tinahdee

If your photos are a bit flat or if you’ve been told you need to “brighten up” your product pics, you might need to adjust the highlights and shadows. Don’t worry, it’s easy if you’re using the free photo-editing software called Picasa.

Open your image in Picasa. Click on the Tuning tab. You’ll see four sliders, a color picker, and under that, a colored graph called a histogram. The histogram shows the distribution of light and shadow in your photo. With the sliders above it, you want to even up the distribution as much as possible, so that in your photo you have “high” highlights and “low” shadows, giving the image depth and making it “pop” from the screen with lifelike clarity.

It’s easy – while looking at the histogram, move the sliders for highlights and shadows over until each side of the histogram is stretched out to the edge of the graph. Check the photo and make sure you don’t have too much highlighting or shadow and adjust the sliders as necessary.

Notice how your picture comes alive with this easy technique?

Gold and silver stacking rings

Your product description is important for different reasons. You should include certain elements in your description in order to glean the most benefit from it.

Tiny Details: On Etsy, the product description is where your customer finds out important information about the item specifications: how heavy is it? what are the measurements? is it available in different sizes? can it be customized? So make sure you take the time to measure your item, describe the weight and feel, and spell out any options that are available.

Search friendly: The description should also be a rich repository of relevant keywords so that buyers can find your item easily and it shows up higher in search results, both on Etsy and search engines like Google.  Make sure that your keywords occur early in your description. Choose certain keywords that are descriptive of the product and your shop in general. For example, one of favorite keywords is “rustic”. It describes my jewelry well, and helps people find me. I try to include this keyword in most of my titles and descriptions. A general rule of thumb is that you should repeat the most important keyword that is in your product title, in the first sentence of your product description. If my item is titled “Rustic Sterling Silver Stacking Ring”, then I begin my description like this: “I handforged this rustic sterling stacking ring and added oxidation to bring out the details.” Wow, I got almost the whole title in there, and it doesn’t sound fake or forced. Google will like that.

Your Vision: If you have an artistic vision for the product, you should include it in your description. Make sure it is from the heart, and your story will resonate with the right people. For example, my brass stacking “Redemption” rings have an interesting and true story that have persuaded many buyers to get the ring because they identify with the story. One customer fighting a deadly and rare disease purchased my Braveheart ring in part because of my vision for the ring. Don’t make up a story just to make one up – that’s not compelling to the buyer and it is easy to see through. It’s better not to force yourself to make up a backstory. I don’t include an artistic vision on every product, just on the ones that are clear and obvious to me.

Suggestions: Buyers appreciate usage and customization suggestions, so include them in your description and even if visitors don’t read your description, the keywords will be searchable. You’re not supposed to include suggested uses in your tags, but there’s nothing wrong with putting them in the description. Often I’ll include sample personalization ideas in the description and buyers will use those ideas. This makes the buying decision easier, and that’s a good thing for you.

Link back to your main shop page: I include this on every product. That way if a buyer lands on your product page from a search engine or an inward bound link, it’s easier for them to find and *stay in* your shop, as opposed to going right for the orange box at the top of the page (that links to the main page of Etsy). I’ve read in the forums some opinions that Google Shopping frowns on links in the product description, but I’ve been doing this for over a year and have not experienced any problems. Your mileage may vary.

As you can see, your product description is really important. The time you spend crafting a well-written description is worth it.

Rustic Braveheart Copper Ring

Just as signing up for a diet program doesn’t mean you will lose weight, buying an ad doesn’t mean you will get sales. There is a whole litany of details that need to be attended to before weight gets lost or ads get sales. Don’t make the mistake of thinking that just because you plunked down the cash you deserve results.

First, is it a good plan? If you’re signing up for one of those fad diets, you might be wasting your time and money. Or if you can’t live without carbs, don’t expect the Atkins Diet to bring great results on the scale. In the same vein, you have to find the right place to advertise your Etsy business. Know your target market and tailor your ads and the places where those ads will be seen to your target.

Second, are you putting enough effort in? Now that you’ve found the perfect diet or ad venue, your job is not done. You have to put the effort into “working the plan”. Are you following the rules of the diet to a “T” or are you a little fuzzy on the calorie limit? Regarding your Etsy product, are you offering the very best to your potential customers? Are you displaying that in your ad, and perhaps more important, when potential customers visit your shop are they impressed by what they see? You might be on the best diet plan in the world but if you don’t put the effort in, you won’t see results. Same thing goes for your advertising plan.

