd month update is up! Watch here 👉 linktw.in/bQ9NVc
Thank you so much for keeping it real!!! Congrats on your success!!
Nice! I started it a few months ago and was surprised to get a few sales. This video motivates me to continue focusing on Etsy.
Thank you!!
What is considered a “bonus”? Extra downloads?
@@shandrealasco6568 like a bonus page, or a 2-page guide with tips, or a video explaining how to use the template! Just something that is useful to your buyers that makes them want to buy the product even more and helps them. There could be a lot of things you can make for a "bonus gift" depending on your niche
I rarely make comments, but one thing is for sure.
You are doing well enough for a beginner, and that makes it already a success.
You were able to manifest the opposite of this saying:
"if you fail to plan, you plan to fail"
because you prepared! everything, from researching, designing and selling.
This is proof that one don't need to be a master of something. You just have to PREPARE & START.
You showed that success is not equal to perfection!
I want contents as imperfect & raw & wholesome & realistic as like this.
More power to your Etsy business!
PIN ME IF YOU NOTICE THIS!
Kidding! 😘
Aww thank you SO MUCH!! And yeah I think for a digital downloads shop on etsy, it is so important to research and plan it beforehand, because once you start on the niche, it's kind of hard to switch. I would love to pin your comment, but I actually pin my own comment on all videos 😅
Thank you for sharing. Don't be fooled by those loads of other youtubers that tell you they're making 10k in their first month. While it's actually possible, most of them don't mention they already have a HUGE following/purchase base from other platforms and/or paying thousands in marketing. 300$ is a great starting point and an honest one.
Awww thanks!! Yeah that's what I thought, either they have already been doing Etsy for a long time, or they have other means of getting sales other than solely Etsy SEO
Hi Dini! This video popped up on my feed and I love it! I have had an etsy shop for 2 years and at first when I didn't have sales I felt like I was doing something wrong since the videos I before said they made a lot of money. It's refreshing to see a realistic video of how etsy works and how much work it actually takes to run a shop.
Lisa I'm glad you enjoyed the video! I'll make more update videos 😁
Keep up the hard work. I also saw my first couple dozen sales as a major success, and that motivation kept me going and I never thought I’d be where I’m at now. Keep it up!
Thank you Nate! That's awesome! How long have you been doing Etsy for? I'm happy to hear it's going well for you! This keeps me feeling motivated ✨
The people that make hundreds usually have other shops and experience don’t worry. 10 sales in one month is epic. So many people don’t get a sale for months
Yes, that's what I noticed too - a lot of people who have other shops were sharing about their "first month on Etsy." Thanks for your encouragement!
I think a lot of people are lying Etsy is difficult it is a grind I have opened 7 shops since 2017 in different niches my experience is about like yours. Thanks for being authentic.
Brad thank you for sharing that! Wow 7 shops, that's amazing. And how are they going so far? I'm glad I could share a more realistic side of starting an Etsy shop, thanks for watching!
Girl, thank you for an honest video on Etsy sells. Other videos of this topic feel like they are unique cases of success impossible for others to reach. I appreciate all the tips you gave and how motivational they are. I agree that it is better not to share the info of your store yet. Looking forward to seeing your progress with the Etsy shop.
Danerys, I'm so happy to hear you enjoyed the video. Yes, I wanted to show a more realistic side of starting an Etsy shop because I've seen those videos too haha.
Dina was the first Etsy video I ran into. Honestly, the other videos seem like con artists trying to build a reputation in hopes that you buy their courses.
Etsy is so hard! It took me a whole year to sell my first physical product! So I've been researching digital products and will hopefully have some up in my shop soon
Yeahhhh, I feel like a lot depends on the niche/ what you sell and how much competition there is. Oooo nice!!! I hope it goes well for you! 💪🙌
Hi Catherine! I have my own Etsy shop that sells physical products. And yes it does take a while especially since shipping cost is ridiculous. Don't give up on it. You can always do both physical and digital products.
