I have a general gift store with POD mainly Mugs, but im making pretty much daily sales now. I think it's more about your designing skills than the other issues. Some people focus way too much on the type of store they have rather than quality and niching down. I don't focus on one niche but I'm doing just fine. When people go to etsy, most of the time they are searching for something specific, not searching by what kind of store it comes from. Heck, I just sold 3 curtains and a matching tablecloth to one customer and those items are at the back of my store buried behind all the Mugs I have listed. I've even sold a couple table lamps recently, but mainly Mugs. The true issue here I really think is designs. I k ow I was favorable to my own designs in the beginning, but now I know I've gotten better and my sales are showing that. There's nothing wrong with general stores because like I said, people on etsy hardly care about the kind of store it is. If they find a product they like through search, they will buy it.
Hi Jerry, and thanks for your comment, I would like to address your point here. From direct experience of working on thousands of Etsy stores, with access to their data, I can confidently say general stores are very problematic for succeeding on Etsy. Most of the stores I work with are general stores, and their sales are dismal. Sure, some of them are low effort, but then plenty have decent effort put in with time and effort put in to the designs. The point is, all stores have a profile, which Etsy collects information on, at the listing level, and store level. This then helps Etsy decide when to show your items for any given query action, or browse action, and this is when store identity comes in to it's own.
just starting out, ive thought of a niche im passionate about. the problem with it is that i dont think i can list 10-20 listings a day like most etsy sellers suggest. like, coming up with a design is taking too long for me and of course researching on SEO is taking another level of time and effort. and you on the other hand, suggests only focusing on uploading 1-2 listings a day gives me hope and a reason to trust you as a seller coach, and i know of only 2 youtubers out of many that i trust.
Thanks for your thoughts and support. 10-20 listings a day is WAY too fast and its totally unnecessary. A slow, measured and consistent growth strategy is going to prove your viability and get the most out of the Etsy algorithm.
This applies not only to Print-on-demand but most everything. The problem is there’s a lot of so-called expert Etsy TH-camrs that instruct you to do market research in order to see what sells and has low competition & then go with that. The problem is you may not give a damn about what u come up with. I agree that u need to be passionate about what you’re selling. I feel like since Etsy has lost its’ focus on handmade, people are just trying to sell anything & people are stepping over each others’ toes. There’s probably more money in TH-cam videos than Etsy (with some exception).
excellent video man, you summed it up perfectly with one principle and that's personality, targeting a certain audience and speaking their language by getting to know the nuances of that niche, something that draws attention in an unique or provoking way, Your content is the realest and most helpful Etsy content on youtube, hands down, it's a good harsh truth that will spare those who want quick money from getting into this but motivate who's willing to take this seriously, thanks for sharing your experience with us
Its interesting watching this video 8 months on with the furore shops with non POD mock ups having listings being removed. Time for the POD providers to up their game with mock ups for etsy sellers
Thank you! You helped me a lot to find my real niche. Until today, I did not understand how to find a niche for myself. But now I have it, and I can "draw" everything I've done so far. Thanks.
My problem is finding a niche, it's not that I don't have an interest or passion, I have too many, I'm super good with languages and interested with countries so I sell SVG for various countries, or I love American football and soccer and sports period, I've almost played them all so theirs that. I'm a teacher and my passion for children and you get the point. It gets overwhelming cause I will choose a niche but then I get an idea which is a good one and somehow add that to the store its just a mess. But I love your videos, because it confirms I was thinking about doing to help my store to better it. I'm literally going through every item in the store and improve it get rid of it or start a new store.
Tx Nick, as always great tips! I am grateful to have found your channel and to benefit from your experience. I've started my new shop 2 weeks ago, doing the 100 day challenge, and only t-shirts for now. My niche is Law of Attraction because that's what I am passionate about. So it's all brand new but I am doing my best to follow all your advise, keeping an eye on my small budget. I bought a couple of mockup images and with Canva I tweak the background for each design. I edit the 15sec video myself, using the images and some video shots of the print process. It's fun to do all of it. Tx again! 🙏😁👍
Hey Ruud, great progress so far, keep me in the loop with how your store progresses, I would especially like to know what has happened when you get to 100 listings. Thanks.
Thanks for a great video Nick! I deleted my products, as I was making mistake 1 - Now I am focusing on my niche - I and just doing personalized gift card jewelry.
I wanted this as I was thinking of adding POD to my store but been thinking about the things you have said. Keeping a niche. I have a few different passions but am slowly filtering out my store to concentrate on prints of my watercolour art but even that has several sub categories ie, flowers, cars etc. I have been thinking before jumping in so this was a great vid to re-emphasise that you still need a bit of business acumen! I only use Etsy to research as not dragged into the marketing of this tool and that tool. Thank you.
Interesting video. So I’m trying to start an etsy store, actually just for the fact that there’s no market for it. I’m really big into the gym, and I wanted to buy some humorous gym shirts, but there’s not a whole lot of options. So I started making some, but I’m concerned that there may not be enough demand for a business whose key demographic is presumably jacked 20 yo’s on a website mostly made up of craft moms. Do you think it’s worth trying for a couple years, or should I just build a website and run ads to it instead. Obviously that’s a much more expensive and time consuming option.
Absolutely love your videos! Confirmed all what I know and added so so much that I didn’t know! ❤️ I want to start selling on Etsy, but now started wondering if the concept of 100 listings would apply to proper handmade stuff too? Let’s say I want to sell handmade bags, that are unique and take time to make, would you recommend still trying to do so many listings or would different rules apply for niche products? 😍
Hi there, thanks for your comment. In answer to your question I advise my clients to include lower priced products in their inventory to try and increase the numbers, so in the example of bags, you might make card holders or wallets or keyrings, to go with them.