Finally, are you just dieting or are you adding in some exercise too? You will see faster results if you exert yourself on a daily basis, both in your weight loss efforts and in your quest to get more sales. Add in a routine that includes getting the word out about your shop by networking with bloggers. Offer stellar customer service that makes your buyers want to tell the world about their experience with you. Find ways to give of your time, your resources, and your abilities – be generous, and the world will be generous to you.

Give these things a try, and who knows? Suddenly you may discover a lean, mean sales machine emerging from that once sedentary shop.

Oxidized Sterling Nugget Rings

I’m back today with more tips on what works for me in product photography, specifically for jewelry. Sellers are always asking for advice about how to get more people to buy what they’re selling. Photos have to be one of the most important, if not THE most important details. You could have the best product on the Internet, but if your photos don’t reflect that, you probably are not going to be able to twist someone’s arm to buy your stuff.

Last time I talked about lighting. This time I want to share my thoughts about settings and background. In an effort to dress up their photos, sellers will place items on busy backgrounds like patterned paper, or surround the item with foliage or flowers. This rarely works well because in order to draw someone in to your shot and coerce them to click through, your product needs to be the most important thing in the picture. I heard someone say that your item needs to be the star. With small items like jewelry, that is especially true.

There should be no doubt in the shopper’s mind what you are selling. That doesn’t even mean that the entire piece needs to be inside the boundaries of the photo – sometimes it’s better if you leave a bit to the imagination. What is means is that there should be nothing else in that photograph that distracts your buyer from the item you are trying to sell. Nothing.

Simple is better. It’s good sometimes if your background has some texture, but not too much texture. Color, but not too much color.  Definitely not too much of both.  I use tumbled marble tiles for a lot of my photos. They have a lot of texture but very little color, so it works.

If you are showing your item on a human model, the rules are a bit different. If the model is attractive, this can work in your favor for getting clicks and it doesn’t matter quite as much if your item is competing with the model for attention. Get them to click and then you can show them more details about the piece you’re selling.

Renaissance Pattern Wedding Set

Today seems like a good day to talk about advertising for Etsy sellers – what works?

It’s in the thirties here in West Central Florida. Interesting weather! I have a lot of jewelry making to do today because I’m finishing up my Valentine’s Day rush orders. I also have a lot of housework and kid stuff to catch up on. I think I’ll write a blog post. Do you blame me? Who would want to go out into the garage/workshop in this kind of weather? I’m going to wait until it’s at least 45 degrees.

I still owe you part two of my photography tips blog post, but in the meantime, advertising is on my mind. I’ve tried a lot of different things in the 19 months since I starting marketing jewelry on Etsy. Experience has shown me that there are three big things you can do to get your shop in front of shoppers.

1. Editorial coverage (get people to write about you and link to you from their websites).
2. Google shopping results (get your content syndicated in what used to be called Google Base).
3. Renew, list new items and relist sold items on Etsy.

This trinity of tactics is what works for me. Of course, for these things to work, you’ve got to have a marketable product (unique, attractive, and in demand), and FANTASTIC photos. There’s no point in being seen if what they’re seeing doesn’t draw them in. And your tags, item titles, and descriptions have to be accurate and crafted in such a way as to make them relevant in search results.

Notice that I didn’t include traditional advertising in this list. Not that advertising never works – it’s more that finding the magic sweet spot of the right place, the right placement, the right time, and the right place takes a lot of time, tweaking, and money – or sometimes you might just get lucky. The best ad placement I ever had was an unexpected spot on the front page of Brownstoner that I got for free as a result of helping out eSellerAds with some testing they were doing. And even that ad didn’t bring me more than one verifiable sale – but it was great exposure during the time it was running. It brought me a lot of high quality traffic. The only problem is that once the ad is gone, the traffic is gone.

That’s why it is important to get websites to write about you and link to your site. That kind of advertising is worth a lot more than paid advertising, because not only is the owner of the website vouching for your product, the content and the link to your shop stays on the Internet indefinitely, so your presence expands as time goes on. Plus, search engines will rank your shop higher in search results the more other sites link to you and vouch for your product. Your shop becomes more credible, and then every time someone searches for the type of thing you have in your shop, you are more likely to come up in their search results.