I just opened a Facebook group for my Etsy account. I didn’t know other accounts existed
Congratulations, Dina! So happy for your new Etsy shop! 💖 Awesome tips, too! 🥳🙏
Thank you so much Sydney!!! I'm glad you enjoyed the video!
Hi Dina. Can someone please help me? I'm stuck on the create listing. I went to Canva to create something and got an error message when I put it in the create list. Please help me.
Congrats Dina!! I'm in the action vs motion phase and I really appreciated this video! Keep doing what you're doing! :)
Karen, this is your sign to get into the ACTION phase! Just start, and make improvements and learn on the way 💪 Thank you for watching!
Hi! Would you mind sharing the Facebook group that you joined?
Market research is so important! Couldn’t agree more
Super important! 🙌
Congratulations. I only made 3 sales in my new Etsy shop. It took me 2 months.. wish I could had more sales 😭
3 sales is a great start - congrats! No matter how small, a win is a win. Cheering you on💪
@@DinaLu thank you luv 🤗😁😊
Thank you for posting. Random question
What is the laptop/computer would you suggest to do all of this?
Any laptop works, as long as you can design stuff and upload to Etsy / manage your Etsy store. Personally I use a Macbook Air M1 (mainly for video editing).... but you can use any basic laptop!
Thank you for the info.
I really needed this, I've been watching all those other creators that showed up and I know I want to take smaller steps like you, just seeing your timeline made me feel so much better
Dory, I'm so glad to hear that you found my video helpful! Yes, even for me too it was discouraging seeing other people achieve "unrealistic" Etsy results in the first month. Good luck on your Etsy shop! 💪
you mean have your friends review your shop. So people feel safe of purchase and it's not a scam. LOLs. I always treat them out to food or something or beg them. Please please please haha!
Yes it can be a good way to get some traction if your friends are interested in the product and if they can leave an honest review!
thank you for sharing I wanted to mention what are the best products that are selling more on Etsy with digital products
I actually have a video on how to find an etsy niche (do market research) on my channel, hope it helps!
Thank you for the honesty. I’m so tired of click bait material. ❤
Aww thanks so much Jessica!
I just want to say THANK YOU for being honest about how hard it was to start. I am so tired of seeing these "make $$$$ your first month" and they act like it is sooooooooo easy. LOL.
Finally! Someone mentioning how long it actually takes to create digital downloads! I tried to create something. Converting the art into actual downloadable products takes soooo freaking long.
Hey Priyanka! So I am actually not converting art into digital downloads - mine are more like templates which I just create on the computer. But I've digitized calligraphy before and yes it takes a while hahaha! Are you selling prints?
I was planning on selling downloadable prints,yes!
I do download Sketching . But how hard I'm thinking to deliver to buyer in a good condition quality 🥺. I have try to scan my sketches on phone scanner and go to printing store and try to print out my sketches in some type of paper that work well hahah. I just want the best for the client. I wish I had found my answer and solution sooner ! 😂
Happy 2 weeks Anniversary for my Etsy shop 🤣
I am about to give up on Etsy selling physical products but guess I have to go back there. Thanks to yours vdo.
Keep going!!!
Congrats! I love this! So realistic. My 1 month I made 7 sales with ads already haha
That is AMAZING so far!!! Cheering you on 💪
Is it worth the amount of ads you spent were worth it?
I would say yes! I started off with $2/day, then switched to $5/day, and now I'm doing $1/day. So far the revenue from ads has been approx double the amount I spent
Congratulations! This is so awesome seriously we're ALL just over these people taking about how they are making 500k a week selling one garbage design and working 10 hours a week. Thank you for this and keep going!!
Thank you so much! Yeah I haven't seen a lot of realistic videos either. But I'm happy for those people who really really made Etsy work for them. This friday, I'll have my second month update video published 😁
Hii lovely!! I just wanted some guidance about advertising please. Where do you advertise? How do you market your listings? Please pleaseeeeee let me know xxx
I literally just advertise through Etsy by picking an ad spend amount per day! I don't do anything else
Im on my 3rd week still no sale
You have such natural beauty and an innate charming personality. Good luck on your future endeavors.