I'm a new print on demand store - so just learning. Only had about 22 sales so far - and they were all different t-shirts so hard to judge what is working - if anything.
This all should be common sense, especially about making and selling mostly only what you’re already into (for me local rock concerts, cats, flowers, and beaches) but sadly common sense isn’t all that common! Taking short videos of me wearing some of the products I make is a little out of my comfort zone and takes more time than just pictures but I am starting to do it more since even on Instagram the majority of posts and what’s more eye-catching are videos.
Yes Charity, you are absolutely right, it should be common sense, but honestly, it isn't. Print on demand makes people go product crazy, rather than focusing in on a niche and sub niche set.
I have to go and have another pee again, I just am cracking up here Sorry! Nick, I certainly appreciate all your Etsy help as the site has definitely changed big time over the years and had to flip back to eBay from time to time…
Hi! Is it a good idea to create mockup videos showing paintings? I opened a shop on etsy 2 weeks ago, with paintings that I create myself and I'm not sure if I should spend time making videos. I've seen some very successful shops with a lot of sales that just didn't have videos at all, just a single image presenting a painting. Thank you, and I love your videos!
Hi, as I understand it, Etsy is 'search based', like Google. Type in womens gold earrings and you can see related stores producing these. Customers can purchase without actually visiting your shop, just from the one listing. So, I thought a more general store would make more sense? Also they're are hundreds of physical shops you walk through every day who sell everything from camping equipment to dog toys. Amazon sell everything! Start small but do you really need to niche completely? Also, quick question, do you think there is a sufficient market for Etsy POD in the UK? Thanks for your time, love your easy to understand, down to earth Etsy info 🎉😊 and Bob the cat 😺
Hi Beverley thanks for your question. The reason behind general vs niche, is a general store is hard for Etsy to identify and to know when to push your store, which is particularly relevant to POD stores. There are cases where a general store will work. With regards to POD in the UK most likely no, however it depends on your definition of success.
Once again, GREAT ADVICE!! Mine will be POD all the way so this meant everything to me. Quick question: I have a fairly large email list. Will this help? Thanks Bunches!!!!!!!
Hi Kit, great question. If you already have a client base I suggest you open up your own website with designs. I'd go with Shopify or a similar service. The power of Etsy is that you don't have to drive in the traffic yourself. The drawback is that you'll make less and it's much more difficult to get off the ground. If you already have traffic - a personal website is much more profitable.
Hi Manifest, thanks for your comment, well done! It can be a slow journey with POD, it depends on how long you've been open, how many items you have etc.
I would really appreciate more information about why General store is such a problem. So having multiple stores is better? If someone likes a design, they might like it on other things. That same design might be applicable to that buyer in different ways. Ex. I have a design that is amazing for kitchens, and I've had several people asking about getting it on lots of kitchen items. I also have had sales of the same design on shirts because it's beautiful. - note. I'm a new seller to anything and I'm honestly trying to better understand.
It is because it is super low barrier to entry and everyone is doing it. Then you add quality score (etsy's visibility system) and you get tens of thousands of almost identical stores not selling.
Thanks for another great video Nick! Your videos are refreshing and I await these every week! Question: I sell digital printable products (not POD). And as a graphic designer I always make sure my listing photos look perfect and illustrate my printable products well, but what are your thoughts on having a product only image vs. adding sale titles on the images? Eg. '6 print sizes included' / 'over xx items in this bundle' etc.... I haven't tested this in my shop yet, my best selling item does have sale points on the image. I have noticed other that sellers in the same categories as me have not included titles, but they also have best seller items too. Would be great to get your opinion. Thanks Nick
Hi Sarah and thanks for your question! The best way to accomplish this is by creating infographics for your products, and put them in the photo slots. Don't over complicate your primary image photo.
Hey thanks for all your invaluable advices :) What do you think would be a good sub-niche for a clothing store that sells sweatshirts/tees/tops? I've posted quite a few sanrio/hello kitty designs and I was thinking whether I should make that as a sub-niche. However, I do love exploring with other designs and styles like for example the grunge/gothic style and sometimes the cute girly style (sanrio for instance). Thus, I dont want to limit myself to only listing variations of sanrio. Can you help?
Hi, and thanks for your comment. There is a lot to talk about here, feel free to book in for a 5 minute consultation so I can walk you through some solid options: etsy-consultant.com/services/5-minute-zoom-consultation/
I don’t sell POD yet but I wouldn’t want to go to an etsy shop to buy my dog a cute shirt and the shop also sells travel bags ! To me that’s just marketing 101 and common sense. But a lot of shops still do it. 😮 I have a shop but not POD bc I haven’t felt like I can make enough money doing POD.
Thank you Nic. I am based in the UK but was selling to the states (no sales yet actually), i heard I can’t have my location as US so changed it back to the UK. Would this impact my views in the states? Im learning everything so slowly. Thank you x
Hi there, thanks for your comment. Yes you have to have your location set as where you are, unfortunately sellers in the US do have an advantage over those outside the US.
I can create cross stitches and machine embroidery on my own as dijital assets. Also our store is focused on crochets. Is there any print on demand supply website that can give this kind of cross stitches options or embroidery options? I did not see this kind of option that I can upload my own designs as digital assets. Also I wonder is there any B2B marketplace that we can meet sellers who can kind of diversify their products with handmade supplies? Some I know uses their own machines....