And what about renewing on Etsy? Well, you pay $.20 to list a product in your shop. That twenty cents gets you the privilege of having your item listed in your shop for four months. But when you renew your product before the expiration date and pay another twenty cents, it also does something else very special: it bumps your listing up to the top of the search results when sorted either by recency or relevancy. And in that way, it is a very effective way of promoting your shop. Etsy has done a great job of getting people there – and once they’re there, you want to be able to draw them to your shop, because not only are people browsing, they’re shopping. You want to get your piece of the money they’re going to spend. So when they decide to search for that particular item they have in mind, or drill down to the category, you want your items to come up first (and then those fantastic photos will cause them to click – IF your photos are indeed fantastic).

A few months ago, I stopped all my paid advertising (with one important exception), and transferred that budget into renewing. I have seen my sales increase to a consistent daily amount since I did. That is truly advertising that works.

I stopped almost all my paid advertising, but still participate in “gallerias” on popular style blogs. These are seasonal listings in which blog owners charge a small amount for you to be placed in a juried collection of items that are hallmarks of the season. Usually these placements include editorial content and links – the kind of vouching for that makes advertising truly worth it because, remember, those links (from popular, highly ranked blogs and websites) stay around indefinitely.

So there you have it – some ideas and opinions from a highly opinionated Etsy seller on what has worked for me. Now I’m off to do some much-need laundry.

silver braveheart ring for men $130

This little widget from eSellerAds is going to come in really handy for savvy Etsy sellers, since we are always looking for new ways to promote our shops online. Type in your user name at eSellerAds and the software automatically generates a widget that contains every listing in your shop, in a scrollable and clickable format that lets browsers click right through to an Etsy shopping cart if they decide they can’t live without one of your creations. Take a look:

The widget comes in several different sizes, all IAB standard sizes (to make it easy to purchase ad space). What’s more, the ad automatically updates itself whenever you change something in your shop. That’s right, no matter where you have published your widget, there’s no need to change the code or update it, because it does that for you.

These eSellerAds widgets will be available for a small, affordable monthly subscription fee, and there will be additional benefits added on as time goes by. If you’d like to be added to a mailing list so you’ll know when eSellerAds widgets are available, leave me a comment below.

I had to make a run to the bookstore this morning to pick up my copy of Bust Magazine. The August/Sept. issue is out and that means the Etsy Buy Handmade ad is in there! I think it came out pretty good. It will be interesting to see if it brings any attention to my Etsy shop. See if you can find my little spot.

I offer free worldwide shipping in my Etsy shop. I used to be afraid to ship anywhere but the US. Boy, have I come a long way. Just today I heard from my customer in South Korea, who got her shipment from me eight days after I sent it. Last week, one of my customers in Australia received his order after only four days. That’s astounding, considering it takes at least that long sometimes for a letter to make it from one side of the US to the other.

I hear from handmade artisans all the time who say they only ship within their country. I live in the USA, so this blog post is coming from my perspective as an American jewelry maker. I have no problem with shipping my jewelry all around the world. When I first started on Etsy, I was apprehensive about shipping outside the US. No one makes it really clear exactly how to ship a package to another country, and I didn’t want to risk losing my product simply because I didn’t know what the rules were.

So I’m here to tell you that shipping from the US to other countries is easy and economical. The first ounce, via First Class International (package rate), is only $1.44. I’m lucky because the vast majority of my orders are under an ounce. Here’s how to ship a parcel via First Class International:

1. Pack your item as usual but include a slip of paper with your return address in case something happens to the envelope or box. I’ve never had anything untoward happen, but just in case, it may help your item make its way back to you.

2. Tape the outside of your package very securely. I ship in an envelope and tape the entire outer surface to make it more durable and at least somewhat waterproof. If you’re going to do this, make sure you address the envelope, including your return address, before you cover it with tape. If you use a box, tape all the corners and seams very securely.

3. When you address your parcel, make sure you copy the address exactly as it is listed on your Etsy receipt, and make sure you write the country name under the address. Write USA under your return address as well.

4. Fill out customs form 2976, for orders that are valued under $400 USD. For orders over that amount, use form 2976-A. There are two parts to the form. One part goes on the outside of the package, and the other part stays at the post office on file. You can fill out a customs form online and print it at home (http://webapps.usps.com/customsforms/) or pick one up at the post office. If you fill it out at home, you can tape the customs form onto your package so it is not obscuring the address. Make sure the form is flat and smooth so the bar code gets scanned correctly.

5. If you have a scale at home you can weigh your package and put your own postage on. First Class International (package rate) starts at $1.44 for the first ounce. Or you can take it to the PO and have them weigh it for you. To find out exactly what your postage will cost, you can visit the USPS postage calculator.