Aw thank you so much! Wishing you the best as well ✨
How low is the competition in etsy? Did you earn it orgaanically?
All my sales have been organic or through Etsy ads!
I have a question. Why do people atleast to what i have seen? Tend to not tell what they sell? I mean how does telling what they sell make them lose anything? Like if u get what i mean 👍, im genuinely curious about this. So i will be more then happy if someone can answer this question ive had for a while
On my first month I had only 8 visitors and 0$. Four months later I had 56 new visits and still 0$ income. Ahaha 😅 I still upload products on my shop, I’ll not give up! 💪
Yes, I would do that too! Those views are bound to be sales in the future. I'm wishing you all the best 🙌
@@DinaLu Wish all the best for you too ✨
Don't give up!!! You can do it!!! It takes awhile to make sales.
Any updates? :)
@@afonso7758 still 0 sell even with the Etsy ads program 😮💨
I am new in all this and i am considering to open my own etzy shop but i dont understand something so if someone could please help me with this, i dont understand how you can sell for example digital illustrations and printebals because anyone can just for example screenshot an image of art that you are trying to sell? I dont know if that makes sence what am trying to ask.
is it really a bad idea to have your etsy shop linked on different platforms? i can see how it can mess up the algorithm but i've also seen a lot of people use instagram to promote their shops and it seems to be working quite well for them. so isn't it a loss of potential/sales? you're obviously being successful without doing so, but it might not be that easy for people who have chosen a large niche with a lot of competition, so i'm genuinely curious. i've also seen people who sell their etsy products on a separate website and promote that website instead of their etsy shop. i'm really lost as to what path i should follow, the niche that i've chosen is quite small too.
I think it's a great idea to sell your products on multiple platforms, like using Instagram and also Pinterest to link to your Etsy shop. For me, I just don't really want to manage another Instagram account. I do plan on trying Pinterest though!
I'm gonna start my etsy shop soon. I needed something like this. So thank you so much. Could you link your etsy store as well please?
Good luck!!🙌🙌
When did you start Etsy ads .
I mean after how may many sales??
Probably after 4 or 5 sales? I did it 2 weeks after starting to make sales
@@DinaLu Great .and how many listings you put for an advertisement.
Also,please make a good video on Etsy ads
Hi Dina, your Etsy videos are super useful!!!! You just gave me the biggest motivation to start selling my dream digital products and I already started to research and brainstorming!! 🎉🎉 BIG thank you!!❤ One question to you: I have an Etsy shop already (I guess🤔😅) from many years ago but didn't use it at much and had no success at all...shall I open a total new shop to my digital products? What u think? :)
Hey Eniko, thank you so much! I'm so glad you're enjoying my content. I would say yeah, start a new shop so it's fresh 😊
I love how you made a video on your first month, and I love even more that it was a huge amount - its far more relatable (I've been doing myself but been hesitant as all the videos claim quick success) so thankyou ❤️ I also feel you're super genuine and give really helpful tips xx
Thank you so much!! You mean that it wasn't a huge amount right? haha
@Dina Lu oh yeah woops! Didnt read it before i sent the comment Haha xx
Action vs Motion...Pure gold thanks!
You're welcome! I first heard of Action vs Motion from James Clear - it's such a brilliant way to think about taking action.
Dina your video is very realistic and helpful. Thumbs up!
Glad you think so, thank you!
I think I need help with the Etsy reserve! I make sales but I feel like Etsy isn't paying me correctly. I know they retain the 75% for the reserve however do you know when they pay out the 25%? Is there any way I can actually see like a full break down of what's going into my bank account?
I'm not sure because I don't have etsy reserve. Maybe check some forums or fb groups?
@@DinaLu So when a customer pays you , you get all the funds immediately?