Hey Kenan, and thanks for your questions. As far as I know there are not any POD suppliers that can do this yet, but I have not checked them all. I do not know about your second question, I am sorry.
If you want to have some general, gift products, like holidays, would you recommend a separate Etsy shop for the general? And keep your niche separate? Or don’t bother.
Thank you Nic...thanks for sending me here. question....what now...I have decided to improve my shop by rechecking all my SEO...and will have to take a few weeks off to redo many many of my 600 designs....I have deleted a few so far, and now want to niche down ....does that mean that from now on I do this, what then about all my previous designs.... do i just start a new niche now and add it to my existing shop.... Please help. So much appreciated...and another thing....so many people are successful by click baiting... selling at low low prices, but charging rediculous amounts for shipping. Should I do this??? I am selling at average prices, 15% discount and free shipping, and still only 11 sales in 10 mths. I am stunned, Sorry for the many questions, really appreciate your help. Christa...ForeverYoungDesignSA
Hi Christa, there is a LOT to work on here. Please book in for a consultation with me, if you would like. Link is here: Upwork: www.upwork.com/services/product/marketing-a-30-minute-etsy-problem-solver-video-call-with-the-world-s-best-consultant-1351219976669429760?ref=project_share Fiverr: www.fiverr.com/share/wPw5b8
Thanks for the great video. I have a question about niche vs general stores. I have a niche store, very similar to your example except that I use cats and cat breeds/types as my niche and sub-niche. I create most of the graphics using MidJourney AI. Some of these are good for T-Shirts but some, I think, would look better on, say, a canvas or a mug. All the images have something to do with cats but can be very different in character. If I decide to use the wide Printful options to put some of these images onto other products, am I then straying into the area of a general store? Is this going to detract from my T-shirts? Even if the other products are similar, such as baby grows? I would appreciate your thoughts on how far to diversify a niche.
Hello Nick! Been watching you since i opened my POD store in january this year. I heard you say that it's better not to put free shipping but why? Still can't figure out which is better, free shipping or charging for shipping. People love free stuff and the green icon under the products look attracting. But can the fact that the price scares people away? Is it better to lower the price and charge for shipping? None of my testing worked by the way. I did a lot of finance work and i cannot lower my price, my worldwide sales profit is less than $1. May you just explain why charging for shipping is better, isn't that goes against human psychology about "nice free stuff" like delivery?
Hi there, it really depends on your product, I'm not sure what you mean when you say none of your testing worked. For free shipping I'd recommend you test items with and without. In terms of $1 profit that is very low, feel free to contact me to book a call if you would like to work with me.
Hi Nik - thanks for your videos. I’m looking at your courses. Do you offer a money back guarantee or refund if a costumer is not happy with the course..? In general, I’ve found courses that offer a refund are better because the creator believes in their product. The ones that don’t, are usually very average with some value add. Thanks.
Hi there, thanks for your comment. I have a 30 day guarantee on my courses yes. If you need any help in deciding which course is best for your please let me know.
We've heard you time and time again deterring us from using social media to direct traffic to our Etsy stores - but I'm yet to hear anything about email marketing. Would marketing to an email list with a link in the email(s) to our Etsy store have the same effect as social media marketing would have? Also, providing it doesn't, would you encourage us to direct our social media traffic to a landing page instead where customers can enter their email addresses and we can then market to them?
Hi Charles and thanks for your question. Yes, the effect would be the same, it is an external source (your mailing list). Send traffic to your mailing list FROM Etsy ;)
@Etsy Consultant thanks for this. What should I then market to my email list then? Also, if I buy a domain name and redirect it to my Etsy store, would that also have the same effect as social media too?
Hi Nick, I'm curious. If I want to grow my shop quickly- for example launching 5-10 product listings per day, is this safe for my shop? Did Etsy not suspend my shop for spamming products on their marketplace?
Hi Budi! Although 5 to 10 is not spamming it is far too high for a new store, especially if you do not know how well your products are going to perform. 1 or 2 a day is much better and gives the algorithm time to get to know your store.
Hi Nic, I am into a niche that I’m passionate about. Lets say its fishing. Can I make a praising design about the latest fishing rod model from ABU or is this against their rules?
Nick my question is I’m passionate about two things - my culture being a Filipino.. and inspiring/christian things… is it okay to have both on my store? Also with the Filipino quotes and designs i’m not confident that there would be a lot of customer for it in etsy should I pursue it?
Hey Authentic, yes it might be possible to combine both, you will need to sit and thing about what products you are going to make. Check the Etsy marketplace to see what others are doing.
Good morning 😊 On the back of this video this morning I have just gone into my TH-cam channel store on Spreadshirt and pruned my ranges.. essentially because I realised in watching this video that targeted 🎯 listings with thought to the buyer is what counts. Mind you Spreadshirt and TH-cam take 😅ages to update those changes.. My channel is on my channel logo and I’d like to get into one of your training classes please. Kind regards, Scotty…
Hi Scotty, thanks for your message, sorry I am behind with answering comments, please contact me via my website about training dates. etsy-consultant.com
I am sooooooo happy I found you!! I’ve had my Etsy store 5 weeks and now I have good direction! My only question is do I try to catch up with adding listings or stick with one a day….. again thank you!