6. Some countries may have restrictions on shipping your type of item. Many countries bar the shipping of precious metals like gold and precious gems like diamonds. My jewelry is not considered “fine” jewelry (although I think it’s just fine), and so has never had a problem making it through customs. When you fill out your customs form, be honest about what your item is, but also be wise. Instead of writing “fine artisan jewelry” on my customs forms, I write “handmade fashion accessory”. Both may be true, but the second is probably a lot less likely to invite closer inspection. To check various restrictions, take a look at the USPS’s Index of Countries and Localities.

7. Make sure the postal worker scans your customs form and prints you out a receipt. This gives you at least some proof of mailing, since First Class International mail doesn’t carry delivery confirmation. Additionally, you can pass the customs form number, which should be printed on your receipt, to your customer, and they may be able to use the number in their country to check on the package if it gets held up in customs. You can also look up the customs form number at the USPS website and it will show that the package was accepted at the post office on a certain time and date.

8. If you’re going to ship internationally, make sure you have noted in your shop policies what your customer can expect. First Class International carries no delivery guarantees and makes no promises about a delivery time frame. Your customer should be prepared to wait several weeks for their delivery, even though most of the time it will be sooner than that. Make sure your customer knows that if they need their item by a certain date, they’ll need to upgrade their shipping, and that most of the time that carries a very greatly increased cost.

Stay in touch with your customer – email them when you ship, and ask them to let you know when the package arrives. Reassure them if they’re getting nervous – my South Korea client had emailed me just yesterday wondering where her package was. I sent her the customs form number and let her know that she needn’t worry yet.

Of course, if you ship internationally long enough, you’re bound to have an “incident,” just as you will if you only ship within the US. Plan for that, and count it as part of the cost of doing business. I hate to think of all the sales that I would have missed out on if I felt it was too risky to ship my silver jewelry all over the world. The benefits have far outweighed the risks. And they will for you too. So give it a shot!

Copper Hinged Hoops $32

I really love my social networks. I’m about at my limit for how much interaction I can do, though. There always seems to be a new, great social network just over the horizon. I’ve tried out a bunch of them, and the ones that seem to stick for me are Facebook and Twitter. I’m part of FriendFeed too, but I admit to never checking it to see what people are doing. I can see them all just find on Twitter and Facebook. Between those, Etsy forums, and the few mailing lists of which I’m a part, I get enough virtual socialization. Too much maybe.

I keep hearing about the business pages for Facebook, aka Fan Pages. If you’ve been on Facebook lately, you’ve seen the suggestions to become a fan of “Hugs” or “Sleeping”. Not sure who would invest the time to set up a page for Sleeping, but it does seem to go viral in a big way. I decided to create a fan page for my Etsy shop. It’s easy enough to do, but figuring out how to “go viral” with it hasn’t been quite so effortless.

I don’t want to spam all my friends by asking them to become fans. I hate being pushy.. well, maybe I don’t mind being pushy sometimes. What I really hate is coming across like a multi-level marketer. Or what if some of my friends hate my jewelry and now I’ve put them in an awkward position? I do hate that.

I posted a little notice on my profile that I had created a fan page for my Etsy shop and got a few takers from that. I bought an ad on Facebook and got hits but no new fans. I think I’m going to create some kind of giveaway incentive to get people to “fan” me. I’ll let you know how it goes.

By the way, I am having a great Weekend Deal this weekend. Buy one, get one free on all my stacking rings and ring sets (except solid gold and spinner rings). Yep, you buy some rings, I double your order at no extra charge. Just enter the discount code BOGO in the notes to seller at checkout.

Micro stackers set of 10

I sold a nice little brass and crystal ring today; it was only $6 and it was one of a kind. I got it out of my bag of rings and packed it up to send to the customer. And my poor little ADD brain thought – wow, maybe I should put some of these other little rings up on Etsy too! I have a whole bunch of eclectic one of a kind rings that would make a nice budget price point. So that’s what I’m going to do. I listed the first one this afternoon – I call it my Ginormous Bling ring.  I’m going to list these one at time over the next week or so, so check back at my Etsy shop frequently. Each one is one of a kind, and each is only $6.

Also, this weekend, shipping is completely free on every item in my shop, no matter where you live and no matter how much you order. Not only that, but make a purchase this weekend and receive a free surprise gift with your order. Fun fun!