Thank you so much for doing a realistic month by month from the begining, I've only just started watching the video but had to comment on that already, so I imagine it's only going to get better. :) I'm hoping to start a digital download esty shop soon, and seeing the slower but realistic starting progress makes me feel better about actually starting it. Cheers :)
Awww thank you for your support! :) Wishing you all the best with your store 💪
Should I use my personal bank account if I’m just trying to make some money on the side. Not planning on taking it serious or if I want to start a business, should I use a different bank account to keep money there for tax stuff too? Or what.
I would recommend talking to an accountant! The rules about using personal bank accounts or business bank accounts might differ depending on where you live!
thank you!! I'm still taking my time with my first product and I've been feeling so guilty that the listing photos and videos are taking too long to finish!
Hey Angel, I totally relate to you! Sometimes it's the perfectionism that takes up SO much of the time, so I try to let it go sometimes. I hope that helps!
Thank you for sharing your experience!! I’d like to add an observation though - you mentioned not consuming that many resources, and from how you’ve described your process, you didn’t follow a lot of the generic advice here on youtube - was that intentional because you don’t agree with some of the advice? What i mean is the typical starting with at least a few listing and adding more pretty quickly (or trying out the same with different product pictures) to boost your products showing up in searches, etc
Hey Z.K.! I think most of the videos I watched at the beginning were about how to do Etsy market research, but even then, I feel like the tools (like erank) weren't super duper useful. The niche for my Etsy shop is something I came across organically and even when I tried to use all the market research tools, I couldn't really come to a conclusion. So I just made 2 listings first to see what would happen, and then I got like 2 sales and then started making more. I also think that because I'm familiar with blogging SEO and TH-cam SEO, I didn't need to watch so many SEO videos because I naturally kind of understand it. It's not that I didn't agree with any of the advice - it's more that I think there's SOOO much advice out there and if you try to listen to all of it, you might get nothing done. And there's always more you can "research." So I just spent the time instead working on my listings. Right now I have 19 listings but I do make different variations of the same thing (like just change colours and fonts) so if it's a variation, it might take 1-2 days to make. Geez I didn't realize I typed so much haha! Hope this helps!!!
@@DinaLu oh i get that, thank you for responding! and good luck with your shop🎉
Ayo, I have an important question should I pay to upload my stuff online (to sell, I mean) when I asked Google it said I must pay 0.20usd for every item I list and then these listing expires after 4months and can/will be renewed for 0.20 usd per item??? This is confusing..
Yes, on Etsy you need to pay 0.20 per product to list your products!
Some folks have their mom buy their art or whatever to boost themselves and make the video! Your results sound normal.
Wow great job 🎉🎉🎉🎉 At least you’re being realistic😊 Thank you so much for sharing. I’m thinking about starting an online business.
Thank you! Good luck!!
Thank you for sharing this, it actually makes me feel more motivated to keep trying to get my etsy shop going! I appreciate this, thank you!
Yesss, GO ASH! It might be slow at first, but you never know when it's going to pick up :) Cheering you on!
Wow!!! Good for you! I love your attitude and agree, ‘when you rise I rise, when I rise you rise.’ I have a long way to go with 110 subscribers and your message encourages me. Thank you!!❤
I'm so glad that encouraged you! Thank you so much!! ❤️
Love this video so much! Feels so authentic and relatable! Thank you gal! I’m gonna stop being in motion now and go take some action 🤪
Yess Morgan! You got this!!!
Hi Dina, new subscriber here. I appreciate that you made this video despite the lower sales because it's more realistic for first timers like me, glad you pushed through! Thank you for your advice
Glad you liked it!!
Well finally a video that looks realistic than "i made 900k a day"
you're doing great
I just have a question i am thinking of "print on demand" I've read about it a little but the problem that am not good at drawing so how could i include a picture in my design a drawing where can i find a no copyright pics for example that i can use any advice from you ?