I'm sure he will respond but I think looking at the long game is more important, and pacing your listings one a day for ninety days may be better than doing the same amount in thirty days. Two reasons stand out: First, by coming to the store daily and posting, you indicate to the Etsy algorithm that you are very active, and second, if you get some early sales (unlikely but always a possibility), and you find a trend toward a certain product, then instead of putting out massive amounts of products in short time, you can redirect your effort in midstream to create product that meets the sales. But even that's not the important thing. Like EC has said, if you command the category listings (make sure you have all your categories you plan on having with at least one item in each category listed now), if your SEO is up to snuff (check out his latest SEO videos, they are solid gold), your site is attractive and you have used up all photo and video slots per item with quality photo shots, have a comprehensive "About" section with all your pertinent information, how you do things, etc, then I would imagine you'd be ahead of at least 80% of the stores in your niche. But again, think long game; Etsy is not only not a sprint, it's a grinding uphill walk for miles and miles. But the scenery you see is worth it! Good luck.
MY OPINION: not just these TH-camrs telling people the real truth that niching is gonna be your better bet, but also to really brand your shop! I see shops with a persons name in it, and immediately I write them off as they’re not really trying to create a business . And I’m not saying that they won’t do it later and I’m not saying you have to brand upfront because by all means, I see people need to get things going ASAP. But every time I create a side hustle business, I completely brand it because my brain says what if I make this so successful that I can sell my company ? If I continue to keep my name in the name of the shop or the branding at the shop, then no one’s gonna buy that .
Why not find something that you genuinely passionate about. What kinda Etsy shops have you been mostly looking at? Choose that and then focus.😉 For me I have about 4 Etsy shops but will focus on just 2 of them one Digital and the other posters both in niches. I can do the pet and vintage stuff later.
Hi Nick. Can humor be a niche? I have an idea about a print on demand store that sells only humor-themed apparel with jokes and funny quotes on it for various niches like sports, hobbies, occupations and relationship but all designs centered around humor. I would appreciate your comment on this, thanks!
@@etsyconsultant hi I need some help do some videos and if you can take a look at my shop and let me if my prices are to high and how do I lower them a little bit thank you
Hello Nicholas, I really appreciate your work. The Content is super amazing and very informative. However, you seem to be inconsistent in the content post and Video editing. I know you're swamped with work and have busy days. So for these reasons, I want to be part of this journey and would like to assist you in all aspects of social media growth from editing to creativity. My experience will surely save days-hours of time and effort. Please let me know when you are available to discuss this.
if I had not started as a general store I would have pretty much 0 revenue and 0 sales, or very little revenue and 0 sales. the reason my store is successful even in the slightest is because I went wide. my only popular items are ones that I would not have created had I not made a general store. I am considering a niche down or more focused future, but advising people against building a general store before they have any sales or a niche in my opinion is bad advice. you have to GET SALES, and what if what you think is a niche is so saturated you couldnt break in in 100 years? thats why my strategy of going wide and then finding what works and THEN when I have multiple popular products start hugging them more closely and letting go of the ones that are a waste of time. niche down as people like to say, but starting off that way would have killed the dream from day one.
Hi Ritchie, and thanks for your detailed comment, and I am glad a general store worked for you. Please remember I have seen thousands of stores in my consultancy and the number 1 failing type of store is a general store, and new sellers are highly unlikely to ever succeed building one. This failure rate is drastically enhanced by the simple fact that 95% or more of all these stores are POD. Sellers plaster their designs all over the hundreds of products POD offers and it kills the stores right from the start.
@@etsyconsultantlike I said I wouldn't have sold a single item if I had taken your advice and I would still be sitting here with zero sales I think you're out of touch with reality.
I have a general gift store with POD mainly Mugs, but im making pretty much daily sales now. I think it's more about your designing skills than the other issues. Some people focus way too much on the type of store they have rather than quality and niching down. I don't focus on one niche but I'm doing just fine. When people go to etsy, most of the time they are searching for something specific, not searching by what kind of store it comes from. Heck, I just sold 3 curtains and a matching tablecloth to one customer and those items are at the back of my store buried behind all the Mugs I have listed. I've even sold a couple table lamps recently, but mainly Mugs.
The true issue here I really think is designs. I k ow I was favorable to my own designs in the beginning, but now I know I've gotten better and my sales are showing that. There's nothing wrong with general stores because like I said, people on etsy hardly care about the kind of store it is. If they find a product they like through search, they will buy it.
Hi Jerry, and thanks for your comment, I would like to address your point here.
From direct experience of working on thousands of Etsy stores, with access to their data, I can confidently say general stores are very problematic for succeeding on Etsy.
Most of the stores I work with are general stores, and their sales are dismal.
Sure, some of them are low effort, but then plenty have decent effort put in with time and effort put in to the designs.
The point is, all stores have a profile, which Etsy collects information on, at the listing level, and store level.
This then helps Etsy decide when to show your items for any given query action, or browse action, and this is when store identity comes in to it's own.
just starting out, ive thought of a niche im passionate about.
the problem with it is that i dont think i can list 10-20 listings a day like most etsy sellers suggest.
like, coming up with a design is taking too long for me and of course researching on SEO is taking another level of time and effort.
and you on the other hand, suggests only focusing on uploading 1-2 listings a day gives me hope and a reason to trust you as a seller coach, and i know of only 2 youtubers out of many that i trust.
Thanks for your thoughts and support. 10-20 listings a day is WAY too fast and its totally unnecessary.
A slow, measured and consistent growth strategy is going to prove your viability and get the most out of the Etsy algorithm.
This applies not only to Print-on-demand but most everything. The problem is there’s a lot of so-called expert Etsy TH-camrs that instruct you to do market research in order to see what sells and has low competition & then go with that. The problem is you may not give a damn about what u come up with. I agree that u need to be passionate about what you’re selling. I feel like since Etsy has lost its’ focus on handmade, people are just trying to sell anything & people are stepping over each others’ toes. There’s probably more money in TH-cam videos than Etsy (with some exception).
Thanks for your comment Travel Oasis.
excellent video man, you summed it up perfectly with one principle and that's personality, targeting a certain audience and speaking their language by getting to know the nuances of that niche, something that draws attention in an unique or provoking way, Your content is the realest and most helpful Etsy content on youtube, hands down, it's a good harsh truth that will spare those who want quick money from getting into this but motivate who's willing to take this seriously, thanks for sharing your experience with us
Hi Maik thanks for taking the time to comment and your feedback, I agree!
Its interesting watching this video 8 months on with the furore shops with non POD mock ups having listings being removed. Time for the POD providers to up their game with mock ups for etsy sellers
Absolutely!
Thank you! You helped me a lot to find my real niche. Until today, I did not understand how to find a niche for myself. But now I have it, and I can "draw" everything I've done so far. Thanks.
Hi TeeDonkey, you're welcome, good luck!
Great video, passion is everything in any business. Nik you are the man!
Thanks Matthew!
My problem is finding a niche, it's not that I don't have an interest or passion, I have too many, I'm super good with languages and interested with countries so I sell SVG for various countries, or I love American football and soccer and sports period, I've almost played them all so theirs that. I'm a teacher and my passion for children and you get the point. It gets overwhelming cause I will choose a niche but then I get an idea which is a good one and somehow add that to the store its just a mess. But I love your videos, because it confirms I was thinking about doing to help my store to better it. I'm literally going through every item in the store and improve it get rid of it or start a new store.
Hi Pertina, yes the goal here is to define what the niche and meaning of your store is, not easy.
Tx Nick, as always great tips! I am grateful to have found your channel and to benefit from your experience. I've started my new shop 2 weeks ago, doing the 100 day challenge, and only t-shirts for now. My niche is Law of Attraction because that's what I am passionate about. So it's all brand new but I am doing my best to follow all your advise, keeping an eye on my small budget. I bought a couple of mockup images and with Canva I tweak the background for each design. I edit the 15sec video myself, using the images and some video shots of the print process. It's fun to do all of it. Tx again! 🙏😁👍
Hey Ruud, great progress so far, keep me in the loop with how your store progresses, I would especially like to know what has happened when you get to 100 listings. Thanks.
Thank you. I will let you know.
Thanks for a great video Nick! I deleted my products, as I was making mistake 1 - Now I am focusing on my niche - I and just doing personalized gift card jewelry.
Hi there, great to hear, good luck!
I wanted this as I was thinking of adding POD to my store but been thinking about the things you have said. Keeping a niche. I have a few different passions but am slowly filtering out my store to concentrate on prints of my watercolour art but even that has several sub categories ie, flowers, cars etc. I have been thinking before jumping in so this was a great vid to re-emphasise that you still need a bit of business acumen! I only use Etsy to research as not dragged into the marketing of this tool and that tool. Thank you.
Thanks for your comment, good luck and you're welcome.
Interesting video. So I’m trying to start an etsy store, actually just for the fact that there’s no market for it. I’m really big into the gym, and I wanted to buy some humorous gym shirts, but there’s not a whole lot of options. So I started making some, but I’m concerned that there may not be enough demand for a business whose key demographic is presumably jacked 20 yo’s on a website mostly made up of craft moms. Do you think it’s worth trying for a couple years, or should I just build a website and run ads to it instead. Obviously that’s a much more expensive and time consuming option.
Hi there, thanks for your comment! To be completely honest gym stuff doesn't do well on Etsy. You'd be better off with option 2 - build a website.
Absolutely love your videos! Confirmed all what I know and added so so much that I didn’t know! ❤️ I want to start selling on Etsy, but now started wondering if the concept of 100 listings would apply to proper handmade stuff too? Let’s say I want to sell handmade bags, that are unique and take time to make, would you recommend still trying to do so many listings or would different rules apply for niche products? 😍
Hi there, thanks for your comment. In answer to your question I advise my clients to include lower priced products in their inventory to try and increase the numbers, so in the example of bags, you might make card holders or wallets or keyrings, to go with them.
I'm a new print on demand store - so just learning. Only had about 22 sales so far - and they were all different t-shirts so hard to judge what is working - if anything.
Hi Cindy, 22 sales is good, and it sounds like it's too early to tell what's working.
Thanks for your no nonsense approach!
No worries!
This all should be common sense, especially about making and selling mostly only what you’re already into (for me local rock concerts, cats, flowers, and beaches) but sadly common sense isn’t all that common! Taking short videos of me wearing some of the products I make is a little out of my comfort zone and takes more time than just pictures but I am starting to do it more since even on Instagram the majority of posts and what’s more eye-catching are videos.
Yes Charity, you are absolutely right, it should be common sense, but honestly, it isn't.
Print on demand makes people go product crazy, rather than focusing in on a niche and sub niche set.
I have to go and have another pee again, I just am cracking up here Sorry!
Nick, I certainly appreciate all your Etsy help as the site has definitely changed big time over the years and had to flip back to eBay from time to time…
Shoulda, woulda, coulda...
Hi! Is it a good idea to create mockup videos showing paintings? I opened a shop on etsy 2 weeks ago, with paintings that I create myself and I'm not sure if I should spend time making videos. I've seen some very successful shops with a lot of sales that just didn't have videos at all, just a single image presenting a painting. Thank you, and I love your videos!
Hi there Uley, thanks for your comment. If you can do videos that's great.
Interesting. I've plan to open a new Etsy shop for custom portrait (print on demand) and using Printful as production partner.