I'm glad you enjoyed the video! I'm not quite sure I understand your question. I know what print on demand is, but I thought that print on demand websites usually provide the photos? Or maybe not. There are also websites where you can do mockups, like smartmockups.com. I'm not too familiar with the entire process of marketing for print on demand, sorry!
Love this Dina! What’s the best way to get in touch regarding collaborations? :)
You can DM me on instagram @dinadlu!
@@DinaLu we sent you a message! :)
I dont think it went for all.. Please guide
I also want to start on Etsy..
Thank you so much for making this video! Its so encouraging and its making me want to go ahead with actually opening a store .
Do you create all your templates on canva itself?
Yes! All templates on Canva
Great job! I have an Etsy shop but my niche is very competitive so have only made a few sales only since opening which was 1-2 months ago
Hey Anna! A few sales is still something to celebrate!!! ✨ Keep going!
thank you so much for your tips, I learnt a lot and I feel more motivated and confident now!!❤❤❤
That's awesome! Glad it was helpful!
How do you do a video for a digital download? I just listed my first printable but didnt do a video. Not sure how to make a video of a non-physical product. Lol
That's a GREAT IDEA!!! I added it to my list!
Hi Dina! I can't find your Etsy shop. Do you have a link? Thank you!
Hey Catargiu, I've actually decided not to share my Etsy shop because I don't want people to click into it and not purchase anything (and affect the Etsy algorithm). The niche is digital downloads (Canva templates) for a certain kind of business owner.
It's all rosy until they suspend your account and take 2 months to review it
That would really suck :(
Congrats on opening an Etsy shop! I have had a OOAK type of Etsy shop for 6 years and I highly recommend to check out "Kara Buntin" on youtube. She has 2 different channels. A beginners and an intermediate channel. She's been teaching Etsy for about 15 years. You don't have to buy any of her courses etc. (she doesn't push that either like some etsy folks on youtube) because she literally gives away the best information for FREE. She's been around for a while. She's honest & straight to the point. She has 3 different etsy shops so she knows about Vintage, product and digital downloads. Seriously check her out. She gives great free info, strategy and tips.
Oh wow! Thank you so much for that, Ella! I'll definitely check her out.
Thanks for your advice! As someone considering starting an Etsy shop, this helped me feel less nervous about first steps 💕
I'm so glad! Yes you can totally do it!!!
That's awesome! I've been on Etsy for 2 months and haven't made a single sale. Making sure it's. I just subbed your channel wish you the best of success.
Thanks for the support! 🙌 Maybe some of the tips on the video could help?
Me: _wonders why I have no sales yet_ AH YES, I WILLY NILLIED the attributes /:
Hahah aww! There could be many reasons: the competition, the tags, the description, the listing title, the pictures.... so many! GO EM! 💪💪💪
Hey Dina! I updated my listings attributes and guess what!? First sale! Thank you so much!!
@@emm9258 OMGGGG! YAY!!! Congratulations 🙌💕
Most of the people doing digital downloads and Etsy stores always say you need 100-200 products in your store to start gaining momentum but like howwww if it takes soo long to create the products! Taking the mock-ups photos and writing the description is another 2 separate jobs on its own !!
Hey Ava! I've seen some stores with 10, 20, 50 products that are doing really well, so I actually don't know. I think it really depends on the niche. Haha but I've also seen stores with like 300 products. So far, I've got 19 (2 months into it). For some of them, I make slight variations but it's still a different product altogether. I don't take photos actually - I use the free version of Smartmockups to make "mock up photos" The description actually doesn't take me very long, because I have a format I use for all of them and just need to change a few tings. Do you have an Etsy store?
Hey! I also live in Canada. From a legal standpoint, do you need a business license to sell on Etsy?