Hey Budi, let me know how you get on, and ill always be here to lend a hand.
This is so helpful ❤
Glad you think so!
Great video. I have struggled with all of this.... guilty.
Thanks, I appreciate your thoughts, it is not easy!
Hi, as I understand it, Etsy is 'search based', like Google. Type in womens gold earrings and you can see related stores producing these. Customers can purchase without actually visiting your shop, just from the one listing. So, I thought a more general store would make more sense? Also they're are hundreds of physical shops you walk through every day who sell everything from camping equipment to dog toys. Amazon sell everything! Start small but do you really need to niche completely?
Also, quick question, do you think there is a sufficient market for Etsy POD in the UK?
Thanks for your time, love your easy to understand, down to earth Etsy info 🎉😊 and Bob the cat 😺
Hi Beverley thanks for your question. The reason behind general vs niche, is a general store is hard for Etsy to identify and to know when to push your store, which is particularly relevant to POD stores. There are cases where a general store will work. With regards to POD in the UK most likely no, however it depends on your definition of success.
Once again, GREAT ADVICE!! Mine will be POD all the way so this meant everything to me. Quick question: I have a fairly large email list. Will this help? Thanks Bunches!!!!!!!
Hi Kit, great question. If you already have a client base I suggest you open up your own website with designs. I'd go with Shopify or a similar service. The power of Etsy is that you don't have to drive in the traffic yourself. The drawback is that you'll make less and it's much more difficult to get off the ground. If you already have traffic - a personal website is much more profitable.
@@etsyconsultant I will definitely consider that!!! Thanks!
What is considered a failing store? I am averaging about 1 sale a day with POD. Hope to grow more with your tips.
Hi Manifest, thanks for your comment, well done! It can be a slow journey with POD, it depends on how long you've been open, how many items you have etc.
I would really appreciate more information about why General store is such a problem. So having multiple stores is better? If someone likes a design, they might like it on other things. That same design might be applicable to that buyer in different ways. Ex. I have a design that is amazing for kitchens, and I've had several people asking about getting it on lots of kitchen items. I also have had sales of the same design on shirts because it's beautiful. - note. I'm a new seller to anything and I'm honestly trying to better understand.
It is because it is super low barrier to entry and everyone is doing it. Then you add quality score (etsy's visibility system) and you get tens of thousands of almost identical stores not selling.
Thanks for another great video Nick! Your videos are refreshing and I await these every week! Question: I sell digital printable products (not POD). And as a graphic designer I always make sure my listing photos look perfect and illustrate my printable products well, but what are your thoughts on having a product only image vs. adding sale titles on the images? Eg. '6 print sizes included' / 'over xx items in this bundle' etc.... I haven't tested this in my shop yet, my best selling item does have sale points on the image. I have noticed other that sellers in the same categories as me have not included titles, but they also have best seller items too. Would be great to get your opinion. Thanks Nick
Hi Sarah and thanks for your question! The best way to accomplish this is by creating infographics for your products, and put them in the photo slots. Don't over complicate your primary image photo.
@@etsyconsultant Thanks
Do you think a “niche” gift shop is a good business model?
Hi, it's a much better idea than a general gift shop, so yes it is a good idea, depending of course on if you create gifts people want to buy.
Do you recommend any mock up video places besides place it?
Placeit is the main one, other than that, you can have people create them for you on Fiverr and Upwork
Hey thanks for all your invaluable advices :) What do you think would be a good sub-niche for a clothing store that sells sweatshirts/tees/tops? I've posted quite a few sanrio/hello kitty designs and I was thinking whether I should make that as a sub-niche. However, I do love exploring with other designs and styles like for example the grunge/gothic style and sometimes the cute girly style (sanrio for instance). Thus, I dont want to limit myself to only listing variations of sanrio. Can you help?
Hi, and thanks for your comment. There is a lot to talk about here, feel free to book in for a 5 minute consultation so I can walk you through some solid options:
etsy-consultant.com/services/5-minute-zoom-consultation/
If you sort by star seller and then in the url...change star to best and the sort is still there. It's been 2 months....you may know this already :D
Thanks Wendy! Amazing, I've learnt something new, thank you, I'll do a short of this very soon.
I don’t sell POD yet but I wouldn’t want to go to an etsy shop to buy my dog a cute shirt and the shop also sells travel bags ! To me that’s just marketing 101 and common sense. But a lot of shops still do it. 😮 I have a shop but not POD bc I haven’t felt like I can make enough money doing POD.
Yes, correct Mechelle, but so many people (I see 5 to 10 every week in my consultancy), have no idea about this.
I want to give up my print on demand Tshirts...im not making any sale. And my customer bought tshirt that she didnt get the item until now
Hi there, thanks for your comment, this decision is entirely up to you.
M8, u are a star. Sub more than well earned.
Thanks James, I appreciate it.
Thank you Nic.
I am based in the UK but was selling to the states (no sales yet actually), i heard I can’t have my location as US so changed it back to the UK. Would this impact my views in the states? Im learning everything so slowly. Thank you x
Hi there, thanks for your comment. Yes you have to have your location set as where you are, unfortunately sellers in the US do have an advantage over those outside the US.
I can create cross stitches and machine embroidery on my own as dijital assets. Also our store is focused on crochets. Is there any print on demand supply website that can give this kind of cross stitches options or embroidery options? I did not see this kind of option that I can upload my own designs as digital assets. Also I wonder is there any B2B marketplace that we can meet sellers who can kind of diversify their products with handmade supplies? Some I know uses their own machines....