I'm not an accountant, but this is my understanding. There are different business structures that you can consider like sole proprietorship or corporation (I have a corporation), and yes you need to report your Etsy business income whether it's as a sole proprietor or corporation. I would ask an accountant about the details! If you want a DBA (doing business as) name, you'll have to register as sole proprietorship. If you want to register a social proprietorship or corporation in Canada, I have an affiliate link for Ownr, the service I used to register my business and I highly recommend it. The link is in most of my video descriptions
I got like 300 sales my first month . 10 sales is interesting! I wonder what you sell
Omg that's awesome, congrats! I wonder what YOU sell haha
Do u thought about drop out and do other course but then got regret after then want to go back to same course
Hey Dina, I opened a digital products Etsy Shop a month back and so far I have 70ish views and got my first sale only a couple of days back.
But before the sale, I was very much disheartened seeing myself put so much effort and getting no outcome!
The sale encouraged me a bit, that a added a few more listings and optimised my listing titles a little more. But I would really love to know where I m lacking as I m giving it my best.
Is there anyway to contact you take your suggestions on my shop?
P.S I dont want to take a course just yet
Congratulations on your first sale, that's amazing! Celebrate that! Unfortunately, at this point I don't help people for free via email or Instagram DM. There are a lot of etsy Facebook groups you can check out. Maybe you can get the support you need there for now!
Marketing is very important. Set up a pinterest account and post some pics of your products. Also watch some youtube videos about how to promote your etsy store with pinterest. Doing some marketing will make such a difference! :)
Congrats, Dina! New sub here. So proud that you are documenting your journey so proud :)=
Melissa, thank you for subscribing!!! I'm so glad you enjoyed this video and I promise I'll keep documenting my journey 😝
Loved your video. Realistic one. I'm also new to Etsy. Waiting for sales
Rose I'm so glad you loved it! Good luck on your Etsy ✨
This is amazing! Congratulations! I just signed up on Etsy and within a few hours got suspended. Still waiting for a response from Etsy as I made a digital download which I created from scratch and had not broken any rules. :(
Oh no. Have they responded yet? I hope this gets resolved fast so you can move forward!
@@DinaLu No not yet. On the Etsy community someone said it took them a few weeks to get a response. Praying this gets fixed soon. :(
Phew!! Just saw my listing go active. The suspension has been removed but I am worried as I have no idea why my account was suspended in the first place. I did not receive any communication from ETSY. For now I will take this as a win and get back to working on the shop. Thank you for sharing your experience as it feels good to have someone to look up to for guidance.
@@kaykhan4100 Glad it was resolved quickly!!!
@@kaykhan4100 It's pretty common for new shops to get suspended and go through a review before they let them go live!
i actually very appreciate this video bc it gives me inspiration tht i can do it to even though i didnt have hundreds of sales
YESSS MICHELLE!! You can do it! And who knows? Maybe right now we don't have hundreds of sales, but maybe in 6 months we will 💪
Do you have step by step how to sell digital download on etsy?
I have a ton of demos and videos about how to sell on Etsy -> you can go to my Etsy playlist on youtube :)
Congratulations, Dina! So happy for your new Etsy shop! 💖
David thank you so much!!!
This video taught me 2 things, 1- START YOUR ETSY STORE and 2- GET A VERTICAL MOUSE 😂
Hahahah! YES! Love a vertical mouse! Except after I switched to a Macbook Air, I stopped using the wireless vertical mouse and switched to a regular bluetooth one since the wireless connection with the vertical mouse wasn't the greatest for some weird reason
Time to make some videos for my Etsy products
It's been almost a month and I only did one sale for my printables
I'm a bit disappointed but I've never been lucky lol
Some people never even get one sale! Congrats on your one sale. Keep going 🙌
I'm specifically here because you're talking about actually starting your store, rather than "you can make millions a month doing this". I wanted to see how many sales can realistically be expected with digital downloads, so thank you! I've had two etsy stores in the past, bespoke costumes, cosplay print store, but this is a new area for me 😊
Thank you! I'm glad you enjoyed the video! Trying to share realistic Etsy shop results. 2nd month update coming this Friday!