Hey Kenan, and thanks for your questions. As far as I know there are not any POD suppliers that can do this yet, but I have not checked them all.
I do not know about your second question, I am sorry.
As always great information! Question about POD for low content books … can you recommend a provider? Is Lulu Express good?
Hey Wendy, and thanks for your comment. No idea on this one i'm afraid, I have never done these.
If you want to have some general, gift products, like holidays, would you recommend a separate Etsy shop for the general? And keep your niche separate?
Or don’t bother.
Hi John, if you want to do this, have separate stores.
Thank you Nic...thanks for sending me here. question....what now...I have decided to improve my shop by rechecking all my SEO...and will have to take a few weeks off to redo many many of my 600 designs....I have deleted a few so far, and now want to niche down ....does that mean that from now on I do this, what then about all my previous designs.... do i just start a new niche now and add it to my existing shop.... Please help. So much appreciated...and another thing....so many people are successful by click baiting... selling at low low prices, but charging rediculous amounts for shipping. Should I do this??? I am selling at average prices, 15% discount and free shipping, and still only 11 sales in 10 mths. I am stunned, Sorry for the many questions, really appreciate your help. Christa...ForeverYoungDesignSA
Hi Christa, there is a LOT to work on here. Please book in for a consultation with me, if you would like. Link is here:
Upwork:
www.upwork.com/services/product/marketing-a-30-minute-etsy-problem-solver-video-call-with-the-world-s-best-consultant-1351219976669429760?ref=project_share
Fiverr:
www.fiverr.com/share/wPw5b8
Thanks for the great video. I have a question about niche vs general stores. I have a niche store, very similar to your example except that I use cats and cat breeds/types as my niche and sub-niche. I create most of the graphics using MidJourney AI. Some of these are good for T-Shirts but some, I think, would look better on, say, a canvas or a mug. All the images have something to do with cats but can be very different in character.
If I decide to use the wide Printful options to put some of these images onto other products, am I then straying into the area of a general store? Is this going to detract from my T-shirts? Even if the other products are similar, such as baby grows?
I would appreciate your thoughts on how far to diversify a niche.
Hi Elizabeth, sorry to hear that you missed it, if you subscribe to my channel you should get notified in advance. Noted re the time. Thanks.
Hello Nick! Been watching you since i opened my POD store in january this year.
I heard you say that it's better not to put free shipping but why?
Still can't figure out which is better, free shipping or charging for shipping. People love free stuff and the green icon under the products look attracting. But can the fact that the price scares people away? Is it better to lower the price and charge for shipping? None of my testing worked by the way. I did a lot of finance work and i cannot lower my price, my worldwide sales profit is less than $1. May you just explain why charging for shipping is better, isn't that goes against human psychology about "nice free stuff" like delivery?
Hi there, it really depends on your product, I'm not sure what you mean when you say none of your testing worked. For free shipping I'd recommend you test items with and without. In terms of $1 profit that is very low, feel free to contact me to book a call if you would like to work with me.
Hi Nik - thanks for your videos.
I’m looking at your courses. Do you offer a money back guarantee or refund if a costumer is not happy with the course..? In general, I’ve found courses that offer a refund are better because the creator believes in their product. The ones that don’t, are usually very average with some value add. Thanks.
Hi there, thanks for your comment. I have a 30 day guarantee on my courses yes. If you need any help in deciding which course is best for your please let me know.
So I can do Print on Demand but I just need to Niche down right ??
Hey Olly, in short, yes.
We've heard you time and time again deterring us from using social media to direct traffic to our Etsy stores - but I'm yet to hear anything about email marketing. Would marketing to an email list with a link in the email(s) to our Etsy store have the same effect as social media marketing would have?
Also, providing it doesn't, would you encourage us to direct our social media traffic to a landing page instead where customers can enter their email addresses and we can then market to them?
Hi Charles and thanks for your question.
Yes, the effect would be the same, it is an external source (your mailing list).
Send traffic to your mailing list FROM Etsy ;)
@Etsy Consultant thanks for this. What should I then market to my email list then?
Also, if I buy a domain name and redirect it to my Etsy store, would that also have the same effect as social media too?
Can we do various goods but niched design ? so like professions. and offer tshirts. bags. ornaments etc. but only using that niche ?
Hi there, yes you can. Keep us updated with your progress!
Hallo I want to get to know that international seller can sell in Etsy? I need a help please answer me .
Hi it depends where you live.
Hi Nick, I'm curious. If I want to grow my shop quickly- for example launching 5-10 product listings per day, is this safe for my shop?
Did Etsy not suspend my shop for spamming products on their marketplace?
5-10 a day is very far from spamming
Hi Budi! Although 5 to 10 is not spamming it is far too high for a new store, especially if you do not know how well your products are going to perform. 1 or 2 a day is much better and gives the algorithm time to get to know your store.
@@etsyconsultant Thanks Nick. I'm currently preparing 300 images for 300 listings in my new shop and plan to publish all of them in the next 30 days.
Hi Nic, I am into a niche that I’m passionate about. Lets say its fishing. Can I make a praising design about the latest fishing rod model from ABU or is this against their rules?
No, you cannot do this if you mention the brand in your listing, be it text, pictures, design and so on.
Nick my question is I’m passionate about two things - my culture being a Filipino.. and inspiring/christian things… is it okay to have both on my store? Also with the Filipino quotes and designs i’m not confident that there would be a lot of customer for it in etsy should I pursue it?
Hey Authentic, yes it might be possible to combine both, you will need to sit and thing about what products you are going to make.
Check the Etsy marketplace to see what others are doing.
Good morning 😊
On the back of this video this morning I have just gone into my TH-cam channel store on Spreadshirt and pruned my ranges.. essentially because I realised in watching this video that targeted 🎯 listings with thought to the buyer is what counts. Mind you Spreadshirt and TH-cam take 😅ages to update those changes..
My channel is on my channel logo and I’d like to get into one of your training classes please.
Kind regards,
Scotty…
Hi Scotty, thanks for your message, sorry I am behind with answering comments, please contact me via my website about training dates.
etsy-consultant.com
Excellent 👌
Thanks!
I am sooooooo happy I found you!! I’ve had my Etsy store 5 weeks and now I have good direction! My only question is do I try to catch up with adding listings or stick with one a day….. again thank you!
I'm sure he will respond but I think looking at the long game is more important, and pacing your listings one a day for ninety days may be better than doing the same amount in thirty days. Two reasons stand out: First, by coming to the store daily and posting, you indicate to the Etsy algorithm that you are very active, and second, if you get some early sales (unlikely but always a possibility), and you find a trend toward a certain product, then instead of putting out massive amounts of products in short time, you can redirect your effort in midstream to create product that meets the sales.
But even that's not the important thing. Like EC has said, if you command the category listings (make sure you have all your categories you plan on having with at least one item in each category listed now), if your SEO is up to snuff (check out his latest SEO videos, they are solid gold), your site is attractive and you have used up all photo and video slots per item with quality photo shots, have a comprehensive "About" section with all your pertinent information, how you do things, etc, then I would imagine you'd be ahead of at least 80% of the stores in your niche. But again, think long game; Etsy is not only not a sprint, it's a grinding uphill walk for miles and miles. But the scenery you see is worth it! Good luck.
Hey, thanks for your question, stick with one a day, daily activity in your store for longer is preferable.
MY OPINION: not just these TH-camrs telling people the real truth that niching is gonna be your better bet, but also to really brand your shop!
I see shops with a persons name in it, and immediately I write them off as they’re not really trying to create a business .
And I’m not saying that they won’t do it later and I’m not saying you have to brand upfront because by all means, I see people need to get things going ASAP.
But every time I create a side hustle business, I completely brand it because my brain says what if I make this so successful that I can sell my company ?
If I continue to keep my name in the name of the shop or the branding at the shop, then no one’s gonna buy that .
Hi there, fair point.
Three of the TOP 10 most successful Etsy stores of all time, have people's names in them.
I was wondering how to target specific customers in etsy?
Why not find something that you genuinely passionate about. What kinda Etsy shops have you been mostly looking at? Choose that and then focus.😉 For me I have about 4 Etsy shops but will focus on just 2 of them one Digital and the other posters both in niches. I can do the pet and vintage stuff later.
@@AmazingMiracles I have digital downloads shop Bingo cards actually
You target your customers using your products, SEO and branding. There is no way to target specifically. Etsy does the rest.
Hi Nick. Can humor be a niche? I have an idea about a print on demand store that sells only humor-themed apparel with jokes and funny quotes on it for various niches like sports, hobbies, occupations and relationship but all designs centered around humor. I would appreciate your comment on this, thanks!
I started learning to teach art over 20 years ago. Its a passion to teach that's kept me going. I hope my passion will come across with my prints.
Hey Paul, appreciate your comment. I'm sure it will. Good luck on your Etsy journey!
So, is abstract art not a niche?
Hi Alicia, yes it is.
Hi I’m new to Etsy i have a Etsy shop to I need some help with my videos photos to thank you
How can I help you?
@@etsyconsultant hi I need some help do some videos and if you can take a look at my shop and let me if my prices are to high and how do I lower them a little bit thank you
@@etsyconsultant my shop name is Jocelyn Farquhar
It would help if Etsy would quit suspended me!!
Hi Mary, So sorry to hear that it can be so frustrating.
Hello Nicholas, I really appreciate your work. The Content is super amazing and very informative. However, you seem to be inconsistent in the content post and Video editing. I know you're swamped with work and have busy days. So for these reasons, I want to be part of this journey and would like to assist you in all aspects of social media growth from editing to creativity. My experience will surely save days-hours of time and effort. Please let me know when you are available to discuss this.
Hi, thanks for getting in touch. Just email me etsyconsultant @ outlook.com
@@etsyconsultant Hi Nicholas, thank you so much for your response. I have dropped an email provided by you, please check.
Looking forward
if I had not started as a general store I would have pretty much 0 revenue and 0 sales, or very little revenue and 0 sales. the reason my store is successful even in the slightest is because I went wide. my only popular items are ones that I would not have created had I not made a general store. I am considering a niche down or more focused future, but advising people against building a general store before they have any sales or a niche in my opinion is bad advice. you have to GET SALES, and what if what you think is a niche is so saturated you couldnt break in in 100 years? thats why my strategy of going wide and then finding what works and THEN when I have multiple popular products start hugging them more closely and letting go of the ones that are a waste of time. niche down as people like to say, but starting off that way would have killed the dream from day one.
Hi Ritchie, and thanks for your detailed comment, and I am glad a general store worked for you.
Please remember I have seen thousands of stores in my consultancy and the number 1 failing type of store is a general store, and new sellers are highly unlikely to ever succeed building one.
This failure rate is drastically enhanced by the simple fact that 95% or more of all these stores are POD.
Sellers plaster their designs all over the hundreds of products POD offers and it kills the stores right from the start.
@@etsyconsultantlike I said I wouldn't have sold a single item if I had taken your advice and I would still be sitting here with zero sales I think you're out of touch with reality.
👍👍!
Thanks Mark!