So happy you posted this!! :) Actually, I prefer to see this than those typical videos about making $10k or whatever unrealistic expectations. Thanks for taking the time to make this video!! Have a great day and best of luck to you in your etsy shop.
Sorry also, do you have any advice on selling products created from canva? Not sure if that is what you are using to create your products, but I am getting so confused with using canva pro vs free and if you can sell products from canva pro?
Hey Julia! Glad you're enjoying the content! Yes, I try to be as transparent as possible! My entire etsy shop is canva templates! You can create them with free or pro, but I would suggest NOT using pro elements or else your customers also need to have a pro account. In my 2nd month update video which I uploaded 4 days ago, I talk a little bit more about using Canva free vs. pro
I really appreciate that you uploaded this and is was so real and honest. Sometimes it’s overwhelming watching videos of people that have just started Etsy shops and are making insane amounts of money. I really want to start and Etsy shop and do digital downloads since I’m in highschool and don’t want to be totally overwhelmed with school and a job making physical products. Thank you for the realistic video , it really helped motivate me!
Thank you for your kind words! I'm glad you enjoyed the video ♥️ wow, I wish I started my business in high school hahaha, you are so ahead of so many people!
Did you use Etsy ads to promote your product?
Yes I did and I just posted my 2nd month update video which explains the results of my $1/day, $2/day, and $5/day ad spend experiment! You can check it out by clicking to my channel and finding the video I just posted
@@DinaLu Will definitely check this vid out! Thanks
Still haven’t got my first sale tbh
You WILL get that sale Marc! 🙌
whoooo Dina!! so proud of you and excited for this new journey!!
Thank you Julianne!!! ♥️
Nice video, thank you for providing real info for beginners!!
Joshua you're welcome!! I'm so glad you liked the video! I'll make more in the future 😝
how do i get free listing after my 40 listing ? is there any way or tips . Really appreciate if you help . thanks
The only way I know is through Etsy's referral program: "For every friend that opens a shop on Etsy, we'll give you both 40 free listings."
@@DinaLu Really appreciate your help. Thanks 🥰
I actually had an epiphany when you explained the difference between ACTION and MOTION! Thanks a ton!
OMG you totally made my day today, thank you so much! 😭♥️What was the epiphany?
Hi, It is possible to list dog products on Etsy?
I'm not sure what you mean... do you mean digital products that have dog pictures on them?
WOW!!! Thanks so much for posting this video Dina. You addressed all the basics of my concerns (especially mindset and action vs motion). I've actually had huge success as an illustrator many years ago and Etsy/online sales of my work is the best next step for me. And for resurrecting my massive archive of artworks! So thanks again and am subscribing to you!
Emmanuel, I'm so happy you enjoyed the video! Congrats on your success as an illustrator and I'm rooting for you as you begin this Etsy journey! 💪
@@DinaLu Thank you!
Did you use canva premium or the normal one ?
I've been using the free version this entire time, but a few days ago I started a free trial of premium!
@Dina Lu oh good to know...I was contemplating whether to use the premium or the free version....maybe I will just start and figure it out later
@@deveshreven5682 yes just use the free one for now! They offer a 30-day free trial for the premium version, so when you need it, you can try it out first
Yeah, I am just watching about this, but I am not taking any action about this so this video is very helpful for me after this I am going to open my Etsy shop fast as possible as it is.
Yesss, open it!!
please is listing mean uploading one art work or item ?
1 item! (But for some people, one item could be a bundle of things)
Thank you for posting even though you didn’t get as many sells its very realistic for us that are just starting out too
Aww Aushanai, I'm so glad you enjoyed this video! I was debating whether or not to make this video but with all the great feedback I guess I'll have to make a 2nd month update now 😝
Yes. Make the videos. All of them.
Hahaha okay!! More videos coming :)
Where were you all this time😋Knowledge which no one else has captured..Kudos!!
Hahaha thanks!! I don't think I'm the only one sharing this knowledge haha (also sometimes I am not even sure if my strategies are the best, just guessing at a lot of things right now but with common sense.)